Today I went to see my mother for Thanksgiving. I had the radio on, 101.5 FM, to listen to Christmas music on my way down Glenwood Avenue. The sky was blue and the sun was out. A beautiful morning.

As I passed Krispy Kreme on my left approaching Historic Oakwood my mother's favorite Christmas song came on the radio and I had to smile and shed a tear at the same time. Charlie Brown's jazzy tune filled my car and I rolled down my window so that it could fill the air. A warmed 61 degrees floated in and cooled my face. I took a huge deep breath to still my melancholy and continued to drive to Oakwood Cemetery. I knew that the song would come to an end as I approached mom's spot. Sure enough it did.

I got out of the car and walked over the grass to our family's plot, a peaceful area on a hill that catches every breeze. The mistletoe in the tree above mom's stone and cross was more visible as the leaves laid bare the branches.

I knelt down and put my hands on her cold stone as the warm morning sun hit the right side of my face and I quietly let the peace wash over me. Tears streaming down my face. Church bells in the distance rang out ten times.

Happy Thanksgiving, Mom. I miss you.

When I got back in my car and turned the key Frank Sinatra was singing "You better not cry".

I had to laugh.

Thanks Mom. As always you wipe away my tears.

Hugs.

(c)nancy  11.27.2015



 

Relation Ships

 

Ahoy Mates!!

 

I was watching a movie on TCM last night and in one scene a small ship was being manned by three people in a gale storm. One had to hold fast to the tiller while one furiously bailed water and the third person tried to fix the motor in the pouring rain and blasting wind. It made me think of their relationships to one another and then, of course, I divided the word in half and my thoughts began to sail along that wave.

 

Relation ships . . . we are always in one kind of boat or another, aren't we? When two people have a relationship it really is like they are in a boat together and have to figure out how they are going to man it across all the different seas of life. Will they work together to save the ship in times of tempest or will they give up the struggle of bailing themselves out of a possible disaster? When the wind is so still that it seems as if the monotony will starve your brain are you willing to wait it out until the shift occurs and a breeze creeps over the still waters to get things moving again?

 

I have owned a really nice sailing vessel at one point and it was fun to see its sails billowing out in all kinds of weather. White sails against a blue sky with the breeze at your back and the sun on your face feels so peaceful. But I remember one time when I was on the boat with two other people and we had to put on the yellow hooded slickers in order to stay dry as we manned the tiller, hauled a sail down, and generally tried to see land as the thunder, lightning and rain held us in its powerful and beautiful grasp all around us. Thrilling!

 

I don't suppose I should recommend doing that but I enjoyed it immensely. We were caught in its sudden embrace, held on, and fortunately, we all had the skill and the fearlessness to take charge of the situation. Friends have asked me if I was scared and I had to reply I was electrified. Not literally but emotionally. It still gives me chills. Do you see where I am going with this?

 

In relationships, not all will be smooth sailing, sunshine and warm breezes. It can get chilly and downright cold to the point of numbness. You may feel as if you will capsize with the next wave that hits.  Is your relationship worth riding out the storms? What do you really want?

 

I understand that sometimes you really do need to bail out of the boat because it's not going in the direction that you desire. You don't want to go to Africa or the West Indies. I get it. Be certain that's not what you want, and if a change in course is necessary, then be strong in asking for it. You may be surprised to find out that the person in the ship with you wouldn't mind plotting a new course together, not separately. Maybe that person really would like to explore the Mediterranean.

 

Whatever your course I pray you eventually find yourself in a safe harbour.

(photo courtesy of the web)

(c)nancy 7.30.2015

 

 

 



Wuthering Heights and Mr. Webster

Wuthering Heights

I had it on my mind last summer to read the classics. I read a few and then got into other subjects. But I saw Wuthering Heights on the Goodwill bookshelves and jumped up and down, figuratively speaking, before I grabbed it and sauntered to the checkout counter as if I didn't have something grand under my arm.

When I began to read it I soon realized that I wouldn't be reading it solo. I would have Mr. Webster on the couch with me as my go-to companion. I enjoyed underlining a word here and there in the paperback and writing its meaning underneath or in the margin nearby. I must say that I read a lot and know a lot of words but Emily Bronte stumped me a time or two.

Here are the words I needed to look up:

1. assiduity: consent or close application or effort; diligence; solicitous

2. sagacity: (I sort of knew what this meant) acuteness of mental judgement

3. copestone: (again, knew it was a stone but what kind?) the top stone of a building

4. asseverated: declared earnestly

5. lachrymose: mournful

6. weather-cocks: a person who readily adapts the latest fads, opinions

7. churl: rude person

8. negus: a beverage made of wine and hot water with sugar, nutmeg and lemon

9. sizar: an undergraduate who receives maintainence aid from the college (Cambridge University     and Trinity College)

10. thible: (this word was not in my Webster's) online - a stick or spatula for stirring porridge

11. heterodox: not in accordance with established or accepted doctrines or opinions esp. in theology

12. comminations: denunciations; of condemnation

13. immolation: sacrifice

14. pertinacious: stubborn

15. cockatrice: a legendary monster with a deadly glance, supposedly hatched by a serpent from the egg of cock

So, not to be lachrymose or a churl about this list as to asseverate that you may not know them either, I shall remain pertinacious in my assiduity in attending to learning more words and their meanings.

(c)nancy  7.15.2015

The Law of Attraction or The Law of Believing

The Law of Attraction or The Law of Believing

Some Universal laws are immutable like gravity. In the last decade a new term popped up for something that has been around and has been taught for ages. But it seems that what comes around will come around again, only dressed in new clothes to fit the times.

Here's a true story that happened only this morning.

I was laying in bed deciding either to roll over or throw off the covers . After all, being a Sunday morning, it felt right to linger. While I was lingering I thought, "It sure would be nice to have some cantaloupe with my coffee."

I thought it and let it go.

I threw the covers off and went into the bathroom first and then to the front door, as my custom is want to do. I like to open the door and see the morning. To see the three huge trees out front. To smell the morning and feel it.

This morning when I opened the door, what do you think I saw on my doormat?

An elephant?

Flowers?

A squirrel?

No . . . 

A ziplock bag full of nicely cut-up pieces of cantaloupe!!!

That's right, folks.

If you think it, it will come.

But it doesn't end there. I laughed, opened the door, bent down, picked up my cantaloupe, and thanked The Universe or God or whatever you would like to call All That Is, and I carried it into the kitchen and started my cup of coffee.

While my coffee was sputtering I went to the couch, sat down, plugged in my cell phone, and looked at the random and not so random emails that swooshed into it during the wee hours of the night.

Let me back up . . .

Yesterday afternoon I was texting to someone that I would love, or rather needed, a pool in my back yard. I texted it facetiously because it was soooo hot outside. So in texting it you may assume that one has the thought first in order to text. So the bottom line is . . . I thought it.

So what do you think one of the many emails was about that I got during my sleep?

Was it about a trampoline?

A go-cart?

An Arabian tent?

No . . . 

"Best Time To Buy A Swimming Pool is Now!"

That's right, folks. It was about above-ground swimming pools. (Okay, so maybe the internet picked it up and put down an email and dropped it on my phone because we all think that we are being watched or listened to via our phones, even if they are off, or our Alexas on the counter.)

At any rate, I laughed again and looked up to the ceiling and said, "You rascal!'

If you think it, it will come.

I have been practicing it specifically for two years. But I added something to the LOA thinking. Do you want to hear it? If so, read on.

First of all, the Law of Attraction has been around for a long time. We all know that. In fact it only appears to be a new thing. But it is only an old thing wrapped up in new paper. Put into the Biblical times it was called The Law of Believing and it went like this to those people:

"Now unto him (God) that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us."       Ephesians 3:20

So, one year I thought I would really put it to the test, or rather my thoughts to the test. In doing so I thought of another verse that I matched with the one above and it goes like this:

" ... and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."             Malachi 3:10

Then another thought came to me and I added one more thing to the bowl of attraction soup:

"Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls."              Luke 12:24

Putting all of the above together this is what I did. I had a conversation with God or The Universe, whatever you want to call her.  And I said:

I am going to prove you now herewith and I am coming boldly before you (Oh yea, that's right, I added this too: "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace ...", Hebrews 4:16) to say:

Feed me.

After all, you told me that I was more than the ravens and they are fed. In fact you also say that I am more than the lilies of the field and they are clothed. And you said that you are able to do exceeding, abundantly, above ALL that I can ask or THINK. So I am thinking and asking that you feed me. Show me your stuff! Prove it to me. Here's what I will do . . . I will eat one meal per day that you provide.

I proceeded to neither sow, reap nor toil. I did however keep my eyes open to seeing how God/the Universe would feed me and I was determined not to be surprised nor ungrateful about how it would happen. It became quite comical to me to see His/Her sense of humour for I did not interject any pride into it either. If a fish jumped into my lap from a tree then I would catch it and say thank you.

OK, don't fash Sassenach, that didn't happen but it would have been grand if it did. And a great, true story.

But I was fed.

I ate one meal a day, even if it was to half my lunch, and save the other half for dinner. It was still one meal that I stretched. I don't eat breakfast. It makes me slow. 

As I began my "proving" I kept it to myself. Unbelievably I did not lose any weight. After a while I would find food left at my doorstep. And not just any food. I would think it and it would show up. People would insist on paying for my lunch. I gratefully accepted and said thank you. Sometimes those lunches were so big that I would be able to have the leftovers for dinner. One time I was in the ER with my father and I had been there since before lunch so I had not eaten anything. Soon they decided since Dad had not eaten for awhile that they would order a tray up for him. When it came he ate the fruit and told me to have the rest. I did!

And there are more stories but it would be great fun for you to start receiving your own true stories through your own thoughts.

If you think it, it will come.

(c)nancy 6.14.2015

The Turtle and its Totem

 

I learned from a friend to look around me on a daily/hourly basis and see what the world was communicating to me. To stop and really see what was around me. Was the world telling me something? Some would use the word Universe or even God. After all this is our planet in which we live and breathe so why not stop in our daily lives, whether it has become hectic or mundane, to see what is before us.

 

Today when I came back from lunch I noticed what I thought was yet another big mushroom sprouting in my soggy front yard. But on closer viewing, I noticed it was the turtle seen above. He was eating the moss in my front yard. I thought it significant since I rarely see this creature on my lawn. I have only seen one twice before and not close together in sighting. Years apart.

 

So what does it mean? Why did he show up in the open eating my moss in my front yard where I had to walk near him to get to my front door?

Today I was picked up for lunch so I did not drive into my garage, therefore having to walk up my driveway instead. If I had not gone to lunch nor had not been picked up at that time, then I would not have seen him. Unless, of course, it was meant to be, and I would have come out at that time anyway to see the plants out front. But I try not to go into all that and just enjoy the fact that I saw the turtle and stopped to consider why.

 

I had looked up 'turtle totem' before but wanted to refresh my memory. Here's a few words about the turtle:

 

"The turtle represents the way of peace – whether it’s external or internal. It is considered as the Peace-Maker in Native American traditions. This animal is also often associated with the feminine principle or feminine energy, which foster peace and harmony with all things. Being inspired by the wisdom of the turtle totem, you can slow down when you feel you are getting overwhelmed by a situation or emotions and rest to gain a more grounded perspective. This spirit guide can assist you in taking time for yourself to better integrate all the aspects of a given situation or issue."

This is taken from http://www.spiritanimal.info/turtle-spirit-animal/.

You can look up "turtle totem" on the internet and get more information. Even if you don't believe in animals showing up in your life or in your yard to show you something you may need to listen to or heed, it can still be fascinating to learn about and maybe help you to gain a wider perspective on what is going on around you. To notice that the world, the Universe, God is talking to you or reminding you of something. Maybe to stop and take care of yourself. Slow down. Be patient. Learn to be comfortable within your own shell. After all, the turtle carries his home on his back. He is comfortable wherever he goes.

What spoke to you today? What was in your path today that you saw? Did you miss something? Look and listen. You may be surprised for when you begin to look and see things that are out there for you specifically you will see more and more. It will become second nature to you which was supposed to be first nature in the first place.

Once three masked raccoons came to my screen door and peered in at me while I was watching TV. I looked them up and sure enough, it was what I needed to hear. Another time three geese showed up and that too was spot on for me.

So take care to take care of your surroundings and yourself and see what is speaking to you. You may be enlightened!

(c)nancy 8.13.2014

 



There are Good People in the World

 

Usually there is a picture included in my posts. I take every one of them myself if possible. It combines two things that I like which is photography and writing. And then a third thing . . . reading.

 

But this entry has no picture because I do not know who the good person was who did a good deed yesterday. Can you take a picture of an angel? Here's the story:

 

The night before, I called my Dad to see if he would like to "do lunch" with me the next day and we could also run his or my errands. He delightedly replied, "Yes!" So the plans were made.

 

I usually call him every day around noon to "check in" and it has become our thing. If I don't call then he gets worried. So I called him around noon that next day (which was yesterday) and let him know I was on my way. I picked him up at his condo and we were off to The Fresh Market in Cameron Village first for groceries. I was going to buy some goodies for my daughter and her fiance for their little trip this coming weekend. A picnic dinner. They have great stuff in the deli section there and when you've worked all day, then have to drive to a destination, you just don't want to have to think about "what are we going to eat?" At least I don't. So the treats were picked out and we were on to our next venture. The K&W close by for lunch.

 

We hit it at a great time in between lunches and had a very short line to go through with our trays. You always have a bit of grade-school cafeteria feelings as you slide your brown tray with your utensils on it wrapped in a black cloth napkin along the metal rods to the cashier. Dad always likes to get plenty of vegetables, and I usually get at least two and sometimes a dessert. But not this time. We like to see how low the cost per meal can be especially if you just get water for your drink, which we did this time. I won as I only got two veggies. Dad always insists on paying.

 

As we were eating, I got a text from my sister, so I grabbed my iPhone out of my pocketbook to see what was happening and then laid my white phone on the white tabletop. We continued eating and talking and enjoying the fact that there was not a crowd. That meant we could go to the cash register to pay and not have to stand in a line. That's something I really hate. Lines.

 

Since my Dad is in his 90's I am very cognisant of objects in his path, and I usually walk with an arm entwined in his arm. He fell once and broke his hip and I don't want him or me to go through that again! Painful to the max. So I focus all my attention on him when we are together walking. Dad pays for our meal and we head outside to our Handicap Parking Space and get in my car. The sun is shining and we decide to drive by our old house, "1800" we call it, to see the flowers. Not a good show right now but we keep heading down St. Mary's Street to Glenwood Avenue and turn left, headed once again to his condo.

 

I walk him in, help him rearrange his porch furniture, water the plants there, and then take his trash and recyclables out to the bins at the end of the parking lot for him. I drive home thinking that a snack sounded pretty good once I would unload my groceries. With that idea in mind I do exactly that and then do what I normally do before I sit down . . . grab my phone and glasses out of my purse.

 

No phone.

 

What?!

 

I look again. No. I go out to my car and look all around. No phone. And then it hits me. In my mind's eye I can clearly see my white phone placed next to my white plate of food on the white table at the K&W.

 

Oh no!

 

I get back in my car and tell myself over and over again, "There are good people in the world, there are good people in the world" and if I had Dorothy's shoes and could click them as I drove, then I know I would have felt even better. I keep breathing and don't let myself get in a panic. Loosing a phone isn't all that bad but loosing my precious mother's last pictures of her that I took was about to make me cry. But I kept it together believing in the goodness of people. 

Breathe.

 

I arrived at the K&W and it was closed between lunch and dinner but I thank God there were four employees sitting on the outside concrete picnic benches eating their lunches. I asked them if they worked at the K&W and they said yes and I said I thought I had left my cell phone on one of the tables when I was just here for lunch. Could someone help me? Yes.

 

One of the persons got up from the table and went to the main door and knocked on it and made a come here motion with his index finger. The door was opened and I was able to go in and ask the folks at the cash register if anyone had found a cell phone and brought it up to them.

 

Why yes!

 

So there are good people in the world!

 

It reminded me of the time that I found someone's bank debit card in the parking lot of said bank, picked it up and brought it into the bank so that they could perhaps find the owner and get the card back to them.

 

Of course I had to call Dad and tell him about it and I said, "I guess what goes around DOES come around, Dad" and he said, "Well then you deserve everything you get, Sweetheart."

 

Because I was driving I corralled my tears and emotions so I could see out of the windshield and said, "Thanks, Dad."

 

He's a good one and there are good people in the world.

(c)nancy  6.27.2014

 

 

 



Hats Off!

 

Sometimes you just have to be silly and try on some vintage hats in an Antique store full of treasures and not so much good stuff. But the treasure today in the store for me was having fun.

 

If you need a pick me up, try taking a friend with you to a store and model hats.

Take posed pictures that bring the girly out in you. And you guys do the same. It'll be fun. Really! No kidding.

 

Or go swing on a swing in a playground. When was the last time you did that? Or take your shoes off and go stomp in a rain puddle while you get wet in your regular clothes. Pick a dandelion puff, make a wish and blow it to smithereens. Catch a few lightning bugs in a jar but let them go.

 

It's not too late to be young at heart and show it.

(c)nancy  6.20.2014