That's Bailey, our grand dog, just about ready for a bounce. He's taking a pause to let everyone know, that his grandparents, that'll be us, that we're packing up, & getting ready for a trip to D.C., to visit his Uncle, & you never, ever know, what the City on the Hill will have in store.
There's a rumor going round that the Queen of Soul is expected in, to perform, so on that note, & in respect & thanksto Bailey, for taking the time out of his busy schedule to inform everyone, we'll just have to let you know what it is we're due to discover on this upcoming trip.
There was a rhyme I knew so long ago, it went something like, "What a tragic life we lead when we practice to deceive."
As far back as I can recall, I tended to be one of those children, you know the one many a family would have, where the child would say, "The Emperor has no clothes." This of course comes from that deep rooted instinct, for honesty & over a life time, we have learned to teach ourselves, when it is most appropriate to share this, or when it is necessary to keep such thoughts & opinions to ones self. My favorite American playwright, Eugene O'Neil, of course was able to do this by putting the thoughts, feelings, & character behaviors that he himself might have had, or observed in others, right out there on the stage, or as my husband might say in one of his favorite expressions, warts & all, which for all practical purposes though a rather ugly image, nonetheless, says a lot in just three words. I on the other hand once I've taken in a situation, & it has stewed for a bit, I then tend to work it through the way you've seen on some of the various postings here at the Peace Garden. Why I do it this way, I can't really say, but I think it goes back to an over reaction, to growing up in an era of being told, "to be seen & not heard", but ultimately, one is required if they are to go forth healthfully, & well adjusted~
to be truly honest with themselves, & being we all have a need to shed, we need to remind ourselves that, as a dear friend so lovingly taught; we are not to be beasts of burden, & therefore many crave to be free to express in our own unique ways, what it is that makes us who we truly are, without the fear of a naked emperor, re visited. This is just one of the aspects of living a life, that I find most profound, & indeed important.
So in keeping with the topic of respect, honesty & difference I would like to take a line from~
Lady Ga Ga, of whom I too am a big fan,~ "I was born this way."
A way I would never consciously choose, but nonetheless, it is who I am, & therefore on certain days, such as these, a poem that I composed, though in keeping with the title of today's posting may feel of a rainy day kind of nature, which it is of course~ for in nature, as in all of life's gardens we do need the rain, & eventually it does stop, & we will once again feel the warm embrace of the sun, as long as we remain patient with ourselves & , keep the faith.
Coming to Terms~
A Poem to My Mother, as My Brother Turns Sixty on 10/14/11
I did a true
opposite,
you
to be there
full
on days of gray, & sun, & blue
to put my children
close
first
in fortifying
talents
dreams
of striking not
destroying hearts
and minds
so young and strong
yet fragile too
The inner minds
of children's hearts
can see it
feel it
know it all~
when gardens
topple
to unrest
adults
destroying
worlds.
***********************************
The poem shared above was composed & written on 10/12/11, & after much thought, it was decided to be included in today's rainy day posting.
Thus completes, today's addition to the Peace Garden's ongoing~
Poetry A Muse In Motion project, of which we wish in every heart, a sense of real true peace.
This Friday October 14th, my brother will be turning sixty. In preparation for his landmark in time, this summer when we were up in the Berkshires attending a beautiful blessed event of our friends son's wedding, there was time the next day to mosey around some of the unique, & quaint towns up in the mountains, & of course there it was~ the cutest, sweetest, & perhaps oldest teddy, I had ever had the pleasure to contemplate buying, at an antique shop, which was going out of business due to the poor economic situation that has been ravaging our country, to this very date.
So here it is now, soon to be transported, but taking a much needed break up there on our sofa, propped up next to one of my favorite books, which our son had also enjoyed, back in his childhood days, Robert Lewis Stevenson's- A Child's Garden of Verses, the very first of what I do recall, as my ever introduction to poetry, even before I had heard of any
Mother Goose.
So, there it is, my basic roots, & rythmns of those formative years. I'm no
Lewis Stevenson, or
a Barrot Browning, by any means. Am just a grown up person, who was once a kid, of which~
Am just a grown up
person
who now
once
a kid
of which the lines and rythmns wander~
through
at
times
and catch me
still
to stop attend
to write it down
to see what comes
of
harvested
thoughts
it
gives me peace of mind.
***********************************
And thus completes today's additon to the~ Poetry A Muse In Motion project, of which we wish you peace, true peace.
The beautiful indoor autumn garden you see here, has been lovingly, & artisticly provided by the talented hosts of last nights B'nai Shalom Sisterhood meeting~
Thank You~ Sue & Tina for your generous, & talented artistic flare, that we can all now continue to enjoy in this morning's, peaceful garden of thoughts~
P.s, As of 10/13/11~ there is a Post Script posted as an update to my ongoing baking project~
Finally, finally had the chance to put together a batch of some rather tastey cakes,
you got it, as it's official name says it all, they are the~
5772/2011
"Take Me to Betty Ford, Burnt Sugar & Apple Honey Cake"
& I do mean it too...
After sampling way too much, they are now sprinkled with powdered sugar, wrapped & in the fridge, awaiting travel to an extended family member's post office, of you know who...
For several Octobers now, still close enough in keeping with the spirit of the Jewish New Year, I've been doing a little baking to share with our extended family. It's a fun project that I set out for myself, as it allows me to bake, which I really love to do, but it also gives me the quiet time to remember our extended family, with a sweet note, another aspect is, it helps me to swiftly get the baked goods out of the house, as~ Betty Ford won't admit me for my sugar problem, so I'm on my own with that one. But, my husband made sure I got a walk in this evening, & tomorrow I'll be sure to walk Dolly to further up, the exercise I need, to keep this sugar thing at bay.
So all I can say at this point is, it's a wrap, & tomorrow these sweet cakes will be airborne.
~Bon Appetit~
*Post Script of~ 10/13/11~
A batch of three mini loaves went out in the mail on Tue. 1o/11/11 to our cousins in Dallas, & another mini batch is on the way to my brother's town outside of Worcester. Am hopeful that they arrive fresh, & intact, of which I can only guess, as I'm not in the food prep biz, but do have experience from decades ago of sending brownies, & chocolate chip cookies to my husband, when we were dating, & I was in nursing school, back in the 70's when he was stationed in West Berlin. Oh my, those were definitely the days, quite historic of course, as there is no longer a West Berlin, but one unified city. Yes, progress, progress, as we've gone forward.
The reason for this Post Script, is that my baking has reached a plateau, as the mini batch I prepared last night collapsed, probably due to, too many of Eve's apples, & these Betty Fords, really do look like failures, though as my husband & I sampled them this morning, & are without a doubt- very tasty, but not suitable to be mailed. The solution for now is to- stop the baking, & continue tosend out our cards of the season, & for the winter holidays will continue on with this sweet concept of a project, as for self preservation, it really is time to get myself our of the kitchen, for as I shared~ Betty Ford won't admit me for the sweetness of my problemo!
Truly a wonderful tribute & memorial to John Lennon. The really cool thing about this project of light, is that as we know, light travels..... ,~ to & through our universe & beyond. Beyond our human lives, & existence. For as these beams of light travel, they will be traveling even beyond our time. Billions & billions, of light years into the future, & with it's particles, quite the message simply stating,~ "Imagine Peace".
Our son Zac is a bit of a travler, he sent this to me early on, this evening. I'm not certain which city this photo was taken in, & if you look real close, you can see the post-it's in the furthest right window, sort of going towards a vanishing point. And isn't that what we all eventually must do... , recede into that infamous vanishing point, the stuff that famous artists are made of, & the not so famous too...
Steve Jobs, brilliant beyond words, & the man who's name will forever come to mind, when one is thinking or talking about a computer. When the biographies come out, there will of course be speculations as to how, & why, as to the deep motivating factor, to make such an enduring name for himself. My thoughts are not in any way of a high tech nature, just a motherly hunch~ It seems to me, that because he was given up, by his biological mother, who was a college student, at the time, when he was born, in some really fantastic way, his true nurturing adoptive parents, helped inspire him to create his own unique narrative, of a person of value, in a world that has got to initially hurt, to know, that the one who had you, could go on with their life without you in their life, even if it was for an unselfish reason. Abandonment, can hurt. It is what a person does with that hurt, that truly counts. Steve Jobs, mortal genius man, as any human being, had the same basic human needs as any one, the need to be protected, loved, & sheltered as a child, & to also say to the world~ hay, I count out there, don't forget me.
And that's what it is we will do, never forget, this brilliant, creatively gifted soul,~ Steve Jobs. For I'm sure he intuitively knew, we're all in this together. Why else would he have done so very much to make the technology of the future, so readily available, for the here, & now.
Steve Jobs, may you forever~
rest, in peace.
Amen
*******************************************
One of the ways in which I go forth to honor a person's memory, is to really take in, & think about how that person, personal or public, has impacted my own life,~ what it is that they have shared of themselves, that has helped me, in my own way, to grow forth as an individual, in order to make my way in the world. Public figures, are just that to us, but some of these individuals that we collectively mourn publicly, are truly the shining stars that we all know have impacted us, even though we never knew them person to person, nonetheless, their person hood, has transcended all of that & we do in many ways, feel the loss, though public, we still feel it ever so private too.
Enclosed is a link to the commencement address, that Steve Jobs made at Stanford University in 2005
{It seems the photo I introduced in the first paragraph of today's entry, for some reason will not embed it's self, so once I get this snag resolved, will be sure to re post it on the very first opening. The embeded Youtube link, is working, at my last test of a click, of which I hope you will the have to chance to see.}
Yesterday completed this years High Holiday season. As always it is both a joyous, & very serious time, for Jewish people all over the world. We marvel that we as a people & as individuals are still here, living in this world, that we often times on what one would say could be an ordinary day, as any human being, can take for granted. It is the most sacred of all seasons for us, rejoicing in yet another New Year, & also acknowledging deep within ourselves, that we as individuals are all flawed, far from perfect, & we do acknowledge this especially at this time of year, with prayers requesting that we be forgiven, & also doing what we need to do, to forgive others.
Though we are an ancient of people, we are not without our modern thoughts & ways. Our most sacred scroll the Torah has been, as those of us who have been raised Jewish know~
has been discussed, interpreted & recorded, over centuries, in the Talmud~
which certainly is us, a people who crave & seek knowledge, & are taught at a very early age, to have opinions, & discuss what it is we may have thoughts on, & to question. That has always been our way, of which has become our nature, of which our own true nature has thus, been formed.
I do believe, all the peoples of the world, have a beauty, & aspects that are most special from which they were born & raised, none, any better than an other, with all God's children, learning & sharing, as best we all can, by being who we all, are intended to be.
Rosh Hashanah is considered to be the birthday of the world, so it is with this, that we are intended to go forward~ to do our best to care for one another, by caring for our precious planet, we call earth. By doing our best, to do all these things, & by passing it on, from generation to generation, we will have continued to fulfill what it is we are intended to do in each & every life, on this small planet.
Continued~
Good Health & Happiness, One & All!,
as we all continue to inhabit, our beautiful blue planet, in a most dynamic spot, of our celestial solar system~
Some times we hear the tree in the forest when it falls, sometimes not..
Life is a discovery process, and with it our mutual search for peace in our hearts, and in our world at large. Love and, acceptance is the key.
I am now a mother & a grandmother, but during my childhood's generation many of us were given limited choices if we wanted any type of job outside the home. The word career was never mentioned. We were often told to become teachers, secretaries, waitresses, & nurses. I chose the later. It suited who I was, & as I delved into it year upon year I acquired knowledge and skills I never would have achieved in any other way because the nursing profession provides unique human experiences which not only helps our patients but enriches the lives of our fellow/fella nightingales too. All of it further developed my desire for- peaceful solutions in all matters.
The purpose of this blog is a hint of what all human beings desire whether verbalized or not...
"May Peace Prevail On Earth", is a possibility for one Person, one Nation at a time.~xo~
