Look Homeward, Angel
^^^
Look Homeward, Angel
1929
Select Title Image to Buy My Book on Amazon
For some reason the images no longer show here, but when you click on the question mark, it links to my books on Amazon.The Dead
The air of the room chilled his shoulders. He stretched himself cautiously along under the sheets and lay down beside his wife. One by one they were all becoming shades. Better pass boldly into that other world, in the full glory of some passion, than fade and wither dismally with age. He thought of how she who lay beside him had locked in her heart for so many years that image of her lover's eyes when he had told her that he did not wish to live.
Generous tears filled Gabriel's eyes. He had never felt like that himself towards any woman, but he knew that such a feeling must be love. The tears gathered more thickly in his eyes and in the partial darkness he imagined he saw the form of a young man standing under a dripping tree. Other forms were near. His soul had approached that region where dwell the vast hosts of the dead. He was conscious of, but could not apprehend, their wayward and flickering existence. His own identity was fading out into a grey impalpable world: the solid world itself, which these dead had one time reared and lived in, was dissolving and dwindling.
A few light taps upon the pane made him turn to the window. It had begun to snow again. He watched sleepily the flakes, silver and dark, falling obliquely against the lamplight. The time had come for him to set out on his journey westward. Yes, the newspapers were right: snow was general all over Ireland. It was falling on every part of the dark central plain, on the treeless hills, falling softly upon the Bog of Allen and, farther westward, softly falling into the dark mutinous Shannon waves. It was falling, too, upon every part of the lonely churchyard on the hill where Michael Furey lay buried. It lay thickly drifted on the crooked crosses and headstones, on the spears of the little gate, on the barren thorns. His soul swooned slowly as he heard the snow falling faintly through the universe and faintly falling, like the descent of their last end, upon all the living and the dead.--James Joyce "The Dead" From Dubliners 1914
“Chasing Cars,” by Snow Patrol
We’ll do it all
Everything
On our own
We don’t need
Anything
Or anyone
If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?
I don’t quite know
How to say
How I feel
Those three words
Are said too much
They’re not enough
If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?
Forget what we’re told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden that’s bursting into life
Let’s waste time
Chasing cars
Around our heads
I need your grace
To remind me
To find my own
If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?
Forget what we’re told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden that’s bursting into life
All that I am
All that I ever was
Is here in your perfect eyes, they’re all I can see
I don’t know where
Confused about how as well
Just know that these things will never change for us at all
If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?
Songwriters: Nathan Connolly / Gary Lightbody / Jonathan Quinn / Tom Simpson / Paul Wilson
Chasing Cars lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Moriarty
“I don’t know,” I answered. “I can but imagine.”
Dusk embraced us now, at the window here in the blog cupola. The Blue Deer lifted its head, sniffed the air, and then walked off into the woods. I pulled the window shut, picked up my purple and white iris the Phantom had picked for me and we headed down the winding staircase, I behind the Phantom. In case I stumbled I hoped he would catch me. If I went first I feared he would push me. I didn’t want to flatten my iris.
When we reached the foot of the stairs, I thanked him again. We parted there. I lifted the iris to my nose. The stem had a nutmeggy smell, like his hand.
“What is your name?” I called after him.
“Moriarty,” he called back.
The Fog
S.M.
Comments should be open and available on the page for this post. It says comments are allowed, so I don’t know why you cannot post a comment.
What a beautiful post Samantha/Carol … truly each words and sentence a delight. I really mean that. I’m glad I didn’t miss this, even if rather late. Thank you very much – an extraordinary story told with a lightness of touch that you have in spades ….
Thanks so much, Susan. Your kind words mean a lot to me. I am very glad you came by. “Better late than rushed,” my motto. I enjoy hearing others’ thoughts on my work; always useful in giving me insight about my work that I hadn’t seen — and apropos of what you’ve said here. You know, I don’t fully think about it as I go — I just write it. And this one was fun. Thank you, thank you, thank you. 🙂
I abhor dusting…
but I am now hungry and thirsty
and have a longing to be seated at the round table
with a literary figure, namely you…
R.
And enjoy the tintinnabulation of light conversation that simply rolls off the tongue. I would’ve invited you for a recent evening when Poe came and brought a cask, but the cask had a big leak in it and so we ran out of Z early. Besides, I walked into the kitchen and what the–? Dickens had pulled the pot of leftover chili off the stove and onto the floor and had eaten the rest. I’m glad you stopped in, though, R.
–Samantha
Your post and the music are haunting as several people I know are on the verge of death. They are such kind and wonderful people too. I don’t understand how the end of life can arrive SO early for some people.
It is lovely hearing from you and hearing that you are doing well!
HUGS!!
The music IS really ethereal, haunting, Gwynn. Even for those of us who have lived long, life becomes shorter and shorter. You are on the top of my list to email. I think of you often and wonder how you are doing. I keep saying I will write soon, I know. And I will. I just want to get my “Leftover Bridges” book published before I run out of time. My goal is to publish it by July. So, that’s where my writing’s been focused and not on emails.
Thank you for your compliments on my writing — and for coming by.
Hugs!!
Samantha
I’m listening to this beautiful music as I’m writing to you Carol. It hauntingly captures something quite ethereal as your words do too. I too think of those who’ve died and no longer here, but they are in some way, in our memories, a song, a scent, a sound –
Yes, so true, Susan — a song, a scent, a sound — hauntingly, just when you least expect it. But, here you’ve come by in real time, and I so appreciate hearing from you. Thank you.
–Samantha/Carol
Thank you for this.
R.
Thank you for reading and commenting, R. And thank you, Alexandra Streliski for your beautiful, poignant music.
–Samantha
Time flies so fast I don’t even see the gusts as it passes. I wish I knew in my younger years what I know now. It is too late to go back.
I’m with you there, Gwynn. I don’t even know how I got this old.
I’m so glad you came by. Thank you.
–Samantha
Looking forward to your book!
R.
You’ll be the first to know. Thank you.
–Samantha
“Time flies over us, but leaves its shadow behind.” ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nice of Nathaniel Hawthorne to time travel to leave a comment on my blog. Thanks.
–Samantha
I think I have fixed this so you can make comments.
Oh my goodness, Carol, you were SCAMMED! What happened to you is against the law. You can sue the living daylights out of that company. The good news is that you received most of your goods, after all of these years. I am SO SORRY this happened to you.
I’m sorry it happened to me, too, Gwynn. My first thought was, am I one of these old geezers, so unaware I got scammed? But, I couldn’t have known, and they scammed a lot of people. Most of the victims are out West. I have a friend here, though, who moved from Nevada some years ago and the same thing happened to her and her husband. All I can say is, it’s not like the old days — hard to get good service, as Susan mentioned. But, yes, the happy news is that I received most of my things and it’s so exciting to open cartons and unwrap the newspaper from fragile items and discover these forgotten treasures. It is truly like finding myself again. Thanks for coming by. 🙂
Good gracious Carol, that’s a helluva story. I was getting excited for you in the beginning, getting your own things at long last. I was amazed at the cost – the deposit seemed a huge amount but this obviously because of the exchange rate. But then on reading further, I was increasingly dismayed for you. ‘Service’ seems in short supply these days.
In the meantime, enjoy unpacking what you can. I hope you find many other treasured items, unbroken, as you remember them. I hope Moriarty helps with getting a few boxes up the stairs and into the attic.
Thanks for coming by Susan. Moriarty pretty much hangs out at my blog. I certainly would be aghast waking up in the middle of the night and seeing him standing at the foot of my bed. But, I do have a young friend here, Joe, who has helped me with the heavy lifting and carrying things up and down, to and from of the attic, because some things the movers put there didn’t actually go there after all and vice versa. It’s been a helluva ride, though, as you say, but it is fun opening the boxes after all these years, discovering forgotten treasures — every day is Christmas. You know, it’s like I died when I left Calif. and now I’ve been reborn into my essential self. It’s fun finding myself again. And, Joe’s amazed at how many candles I have — all colors and sizes. I certainly was illuminated. And my “magic candle,” a wine bottle with all different color wax drips running down it.
all these different varieties of oranges! Like the colour, there are many shades. It’s a colour I like, though many cannot bear it. We have many varieties here in SA too, though I’ll be hard pressed to name them. If they look good I’ll buy. Satsumas I know .. mandarins/tangerines too. I juice, peel, add to fruit salad, and a little orange juice added to salad dressing lifts the dressing significantly ..
Thanks Carol, educational as Gwynn says 🙂
Thanks, Susan, for coming by and for being a loyal reader. Yes, I have eaten oranges from South Africa — Minneolas, in particular. They are very good, and I welcome them here, since your season is the opposite of ours: I can enjoy Minneolas and other orange varieties year round. Too, I believe you have a particular variety of black grapes that are delicious, and I always try to find them during their season. Great idea for adding a little orange juice to salad dressing. Must try. I like a salad for dinner with nice glass of wine.
Thanks for the education. The oranges that have reached us this year have not been very sweet or easy to peel. I’ll stick with eating Honeycrisp apples – YUMMM!
Thanks, Gwynn, for being so loyal and coming by. This post was originally intended for the Hip Senior Magazine November issue, submitted to follow up on my general citrus story in the October issue, but the editor never published the oranges story. Since at the end of the citrus story, I promised to follow up with an oranges story, I published it here. Pressing ahead, I don’t mind mixing apples and oranges, and those Honeycrisps are sweet, crispy and juicy. I love the Winesaps and the Pippins, although I can’t find Pippins here in Delaware, only in California.
Boy, history sure does repeat itself. Too bad we don’t pay attention to what happened in the past so we don’t trip over our own feet and fall into the past.
Well said, Gwynn. Thanks. Thanks for coming by a second time and commenting again. Sorry the place got so messy. Moriarty’s been on vacation.
Those were the days my friend, we thought they’d never end – and they don’t do they as you’ve shown so well by your walk among the autumn leaves and take in the beautiful surroundings. Lovely piece thank you, beautifully written as always 🙂
This morning I was looking at the clouds from my balcony – they were unusual and very beautiful. The one looked liked a dove, wings and all … Neil took up a scrap of paper and made a very simple drawing of it.
The wings of a dove, Susan. It’s good to enjoy the small things, nature’s gifts to us. A robin built a nest in the transom windowsill above my front door. I regard this as a sign of good fortune. She comes every year, but I guess the eggs aren’t fertilized, because I haven’t seen chicks. She gets mad, though, when I step outside to enjoy the camels.
“Those Were the Days,” one of my favorite songs. The older I get, the more nostalgic I get — not unusual, I suppose. But, with our quarantine, social distancing and mask wearing, it seems remembering days gone by are one way out.
Thank you, as always, for coming by. I do enjoy your visits, and am hoping, now that my retail store work hours have been cut, to get back to visiting your blog and others, just focusing more on my writing.
S.
Thanks, Gwynn. And, I just found a photo of my uncle and me on the beach in Ocean City, N.J., when I was 16, the age my granddaughter Sophia just turned. My uncle and I loved surfing the waves. And when I came to Calif., I surfed the waves in Hermosa with my four-year-old daughter, Kellie, standing on surf’s edge cheering, “Do it again, Mom! Do it again!” There’s nothing more refreshing than getting hit on the back of the neck by a cold wave.
Yes, one of the reasons I posted this piece was to take our minds off isolation and social distancing and this whole surreality. I thank your great grandfather a thousand times for working to save Hetch Hetchy, Yosemite Valley’s twin. I’ve read now that the water in that reservoir is no longer needed. I wish they’d empty that valley. Yosemite is heaven on earth. So would be Hetch Hetchy, and heaven knows we need these heavens on earth more than ever these days.
S.
Remembering past special times is a way of relieving the stress of being told to isolate and social distance. For me, I remember the joy of watching for a large wave that I can flatten my body onto and soar into the beach on it as I listen to the roar of the surf and the scream of the seagulls as I feel the warmth of the sun on my back. It is such a relaxing feeling. Enjoy your hike, and if you are in the Hetch-Hetchy area of California say a special prayer to my Great Grandfather for preserving that area. Thanks for the memories!!
Sam, you definitely entertain in style. You need to hide a bottle of the Pinot Grigio under your side of the table so that Moriarty doesn’t drink your share of the wine. Now, I hope you are at least sitting six feet apart and wearing your masks and gloves. Stay safe and healthy!
The round table’s pretty big, Gwynn, so, sitting opposite each other, we were nearly six feet apart. I like your idea of hiding a wine bottle under my side of the table, since Moriarty pours himself a full glass, guzzles it and only pours me a splash. I’d like to think the alcohol in the wine would keep us healthy, but should it comprise the requisite 60 or 70 percent, we’d both be under the table forthwith. Thanks for coming by, Gwynn. A delight to hear from you. You stay well, too.
This was a delight Carol, thanks so much! Off into the stratosphere I was swept, where the atmosphere kept me aloft for a while. Such lovely writing thank you!
I shared your offer of your books for free on FB … a very generous gift.
Who will you be eating easter eggs with? Is Moriarty around for that? Any camels in sight?
Definitely the camels are in sight, habitually, Susan. Don’t know what I’ll do on Easter. Hadn’t thought of it. The retail store where I work is giving us the day off — only due to COVID-19. Otherwise, I’ve been working and haven’t thought much about Easter. It’ll just be a quiet day off, I think. I’m trying to catch up on my writing; I’ve gotten so far behind with all else I’ve had to do. I’m hoping to get caught up on my blog reading, too. It is so good to hear from you. I miss all my writer/blogger friends, and you are a special one. Thanks for coming by. Thank you for sharing my book offer. The more people who download my book, the higher I rise in the Amazon ratings. If I rise high enough, Amazon will promote my books. I think I’m a long way from that, though, but every little bit helps.
Sam,
You had me at round table, you illuminated me with swaths of yellow sunbeams, Moriarty quenched my thirst with Pinot Grigio, you tickled my fancy with Jane Austen’s snickering, Wolfgang’s sniggering and Schubert wiping his tears of mirth from the lenses of his glasses and with Jefferson’s blank stare. My appetite was wetted with the chips and hummus, macaroni and cheese and popcorn. I was reminded of a friend who once exclaimed, “ These wine bottles must have holes in the bottoms!” I was swept away to Paris, off to the ballet and seated by a quiet poet while peeped at by another not so quiet poet, all the while, contemplating how did we get here? Life is short and so much has happened. Doris and David will tell you, if Charlie will let them talk. I wish you good ‘morrow.
Ever,
R.
Well said, R. And, you’re lucky Moriarty quenched your thirst with the Pinot Grigio, for he made himself such a large second pour and then drizzled such a small splash into mine, I thought indeed the bottle had a hole in the bottom. I’d kind of like to hear from Doris and David. I think Doris has said something; I’m not sure about David. As for Thomas Jefferson, I hear he’s quarantined himself in the Blue Ridge somewhere, writing a blog, composing, out of a decent respect to the opinions of mankind (rare these days), a declaration about the current Course of human events.
S.
Thank you for sharing this story and a little about your life and what you’ve experienced. It took months to get here, but I found your blog today as I cleared out old email that I’d neglected. Blessed Solstice to you and may there be many new stories.
This ode to snow is so lovely Samantha thank you … beautifully written and evocative of its magic.
Boy, when we first moved to California from Washington, we moved out in the desert. Believe me, I felt like those onions and taters, being fried. Now, that I’m back in Washington, the summers have become warmer and more humid, so I plant myself in front of our fan. I’m definitely not a senior who loves walking around in the heat. I need my walk in the early morning at the waterfront when I have a cool breeze. Ahhh! Fun memories.
Thank you for stopping by my virtual venue on your walk, Gwynn. As always, good to hear from you. Here on the East Coast this summer it’s been frying pan hot, temps to 100 and high humidity. I have to get rides to work. That half mile walk gives me heat exhaustion on those days. Even our store, where I work, is hot. We have a big fan that blows on us when we’re cashiering. It never used to be that hot here, that hot for such an extended period of weeks. Do take care. 🙂
As if they were rummaging for a socks! That’s a lovely description! I remember a previous post in where you said you were at the checkout counter weighing strawberries and the customers –
This is a delightful tale thanks Carol ..
Yes, it is funny, Susan. I have the pleasure of observing the amazing and absurd human actions. I’m always like, “Really? You’re doing that?” Great grist for storytelling and humor — and laughing at ourselves, as well. Thank you for stopping by and commenting, as always.
We customers sure can be picky! 😉 I always check that the baskets don’t have rotten or over ripe strawberries or whatever fruit I’m checking out!
And, I’m one of those customers, Gwynn. Friends don’t enjoy shopping with me, because it takes me a while to weigh and balance and sniff just the perfect piece of produce having just the right color and feel to the touch.
Thanks for stopping in and checking out this latest story I’ve harvested.
So enjoyed this Carolina! Thank you! I look forward to the book – with recipes!
Thank you, Susan. I’m looking forward to getting this book on the market. And, maybe when you’re over this way again sometime, we can sample some of those recipes. So glad you came by, as always.
Boy, I’m amazed strawberry plants had to be plowed under each year. What a project! Farming definitely is not an easy job. Great descriptions! I’m with Hilary as I can’t believe that someone would lean on strawberries. Maybe she was hoping that you would give them to her for free!
You nailed it, Gwynn: it’s amazing, the customers’ finagling to get something for free, or even for just 50 cents off. In this woman’s case, I think she was just unaware. I did love those strawberries, though, on that farm — my mother and I both enjoyed picking them. They were the Camarosa variety, grown in California — big, firm, juicy and sweet. Now I’m hungry. Thanks for coming by my blog. So good to hear from you. I have been in such a tunnel lately.
Well done Sam – farm work is always hard … but the benefits are fresh air and good fresh fruit or veg … good to read one of the stories here … and having your elbows in punnets of strawberries is just plain stupid … I can quite see you’d need to extract them … cheers Hilary
Yes, Hilary, I did enjoy the farm. I stayed in Florida six years longer than I had intended, just because of it, seven years total. Re the elbows in the strawberry punnets, it’s amazing what people do. I work in a discount retail store now, and it’s incredible. I could write a tome about customers’ actions. But, I’ll let my “Funny Farm Stories” speak for both. Thanks for coming by and being a loyal reader. I do love hearing from you. Cheers, Sam.
This is a lovely meditation Sam thank you! I love how you say the snowflakes have a mission when they fall out of the sky – it’s a very evocative image.
Monday 11th Feb was my younger son’s birthday so it’s pleasing to me that he shares your father’s birthday. It’s also the day that Mr. Mandela was released from prison 29 years ago …
Dear Susan, I apologize for the long delay in replying to your most welcome comment on my snowflake meditation. I like your saying that. It is a meditation, after all. Interesting, our connections — Davy’s b’day is my father’s and your b’day is my maternal grandmother’s. My father often said that he was born on about the same day as the great men — Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12), George Washington (Feb. 22), and now the day Nelson Mandela was released from prison — but, of course.
Hi Sam – I’ve found it almost always snowed on my birthday Jan 13th … so the memories you have of your father’s birthday, almost twinned with yours on the 9th … we have lots of family birthdays in February … so can relate.
Snowflakes are amazing – while the path it leaves fills all those gaps before melting away … delightful story – cheers Hilary
Dear Hilary — I have been remiss on replying to much hoped for comments on my own website. I do apologize. While trying to keep up with life and my day job, time melts away. I’m so glad you came by. Cheers. –Sam
Truly beautiful writing Samantha thank you. ” True, I lay in wait, ready to pounce on nouns, verbs, images, phrases to combine and devour in whole stories..,” this you do in spades – and more. Life is there even if looking into the abyss or the void…
True, Susan. Thank you for your kind words and for being such a loyal friend and follower. It means a lot to me.
–Samantha
Your descriptive memories are so fun to read. I feel that I’m right there with you and the magic of your words massage my heart. What lovely memories! I hope the Autumn leaves are brightening up your weekend. Enjoy your day off!
Yes, the day off was welcome and serene, Gwynn. Thank you for your compliments on my writing. My aim is to make you feel like you are right here w/me, so I’m glad I succeeded. Next time I’ll provide umbrellas so you don’t get too wet in the mist and the rain. Thank you for being a loyal friend and follower. It means a lot to me.
I remember this story and am struck again by its poetic beauty Samantha, thank you. Bless those phantoms that remind us to be good stewards. Yesterday, the owl box that had been appropriated by bees over the last several years, fell out of the tree. The bee man came and gave them a new home which they settled into after some hours and after their agitation. We were out last night and upon arriving home and turning into the garage, an owl flew in front of us. It must have been on the wall … so, bees and owls … within a space of some hours …
Thank you, Susan, for your kind words. And, bees and owls — definitely represent a blessing, a protection, for you. They are watching over you with their tacit wisdom. On rare occasions, I’ll be sitting on my front porch at night, watching the camels, when I’ll look up and there’s a barred owl sitting silently on the wire. I am honored (OK, even though it may be looking for rabbits). 🙂
Your visits here are always a pleasure, Susan. Thanks!
You have delightful and wise mentors, plus a loving spirit family. It is hard to believe that this time was so long ago. Life definitely provides much inspiration. You write a lovely story. Hugs to you and Moriarty!
Moriarty’s blushing, Gwynn. He likes the hug.
I, too, am amazed at how much time has gone by since I encountered Moriarty in the cupola of my blog. Seems like just last month. Yes, I am so fortunate to have a loving spiritual family, wise mentors, and my angels around me. You are among them, Gwynn. Thanks for coming by and rereading my story.
Hugs to you, too. ❤️
Hi Sam – honestly I don’t know how people can be so unfair to the growers/ small farmers … but yes it happens and then the habit gets passed down and is worse …
I’m amazed to read that the strawberry season in Florida has already finished now … interesting to know – cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — I’m amazed that I missed your comment somehow. As for people being unfair, I believe that’s due to the age-old product of the human condition. I work at a discount store now, and while many of our customers are great, there is that element who can be just horrid — insensitive and cruel. My perspective is that these days there’s way too much poverty and suffering out there.
Re Florida strawberries, they have to be replanted every year, because it’s too hot and humid in the summer for them to survive. For that reason, most Florida crops don’t grow in the summer.
I do apologize for my late reply here. You are welcome here no matter the season.
Cheers, Samantha/Carol
No worries … these things happen – and you’re busy et al … I suddenly find comments – that I must have seen come through – but never get back, til way later, to acknowledge …
Our fruits and veg are just coming through now … so should be a delicious time – cheers Hilary
oh! now you’ve got me drooling! Cream puffs and strawberries – and cherries thrown into the mix? Thanks Carolina Gringo aka Samantha … much enjoyed. Good images in mind – also, cleverly not letting the customer get away with overloading!
Has me drooling, too, Susan. Our Florida strawberry season has just ended here. They ship the berries north, so we can buy them in our stores in Delaware and enjoy them. I used to make strawberry shortcake for my mother and me topped with the heavy cream I bought in the store and whipped. Yum.
These strawberry dealings with the customers occurred 20 years ago. And, as I reread this story for publishing, I wondered if I’d react the same now. I am more subdued and customers are way too sensitive these days.
Thanks for coming by and commenting. I will be over to your site soon to catch up on your A-Zs.
Ah-ha!! NOW I know how to get into your blog to read it. Your new blog announcement threw me for a loss. I was wondering if you were going to compete in the A to Z Challenge this year, but I see you are not… me neither. However, miracles do happen as I too posted on my blog today. I haven’t posted in some time. I enjoyed your story.
Happy you found my post, Gwynn. You can sign up on my website to receive email notifications of my new posts; then, you’ll always find them. Just fill in your email address in the box on the right sidebar here (where it says “Enter your email address,” “Subscribe”).
I saw you have published a post, also. Glad to see you’re writing. I always enjoy your posts and will be over to visit you soon. I look forward to reading it. No A-Zs this year for me; too much else going on, as with you, too, I’m sure.
I’m happy you came by and commented, Gwynn. Thank you!
While rummaging through your writing the re-sourcing, arranging, rearranging and hoarding of strawberries in your Funny Farm Story conjured a new character’s name for the antagonist in my latest SoFlo crime, murder mystery, romance, geopolitical triller, novel — Constance Greed.
Enjoyed this story, I pictured strawberries flittering from towered baskets skittering all over the floor of the the farm stand from the strawberry basket display table all the way to the cashier.
Looking forward to your next post.
R.
Well, actually it was the chain of cherry stems that flittered and littered the floor in front of my checkout counter, R, from customers helping themselves to samples of cherries displayed for sale in quart cartons on my counter.
Thanks for your comment, the visual and the apropos character name.
S.
The customer is not always right as fully evidenced by this post Samantha! Is this yours or Carolina Gringo’s story? I think it is yours? As you say people came back year after year in appreciation of the lovely produce …
I know who wrote this story can be confusing, Susan. To simplify, hopefully, when I worked at the farm market, my Mexican coworkers called me Carolina, rather than simply Carol. And, city slicker that I am, I was a gringo on that farm. So, I called myself Carolina Gringo, as I in other writing circumstances and for the purposes of this blog, am Samantha Mozart. So, stories within stories, as it were, Samantha Mozart is composing these stories as told to her from Carolina Gringo’s experiences. I hope this makes sense. I debated whether to approach the storytelling this way, but it’s fun, and if J.K. Rowling can use numerous noms de plume, I figured so can I. Thank you for coming by, as always. 🙂
Hi Sam – I can believe that happening … people are so unfair – probably not Highpockets – he just wasn’t quite right … but others who don’t appreciate the work that’s gone into producing fresh produce – I think I’d have taken Highpockets down to pick his own … but the others … I’d be grateful if they never turned up again – cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — Highpockets provided a source of amusement for us (when he wasn’t in the store), and, yes, there were others who didn’t appreciate the work, and I have stories about them. Highpockets could have picked his own strawberries, but I don’t recall that he ever did. We didn’t offer U-pic melons, though. Most of the customers were wonderful, thankfully — gave me recipes accompanied by samples. They’d return year after year. I enjoyed hearing about their lives. It was fun. And, thank you for returning here. 🙂 Cheers! Sam.
Hi Sam – no I guessed that … but if one took him down to pick his own melon once … then he couldn’t return it! Could he as he’d picked and selected it … but sounds like you had a wonderful experience working there though … cheers Hilary
Fun and educational, Hilary. Cheers, Sam.
Yes, sometimes you must tell them to get out and stay out.
R.
Thank you, R. You can come by anytime.
S.
Thank you so very much!!
Thanks for coming by, Journaleuse. I visited your website, and you have some interesting stories (I know little French, but I got the gist). As a journalist myself, I appreciate your work. I hope you will return.
Hi Samantha – these will be so interesting and fun to read … looking forward to more … life from the fields … cheers Hilary
Thanks, Hilary. My time in Florida was fun with plenty of novel and amusing experiences. “Life from the fields” — I like that. At the farm stand that’s what it was, for me and for my Mexican coworkers. It wasn’t only vegetables that arose from the fields, but also a variety of critters, furry, winged and slithery. I enjoyed meeting people from all over the world — Lithuania, Russia, Germany, France, Spain, England, French and English Canadians and the Italians from New York who bought the cases of colorful Cubanelle peppers. Cheers!
I look forward to more of these stories! They’re very alive not only for the writing; also for the snakes and worms and mosquitoes ..
Thanks, Susan. I will post more, doubtless competing for attention with the A-Z readership among my followers. Yes, my experiences in Florida were alive, both in high season with the snowbirds and off season with the critters.
Love this!!! Glad I took a break from a near insane work load. You, with your stories to tell, may have restored my sanity. Thank you.
R.
And, your sane compliment may have restored mine. Thanks, R!
S.
I love snow, but it seems like it’s becoming more and more rare where I am in Sweden, if you can believe it. Your post almost reads like a prayer for me, one that I can whisper to myself in the hopes of seeing more snow.
I’ll send you some snow, Sara. 😉 Temps have been below freezing here in Delaware, until yesterday, for two weeks. Our two or three inches of snow didn’t melt. People’s pipes froze and broke. I could use some advice on how to live in a cold climate (especially after living 30 years in Redondo Bch., where it was 72 and sunny year round). Ehh. But, truly, the snow is beautiful. I love watching it fall, so serene. I believe it is also good for my writing when I’m kept inside and at my computer on a snowy day.
So glad you came by. Good hearing from you.
We finally have some snow here, so your sending snow must have worked! 😉 I don’t really have any advice for cold living other than dress warmly! I believe there’s a saying here in Sweden to the effect of, “There’s no such thing as bad weather.” Meaning, when properly dressed, one can withstand whatever the weather decides to do. Obviously, hurricanes aren’t a problem here, heh.
Re your advice for cold living, I do have a jacket that’s amazing warm and I do dress in layers; yet, after two weeks of below freezing temps, that was enough for me. The hardest part is heating my house. It’s a Victorian, not a big one, but uses heating oil and that’s expensive. That’s when I want to go home to SoCal, to Redondo, where it’s 72 and sunny year round. Yes, we do have to be concerned about the occasional hurricane here in Delaware, and a month or so ago we even had an earthquake — 4.2, so just a brief little jolt, but most unusual for this region — just a sort of California memento, I guess.
How sweet, Sara. Thank you. I’m glad you have snow now. It’s snowing here today, flurries, ground too warm for it to lay, but it’s nice to watch the flakes dance on the wind. 🙂
Hi Sam – I thought you were in Sweden … but having looked at the Opera House site – I see not. There was a lot of snow on the east coast and I saw they had snow in Europe … being here now – it’s on the mountains (very little here in Vancouver Island) … I await a first proper fall.
What a wonderful place to work … cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — Yes, I do have a wonderful place to work — at my window watching snowfall in the winter and at other seasons the North American dogwood outside this same window give birth to blossoms deep and white as snow, then green leaf, then red berries for the migrating birds to gorge on, and then the leaves turn vermillion before they fall.
Normally we don’t have that much snow here in the Mid-Atlantic states — some winters it gets deep once or twice, most winters some dustings and a few six inchers.
You are on Vancouver Island? When did that happen? How did I miss that move? I thought you were in England. I lived in Southern California for 30 years, so can appreciate seeing the snow on the mountains. It is beautiful. Cheers and Merry Christmas!
Beautiful. There is nothing like soft, beautiful snow falling from the sky. The quietude all around, the joy. You describe the snowflakes dance so well, I can visualize it.
Some of my best childhood memories centered around those long-ago snowy days. I remember going out for a bit to play, but mostly watching it out the window, especially at night, when everything looked blue and felt perfect.
Have a good time decorating, Samantha, and Merry Christmas!
I can just imagine the snow falling in Romania, Silvia. It must be beautiful, snowfall in that beautiful country. Well, I know you can go up to the mountains there in SoCal to experience the snow, as you have. I’ve experienced some magical moments up there and up in Mammoth. I love your image “watching it out the window, especially at night, when everything looked blue and felt perfect.”
Peace to you and your family, and Merry Christmas!
p.s. it was on my FB – and I checked that I din’t receive it via email … I thought I was subscribed to receive emails from schehezerade chronicles but apparently not, but now I AM … I entered into the subscribe …
🙂 Thx!
this is so lovely Samantha! Snowflakes with a mission! I agree with R that you’ve captured the magical essence of snow. I loved how you say about the activity that goes on while the snow falls softly.
And those bells … whose sound captures a timelessness (even though you were almost lifted up off your feet – your angel wings helped you land softly).
We seldom experience snow here where I live, though in other parts of SA they get their fair majestic share.
Thank you, I loved this post. I almost lost it (your post) buried as it was under the snow but I’m glad I found it.
So kind of you to stop by and comment, Susan. You’re like one of those softly falling snowflakes, always thoughtful of others. I know what you mean about emails getting buried. It’s a constant with me. I have to dig out the special ones. And, hopefully, one of these days I’ll catch up. Thanks, too, for sharing the link to my post on your Facebook page. Much appreciated.
Dear Sam,
You have magically captured the magical sense of snow. The insulation and quietness of snow warms and rouses my spirit, so does what you have written.
Ever,
R.
Dear R,
Your magical comment insulates and warms me and rouses me to reply, thank you ever so much!
Sam
Oh this is so lovely, Samantha. I felt that I was right there experiencing the snow with you. However, the good news is that I’m sitting here in the warmth of our apartment, not out wandering around in your snow. Enjoy.
Have fun decorating for Christmas. I only have thrown out a couple of decorations, nothing exciting. I’m sending you the LOVE OF THE SEASON!!
I WAS out wandering around in the snowfall, Gwynn — to and from work. Nice, because it didn’t lay, except on the grass and tree limbs and they don’t require shoveling. My decorations will be much like yours this year. I did decorate the Opera House, though — eight of us decorated four trees, the balcony and hung a couple wreaths. I’m glad there were eight of us. A short video of our work is on the Smyrna (Del.) Opera House Facebook page. I’m so glad you came by and commented. Thank you. The love of the season to you, too. Wishing you glad tidings and great joy. <3
A lovely piece. I could almost imagine being there. The amount of mosquitoes sounds absolutely mind-boggling.
Not in my wildest dreams could I have imagined so many mosquitoes, Sara. They certainly made their point, as it were, inspiring me to write about them and their habitat evoking such a strong sense of place, Everglades City.
I’m so glad you stopped by, Sara. Thanks!
Hi Samantha – oh yugh … them mozzies I do not like. I was squirming as you related your tale – but great read as I understood a bit more and had to look up where Everglades City is … learning a bit about the geography. Sadly devastated … but it will come around again. Good memories … bet you’re glad you didn’t take the job, adjust to the mozzies and were still there – Irma wasn’t very kind – thanks for this – Hilary
So glad to see you here, visiting my blog, Hilary — where I have provided a special netting protecting us from mosquitoes. I have never seen anything like those dense clouds of mosquitoes in Everglades City. Residents placed smudge pots and other devices outside their doors to dissuade the creatures, but they swarmed right inside, anyway.
Florida and especially Everglades City possess a strong sense of place, whether or not one likes it there. Maybe it’s the humidity. It provides a great character for any story — such as Cornwall does — and an atmosphere conducive to writing. I did some of my best writing there, I think. But, yes, I am glad I didn’t take that newspaper job, and certainly glad I didn’t stay in Florida long enough to encounter Irma.
This is a piece of pure and beautiful writing Samantha thank you. I was with you all the way which in my view is a mark of excellent writing. I almost saw Lauren Bacall and EH and definitely felt the dreaded mosquitoes – keep on thinking about those haunting and sliding memories from so long ago and bringing them to your readers. Thank you so much for the ride!
What a wonderful, encouraging comment, Susan. Thank you. This is one of my favorite pieces, which was born as an email on a stormy Florida afternoon, that I keep recycling. Sometimes I get nitpicky, thinking to change a line or two, but, then, let it go, and I’m glad I did. The piece also serves as a genesis for a romantic suspense novel, for which I have made extensive notes. One of these days, when my life falls better into place, I will complete it. Thanks for your constant support. It means a lot to me.
Wonderful memories, Samantha. Hopefully they rebuild in a positive way. Hurricane Irma has devastated SO MUCH! I hope Hurricane Jose is not as destructive.
I hope they are able to rebuild well, Gwynn. Actually, I am astonished there wasn’t more damage from such high winds. I cannot even imagine, nor do I want to. Forty mph winds around here blow siding off my house. José’s path is dizzying right now. Let’s hope he blows out to sea.
Thanks for coming by and commenting. I plan to go over to your site and comment. Better late than rushed, but I do want to see what you wrote. I always enjoy your posts.
–Samantha
Lovely post Samantha! And so great it was read on stage – well done! Lovely memory of your brother saying ‘I’m not doing it’ – It sounds like a Darcy comment –
Thanks, Susan. I’m glad I got to know Jane Austen. She sets the example of great writing — and subtle wit. As for my brother, he hasn’t changed. He is an individual; feels no need to please others, whereas I’m the opposite. Thanks for taking the time to come by and read this post. 🙂
Oh, Samantha, how lovely to read that your contribution to such literary gem was read on stage. Thank you for sharing. I think I’m going to scroll back up and read it again.
Thank you, Silvia. The performance — and the rehearsals — were fun. I had never written a theater script before — except the one when I was 10, at which, with the audience (our family) seated, anticipating, my brother, onstage, said “I’m not doing it.” So, we never know where our writing may lead us and what long-held dreams may come to fruition.
I’m hoping, too, that high school English teachers will find this script and use it in their English classes.
Samantha/Carol
Thank you. Your comments fill me with joy. And thank you, Carol.
Silvia, I agree with Susan — that deeply thoughtful paragraph stands out. Ah, those days by the sea, on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States. I have loved them so much, and I have many happy childhood memories of my days in the surf and sand.
The Black Sea has long fascinated me, because I have read so much about it by great authors who wrote about it in fiction. I may never get to visit the Black Sea myself, but you have brought it to my shores in your writing. I feel as if I am there. Thank you!
Carol/Samantha
Silvia, this memory is so descriptive and lovely. It so reminds me of the days I hung out at Lake Washington and then later the California beaches. I love the pound of the surf and the cry of the seagulls. Best, I LOVE the rocking of the surf as I floated amid the waves, and zoomed to shore on the crest of the wave. I LOVE this memory of yours. Thanks for sharing it.
Thanks Sylvia for this perfectly enchanting story. I loved it – so evocative and image-filling. I’m excerpting this particular paragraph –
‘What starts as sensory and stimulation withdrawal turns into a heightened awareness of the elements. They listen to sounds the wind picks up from afar — broken sounds, but easily heard. To the lapping of the waves, the sea whispering its own language or that of creatures inhabiting its depths. Sitting on the beach for hours, they try to decide if the whistling sounds came from dolphins or some other fish. They laugh so much’.
Hi Sylvia – childhood memories … they do come back to remind us of those times … sometimes with some prodding … but can see where you absorbed so much during that and presumably other holidays … and the Black Sea does connect to other parts of the world … loved reading this … and I love being near the sea – cheers Hilary
I came across your post inadvertently Samantha – I could have missed it. I did not receive automatic notification of a new post. But so pleased to read this – and hope the upcoming (or already past) Smyrna event is/was a huge success! Croissants … who would have thought?
I don’t know what happens with these notifications, Susan, but you can re-enter your contact info in the “Subscribe” box in the right sidebar here on my site if you wish. It should reconnect you.
Glad you came across this. This is one of the all-consuming projects I have been engaged with since January. The event will be on Sat. afternoon, June 3. We’re in rehearsals now — it’s Readers Theater, and I must say, we have two very fine women actors.
Croissants — well, I don’t care what they would have thought, but I think our caterer’s chicken salad w/cranberries mini croissants must be much better than any cake Marie Antoinette could have envisioned. 🙂 And, we could not pull off this event without serving the caterer’s renowned brownies — nobody would come.
Thanks for coming by and commenting, Susan. So thoughtful of you, as always.
Hi Sam – well this enlightened me … particularly to the period she wrote in – and the other events that occurred and that were influencing Britain at this time … much was changing here and over on the continent and in the Americas. Also the availability of foods available … how times have changed … cheers Hilary
So nice to see you here, Hilary. I consider yours quite a compliment, coming from a Brit. I found my researching and learning all this about Jane Austen and her contemporaries fascinatingly enlightening and that Lady Caroline Lamb (she must have been quite a character) and Lord Melbourne connect through from George III to Queen Victoria. I’m only just beginning to sort British history, and I like to find out who knew whom and draw parallels among multi-continental simultaneous historical events. I would have liked to have been up there on Lake Geneva that wet summer of 1816 with Byron and the Shelleys. Lord Byron has inspired my writing even from this distance.
Cheers, Sam/Carol
Hi Sam – thank you .. but I’m incredibly unknowledgeable … I am learning via the blogs and other routes. British history – I am very muddled about it – but again I am beginning to fill in some of the gaps (in a basic way) and understand how we interacted across Britain, let alone Europe.
I certainly need to learn more … she made some mistakes and was only recognised after her death … despite being not particularly well known her brother ensured she was buried in Winchester Cathedral – so appropriate now that she is highly regarded.
Thanks for your reply … cheers Hilary
Thanks, Hilary. I didn’t know Jane Austen is buried in Winchester Cathedral. How perfect. And, now that I have researched her and studied her writing, I can see why she is so highly regarded. She could have written her works today. Her wit and observation of human nature are timeless.
Cheers,
Carol/Sam
My dear Miss Child,
Time travel really is possible — your eloquent essay has not only taken me round the world but back in time as well. I felt a true sense of sequential relations to the events of which you have so generously reminded us. It reads like a hymn. Thank you for your time, assiduous research and whetted wit.
Many cheers,
R.
That’s nice. Thank you, R., for the comment and the compliment.
–C.
Thank you, Robert. Wishing you many more sweet walks and fine reads here and everywhere.
Those moments of feeling at one are so precious and make live so worth living. This lovely post reminds me of the value of being rather than doing and the importance of slowing down our ‘monkey mind’ and being open to the inner treasures as well as appreciating the beauty that surrounds us, whether it be a cardinal, a blade of grass, the smell of freshly brewed coffee, a sunrise –
Thank you for sharing this with us – may day is the lighter and brighter for it.
Thank you, Susan. Yes, these moments of feeling at one are especially rare and valuable during the first half of life when sometimes it takes everything we’ve got just to stay afloat. But once we experience one of them it’s as if the wonder and pleasure take up residency, like a hidden treasure in a far cavern of our mental and physical memory. And the treasure grows every time we experience another moment like this until, with time and attention, we clear a path to it and it spills over into our daily lives. For me, this lightening and brightening has been the greatest blessing of aging.
Well said, Jeanie. I love returning to this piece, as I commented to Susan. And, Izzy is a wonderfully healing companion dog, even through your words and pictures.
–Carol
My feelings, exactly, Susan. I keep returning to Jeanie’s story, to calm and center. And, I do love the dog.
–Carol
A sweet walk and a fine read…
R.
Your husband Vic was the ultimate teacher Elaine. He restored within them what they came into this profession to be, kind individuals that used their knowledge to care for others. It’s was the most thoughtful and selfless expenditure of his very limited energy. He gave his kindness to them. Thank you for sharing your and Vic’s story.
Janice, I’m so touched by your response and words about Vic. Thank you. I’m sorry I didn’t see your comment until now.
Vic was an incredible teacher. His students loved him and he loved them. The last two years were all about kindness.
I am so moved. moved to tears. I love this poem for all of the images it provokes and the emotions your words of that day bring up in me, having also been my husbands care giver. Yes, only kindness and if I may add, compassion make sense. Thank you
..
Thanks for leaving a comment, Carol. I’m sorry I didn’t know it was here until today.
I’m with you. Kindness and compassion hold hands. We had some hard times, but there were soul-transforming moments all along the way.
Deborah, you’ve written a flashback masterpiece of a life. The memories that stand out and are never forgotten. The traumas that still hurt. The events and images that make us the women we are. It reminds me a bit of The Soul’s Code idea that we are there in essence in the embryo or acorn of our birth.
Because of deafness, music is now an inner experience for me. I’m grateful when music shows up in dreams–and I know how much it still forms my sense of who I am.
I am so sorry, Elaine, that music can now be only an inner experience for you. Music is my first love. Even though I now play infrequently my guitar and only a few notes on piano (I wish I had one), I studied music theory (harmony) — thereby understanding how Beethoven could compose even when he became deaf –, I nearly always am listening to music, spend hours making playlists, and have dreamed of music. Both my parents played piano, and my father would play his records and we’d sit with him and listen to the music. I do sympathize with you. At least it’s an inner experience for you, and it shows up in your dreams
–Carol
What a wonderful article to read on a Sunday morning, Susanne. I love knowing more about artists and dreaming. I didn’t dream last night, so I get these dreams. And glorious flowers. At the moment, I’m writing about a series of dreams I had in the years after my husband’s death. I had no doubt that these many visitations from my “dream husband” were about my inner masculine energy and the transformation it was undergoing after my husband’s death. Thank you for inspiring me to keep working on this project.
Hallo Elaine, thank you for your response. I am so thrilled that you are in the process of directing your creative energy into a new book about dreams. I remember that my mother shared a dream with me that so painfully but still beautiful illustrated her feelings about his demise. She told me that in her dream, she and my father were walking, but all of a sudden he entered a new road, and she could not follow him because it was closed off by a gate. She screamed at him, because she felt betrayed that he left her behind. But than she saw his mother who guided him on his new path and she realised she had to follow her own way. I used this dream in my own book about dreams of the deceased.
Thank you for such a lovely comments, Susan and Deborah. I really cherish the connection between dreams and creativity and always try to use dreams as soul food.
p.s. and the flowers are beautiful!
well, I loved this thank you Carol for putting up this lovely mindfunda post. I can ‘see’ Susanne giving this talk … In fact I’m off to my reading group this evening at Carly’s home. Carly was at a conference last year in Holland, that Susanne presented at (and I think she, Susanne, introduced Anne Baring as a key note speaker). My friend (and Carly’s friend and colleague) Dr Deon van Wyk attended this conference too and I know that he and Susanne met. AND, I know that the Jung Development group had Deon give them a seminar this past weekend on Dreams. I wonder if he incorporated this lovely material? I would not be surprised.
Many creative people use and have used their dreams as source … RL Stevenson – many of his best stories from dreams. Edgar Allan Poe; Coleridge’s The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner inspired by dreams; Einstein and his relativity theory inspired by his dream of sledding down a steep slope approaching the speed of light .. there are many examples in the literature ..
Love the stories of Dali’s rituals!
Thank you for the link provided to listen to David Dubal – I hope to listen to it soon.
I’m still of the view that others who appear in one’s dreams represent an ‘aspect’ of the dreamer … call it shadow if you like, unknown repressed parts of one’s self, including the noble parts ….
I hope Susanne sees this, Susan. What a number of connections. As for the David Dubal video, it’s only 12 min. long, and all I can say is Wow! Most inspiring. I will watch it again. I see he has made other videos. I may watch them.
Thanks for reading and commenting.
–Carol
Beautiful, heartfelt writing that stirs mind, body, spirit and soul. As we lean into love, the heart opens wider than ever thought possible. Beyond language really. Blessings always, Deborah.
Thank you, Deborah. When someone takes on a vow of Kindness, it transforms everything. This was Vic’s lasting legacy for our family.
A rich, in-depth dream article Susanne with great presentation. This poet swooned as she read Van Gough’s inspiring words … ‘the sight of the stars makes me dream’ … reminding me of various poems I love! Deeply fascinating to learn of Dali’s approach to his creative work. Your images enriched the text even further. Blessings always, Deborah.
I love the progression of this poem, Deborah and the way that your speaker’s moving back to the beginning of things and remembering that she is the music. That last stanza is incredibly powerful.
Thank you so much TJ for your lovely comment. The last verse holds within, pre birth memories. Music is a part of our journey, all journeying I feel, as we search for the music within, and discover our own song.
Thank you, Deborah! You know how it is — some poems come to you, asking to be written, and these did.
Many thanks Susan, that’s so kind of you! Blessings always, Deborah
I am the music, just dance to my tune. So many times we are fighting in our heads, reminiscing about “the things we should have said” while in the mean time we could be humming and dancing to our own tune. Wise words Deborah, spoken from the heart.
Wise words from you, too, Susanne. A timely reminder for me.
–Carol
Very much agreed, and another thank you for posting my poem Carol.
Humming and dancing to our own tune, perfect! Thank you so much for sharing your own soulful music with me Susanne. Namaste
Wonderful!!! I remember it from some while back
Breathtakingly beautiful poems, pure delight to read! Your first poem “Benison” reminds me of a poem I wrote many years ago. Thank you for opening the eyes of my heart dear poet. I hope the day finds you well. Blessings, Deborah
Thank you so much Robert, I truly loved writing this one! This is my first ever post on The Scheherazade Chronicles, looks wonderful on the page! Blessings, Deborah
Love it!
R.
I was incredibly moved by this. I could see that moment of transformation in my mind’s eye so clearly.
Thank you. It was an electrifying moment, T.J. I’m grateful I could capture it and pass it along.
Thank you, Susan and Gwynn! “Benison” appeared years ago in a publication called ARTELLA, and “Werewolf Eyes” was read on a poetry radio show. “The Quality of Light,” on the other hand, has been waiting in the wings or at least waiting for the right publication. I don’t write a lot of poetry these days; but I think that my early days of writing poetry somehow shaped the way I write prose.
The poems are breathtaking Tammy … will you put them into a book? Into THE literary review for sure …
Thank you so much.
Thank you Elaine so much. And Carol for this. Your piece is very image evoking – and I felt my heart soften and an accompanying expansion of blood corpuscles. A humming grace – beautiful.
To Elaine, ditto what Susan says.
To Susan, thank you for your heartfelt comment.
–Carol
Thank you.
I’m glad, Susan. I’ll never forget the transformation that permeated the medical equipment and hardened hearts. One on one, we change each other.
A generous author and a gracious read…
R.
Thank you so much, Robert. This experience stays with me. Months later, an intern who was there told me the pulmonologist was permanently transformed and softened by the experience. I loved telling the poet Naomi Shihab Nye, a generous and humble woman, about the effect of her words.
The very best of romantic tension.
The truth will out…
R.
Yes. It shows the connection between them.
Thank you for commenting, R. Much appreciated.
C.
So happy to find quietly here, a voice of reason…
The veils shifted and truth more understood.
So very glad to share your light…
Please dull the cleaver with all your might!
R.
I believe you are going to find many more of these quiet, yet strong voices of reason here in the very near future, R, the veil raised.
Absolutely.
Thank you for coming by and for your comment.
C.
Beautiful poems, Tammy. I LOVE your heart!
I will pass this along to Tammy, Gwynn. Thank you — I agree. And, will you not send me something to post?
This is wonderful Samantha! O golly as I type I see you have put up the cover of my book! (I was so intent on reading your lovely post ) – thank you!! O gosh, and the Lilith one too! This gal has a wide grin .. you are so generous to we writers, thank you so so much.
I wish you so well in this new venture and will pass this on wherever I can.
Thank you, Susan. I will tell you more about the literary review very soon. It is my pleasure to post cover images of my friends’ books here. Visitors on this website can click through to Amazon via these images and read more about the books and hopefully buy them. On The Scheherazade Chronicles “Bookstore” page are your books along with those of the other authors, with a bit about the book and bios of you and Susan Schwartz — I copied and pasted the text from the book cover. So visitors can go to that “Bookstore” page and buy the books through Amazon, too. I see you have a new blog post today; I will catch up. I read the last one but didn’t comment, but will.
I am looking forward to reading the submissions.
Me, too, Gwynn. I’ll talk to you more about it soon.
Lovely story for all times, but, of course, especially so for this time of year. I’ve never read it before, bad on me, so this was a treat.
Gifts too nice to use at present … that stayed with me.
Thanks for sharing, Samantha.
Thanks, Silvia. Yes, this is a special story for all time. I like to read it every now and then. Besides, in its simplicity it exemplifies great storytelling. I’m glad you liked it. I’m glad you came by, too. I hope you have a very happy Christmas, you and your family.
What a magical and delightful story. I agree with Robert as the story is very beautifully written. Enjoy preparing for the Holiday Season. Christmas should be about family and caring… not presents.
I agree, Gwynn. Christmas should be about family and caring — why I published this story, particularly in this current atmosphere of fear and anger.
Thank you for coming by. One of these days I’ll discover how to configure my WordPress theme to offer Christmas season visitors a cup of eggnog. 🙂
Oh Sam,
Thank you for posting this beautiful beautifully written story. It has been a long time since I enjoyed it last. Yes a fine favorite. Tremendous, mammoth…
R.
Thank you, R. The poignancy of O. Henry’s story is that it gives us the spirit of the season.
I am absolutely thrilled to see you back with such an entertaining, short story. I apologize for taking so long to read it. I adore the feeling of being in the same room with a writer. I was definitely part of the scenario. I’ve missed Moriorty and you.
No need to apologize, Marsha, for taking long to arrive at my blog and read my story “Zinfandel.” I’m just pleased that you took the time to read it — and to comment. I like that you like being in the same room as this writer. I enjoy the company, especially yours, and I think that my narrating this story in the first person intensifies the moment and makes the suspense more imminent.
Moriarty is getting such a big head, because he perceives he has more fans than I, and I suspect this is so.
Thank you, dear Marsha, for stopping by.
O gosh Samantha! Firstly, I’m pleased to see you’re back. You and Moriarty have been gone a long long while, too long. Glad that the dusting brought you back and the mysteries were partly solved. This is an extraordinary story – I was intrigued from the beginning and with you every step of the way, on the cat walk, with the damp cloth, with the search for Zinfadel .. with Dickens, the raven (while thinking all the while, ‘what the Dickens’) – with EAP and the story and his $50 …
I agree with Patricia – enter this into a short story competition … worthy of many accolades…
I’ve been away, just back yesterday …
Thank you, Susan, for your kind compliments and suggesting this story is accolades worthy — words every writer wants to hear, of course. I will look into entering this story in a contest, one that is free to enter. I usually don’t enter such contests because they charge a fee. But just knowing you and Patricia think this is competition worthy counts a lot.
I’m glad you liked the story! And welcome back, yourself. 🙂
Absolutely, fantastic! Fantastic, Stupendo as they say in Italian. This is a short story worth publishing. You have incorporated humour and mystery that draws any reader into the story. I love it.
Excellent writing. It is a joy to see Moriarty and Dickens have returned and I hope they stay around for a long time. Maybe Poe and the Raven will be frequent visitors and reason for Moriarty to stay.
Shalom aleichem,
Patricia
Thank you so much, Patricia. I am glad you liked my story. I don’t think Moriarty will go anywhere; he’ll be around. I think he just hasn’t been at my blog lately because it got too dusty and it made him sneeze. Maybe Poe and the raven will return. I cannot say nevermore about them. Moriarty does have some fascinating spectral visitors — Chekhov’s Black Monk and, naturally, Erik, The Phantom of the Opera, is a close friend. I’ll probably stumble across more of them — just so they don’t guzzle away all my Zinfandel. 🙂
Thanks for your kind compliments.
Shalom aleichem,
Samantha
What… they didn’t leave any cheese and crackers for you? What friends! At least have them invite you to their party!
Forget the cheese and crackers, Gwynn. It was the Zin I was after. I think Moriarty didn’t invite me to his party because he didn’t want to interrupt my dusting.
Thanks! 🙂
I’m thirsty. Could I have more?
Ever,
R.
I am ever concocting more, R. Thanks. And, thank you for sharing this post on Facebook!
Ever more,
S.
Congratulations on the award, Samantha, and thanks for nominating me! It was nice getting this glimpse into your life and your writing. You pose some interesting questions, but it’s always the nominating other bloggers part of these awards that gives me pause. (I don’t know many bloggers!). We’ll see! 🙂
Nice to hear from you, Sara. The hardest part IS nominating other bloggers, since I don’t know that many, either, and am always running behind on reading those I do know. You are always worthy of nominating, of course. Should you choose to accept, that’s great; should you not, I totally understand. 🙂
Ok, I’m working at answering your questions. I don’t have many people to nominate though. Heck, I would nominate you, Pat, Tammy, and Silvia if I could!
Hey, since you have generated such a marvelous post, maybe I SHOULD nominate you again and pass the buck back at you. 😉
It IS difficult finding bloggers to nominate, Gwynn, especially since I don’t read that many blogs and am running behind with the ones I do read, including yours. But, I can’t wait to read your answers to my questions. I’m glad you accepted the award. I’ll be over to see you soon.
My dear Samantha,
Congratulations on your Liebster award. This is a very fine read.
Keep digging those clams at low tide, and may your wilder dream come anon.
A sincere thank you to Pat Garcia for bestowing you this award.
Cheers,
R.
Thank you, R. Very kind and inspiring comments. Let us keep the faith.
S.
Hello Samantha,
I read your tribute to Fitzgerald, and it got me to thinking. I believe he was never really happy after his first book of prominence with The Great Gatsby. Maybe, his own expectations to be like his great grand uncle had something to do with that.
His legacy is The Great Gatsby. I wonder did he learn to appreciate the jewel that he wrote. How sad if he didn’t.
I have enjoyed reading about his life. I’ve read The Great Gatsby. It was required literature in my university, but I never really got into Fitzgerald’s life like I have as I read your article.
Thank you. It is well written and heartwarming for all of us who want to learn more about his genius.
Shalom aleichem,
Patricia
Hello Patricia,
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s expectations had nothing to do with Francis Scott Key. He was up against himself, often lacking self-discipline, and then there was Zelda’s mental breakdown. And he envied the rich.
Of course he appreciated the high quality of The Great Gatsby and said so in a letter to his Scriber’s editor, Maxwell Perkins. What he said is quoted in the forewords to publication editions of Gatsby.
What’s not as often said about Fitzgerald, sadly, is that he was a serious and meticulous writer, produced a great treasure of pristine short stories and some essays. He wrote plays and movie scripts. He is well-known for his accurate ear for dialogue, his astute recording of The Lost Generation and the Jazz Age, and his prophetic observations. He wrote another of our great American novels, Tender Is the Night. That novel is one of my all-time favorites.
He wrote much on what makes good writing — worth pursuing, studying and implementing for those who want to be serious writers.
I cannot say enough about F. Scott Fitzgerald. He is one of our great American writers. Also, he discovered Ernest Hemingway and recommended Hemingway’s writing to Maxwell Perkins at Scribner’s, who became their mutual editor and publisher. He invariably spelled Ernest’s last name “Hemmingway.”
Thank you for coming by and for your thoughtful comments.
Shalom aleichem,
Samantha
My dearest Samantha,
More like a quadruple birthday commoration — yours was just a few days before. Lovely to read this — it is green and cool…
Ever,
R.
R — Thank you for the personal birthday commemoration and for your lovely green and cool comment. Thanks always for reading and listening.
Ever green,
S.
Here’s another ‘swept away’ on your poesy Carol/Samantha. This was so interesting to read. A time and place – I’m not sure I knew of Zelda’s breakdowns or her tragic death. Didn’t Hemingway meet up with Anais Nin in France, Paris at some stage? I’ll check that out.
Two weeks ago I attended a one day seminar by visiting Jungian analyst here in Johannesburg on Psyche & Amor (Eros/Cupid). In a space in silence we were encouraged to write, meditate do whatever, I wrote a few short lines, Look Homeward Angel.
Thank you, this is a lovely piece of writing.
Susan, as I said to Gwynn, I do find fascinating the meeting or confluence of historical notables, especially of writers and musicians. It is quite possible that Hemingway met Anais Nin in Paris. They all were there. Hemingway’s A Moveable Feast is a great resource for finding those connections, mostly via Gertrude Stein’s artist soirees. The book is a fascinating read; I’ve read it twice.
As for Zelda, I think she was always a bit off, though I do believe much of what she said in Save Me the Waltz. Her schizophrenic (as they diagnosed it then) condition intensified at Ellerslie, when at age 29, an age when most dancers’ careers are over, she decided she would become a professional ballet dancer, practicing relentlessly at a barre before a great gilt mirror and then taking classes when they went to Europe.
You wrote on the subject “Look Homeward, Angel”? Do I understand that correctly? Interesting. That is a very deep subject. It is about the father, as regards Thomas Wolfe and how I experience the novel.
This is a long response. You spark my thoughts. Thank you, Susan. I appreciate that.
A literary giant, thank you for this detailed post, Samantha. I can just see his imagination take flight in that great, big house, and spurred by all his travels. Like all complicated minds, there are the internal demons, the vice. No enduring art without great struggle, I suppose.
Interesting path to travel on for this reader. While I knew about his writings, I knew next to nothing about his life.
Clearly Scott’s imagination did take flight in that mansion, Silvia, but most often haunting the guests in the middle of the night, playing croquet/polo on the lawn, carousing the town, and less in the direction of his writing. Nonetheless, Scott Fitzgerald is one of our best 20th century writers. His novels, The Great Gatsby and Tender Is the Night, as well as many of his short stories are among my favorites. I read them over and over. He is my kindred spirit and my great inspiration. I learned much about writing from him.
Thank you for coming by, Silvia, and commenting. I really appreciate it. 🙂
I agree with Marsha’s comment. Your post is an amazing history lesson with incredible pictures. Thanks.
Thanks, Gwynn. I am particularly fascinated by the meeting of two famous historical figures; in my case, especially writers and musicians. I could discuss/write endlessly on that subject. 🙂
Ahhh! Carol, you have done it again. I’ve been swept away, by your tremendous talent, to another time and place. Thank you for the history lesson and smart prose.
Thank you, Marsha. “Swept away” — that’s good. I like it. 🙂 ♥️
Beautifully written Carol.
Thank you and thank you for coming by.
Hello Samantha,
I have nominated you for this year’s Liebster Award. If you decide to accept, the instructions are at my book review website at:
https://patgarciabookreviews.com/2016/07/17/the-liebster-award/
Have a nice Sunday.
Shalom aleichem,
Patricia
I have accepted the nomination, Patricia. At long last.
Thank you.
Shalom aleichem,
Samantha
As I ponder ideas for future challenge themes, I am drawn to those that benefit from, or are inspired by, real-life activities. One of our many future travel plans is to visit as many of the national parks as possible. Your pictures are lovely. I look forward to seeing many of these in person.
I would like to visit all of the national parks, too, Lissa.
Thanks for coming by and for including me on your list.ly list. I greatly appreciate it.
I’m glad to meet you on the A-Zs, and congratulations for making it through.
Congrats on completing the challenge. This theme sounds like a fab way to look back on some memories of your mum and remember the good times you had travelling together 🙂
Debbie
Thank you, Debbie, for coming by. Congratulations to you, too, for making it through the A to Zs. Yes, lots of memories on the A-Z journey — caught me by surprise. 🙂
Samantha, what beautiful and heartfelt words. “Without silence there is no Nostalgia.” So true. We need peace around and in our minds to think. We need to hear ourselves think, and the world all around is full of stimulants that go way over the top. Sometimes, I wonder, how will the young generation with so many gadgets constantly in their hands, in their ears, will learn to hear themselves think.
So nice that you had the opportunity to revisit places you visited with Mom. So sorry about your loss. I sit here tying to imagine how difficult the journey must’ve been for you both. I imagine there is strength to be found after such difficult time, perhaps strength in the memories.
Thank you for taking us to all the beautiful places you have visited. I enjoyed each post more than I could say.
It was good meeting Moriarty. It’s been a pleasure reconnecting in April. I am looking forward to reading your beautiful posts. To hear you “talk.”
How thoughtful your comment, Silvia. I was wondering if anyone would pick up on the “Without silence there is no Nostalgia,” because that came to be at the heart of my A to Z journey this time around. It was one of thoughts that comes and stands right in front of you as you’re moseying along your story writing path. I think you may have said that in something you wrote. I agree with your concerns about the younger generation with their devices illuminating their faces and blocking the sensuality of their surroundings.
Yes, the journey for my mother and me was difficult and heartrending — I wouldn’t want to repeat it — but, you know, you grow spiritually, and I believe that’s what life is about; nevertheless, I would have liked a more fun way.
Thank you so much for your deeply thoughtful and kind compliment. I enjoy reading your stories, too, and look forward to reading more.
Moriarty says he’s glad to meet you. 🙂
I LOVE this! Tell Moriarty I said hello. I am glad I had a sneak preview before it was posted officially. You did an amazing job my dear. I enjoyed each day we travelled together looking at your photos.
Shalom aleichem,
Patricia http://www.patgarciaandeverythingmustchange.com/2016/05/reflection-to-z-blog-challenge-2016.html
That Moriarty, he’s pretty sneaky, Patricia, sending out previews of my posts when they’re still drafts. I never know what he’s going to be up to. Anyway, he says hi, and that next time he’s over in Paris visiting the Phantom of the Opera, he might just stop over and visit you. He’d kind of like to meet The Prophet and The Child.
Meanwhile, thank you for your kind compliments and for traveling with me all along the A-Zs.
Shalom aleichem,
Samantha
I meant to say, too, Patricia, that I thought about you in these Reflections when I was writing about the music.
Shalom,
Samantha
I so thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful piece. You are a spectacular writer and I have missed keeping up with you and our other group members. I believe in Morirty and his presence in your life. He is a part of the creative universe you tap into and share so generously with you readers. He is real!!
Thanks for the “spectacular” compliment, Marsha. I know — we know you have been with us bloggers in spirit. You were in our hearts.
As for Moriarty, at this moment he is beaming from ear to ear. 🙂
I loved your theme, Samantha. I loved your posts – the photos are stunning and you captured the soul of those places. Amazing. I also love sea and water in any form, so your posts captivated me with their beauty. Thank you!
Thank you, Gulara. I loved your “Love Letters” theme, too. I like “sense of place,” and in so appreciating seem to capture the soul — I hope. And, of course, I love the sea.
This year, the challenge started out strong for me, but toward the end, I was so tired and didn’t get around to as many blogs as I had hoped. Thankfully, I did manage to have all my posts pre-written. Next year will be different. I will be better prepared.
Oh, tell me about it, Mary — getting tired and trying to keep up. I started out ahead with prewritten posts, but nearly fell behind towards the end.
We did it, though! Congratulations to you for surviving.
Thanks for coming by.
Hi Sam – not sure what happened .. as I’d have been around commenting, even if I wasn’t participating … but now you’ve shown up here – I’ll come back and read some of the A-Zs …
Sounds like we’re on the same wave length … looking after the land – which will keep us alive and healthy …
Cheers for now – Hilary
Yes, I agree about the land, Hilary. I had a glitch in my website in the beginning — my computer and it had been down for a time — so I had to get email notifications and other details sorted. I think I finally had achieved all that just as I was finishing my last few A-Z posts, naturally. 🙂
I’m so glad to see you here. I always enjoy your comments, and have enjoyed reading them on other bloggers’ sites.
Cheers!
Sam
I loved your A to Z posts as they showed the beauty of nature across this incredible country. The history of the land and your wisdom that you shared made the posts even more interesting. Great job and Congratulations for surviving!!
Well, thank you, Gwynn. I appreciate your compliment. Congratulations to you, too, for surviving!
You did a truly extraordinary and beautiful A-Z Samantha, showing us the beauty of your travels with your family. Also, you revealed the importance of retaining the land in its pristine state, while giving us some fascinating history behind the scenes. I was captivated …
And thank you for the photo of Moriarty; please send him my very best wishes. I look forward to climbing those stairs one of these days to have a blueberry scone and lashings of delicious cream with him and you –
If Moriarty doesn’t eat it all first, Susan. 🙂 Even so, how lovely it would be to spend some time together.
Thank you for your kind and thoughtful complimentary comments.
I love the mountains, and I especially love the mountain lakes. When I lived in Central Idaho, I would spend my weekends just relaxing by a nearby lake, not doing much of anything but taking in the beauty and splendor and recharging my life batteries for the next week.
Thank you for coming by, Mary. Relaxing by a mountain lake sounds like just what the doctor ordered for me just now. 🙂 Idaho — I’d love to visit there one day.
Yosemite is very lush and green. I have not been there in a couple of years, but how are things faring with the drought here in California?
About the drought I don’t know, Julia. They did have a good Sierra snowpack this year, but I had read where it will take several years of good rain and snowfall to recover from that drought.
I am emailed an L.A. Times newsletter, but I’ve fallen behind on reading it while attending to the A-Zs.
Thanks for coming by. I appreciate your comments.
It was lovely to re-read this Samantha. I remember The Fisherman and his Soul .. a telling story.
Yes, a telling story. Thanks for coming by and re-reading, Susan. 🙂 Once I get started reading Oscar Wilde, it’s hard for me to stop. His words and his thoughts just flow, and with such wit and wisdom.
You certainly have some beautiful pictures of some lovely places! (Speaking of being a travel writer!)
Congrats on surviving the challenge!
Thank you, Red. Yes, it would be nice to be a travel writer. I haven’t figured out how I can carry that off yet and make it a viable income.
Contrats to you, too, on surviving the A-Z challenge. I really did enjoy reading your posts.
This is a beautiful and inspiring post. Thanks so much for sharing the photos and your thoughts. There is nothing like the beauty of nature to bring peace. We are lucky to have our national parks.
You said it, Susan. Thank you. I appreciate your coming by and your complimentary comment.
Nice to meet you on the A-Zs, and congratulations on getting through!
Congratulations to you, too!
Nature’s bounty can definitely be mystifying. Zen indeed. Congrats on completing the challenge. Being your minion was nice.
Blog: QueendSheena
2016 A to Z Participant
Joy Brigade Minion
Thank you, Sheena-kay. Glad to have met you on the A-Zs, and thank you for being my minion. 🙂
The perfect quote form Muir to close such an amazing run, Samantha. “I wonder if leaves feel lonely when they see their neighbors falling.” He sure had a way with words when it came to the beauty of nature. And being there sure felt as if a grand master laid it all before us and said — This is for you, enjoy. I imagine it was a treat on top of many treats to see snowflakes on the way in the month of May. Gorgeous all around. Images to leave one in awe.
It’s been truly wonderful to spend this month with you, Samantha, to read so many beautiful posts, enjoy the images, and read your poetic words.
Congratulations on completing the Challenge. Now, a break, then back to our normal routine. I look forward to read many, many more of your posts.
To be able to be out there contemplating nature as John Muir did and then to be able to describe it so evocatively and poetically, yes.
Thank you for your kind compliments, Silvia. It has been my pleasure to read your beautifully expressed thoughts throughout this series. Congratulations to you, too, on completing the challenge.
Right, now a break, and I am already thinking about what I want to write next, how to present it. 🙂
Google, “The Greening of Paradise Valley” the book about Hetch Hetchy. You will find my great grandfather James A. Waymire there. Man, what a GORGEOUS area. Your pictures are stunning. I may sit and stare at your pictures all day and zone-out in a state of Zen to celebrate surviving the A to Z AND everything that transpired this month. Congratulations on an excellent job!
Thank you. Congratulations to you, too, Gwynn. I will look for that book.
I would love to stare at these pictures, too — well, in fact, I have throughout writing this post. I have enlarged prints of some of these, too, in the house. So, I get to see them a lot. But, I still have A-Z blog reading to catch up on; plus, related emails to answer. So, I must trek around in the woods a bit more before I’m out.
Woohoo! Almost out. 🙂
Well, Samantha, such beauty! I am astounded and almost speechless. This is zen in its purest form. Zen – in the zone. Nature, in her zone – I would have felt that. It’s been such a joy to go along on this ride with you, the beauty of your photographs and the very interesting history accompanying them. Thank you! How terrific to hover the mouse and get the location –
Whew! Well done for completion of the A-Z!!!!
It took me the entire A-Z series to figure out how to mouse hover, Susan. And it’s so simple to set up. Wish I had thought of that in the beginning.
Zen — Nature in her zone. Thank you for enlightening me on that. I suppose I had thought of it that way, but hadn’t identified it as such. You know, when you enter Yosemite Valley, you come around a bend and suddenly the whole valley opens up before you and there is this unexpected beauty and grandeur. At the Grand Canyon, you go through a conifer forest that suddenly ends at the edge of this cliff and wide open canyon, and you stand there and go, “Oh. Hmm. Awesome.” But when Yosemite Valley opens before you, it’s all green and silver and crystal, and you feel every burden just fall off, like the stream when it reaches the edge of the high granite cliff, and you are at peace, and, for me, at least, I think, oh, this is what it’s all about.
So, now the A-Zs are over for this year. As you say, Whew! How you went on that Botswana adventure and still managed to get through the A-Zs is quite a feat. Well done to you, too!
Simply stunning, Samantha. Wow! You were right – this post is a gem in its own right. And what a way to close the series. So pleased you reached out and we connected. Beautiful!
I am glad we connected, too, Gulara. I meet the most wonderful and interesting people along this A-Z journey.
Thank you for coming by and for your lovely comments.
My Dear Samantha,
Looking at your Z post this morning, I am in Austria heading toward Southern Italy in my mind. The photographs remind me so much of Austria, especially around Innsbruck, and Matrei which is almost the last village you drive past when heading toward the Italian border. I usually drive in the direction of Bolzano and Merano when I drive because of the mountains. I love the mountains, and I love sitting on my balcony in my hotel with the sea before me and the mountains in the background.
You have done a wonderful job of awakening memories that I treasure. They are all in the treasure trove of my mind and you have tickled each one out of its hiding place during this A to Z Blog Challenge.
Thank you very much.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Having never been to Europe, I am glad to have these images you present of Austria/Italy. Sitting on a balcony with the sea before me and the mountains behind me is my ideal. A music soundtrack springs to mind — Schubert’s “Trout” quintet and Philip Glass’s “Tirol Concerto,” the luxuriously long second movement — pieces perhaps not representative of that exact same area, but close in image, I would imagine. Too, I think if I ever got to Europe you could give me a wonderfully grand tour.
I have awakened my own treasured memories in producing this series, Patricia. I took myself adventuring along a path I came upon unexpectedly. The Lily Pad of our dreams, I think. Thank so much for your kind and thoughtful comments and compliments.
Shalom,
Samantha
I wish I could visit Yosemite again.
Oh, me, too, Julia.
Thanks.
I would love to visit Yosemite again.
Your comment came through twice, so I’ll reply twice. 🙂 Tomorrow, Saturday, Yosemite Valley — heaven on earth.
I have the warmest spot in my heart for Yosemite–for the experience of traveling up winding roads on our way, the sight of El Capitan, the ride up to Glacier Point, looking down at the valley while knowing John Muir and others like him walked by the river, down the path. I am forever in love with the place, and greatful we have national parks, something, to a large point, uniquely American.
Thank you, Samantha for sharing your story and the images. Lovely seeing you smile in one of the shots.
And, why wouldn’t I be smiling, being there in Yosemite, Silvia. It holds a warm place in my heart, too. It beckons, always. Yes, the national parks are uniquely American, and there for all people. The people own the parks, all of us Americans do. I have a great love for Yosemite, like you.
And this week, as I have been writing my posts, I have had the privilege of watching the re-airing of Ken Burns’s “The National Parks” on our local PBS station. Inspiring and informative for my writing these stories.
I always wanted to see Yosemite, and now I have! It is stunning!! I think my great grandfather was involved in trying to preserve this area too.
You definitely are gifted with taking excellent pictures. Thanks for the excellent description of the area! I loved it!
Thank you, Gwynn. You’ll see more of Yosemite tomorrow — Yosemite Valley. No doubt your great grandfather was involved in preserving that valley as well as the area that I wrote about today. Tomorrow I will post comparison photos of the twin valleys — Yosemite and Hetch Hetchy. The comparison lends impact to the cause for restoring Hetch Hetchy. I’ve been watching, this week, the Ken Burns National Parks series on TV. It’s interesting all those who worked so hard to preserve this area, how they went about it and how they thought about it, often with opposing viewpoints. Gifford Pinchot, for one. No doubt your great grandfather knew him. I see him almost as a nemesis to preserving the parks, but that’s how he saw it. He just thought that clear cutting the forests in certain areas would help maintain the society-nature balance and that filling Hetch Hetchy with water was the most economical way to find water, and pure glacier melt water, for the city of San Francisco. Stephen Mather had a nervous breakdown over this ongoing preservation debate and had to be put in a sanitarium for a while. The only thing that brought him out of his depression was going to a National Park.
Wow, just wow! Stunning images. Thank you for introducing us to such amazing places!
Thank you, Gulara. I think the most stunning will be posted tomorrow — Yosemite Valley. So, please do come back for them. Of all the places, perhaps in the world, I think Yosemite has the most stunning, spiritually uplifting, awe inspiring beauty.
Samantha,
Thank you for the beautiful pictures of Yosemite. The United States is beautiful. As I have said to you before, I had the privilege of traveling across country from the West to the Southwest, to the Midwest to the East, to the South in 2008, and I was always amazed at the beauty. As an American living outside of my country, I think I treasured it much more than when I was living there.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Patricia, you and I will have to tour Italy and come tour the U.S. again. Definitely, yes, I, too, treasure this country. That accounts in large part for my great attraction to Thomas Jefferson. Visiting both his homes — Monticello again, and Poplar Forest for the first time — top my travel priority list.
My aunt took me and her other niece to see Independence Hall when I was 4, and I saw the Liberty Bell. That gave this country meaning for me. Of course, at that age, I’m not sure which impressed me the most — Independence Hall, my new brown and white saddle shoes with the red rubber soles or my aunt’s other niece’s long, thick braids.
Shalom,
Samantha
Extraordinary photos Samantha thank you! That sequoia trunk is breathtaking …
Ahwahneechee – just looking at the word makes me think of a wide open mouth. It’s lovely when words sound like what they mean!
Sweet little marmot. Glad it was not a bear. I also do not feed wild animals …
I think I can see Methusalah’s face in the trunk of the last photo …
Thank you for this lovely post on Eden on Earth …
More Eden on Earth tomorrow, Susan, Yosemite Valley. Ahwahnee does sound like what it means. I’m disappointed the new concessionaire changed the name. I thought readers would like my marmot. I did meet a bear once in Yosemite. It’s amazing how big they are close up.
Thanks. 🙂
Thanks for writing about Bodie. I’ve never visited a ghost town. It looks really interesting. The photos are great! I’m not sure I’d want to do the night tour, though,
Well, I most definitely would not go alone at night, Susan, but I think it would be, well, intriguing, as well as fun.
Thanks for coming by and for you compliment.
How very interesting, Samantha. This is historical gold, to have this place preserved so well. I have never visited, but in looking at the images, which I scrolled though several times, I can almost get a feel of how it must have been. Even walking on that road, closing one’s eyes and being able to reconstruct the past in our mind’s eyes. Not a great time, I imagine, for the inhabitants, but amazing to see in our days. And talk about bad luck for Mr. Bodey to die the year he struck gold …
Thank you. Enjoyed going back in time for a minute.
Thanks, Silvia. The photos do convey the feeling. The place is so photogenic and the feeling comes through. I’d like to go back and take better pictures, now that I have an idea of what’s there and how my photos turned out; this time, digital. 🙂
The other interesting thing about Mr. Bodey is that he left a wife and child behind in the East to strike out for gold. He was a respected member of his community. He was gone several years already, when he struck gold.
You never know….
The first pictures look so interesting. It seems those rooms are being preserved exactly how they were left. Is it open to ‘tourists’ and those who visit the Historic Park? Well, you say oit is if they use use the tight kind of transport. But if it gets so awfully freezing then maybe it is not such an attraction? But it’s good to know that ghosts reside .. and the occasional ranger.
Thank you Samantha, amazing photos! What a pictorial record, let alone its history.
Bodie is open for tourists, Susan, even in winter if you have skis, snowshoes or snowmobiles. You wouldn’t be able to get there by car; the snow is too deep. Bodie is open year-round, even at night for ghost walks. Many photography tours and classes are held there. Bodie is very near Mammoth Lakes and Mammoth Mountain Ski Resort as well as Yosemite. So, there’s plenty of tourism, though there’s no charge to visit Bodie and while there you might not even see a park ranger, but you probably will see a few other tourists. You drive down a long, graded dirt road three miles to get to the town.
I took an English couple there on tour once and at the end they invited to visit them in England, gave me their address and phone number. Sweet.
Yes, the park has been preserved in a state of arrested decay, as I have quoted. That’s why some of the rooms are screened off, so people won’t come in and take stuff. They also repair the buildings so they don’t collapse. They keep them just as they were the last residents left. Bodie IS the historic park, a state park, and is now also a National Historic Landmark.
Thanks. 🙂
I read through your post about Bodie and found myself becoming sad. The people just got up and left, but why? Were there no other options to keeping the town going? I think that greed and progress sometime tend to strip us of our ability to care.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
It was just a rush on gold, Patricia. As soon as that mine was depleted, they moved on to other places, like Tombstone, as I said. There’s another ghost town very near Bodie — Aurora, Nevada. They’re all over the west. Some of them have been restored by artists, like Jerome, Ariz. Tombstone, disappointingly, has gotten too commercial. In other ghost town locations, you’d never know there was a town there; there’s nothing left but wide open space.
That the inhabitants stayed as long as they did in Bodie, and there were only a handful, amazes me, because Bodie, up in the hills, out in the open is so exposed to that harsh climate. The park rangers love it, though. But they’re equipped.
Bodie was just a lawless, Wild West town, with more brothels and bars, some say, than homes. The ones who made the real money on the gold, anyhow, were those who sold picks and axes to the miners. Moreover, they left because, there was no other source of income; they were out in the middle of nowhere.
It’s romantically nostalgic; bittersweet. And a very intriguing place to visit. The lore and allure of the West.
Shalom,
Samantha
Fascinating post. You really had fun exploring California! I’ve never been to that area of the state and didn’t know the history existed. Thanks for the education and pictures!
Wine country next, Gwynn. 🙂 I’ve never been in that part of the state.
The Naples pier brings back memories. Was there November 2014. So beautiful. Thanks!
It is beautiful. Glad I was able to bring back some memories for you, Suzanne.
Thanks for coming by to visit me here on the A-Zs.
I love Catalina. We visited on twice, and I enjoyed being there more than getting there each time. Love walking the streets, taking golf cart excursions up the narrow roads. Probably what I enjoyed the most, exploring the island.
Thank you for the detailed history, Samantha, and the photos. An impetus to go look for my photos, take a few years back. Cool fact about the buffalo, too.
I loved driving around the island, too, Silvia. That there are buffalo there always fascinated me. In researching for writing my post, I found out that they give the surplus buffalo to the Lakota under the agreement that the Lakota will not kill the buffalo.
Thanks.
In my much younger days, I lived in California, but had no idea. Mostly due to my age and my funds! I love that there are buffalo and a waiting list for cars. 🙂 That mansion reminds me of the houses in Cape May, NJ.
@abetterjulie from http://www.persephoneknits.blogspot.com
Yes, Wrigley built a Victorian mansion on the side of a hill on Catalina. I’m glad that during the years I lived in SoCal I was able to visit Catalina. It’s a unique place.
Thanks for coming by!
Oh, I so enjoyed Catalina. I remember seeing the Wrigley Mansion, but never went inside. Another gal, Betty, commented on my “W” and she wrote about the Wrigley Mansion too with pictures of the inside. COOL!! Our senior class went to Catalina, then years later I sailed there. I dove off the trimarane to swim to shore. As I swam, I looked down and a huge Manteray glided down below me. Catalina is stunning. Thanks for the memories and the beautiful post.
Wow, Gwynn. You did more at Catalina than I did. We only went for a day. We walked around Avalon and drove a golf cart around the island and that was it. I’ll have to look for Betty’s comment on your blog.
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the memories.
I need a holiday after reading this post 🙂
Catalina is a wonderful place to spend even just a day, Gulara.
Thanks for coming by and virtually holidaying on Catalina. 🙂
Beautiful, Samantha. When I saw your post pop up in my cue and saw the name Wrigley, I immediately thought of Wrigley Field in I believe Chicago and of Wrigley spearmint gum, which I loved to chew.
Your photographs bring up so many wonderful memories. Even I have never been to Santa Catalina, the name Wrigley, I know.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
William Wrigley Jr., the same, owned the Chicago Cubs, Patricia. I hadn’t thought of pursuing that same name research until you just now mentioned it. So, he owned Catalina Island and he owned the Chicago Cubs. Interesting person, and, for me, a fellow native Philadelphian. I wonder what else he owned? (Well, besides the chewing gum company. I do know he explored other businesses, earlier, which didn’t do so well.)
Interesting about photographs and how they affect viewers. Thinking I’d just post a few photos and say a few words became not nearly as simple as I had intended. I have learned a lot. I am heartened that my photos recall memories for some and introduce new places to others. And I am inspired.
Shalom,
Samantha
What an extraordinary history of Santa Catalina. And good that people get about by bike or golf cart or just their feet, buff by hoof. And that they limit the number of cars on the island. Thanks Samantha! I’ve so enjoyed your series!
Thanks, Susan. From the mainland sometimes you see Catalina out there across the water and sometimes you don’t, depending on how far the sea mist that rolls in every night has retreated. I lived in SoCal for four months before one hot dry morning walking outside and, lo, there was an island out there on the water. It’s like they set it out there some days and other days they don’t, you know…? 🙂
Glad you enjoyed my series. It’s been a voyage into self-awareness that I didn’t plan.
Cape May looks really lovely. So charming and with such a distinctive style. I would love to visit someday.
It is lovely, Karen. A charming place to visit.
Thanks for coming by and visiting my blog. 🙂
Samantha
Awesome pictures and what a GLORIOUS area!! I so love the beauty and the history of your area. Thank you for sharing. I truly think you should send these to travel magazines.
Well, I could send these photos to travel magazines, but the photos are old, not digital and, besides, the magazine would pay very little. I have actually tried selling my photos through a third party, a photo agency. It doesn’t pay. I’d rather retain the rights and write current stories with current photos for travel magazines or newspaper features. And, then, all five people who still read print could enjoy my travel photojournalism. I do make photo note cards that I sell in packs of 12 for $25.00: my Mustard Lane Note Cards. But, these days most people simply email.
I agree, Gwynn — Glorious. I think that’s what the Victorians were thinking when they designed their architecture — Glorious! I can hear Emerson, Thoreau and Muir now. 🙂
Samantha,
if you were to go to Poole or to Brighton or to York, you would believe you are in Cape May. I am amazed at how much British Culture still influences some parts of the United States. Thank you for sharing these beautiful pictures.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Interesting, Patti. Thanks for giving me that picture of England. I would like to visit there. The older I get the more I realize what a relatively short time ago it was that the early settlers arrived here from England; and by the Victorian period, the harnessing of steam power enabled people to travel all over the world rather quickly and comfortably, so they could sail to England, say, and see this new style of gingerbread architecture with long windows and high ceilings and fancy colors and say, “I will build one of those for myself when I get home.” You probably know all this. There are people I’ve met here in Delaware who tell me stories of their English and Dutch ancestors who lived here in the 1600s. The British beat the Dutch in various dustups, and that British culture remains strong, from Georgia to Maine.
What I found really interesting when we moved to California was meeting Mexican Americans whose families had lived there since California was part of Mexico. What classy people they are. And, fortunately for us, they opened a lot of Mexican restaurants. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
The images are so beautiful. It makes me want to visit it sometime.
Thank you for sharing and have a great last week of the challenge. 🙂
[@samantha_rjsdr] from
Whimsical Compass
Thank you, Ramya. Maybe you will visit Cape May sometime. It’s quite a lovely, relaxing place.
Thanks for coming by. And, I hope you enjoy this final week of the A-Z Challenge.
Those are the prettiest pictures I ever did see Samantha thank you! Those Victorians knew a thing or three about charm.
They did, Susan. The Victorians were smart in a lot of ways — constructed their buildings intelligently and with a spiritual aspect, with lots of light and reaching upwards to the heavens. It’s a shame we have foregone much that the Victorians have given us.
Wow! It definitely looks very loonar 🙂 very beautiful.
The first time I saw Mono Lake was when I watched the movie High Plains Drifter. I thought, “Where is that fascinatingly beautiful place? An ocean-looking body of water in the middle of the Wild West high desert? Then, a few years later I saw Mono Lake in person. It’s one of those places you have to keep coming back to, I think, because it changes appearance with the rising and falling water levels and with the light at different hours of the day.
Thanks for coming by, Gulara.
Breath-taking views and stunning architecture!
Yes, the Appalachians are so inviting with their own special kind of silent beauty, I think, Gulara. And that Gothic Biltmore House architecture — I love the spires and gargoyles — so interesting to look at and study. Inside is beautiful, too. I think the house has something like 26 bathrooms — you know, one for each guest room. All I could imagine was having to clean them all; but, I suppose if I could afford such a vast house I could afford the help. 🙂 (I could be wrong about the number of bathrooms, but that number sticks in my head.)
Thank you for coming by!
Stunning photos and a fascinating place. Thank you for showing us around.
Yes, it’s a photogenic town and a pleasant place to visit or vacation, Gulara. Thanks for coming by. Nice to meet you on the A-Zs.
The marble angel is so beautiful. Looks like you and your mom had a great road trip.
Blog: QueendSheena
2016 A to Z Participant
Joy Brigade Minion
We did have a wonderful trip, Sheena-kay, My mother loved to travel. The photos bring back many fond memories.
Thanks.
We traveled to Virginia some three years back, but didn’t venture off the beaten path — there seems to always be the issue of time. Did the touristy places, Jamestown, Williamsburg, both nice and historically mesmerizing. This is a different kind of beautiful — just splendid scenery and history. Would love to go back. Thank you, Samantha.
It is a different kind of beautiful, Silvia, but beautiful in its own right. Virginia’s a beautiful state. I have visited Monticello and would love to go back. Thomas Jefferson’s spirit is still there. You can feel him all around you. I didn’t know about Poplar Forest until a few years ago. That is because it didn’t exist as such. The land all around it was built up and Poplar Forest was privately owned. But the private owners are gone and Poplar Forest and the land that is still part of it is being restored. That tops my list of places to visit and only about four hours from home.
I LOVE your pictures as I have never traveled in that area. Your area of the country drips in fabulous history as it oozes out all over. It is FUN to see. Thanks for the education and sharing your world.
It does drip and ooze, Gwynn. It’s humid.
I’m glad you like my photos. Thanks! 🙂
Gorgeous photos Samantha, lovely part of history explained too. And the photo of your Look Homeward Angel is so lovely to see – I remember from a long time ago when I first came to your blog, reading that inscription –
Yep, that poem is still here on my blog. The poem, the novel and the marble angel are all part of that peak synchronistic moment that showed me I must write. That moment happened when I climbed the dirt road in Jerome, Ariz., with the sculptor, whom I thought had fallen into a bag of flour, to his studio overlooking the open copper mine. “I look like this because I am a sculptor,” he said. “Let me show you what I just finished.” And, so, we walked up the hill and there on the back shelf lying in a box of straw was a flat marble angel he had sculpted.
Welcome back, Susan! Can’t wait to hear about your trip!
Do you know you were actually in my part of the woods. Well, you were in Northern Georgia and I was born in Southern Georgia but I know Georgia, North Carolina and the Southern States very well. I also go to North Carolina every time I go visit the States.
Excellent article my dear.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Yes, I figured I was in your neck of the woods, Patti. And now my daughter treks all through those states — on business and with my granddaughters for cheer. She lives in Charlotte. And, as I’ve mentioned to you before, I did live in Southern Georgia briefly, on St. Simon’s Island for four months in 1967, when my daughter was a newborn and my husband was going to a Navy officers school in Brunswick.
One of these days we’re going to overlap. Won’t that be fun! 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
That’s stunning! I’m always amazed at the natural beauty out there. You’ve certainly seen some unique places!
As have you, Red, certainly.
Thanks.
So many wanders we have in California. Wonderful learning more about Mono Lake. You’re right, it looks like lunar landscape — I suppose very different and alien, almost. Glad the committee has been able to protect the lake. Goes to show that when there is a will, humanity finds a way.
So true on all counts, Silvia. As for writing about Calf., I was thinking about how much I’ve written about the state and that I could go on. It has a lot. Its geological energy, those dynamics, I think energize the inhabitants. It’s hard to stay still. 🙂 Yes, the Committee, and I’m amazed that nevertheless how slowly the lake level rises.
“…many wonders,” sorry about that. I am enjoying your tours through CA and beyond tremendously, Samantha.
🙂 I knew what you meant, Silvia. But, wanders is good, too.
This time I receive your post via Facebook and not your Admin so I hope you receive my comment. Mono Lake reminds me vaguely of the Great Salt Lake. The land scape in some of the pictures looks how I would visualize the moon or other planets. Interesting pictures and history.
The Great Salt Lake and Mono Lake have a quite similar ecology, Gwynn. The Great Salt Lake, of course, is bigger. Yes, Mono Lake does have an interestingly alien landscape; and when you view it from overhead it looks like a caldron of soup.
As far as connecting to my site via FB, I post those FB links personally, daily, as soon as I can get around to them.
Better post notification signup app — it’s Feedburner, which I had before and that worked so perfectly. Sign up, if you’d like, in my right sidebar. I tried it and I’m good to go.
Thanks!
I didn’t know that High Plains Drifter was filmed at Mono Lake. I will take a look at the links you put in the article. What I do find fantastic is the banding together of people to stop the water pillaging and to preserve the characteristics of the lake and its environmental surroundings.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
When the movie opened, when I first saw it, and Clint Eastwood rides across the high desert sagebrush into this town beside what looked like a little ocean in a lunar landscape, Patricia, I thought where could this possibly be? And then a few years later I went to Mono Lake and I found out. I didn’t even know Mono Lake existed until I worked for the commuter airline flying to Mammoth Lakes. Phenomenal.
People who live in that area are outdoorsy anyhow, so it’s natural and good they came together. That and the Hetch Hetchy story and what St. Andrew’s school does and what they teach the children, these are all tied together, protecting the ecosystem step by step.
Thanks.
Shalom,
Samantha
I love your pictures of the Pacific Ocean. When I was living in Monterey that was one of my highlights. To wake up in the morning and look out on the Pacific Ocean was nourishment for my soul.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Nourishment for the soul, absolutely, Patti. Thanks for commenting and enjoying my surf and sunset photos.
I will add here that my “Reflections” draft got published accidentally. I’m not done writing it, as you could probably tell. Comes from trying to do too many things at once, including accepting phone calls while I’m doing all those things. Anyway, I returned it to draft category. You got a review, you lucky person. 🙂 You’ll see the finished version when it is time.
Shalom,
Samantha
Now, this is interesting. I left a long message and your blog didn’t post it. Yesterday I talked with a gal at the museum as she and her husband taught about nature. They are very familiar with the Hetch Hetchy project. My Great Grandfather Judge James A. Waymire tried to back the Bond that was to provide money for the project. The bond failed and the State of California took everything my family owned. The family home in Alameda became the Navy’s officers’ quarters. So it is interesting that you would post about Hetch Hetchy.
Interesting story, Gwynn. Thank you to your great grandfather, Judge James A. Waymire. I’ll look for pictures of the Navy officers quarters. Just think, my husband and I could have been at those quarters had we been stationed in SF rather than Long Beach when he was a Navy officer back during the Vietnam War.
I love your pictures of the beaches down south. Some of the beaches stand out in my memory where other pictures seem to have faded from my memory bank. It now has been 40 years since I left and have only been back twice but for business. Thanks for the beautiful memories!!
Yes, they are fond memories. SoCal, especially Redondo, still seems like home to me. The last time I visited there it felt weird, because I felt like I was home but had no home to go to. Saddening.
I’m going to add this here, Gwynn re your comment on my “Reflections” accidental post —
Well, for me, someone left the gate open — probably Moriarty — and my “Reflections” draft escaped before it was fully groomed. I lassoed it and put it back in the stable. It will be re-released at the proper time. Geez. You have to watch those blog phantoms every minute. You never know what they’re up to next. No wonder this one’s named Moriarty.
Boy, today has been filled with coincidences! I was talking with one of the gals at the museum as she and her husband taught classes about nature. They come from California too. Cheryl knew about the Hetch Hetchy, and I told her that my great grandfather Judge James A. Waymire was also instrumental in attempting to pass the water initiative. Some one created a Bond for the Hetch Hetchy Valley. My great grandfather backed the bond. When the bond failed the State of California took everything from my great grandfather. Sadly he died in 1910 from Ptomaine poisoning. The pink mansion in Alameda, used by the Navy Admirals was formerly my great grandparents’ home.
The Modesto Water System put out a book, “The Greening of Paradise Valley” and it mentioned my great grandfather there. I talked with Chery today about this subject.
So sad about your great grandfather, Gwynn. I wonder, did he know John Muir? This Hetch Hetchy story is one more people need to know about I think. And, as I mentioned in reply to Silvia’s comment, Sen. Diane Feinstein is against the restoration. You’d think she’d be for it, being a Democrat, but I guess her decision has political relevance to her being a former SF mayor. Anyway, I’ve commented to you further on this cause on my FB page.
Too, yes, coincidental that this subject is currently forefront, but it is Earth Month, and today, April 22, is Earth Day. My St. Andrew’s School story has relevance to that, big time, too. It’s a long post, but needs to be said. We need constant reminders.
John Muir is one of my heroes. When we go to Yosemite, I try to sit on ‘his rock’ along Merced river, and try to imagine the valley as he saw it in those days. Too bad about Hetch Hetchy, and the fact that he died somewhat heartbroken as a result. Great images, Samantha.
One of my heroes, too, Silvia. I didn’t know he had a rock. Maybe I’ve sat on it or stood by it. My “Y” post will be about Yosemite Valley. Maybe I’ll have John Muir’s rock in one of my photos.
FYI, Diane Feinstein is against restoring Hetch Hetchy Valley. I’m surprised, but maybe it has some political relevance to her being a former SF mayor.
This is one part of the United States that I haven’t seen. Through you photographs and the story you told I’ve now like to see the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir.
Thank you.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
A beautiful area, Patricia. And such a tragedy. I want to see Hetch Hetchy Valley restored.
Shalom,
Samantha
This is stupendous and I love the values the school teaches it’s students.
Blog: QueendSheena
2016 A to Z Participant
Joy Brigade Minion
Me, too, Sheena-kay. Thank you.
At the time I saw it, I was at a State-side boarding school, and after watching the movie, we all were really grateful the school was co-ed! (Dorms weren’t, of course.)
St. Andrew’s became co-ed in the 1970s, Red — but not the dorms. 🙂
Your first sixteen or seventeen pictures remind me of old England or better said of Oxford. You have seen a lot in your short life and have many treasures that you can share from your treasure trove of memories.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
I believe that is the whole point of the tudor style architecture as relates to the Anglican religion of the school, Patricia. This whole area looks like England. It’s no wonder the English settled here; they felt right at home. Some of them even speak with an accent or inflection closely sounding like an English accent. Many of them, especially down here on the Delmarva Peninsula, haven’t changed much since their ancestors left England. The British dramas I watch so many of and thought were quaint when I watched them in California, I find quite natural watching them here in the Delaware/Maryland region.
I think more likely than a short life, I have taken many pictures over the years, but especially in the 1990s.
Thanks.
Shalom,
Samantha
I have to add here, though, Patricia, it wasn’t so much the pictures that were my focus in this piece but my point, which I made in too many words for an A-Z post, I know; and then I had to wrap the pictures around all that long text.
I figure if someone is truly interested in what I say about sustainability of humanity and the environment, they can come back and read and discuss later.
I vaguely remember the Dead Poet’s Society. It was an excellent movie, but amazingly the river and water makes me think more of The Boys in the Boat, even though it is about the University of Washington’s rowing team. Some of the pictures remind me of Lake Washington.
Interesting post and beautiful pictures.
Well, I was introduced to rowing a long time ago, when I was college age, by Univ. of Pennsylvania students. Penn has a boathouse on the Schuylkill River, alongside others (Boathouse Row) and I love to watch the rowers sculling on the river. So, I was intrigued when I did my St. Andrew’s School interviews, about their rowing. I got a tour inside their boathouse. You know, those sculls are very expensive.
I love that movie! I recognized your allusion to it in the title immediately. Sadly, I had no idea it was filmed in Delaware, or I would have visited. Beautiful pictures.
One of my favorite movies, too. It’s funny that while I was watching the movie in California, to me the scenery looked nothing like Delaware. But, there you have it, and now I live in it, just a few miles from Middletown. The St. Andrew’s campus is quite photogenic.
Interesting that you recognized the allusion from the title. The title came at me indirectly via Peter McLean’s saying in an interview I did with him, something to the effect of answering the questions nature provides.
I don’t know what your boarding school experience was like, overall, Red, but I think I would have liked attending boarding school at St. Andrew’s. I really like the way they think and their approach towards humanity.
Thanks. 🙂
Such gorgeous photos! I don’t know what it is about piers, they really spark the imagination.
Thank you, Isa Lee (I hope I’ve got your name right). There is something about piers that endlessly fascinates me.
Thanks for coming by. Nice to meet you on the A-Zs.
All the reasons I love SoCal, Samantha, and put up with traffic and high-everything prices here. 🙂 I lived in Redondo Beach for five years — on Huntington Lane, off Grand Ave, not far from the Galleria Mall. We had a townhouse there. It was a five-minute drive to the beach and we spent an inordinate amount of time there, either for exercise, pleasure, or at El Torito for beer with chips and salsa. Nowadays Hermosa is overruled by college kids and wannabe poets, and Manhattan is getting very ritzy. As for Redondo, it’s jokingly referred to as Recondo, as so many houses are demolished and turned into condo complexes.
I have a soft spot for South Bay in my heart. We go for a drive once or twice a year. Thank you for sharing. Lovely to see all the familiar places.
Ah, El Torito, yes, Silvia. Brings back memories. I think Hermosa was always the hippy, poet place — even some of the streets are named after poets; and, Recondo — so sad that all those charming beach bungalows were lost, all in the sweep of a few years, too. Money. We lived in the Hollywood Riviera mostly. For a while I lived on Elvira Ave., parallel to Broadway and Catalina Ave., just off Knob Hill.
Yes, all the reasons we love it, despite the traffic and high housing prices.
Oh, I just had to add this, Silvia — you’ll love it: When we first arrived in SoCal, we rented a two-bedroom garden apt. in the Hollywood Riviera/Redondo, overlooking the Santa Monica Bay, just a couple blocks from the beach, for $127/mo. That was in 1967.
Ahhhhh, the California piers bring back so many memories. Do you remember the Triathalons… swimming, rowing, and surfing? How about the volleyball contests? The beach is a fun place to be! Thanks for the memories!! 😉
I had a haircut customer who did the triathlon. More power to him. I do love the piers. I lost a red, dangling earring off the Hermosa Pier when I was looking over the rail and it dropped into the Pacific. I often wonder where it is now. Great memories for me, too, Gwynn.
Your night scene photographs just made my day. Especially the one with the sun going down. I think it is Redondo Beach. It is perfect. I needed to see these tonight.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
I guess if you’re talking about the upper ones, that’s Hermosa Beach, the long pier with the really tall pilings, Patti. From that pier one night I donated a red earring to the Pacific. It just fell out of my ear into the water. There is something comforting about those photos. I think I saw The Prophet just there, too, standing on the shore in the near darkness. 🙂 I will have a Redondo “Sunset” — that’s its title — photo coming under “S”. (The lower sunset photos are of the Naples Pier.)
Shalom,
Samantha
Fascinating, Samantha. You’re right, the island’s story and history feels like something known only to a private club or cult. The aerial image of the water and domes…amazing, now that I know something about the island, the walking trail gone. I am thinking the island would make an intriguenly fascinating setting for a good mystery or any type of book. Thank you for sharing. I am not in the habit of picking favorite post, but this one’s fascinating.
Yeah, this is an utterly fascinating story, Silvia, and back when I first heard about it and saw photos, when I was working at that job on Marco, my mind conjured up all sorts of potential mystery stories, as with you, and I’m still inspired. I must confess that after I wrote about this, I had to make a strong effort to pull myself, my mind, away. I just wanted to indulge and sink into it until my novel was finished.
They talk about Californians being “far out,” but Floridians are way more so. You can do and get away with pretty much what you want in Florida, and nobody says anything. For the rich, you build a solar dome house on an island for the fun of it, and if it sinks, so be it.
I have never heard of Marco Island before, so thanks for the lovely write up and photo tour. Spending time at the beach is quite nice, and I wish I could get around to it more often.
Thank you for coming by and visiting my blog and virtual beach, Julia. It would be nice to be there on Marco in reality. I think you’d like it if you went.
Nice to meet you on the A-Zs.
I’ll come by and visit you now.
I attempted to leave a comment and then my computer could not find your page, so I’ll try again. The Marcos Island beaches remind me of some of the Mexican beaches that I have seen pictures of, and also some of the Caribbean beaches. Beautiful pristine white sand! Those poor domed homes look DOOMED! You take GORGEOUS pictures! Thanks!
Well, I didn’t take the photos of Cape Romano and the sinking homes, Gwynn, as you probably know. I’ve never been there, though I have wanted to go ever since I heard about them 20 years ago when they weren’t so far under water. Yes, that part of Florida has a distinct Caribbean and Bahamian appearance and feel — and I would suspect, Cuban, too. Of course, I’ve drunk Cuban coffee in Florida. One of those two-ounce cups keeps you buzzed for days.
Beautiful, Samantha. We have several islands in Northern Germany that are similar to Marco. I have had the privilege of going to three of those islands, my favorite being Langeoog.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
In Northern Germany…. Interesting, Patricia. I never would’ve thought. I guess it IS warm enough in the summertime. Long Island. No sinking, I hope. No wonder the Germans like Naples and Marco so much. The Germans are very polite — always say hello and thank you and goodbye.
And thank you, Patricia, for visiting and for letting me know about Langeoog.
Shalom,
Samantha
Looks like a colourful place – I read somewhere that people in Florida are ignoring the fact that when the seas rise they will flood – is that true? ~Liz http://www.lizbrownleepoet.com
Colorful people, that’s for sure, Liz. Re rising seas, read my “O” post, “On Marco Island,” and find out more.
Thanks for coming by. Nice to meet you on the A-Zs.
Interesting seeing the pictures from a different time, Samantha, particularly accompanied by your descriptions of a place that is no longer there. The villa with the colorful flowers painted on it — so joyous. The view from your mom’s place, so peaceful. I imagine it was lovely spending quality writing time in such a nice place.
I think I did some of my best writing in Florida, Silvia. I don’t know why that is. I didn’t really like Florida. Yet, maybe it was the clean air that smelled like orange blossoms, the humidity (even though I don’t like humidity) and the relaxed quality of life. Most people there generate enough income during the tourist season to take the summers off.
We knew that the farm market was temporary. My boss leased the land from a developer who kept testing the wells for salinity.
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings lived and wrote in rural Florida, and it seemed just the right atmosphere for her. There’s something about the mysterious goings on in the the swamps that conjures up the imagination.
Thank you, Silvia.
Of course, when I saw the title of this posting, I first thought it was about Naples, or Napoli, Italy. Funny, how our minds play tricks on us. Naples seems to be an interesting place to live. I have been all over the east coast of Florida but never went totally down south of the State or West. I did stay a couple of nights in Pensacola but that was it.
I enjoyed the photographs and your excerpts. I do believe I must plan for a eight week trip or more in the United States.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Or, next year maybe The Prophet and Child will visit Italy and we’ll travel with them. Actually, there are a lot of Italians, mostly Italian-Americans in Naples. When I was leaving L.A. to go there, an Italian-American I knew said he had lots of relatives there, that he had been there and enjoyed shopping at Publix. :-).
Of course some of the architecture there is Neopolitan style, but more so Venetian — there’s a Venetian Bay, and largely Spanish. The Old Florida style, which makes the most sense, is disappearing.
Anyway, here’s to our visiting Napoli one day. Thanks, Patricia.
Shalom,
Samantha
Lovely and interesting pictures. You really should be writing for travel magazines. You can inform people about your area. Great post.
You’re the third person that’s said I should be writing for travel magazines, since I’ve been writing on this A-Z theme. All I need is the funding to travel. I’d love it! What a great career. Funding to travel and take a friend. Let’s picture that. 🙂
I do love Mammoth, Samantha. The winter pictures here bring back memories, as I’ve only been up there in winter, and only for a short time, or so it felt…short. Love looking at the photos and reading the history, much or most of which I didn’t know.
Mammoth does have an interesting history, Silvia — colorful, like the histories of other places around the state. The gold rush aspect fascinates me. Those ski area photos are old and the sunlight was so bright at that altitude and on the snow, it was hard to get a good picture with my point and shoot camera. But it gives an idea of what the ski area looks like. It’s fun to look at different places in California, I think, even if only in photos at this point. I’ll do a couple more posts on the state.
Thanks.
Just back after Susan Schwartz’s talk, and much to do Samantha. I normally spend several minutes reading/admiring your posts but this time because of lateness of hour and still much to do, I will not do it justice by rushing through it. I’ve admired the photos … and look forward on my return to reading properly! No wi-fi in Botswana .. no comms no nothing! Have got prescheduled posts up. xxxxxx
Safe and happy travels, Susans. And thank you Susan for coming by and dropping a line.
Looking at your photographs, I now know why I love California. If I had stayed in the United States, that’s exactly where I would be. Thank you for sharing so much beauty-. I have a big heart for California.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
You and me both, Patricia — big hearts and preferred place to live in the States. Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
I think I have mentioned that I have friends living in Big Pine and she talks about meeting her kids in Mammoth when they go snowboarding or skiing. It is fun actually seeing the area instead of guessing what it looks like.
Great pictures and history. Thanks!!
Oh, Big Pine. Yes, I have been there. Beautiful area, close to Mt. Whitney. Makes me miss it now that you mention it. Thanks, Gwynn.
I did not know the name of the plateau. I know the river, like most people. I saw the Grand Canyon on a whirlwind “southwest” trip during college, but would love to go back and traverse the canyon on burros (if they still do that).
Definitely they still traverse the Canyon on burros, Red. I would love to do that, too, but I’m not in good enough shape these days. Twenty years ago, when I took these photos, it would have been easier. On the other hand, maybe this is an incentive to exercise more — a lot more. 🙂
Awww… more home-like images! My favorite pic is the second from the bottom.
(sidenote, I’ve had issues with accessing your comment section from my work computer, so I’ve been reading, but not showing my presence! – it happens to my husband’s blog, too.)
I’ve had other readers say they have trouble accessing the comment section, Red. Sometimes they can and sometimes they can’t. It’s mystifying. I’ve tinkered with it and nothing seems to work. May be my WordPress theme or maybe my web host, I don’t know. Anyway, I will come back to visit your site; I’m just running a little behind. Glad you like the Chesapeake City home-like images. It is a picturesque town.
Hmm, I tried to leave a comment from your Facebook post and Facebook couldn’t find your page. Anyway, I loved the pictures as they remind me of the Seattle Locks. Like Susan, since it is near my dinner time, I was looking for your lunch. Beautiful shots of the area. Thanks!
Hmm. I wonder what you clicked on, Gwynn. I tried it and found the page just fine. The only pictures of my food I’ve taken are for a recipe book I was planning. Since this lunch on the C&D Canal was nearly 20 years ago, I’m having a hard time remembering what I ate. It was good, though; that I remember.
So nice to see you come by and visit. It means a lot to me. 🙂 Thanks.
Beautiful. Sounds like a great day spent with your mom. And in October, pleasant weather, too. The photo of the red boat is gorgeous, certainly gallery quality. Looks like a peaceful place to take a walk after a delicious lunch. Thank you for sharing.
I try to travel mostly in October, Silvia. The weather is great pretty much everywhere at that time of the year, at least in the U.S. Chesapeake City is a peaceful place, a good place to go on a day’s outing.
Thanks.
I was hoping also for photos of the lunch Samantha I must confess.. Maybe blueberry scones whose recipe you were able to wangle out of the resteranteur? But, never mind, the photos are beautiful. Was the red boat photo that was exhibited, yours? I suspect so .. You really do have an eye. I always have a few scrolls to check them out.
These are all my photos, Susan, unless I note otherwise. “Red Boat” was one of six of my photos exhibited in the Naples gallery.
You know, I don’t recall what I had for lunch. Wish I could go back and do it again. This A-Z photo series makes me miss my mother, as you probably know.
Thanks for the photo compliments.
Thank you for your dedication staying with us on the A-Zs thus far. I know you are about to embark on your Botswana journey. Safe and happy travels — and lots of photos, please. 🙂
Beautiful. I love sedimentary rock. The color gradations appeal to me. Thanks for visiting me.
Jean visiting for the A-Z Challenge. @PolarBear60 on Twitter. http://pmtoo.jeanschara.com/journal
Thank you, Jean. Nice to meet you on the A-Zs.
I am not sure, but in 2004 I drove up to Queens in New York City from Augusta Georgia to visit my aunt and I do believe I drove over the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal because I had to drive through a corner of Maryland and a corner of Delaware. The photographs are wonderful and are really motivating me to take another long trip throughout the United States.
Love this.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
When I-95 crosses from Maryland into Delaware, it crosses at the top of the Chesapeake Bay, above the C&D canal; that is, north of it. The dramatic body of water you crossed was at the Conowingo Dam at the mouth of the Susquehanna River, just north of Havre de Grace (pronounced “havver dee grace”), Md., where that river meets the Chesapeake Bay. That’s a pretty area over there, a historic tourist site.
We have a few road trips planned together, I think, now, Patricia — one here and one in Italy.
Shalom,
Samantha
Simply gorgeous, Samantha. I’ve never been to the Grand Canyon — a shame — but plan to take my son in the near future. I am just struck by the majesty and beauty of the whole area, all that you show here and describe so well. In looking at these images, particularly the way in which you capture the light in the top three images, I am marveling over and over at how good a photographer you are. Thank you for sharing fantastic your travels.
Thank you for the compliments on my photography, Silvia. In those days I used a camera with film, of course. At midday in elevation that high the sun washes out the color, so I had to wait until near sunset to take the photos, when the hues were deeper and richer, the shadows longer and more dramatic.
Anyway, definitely take your son. You only live a day’s drive away, so do it while you have the opportunity. And maybe you, your son and your husband are all young enough that you are in good enough shape to ride a mule down the Bright Angel Trail to Phantom Ranch. That would be fun, I should think. 🙂
These pictures and the accompanying explanations are beautiful. I have never been to the Grand Canyon. It’s never been high up on my list of things to see, but you have awoken a tiny urge. Maybe, one day I’ll go there.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
First time visitors have an interesting reaction the first time they see the Canyon, Patricia. We’re all just kind of dumbstruck. It’s hard to wrap your mind around such vastness and color. It is absolutely worth seeing, though. And it is beautiful in all its grandeur.
Shalom,
Samantha
Oh I LOVED visiting the Grand Canyon. It is SO spectacular! Your pictures are dynamite as I felt I was there! To me, the Canyon is God’s gift to the earth. It is a total wonder. Thanks for the marvelous memories!
I couldn’t have said it better, Gwynn. The Grand Canyon is awesome in all its grandeur. Thanks!
Samantha this is very magnificent – in a post or two before I had a similar thought to what someone else said I forget who that you could be a travel writer …
Around this time two years ago I was with Susan Schwartz in Phoenix and we went to the Grand Canyon and viewed from I’m unsure which side, east or west … at a guess I would say east side and was truly in awe … she will be here tomorrow early a.m. and I will show her your post. We will remember – she is magnificent.
Thank you also for the history of land being given and taken – very sacred land which the Havasupi are still maintaining, and the hotel maintaing sustainability –
Thank you for this beautiful post! Nature, she is wonderful!
Susan, the person who commented that my stories qualified for great travel writing is Rhonda Gilmour at “Late Blooming Rose.” She commented on my Harpers Ferry post. So, thank you for saying the same. I love traveling and writing stories about a sense of place. I had considered travel writing in the past, and have been toying with tying this series of A-Z posts in with that. I’ll pursue it further when the A-Zs are done. All I need is a digital camera.
Has it been two years already since you visited Susan in Arizona? No doubt you viewed the Grand Canyon from the South Rim; that’s where most tourists go.
Yes, a fascinating history the Grand Canyon and surrounds have. Thank you.
From a site called overfalls.org: William J. Miller, Jr. was born in Wilmington in 1917. After graduating from Drexel University as a Civil Engineer and distinguishing himself during World War II, Mr. Miller returned to Delaware. In 1963 he was appointed the first Executive Director of the Delaware River and Bay Authority, and served until 1991.
Under his guidance and in 1968, the “Twin Span” of the Delaware Memorial Bridge was opened in 1968 connecting northern Delaware and New Jersey.
Ferry service began in 1964 under Mr. Miller’s leadership. The first ferry was secured from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel District. Five new world-class vessels would later make the Cape May-Lewes Ferry System not only a transportation link but a major tourist attraction for the entire Delaware Bay.
Bill Miller was chosen Drexel’s Man of the Year, Delaware Outstanding Professional Engineer, President of the Delaware Society of Professional Engineers, President of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association. He has served as Chairman of the March of Dimes, Board of the Blood Bank of Delaware, Delaware AAA, Delaware Safety Council and first chairman of the Council of the Laity of the Diocese of Wilmington.
He is a distinguished author of two books, Crossing the Delaware and A Ferry Tale. The Cape May Lewes Ferry has carried 13,800,000 vehicles and 42,000,000 passengers since its inception.
Bill Miller’s efforts have promoted tourism and commerce and he has left a legacy of service to residents along the shores of the Delaware River and Bay.
This is very interesting, Tom. Thank you. I went to the website and read all about the lightship Overfalls. Although I had heard of the Overfalls and knew it was a tourist attraction, I didn’t know what a lightship was. So, I’m glad to have learned about that as well as about Bill Miller’s books and activities. I know mariners have been glad to have lightships around.
That lake looked beautiful during the winter. Such lovely photos.
Blog: QueendSheena
2016 A to Z Participant
Joy Brigade Minion
Thank you, Sheena-Kay. Thanks for coming by.
Carol, nice ferry pics, I ride the boats often. In the gift shop you may have seen a book for sale called “A Ferry Tale” that relates the history of this ferry service. It was written by the dad of one of my classmates at Holy Cross Elementary in Dover – he was instrumental in getting the ferry started.
I don’t ride the ferry as much as I’d like, Tom, disappointingly. Glad you ride it often. Is your friend’s dad’s name William J. Miller, Jr.? I see the book on Amazon, if that’s the one. It would be interesting to read. There is a recent video documentary on the ferry — “Billion Mile Journey, the Cape May-Lewes Ferry,” celebrating 50 years of operation begun July 1, 1964, that I watched just recently on WHYY (PBS). The story is fascinating. I donated one of my photos to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry website about 15 years ago, the last one on this post, that I call “Ferry Wake.” I’m so happy your friend’s dad was instrumental in getting the ferry started — much needed and much fun. Stay tuned for my blog post, “Victorians and Menhadens,” photos of the Cape May Victorian houses and of course the menhaden fishing boats, both of which are so photogenic.
Thank you for visiting, reading my post and commenting. I appreciate it.
All that open sky, so blue, above those mountains. A lovely place that helps rest the mind with its beauty. Place of inspiration, introspection. The yellow flower and the Tule fog crystals on sagebrush — such contrast. There is nothing like natural beauty, the majesty and bigness of it, to put everything into perspective. The pines remind me a bit of what we saw in Yosemite. Thank you. Happy to have taken a shorty trip to June Lake and Lundy Lake with you.
Last week we went for a hike up Malibu Canyon, Santa Monica Mountains. Didn’t go all the way up, but high enough on the rocky path where every step was an exercise in balance. We were just commenting, once we reached the top, on the natural beauty here in CA. So many hidden spots.
You have said that so well, Silvia, painted a beautiful picture. Even just around L.A., how high those mountains are and the hidden beauty they hold.
Thanks!
I am so happy that I am able to comment here now. I tried yesterday but the comment section did not come up. Thanks for your help.
These pictures remind me of Germany and its trains. If you ever visit Frankfurt, for example, you have to take a ride on the Apple wine train. It is an old train from way back then which has been restored and now rides people through the Apple Wine district of Frankfurt and you drink Apple Wine while riding. I believe you would love it.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
I did play around with my site a bit last night, Patricia. I must’ve done something that worked.
I am sure I would enjoy the Apple Wine train. In movies I have seen some of those German train stations. There’s one, especially, that fascinates me — in Berlin or Munich? I can’t think of the name and maybe that’s changed. But, I would love to travel around Europe by rail. I envy them their rail travel.
Thanks for stopping by my site. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
Beautiful, Samantha. Simply beautiful. Your blog theme takes me back to the lovely times that I have spent in the regions that you have shown so far. This one takes me back to Monterey and Carmel, 1974. I was stationed in Fort Ord, which was in Monterey, and very close to the Pacific Ocean. I woke up every morning looking at the blue ocean and dreaming. I visited Carmel. There I fell in love with the homes and the many beautiful yards filled with flowers and large trees. I was able to revisit in 2008. It was still beautiful.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
It is beautiful, I agree Patricia. The awesome evidence of the upheaval caused by subduction earthquakes — begun when dinosaurs roamed the area. Dramatic. I wish to visit again.
Back in those days when you were at Fort Ord, I, too, was waking up every morning looking at the blue Pacific, down in Redondo.
Thank you for visiting and commenting. It means a lot to me.
Shalom,
Samantha
I always thought those rabbitbrush plants were yarrow plants. I am learning something new here! I love the mountains. There is nothing quite like a good majestic peak.
I thought they were sagebrush flowers, Mary, until I looked them up. I had never heard of rabbitbrush before. Nothing like a majestic peak — you are right. They are awesome.
How lovely to see these photos Samantha and take a trip along with you! Those autumnal colours are beautiful – are they really called quaking aspen? June Lake looks and sounds mysterious … and that fog seems to be so low-lying .. and the photo of the crystals on the sagebrush is an award winning photo.
Thank you so much for the road trip vicariously much enjoyed!
They are called quaking aspens because the leaves quake — shiver in the breeze. In the autumn it looks like someone is shaking a tree loaded with gold doubloons. Tule fog means ground fog, Susan. Tule is a Mexican-Indian word incorporated into Spanish, meaning low-lying, and used in Northern California. Several scenic loops exist in that area of the Sierra. Since most of those little towns have one way in and out, they built scenic routes as a means of secondary escape routes, since that area is extremely earthquake prone and prone to escaping volcanic gas — and, of course, very deep snowfall. Being a tourist area this is not advertised — just beautiful scenic routes.
You and I do have our penchant for research. I am fascinated by the geology of that Eastern High Sierra and after my first visit immediately researched more about it, so fascinated was I that I bored people with my geological conversations. 🙂 Given the wherewithal I would move there in an instant — and you could come visit and we’d tour the area.
Thanks for the compliment on my photo, too. That is one of my favorites. I use it on Christmas cards.
I never traveled up into that area of California. Your photos are lovely. I have a friend who lives up in that area so now when she talks about it, I will be able to see what she is describing. I still laugh that it actually can snow in California! Beautiful post!
At an elevation of 14,000 feet, you bet it can snow in California. There are glaciers in the Sierra that never melt, living glaciers that feed the waterfalls year round. My next place to visit is wine country in Calif. Can you believe that I have never been to wine country? 🙂
Beautiful photos, Samantha. From a historical standpoint, just amazing. Can take one back, particularly the top images. Passenger coach looks nice and well maintained, the decor retaining shades of the past. Also the photos of the Amish moving across the countryside, something out of a storybook.
Amazing to think this has been continuously running, going way back. Can almost close my eyes and imagine it being horse drawn.
Horse drawn — that’s something, isn’t it Silvia. It is a charming area and I love steam locomotives. Actually, where I live in Delaware, we are surrounded by Amish. I will go to the supermarket and sometimes there will be a horse and buggy hitched to a lamppost. Mennonites do my lawn and have cleaned my house on occasion. They are far more modern than the Amish, though — they drive cars and use cell phones and computers — just can’t go online or watch TV.
You live in such a historically fascinating area. Plus, the culture of the Amish peoples reminds me of the way this country started. I love your photos. Thanks.
The Amish are interesting, Gwynn. The more updated Mennonites are my gardeners and they often bring an Amish with them — pleasant, friendly people, industrious, their lives so simple. Pennsylvania is a beautiful state with its mountains, farmlands and rolling hills. Thanks for the photo compliment.
Wonderful photos of the Iron Horse – so elegant -and the Amish horse and wagon and countryside Samantha thank you. Is it really the only operational wooden dining car in the US? I hope to watch the clip later …
I want to check out our Blue Train (Rovos Rail) and see whether that is a wooden one … I know it rides from Cape Town to Pretoria; and is luxury all the way and quite out of my reach 🙂
As far as I know and can research, Susan, the Strasburg Rail Road has the only operational wooden dining car in the United States. There are many wooden train cars, some of which are operational, but apparently what the Strasburg Rail Road claims about their operating wooden dining car is true.
I looked at Rovos Rail briefly via Google online and saw a steam locomotive but no wooden cars, which by no means indicates they have none; I just wanted a quick look at a rail line I hadn’t heard of. A safari train journey might be interesting. That is, as long as I could stay inside the train, I’d feel safe (as long as the windows were closed). The Strasburg RR, though, is no luxury train, just a fun day trip for families. The Amish don’t like their pictures taken, but this Amish just happened to be in the farm scene and at a distance. 🙂
Gorgeous place, and to stand there and think of its past, all the history. Moving, I’m sure. Thomas Jefferson was right. Also, the color and vitality come across well in your photos. Thank you for taking us there with the lovely descriptions and images.
Thanks, Silvia. Harpers Ferry exudes atmosphere and sense of history. You can almost feel John Brown and Thomas Jefferson and all the others standing there right beside you. Harpers Ferry is one of those rare places that calls you to come be there.
Those are some really beautiful photos.
Blog: QueendSheena
2016 A to Z Participant
Joy Brigade Minion
Thank you, Sheena-kay.
Great pictures and interesting information. I love history, especially of WV. My family is from there!
Happy A to Z ing! Yay, the weekend’s here! 🙂
Ninga Minion @YolandaRenee from
Defending The Pen
Parallels
Murderous Imaginings
West Virginia is a beautiful state, from what I’ve seen; I would like to see more. Nice to meet you on the A-Zs, Yolanda Renee. Thank you for coming by.
I’ve been there! I didn’t see much though. I had ambitions to be the “camping” aunt – take all my nieces/nephews on a camping trip when they reached a certain age. I enjoyed camping as a kid, so thought that would be fun. I bought a dome tent, a small cooler, coleman lantern, etc. I decided to start camping regularly so that I could build the habit and re-learn skills. First trip: Harpers Ferry (I was living in southern PA). Just a weekend with no plans.
I got poison ivy. Or oak. I don’t know which, but the first night was misery, so I packed up first thing the next morning and went home to nurse my itchy skin. Never actually got INTO Harpers Ferry! Thanks for showing me what I missed!
What a shame, Red, that you missed touring Harpers Ferry. I would have headed home right away, too, with that itch. Luckily I’ve avoided poison ivy and oak so far, but did get into a patch of nettles one time. Glad I could show you some pictures of what you missed. Maybe there’ll be a next time, but no camping. 🙂
I love your historic area. It is so intriguing and beautiful. Thanks for the history and the incredible pictures.
At least Facebook notified me of your post!
I have to agree with Thomas Jefferson, Gwynn — not that that’s difficult –, it is an especially beautiful area. It’s one of those places that holds a meaningful, sensual feeling. Yes, thank goodness for FB. One good thing I can say about it is that a lot of people, mostly non-commenting phantoms, though, have seen my posts via my FB notifications.
When I think about Harper’s Ferry, I think about John Brown and his raid. The abolitionist belongs to my hero clan. I have a very good friend who is from West Virginia. He and his wife came back to visit Germany after thirty years last year and stayed in my home. I also have had the privilege of driving through West Virginia several times and also stopping and resting there.
Your pictures bring back those memories.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Yes, John Brown was a fanatical abolitionist, Patricia. It’s sad he met his end the way he did. I think I do recall your saying your visiting friends last year were from West Virginia. I’d like to see more of that state; I’ve seen only the Harpers Ferry corner.
Speaking of abolitionists, one of the main reasons I volunteer at the Smyrna Opera House is that Frederick Douglass spoke there. That’s quite a legacy.
I love good travel writing, and this definitely qualifies. Thanks for sharing your lovely photos, too. I haven’t yet had the chance to visit much of the Eastern U.S., but Harper’s Ferry is on my list of must-see places. Greetings from Tacoma, WA.
@RhondaGilmour from
Late Blooming Rose
I’m glad you think my writing here is good travel writing, Rhonda. That fluffs up my ego considerably. 🙂 Greetings to you in Tacoma. One part of the U.S. I haven’t visited is the Pacific Northwest. That is on my list.
Nice to meet you on the A-Zs.
Samantha
A lovely post Samantha, thank you for sharing your lovely family with us. If they make me smile they must make you smile even more so, relishing those memories! Your Mom and daughter are truly lovely as is the in-between one – you!!
Yes, they were lovely to travel with, Susan. Many enjoyable moments. Even during my mother’s dementia, she would sit with a map open in her lap and plot a trip. Bittersweet.
Stupendous is the right word Samantha .. I too would have run around wanting to capture the moments! The history is so interesting thank you.
Most importantly is the FEEL of the place, Susan. It has a mystical quality, though very different from that of the Chiricahua Mountains. It’s interesting that of these places I write, Teddy Roosevelt and Thomas Jefferson were involved — in the planning, in ideas about what these sites should become to benefit the expansion of America.
Aw, thank you! This was so nostalgic for me. I lived in Lewes, DE, and took that ferry trip – maybe three or four times (so, six or eight, including return). If you go during the heat of summer, you can see jellyfish over the side.
Thank goodness I didn’t take the ferry during jellyfish season, Red. Ick. But I am fascinated by the seagulls who follow the boat to get all the passengers’ food. 🙂
Thanks.
Beautiful family photos, Samantha. Lovely smiles. Our world–so much to see, interesting places. ‘Chocolate place’ is the perfect reference, with all the beautiful sites in memory. Love that you went to the cemetery, searching for possible traces of yourself from a previous life. 🙂
It does intrigue me, Silvia, that I am impelled to look for myself in a previous life in Charleston and no place else. Maybe it’s just the air, the climate. It gets kind of a hold on you.
I love all the pictures and reminiscing. Obviously, travel has been a pretty big part of my life, too.
Yes, I have been to some beautiful places across this country, Red, but you’ve been to and lived in some pretty exotic ones. Fascinating. I do love to travel.
Delaware is beautiful. I have an acquaintance that was born and raised in Delaware. His family is still there. He’s married to a German woman and they live in Germany. I have drive
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChangen through Delaware on the way to New York but never stopped to look around.
Excellent post.
Delawareans do get around, Patricia. It amazes me — so few a population get to so many places.
I’m so glad you’ve come by to visit me here at my blog as I write from Delaware. It means a lot to me. Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
These pictures bring back so many beautiful memories of my trip to the USA in 2008. I took six weeks to drive across the country from the west coast to the east coast and it was beautiful.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Six weeks! Wow, Patricia. I would love to do that.
Shalom,
Samantha
I have had the privilege to stay almost a week in Arizona, vacationing and driving around in 2008 and I loved it. Falstaff, Phoenix, and ll of the other places that I managed to see were places that I knew I could live in.
It was a wonderful time for me.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
Thanks, Patricia. Wouldn’t be fun to return and meet up there one day.
Shalom.
I was a big fan of Ed McMahon and Joe Paterno also. The scenery is beautiful and shows a side of life where one can sit back and relax. I like the houses also. They remind me of the houses that I lived around in Blythe, Georgia. Your pictures bring back pleasant memories of the past.
Thank you.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
It is so relaxing there, Patricia. You feel like you haven’t a care in the world. I’m glad the photos bring back happy memories for you. One of the beaches I was on was in Georgia — St. Simon’s Island. We lived there for four months — Feb.-May 1967 — when my husband was taking a Navy course at Brunswick. St. Simon’s was beautiful then, and they had a little library on the island, which I loved visiting.
Shalom.
Samantha
ha ha re: me watching the animals go by (if a hippos or croc doesn’t get me) xx
🙂
O to sail on a ferry boat and watch the world go by! These are lovely photos Samantha thank you so much!
Won’t you be sailing down some river in Botswana soon, Susan, as the wild animals watch you go buy…? 🙂
Thanks.
Love those photos. I want to ride a ferry.
Next year, Sheena-kay, I’ll see what I can do about providing an actual ferryboat ride on the A-Zs. That would be cool, huh. 🙂
A most enjoyable photo essay, Samantha. The map helps in giving a good understanding of the area. This west coast girl only sees such scenes in movies – car and passenger traveling together yet separate. Might have to add such a trip to the list. Thank you.
When I was little, Silvia, my grandfather took me for round-trip rides on a passenger ferry that crossed the Delaware River between Phila. and Camden, N.J. That started the whole thing with me, I think. Nearer to you, of course, are the ferries in Seattle. Our friend Gwynn rides the ferry all the time, as you probably know.
Call me crazy, but I’m a sucker for Ferry Boat rides. Whenever I visit my brother in Staten Island, I make sure I get at least one ride to and from Manhatten on the ferry.
Mary
#AtoZChallenge F is for Fitzgerald
Yeah, I like ferries, too, Mary. Always have since I was a kid. There’s something exciting about riding on a ferryboat.
You have a beautiful area. Your ferry is much smaller than ours. Most of our ferry trips to town are about 20 minutes except the Bremerton/Seattle run, which is about an hour. Then of course going up to Vancouver or Orcas Island in the San Juans is longer. I love your pictures.
Thank you, Gwynn. I thought you’d appreciate the ferry story. I have loved ferries since I was a child. My grandfather used to take me on a round-trip passenger ferry ride across the Delaware River between Phila. and Camden, N.J., when I was quite young.
Gorgeous images, Samantha, and what interesting stories. Flying sure was a whole different experience back in those years, perhaps a much more pleasurable one compared to today’s long lines and such. A great way to see the country. A way to collect memories and stories from various parts and people. Love the image of the cabin, the lake. So much natural beauty up in those mountains, balm for the heart and soul. As a little girl, I wanted to be a flight attendant one day, to travel. It never happened, but I remember those vivid thoughts like yesterday.
I love to fly but haven’t flown in years, now, Silvia. Commercial flying is like flying on a city bus, though. Not fun. I was lucky to work for a commuter airline. I much prefer small planes. We flew out of Imperial Terminal. That was even easier. I was going through the interview steps to become a flight attendant for MGM Grand Air when the airline I worked for gave me a big promotion and raise, so I stayed put. I do love to travel and love the High Sierra.
I have a friend who lives up near Mammoth and her kids go snowboarding there each year. It is fun to see pictures of the area. Now I see what she sees… except in all the years since these pictures were taken I’ll bet the area has changed and grown.
Your pictures are lovely and very interesting. Thanks!
It’s grown a bit, Gwynn, but not changed a lot. It’s still the beautiful, pristine Sierra. I have a couple more posts upcoming on the area. What’s changed this year is that they have a lot of snow on the Mountain and they’re thankful for that.
Samantha, this is such a treat. I’ve never been to Delaware. A file clerk in our office is from DE, and one of the running jokes, as I understand, is that most residents have at one point or other met the Biden family. I’m thinking it’s just a joke, but it says something about the spirit, size, and closeness of people. Love the Opera House picture, and your brother’s place. All images, really, so beautiful. Such a pictoresque place. Thank you for taking us there.
Hi Silvia. Your coworker probably laughs at all the people who ask her if Delaware is a state and if it’s in New England or next to Indiana. As small as this state is I’m always amazed that I run into Delawareans everywhere, leading me to wonder if there’s anybody left in the state. It’s quite a culture contrast from Calif. in many ways. Everybody knows everybody here, so you have to be careful what you say; on the other hand, the red tape is negligible and that’s refreshing. I never met Joe Biden, but he was in my stepbrother’s U. of Del. class, and he grew up a mile down the road from me, but since he went to Catholic school and I to public our paths never crossed.
Just lovely Samantha thank you – so genteel and gentle, romantic somehow – as if poetry could be written on the bench or meandering through those pastoral scenes – or gazing through those magnificent windows of the Smyrna Opera House – or walking through the Green Door .. and composing music ..
You said it all, Susan, pretty much as this area inspires me to do. 🙂 Thanks.
What a beautifully diverse and charming area! I love your pictures and the history of your area. How lovely! Thanks for the view of your world.
Thank you, Gwynn. I am appreciating what I have, and it’s lovely to be able to share it with others. Delawareans do get out: small as the state is, and considering many don’t even know it’s a state let alone where it is, I run into Delawareans nearly everywhere I go. You’d wonder that there’s anyone left here.
This is a beautiful piece of writing thank you Samantha. Such a vivid appreciation of land and rock, stone and plant. The spirit of Geronimo came through to me. What a tragic story, and sad that he died while still a POW. What a striking man.
I loved also to try to say the names – Chricahua – like the wind somehow … and others too. Thank you for this slice of life. It’s spiced up my morning 🙂
I thought of you when I wrote this one, Susan. I thought you’d like it. Chiricahua is pronounced “cheer-ih-cah-wah” with a mild accent on the third syllable. And, yes, it does sound like the wind, I think, too. Cochise is “co-CHEES.” Maybe you and Susan can visit there next time you are in the States. And, wouldn’t I love to join you!
Yes please – imagine, the three of us! I note I spelt Chiricahua incorrectly, thanks for making the syllables alive …
🙂 🙂 🙂
Very scenic. – Joy Brigade Minion
It has a mystical beauty, Sheena-kay. Thanks.
Such cool views! I love the ocotillo cactus.
Yes, wide open spaces and fascinating rock formations, Red. I just had to get a photo of that ocatillo.
Thanks!
I’ve driven north through NJ to get to New York, New England, and once or twice, a friend’s parents’ house in northern New Jersey. My NJ beach experience is simply Cape May, when I would take the ferry across from Lewes, DE.
But I don’t have the length of nostalgia you seem to. Sounds delightful.
I’ll do two upcoming posts on Cape May, Red — one on the Victorian homes and in a couple days one on the Cape May-Lewes Ferry. I grew up outside Philadelphia and have lived in Delaware, as I do now — so I have spent lots of time on the South Jersey beaches.
Thanks for coming by.
The desert is its own beauty!
And I love the images of the Horseshoe Café, too.
(found you through AtoZ, and as a fellow traveler and former Delawarean, I’m starting at the beginning of your alphabet!)
I’m glad you like the images of the Horseshoe Cafe. To me, it is quintessential Southern Arizona, especially the high desert around Benson. It holds the aura of the romance of the Wild West for me.
Thank you for coming by, Red. Nice to meet a former Delawarean. I have lived in California and other places, yet run into Delawareans so often, I couldn’t help wondering if there was anyone left in Delaware, it’s such a small state.
So interesting, Samantha, reading about settlers, Geronimo, down to the elevations and climate. Arizona sure seems to have it all. In summertime, the heat, in most places, chases the residents out of the state, and you give a good example of the winter status in the elevated areas. Wide open roads hold such an appeal to me, still, even after all these years in CA. Having grown up in Europe where everything is so crowded, I do appreciate wide open spaces. Thank you for sharing your trip with us.
I asked some Japanese once why they came to live in California, Silvia: “Because it’s big,” they said. I agree. Crowded as L.A. and Orange counties are, and up around San Francisco, California still has its beautiful coastline and wide open spaces. Lots of Westerns have been filmed up in the Sierra, as you probably know — Gene Autry movies, the TV show “Bonanza,” and Clint Eastwood movies, to name a few — and Roy Rogers in Arizona.
At least it’s a dry heat on the Arizona and California deserts; nevertheless, too hot for me — except up around Mammoth — that’s OK.
I’ve never been to Europe. Still hoping to go someday. The parts I see of it are so clean and ordered and beautiful.
Arizona does have a phenomenal history. I loved seeing the cliff dwellings up outside of the Flagstaff area. I enjoyed the Native Americans’ baskets and jewelry too… so beautiful. It is amazing that peoples could live in such a bleak area.
I’ve seen some ancient Indian dwellings but have never been to Canyon de Chelly, Gwynn. The cliff dwellings fascinate me. I imagine those people were in pretty good shape. I do own some Navajo jewelry, and, I think, some Hopi, too. The Navajo, Hopi and Havasupai and probably other tribes still grow crops in Arizona. So does white man. The state isn’t as totally bleak as you might imagine.
You know, as Turquoise Roo, I have to own some turquoise.
I love the beach. I have been to some fabulous beaches, but never to these two!
Paula from
Smidgen, Snippets, & Bits
Thanks for coming by, Paula. I’m glad I was able to provide you with views of some new beaches. 🙂
I have great respect for the saguaro cactus. Two hundred years to full growth for a cactus? Amazing! The stories if it could talk indeed.
You have been minioned by Sheena-kay Graham
Proud Minion of the Joy Brigade
It is amazing, Sheena-kay — 200 years. I had know idea that saguaro I stood before was so old. I only found out about their slow growth and how long they live when I researched them for this story.
Thanks for coming by.
That’s what we used awnings for, Susan, to keep the house cool in summer. People still use them here and there, but they must be cloth — in the old days, canvas — to be ecologically compliant. When I was growing up, there was no air conditioning. People went to the movies often just to get cool, because movie theaters were “air cooled.” The Strand Theater on the Ocean City boardwalk is one such old theater. I don’t remember if it was air cooled, because normally the sea breezes keep the boardwalk cool.
The seagull is on the signs marking the Ocean Highway, a coastal route that travels along the islands and across the inlet bridges. It’s not a major highway, but rather a slower, scenic route. I don’t have a photo of the sign.
Since Ocean City occupies that whole island and has for generations, most of us are not aware that the island is named Peck’s Beach Island. I wasn’t; I learned that in my research.
I once considered living in Ocean City (where I had spent many happy summers), but moved to Redondo Beach, Calif., instead. 🙂
The beaches along the Atlantic shores are most beautiful in the fall. You have represented them well on this April showers of a day.
Arggggh matey,
aRgggggh
A lot of places are most beautiful in the fall, R. I took most of my photos shown throughout this A-Z theme in the fall. I like the warm colors and the pleasant, crisp temperatures. 🙂 Thanks.
What incredible photos and memories. The beach on your side of the country is so unique and interesting compared to the bare Southern California beaches! It is intriguing to me that towns have similar or same names on both coasts, as we have a Port Townsend an Historic logging and fishing town on the edge of the straight of the San Juan de Fuca and the Puget Sound.
Thanks for sharing your lovely area and the history.
We’re on the Eastern (Atlantic) Seaboard here, Gwynn, which is low-lying and flat. The coast along the South Jersey shore and down to Florida drops off gradually. The beaches in South Jersey have to continually be replenished because the sand gets washed away, especially during Nor’easters — unlike the West Coast, which drops off dramatically. Santa Cruz, though, has a nice boardwalk — I’ve always wanted to visit there.
We don’t have to travel far west of here to be in the higher elevation Piedmont Plateau, the foothills of the Appalachians.
Each coast has its beauty, I think. And, we’d better appreciate these scenes before they disappear as the glaciers melt.
We even have a Townsend right up the road from me in Delaware — pronounced with the accent on the second syllable, as we have discussed.
Lovely to wander through your memories and photographs Samantha thank you! I found some of the places on the map you mention eg. Pecks’ beach named after whaler, Townsends Inlet but the seagull was not forthcoming in any way?
I also like striped awnings – I’d never thought of them in terms of keeping things cool but now I can ‘see’ that ..
That’s what we used awnings for, Susan, to keep the house cool in summer. People still use them here and there, but they must be cloth — in the old days, canvas — to be ecologically compliant. When I was growing up, there was no air conditioning. People went to the movies often just to get cool, because movie theaters were “air cooled.” The Strand Theater on the Ocean City boardwalk is one such old theater. I don’t remember if it was air cooled, because normally the sea breezes keep the boardwalk cool.
The seagull is on the signs marking the Ocean Highway, a coastal route that travels along the islands and across the inlet bridges. It’s not a major highway, but rather a slower, scenic route. I don’t have a photo of the sign.
Since Ocean City occupies that whole island and has for generations, most of us are not aware that the island is named Peck’s Beach Island. I wasn’t; I learned that in my research.
I once considered living in Ocean City (where I had spent many happy summers), but moved to Redondo Beach, Calif., instead. 🙂
Ah, I found your AZs, so happy. Thank you for writing back, and for your help. The Wild Wild West sure in a very interesting place. I drove through Arizona a couple of times and was always enchanted by the wide-open skies and freedom they evoke. There are a few similar places in California, where I live, but there is a certain character to Arizona all unique. Thank you for sharing images and thoughts from your trip, Samantha. Very inspiring.
It’s kind of you to come back and comment on my Arizona post, Silvia. It IS the wide open spaces of Arizona that I love the best, not places like Sedona. But, I have found some in California, too, and I will be posting some of those photos in a couple of upcoming blogs. Yes, Arizona is a character unique to itself — maybe another reason I like it so much…?
Samantha, such a beautiful way with words you have. Storytelling, a passion, a gift a way of life, is indeed one of the most important aspects of our lives, going way back to the beginning of time. The Sultan’s story is a great illustration of the power of story, and your emotional output throughout very compelling. I came looking for your AZs, found only a header as of now, and am thrilled to have found this story of storytelling and more. Thank you.
Silvia.
https://silviatomasvillalobos.wordpress.com/
It seems meant to be, Silvia, after your “A” post that you should encounter my “storytelling” post. It hadn’t occurred to me that when bloggers click on my ID website link that they’d come to my static home page and not to my most recent post. My recent posts are linked to via my right sidebar. But, anyhow, I changed that around so that now when you click on my website ID you will come to my most recent post.
I’m glad you came by, and thanks for reading my very long post and for your lovely comment.
Samantha
I’ve always wanted to visit Arizona, but I’d have to stick to the higher elevation areas as I don’t think I’d be able to handle the heat very well.
Mary
Twitter: @KnottyMarie
Literary Gold
Jingle Jangle Jungle
At least it’s a dry heat, Mary. 🙂 In general I prefer higher elevations; I just feel better when I’m high, as it were. So, when I visit the desert, it’s usually high desert and in the cooler seasons.
Thanks for coming by!
Ah lovely Samantha! Was it two years ago this time round that I was in Arizona? yes it was – susan schwartz and I did a collab on the A-Z. We did some driving around and it was wonderful and I saw the suguaro en route to the Grand Canyon. Those open skies, the air …
Yes, I agree, Susan — those wide open spaces. Two years since you’ve been there, 20 since I have. Hard to believe. Time to climb into the saddle and return, I reckon.
Samantha, I’ve just got out the bath and was going to write to you to say where are you on the A-Z. Glad to see you’ve got one up on Arizona – popping over in a minute ..
Thanks, Susan. See you in Arizona. 🙂
Cool! Congrats on your first A-Z this season!
R.
Thanks, R. The first step on my ride through the purple sage, and, so, on to hitch up at the next post.
Arizona is an interesting area. I prefer the Sedona and Flagstaff areas to Tucson and Phoenix, but it is amazing wherever you go. Thanks for the interesting post.
Believe it or not, Gwynn, I have never been to Sedona. I have a post coming up later about the Flagstaff area. Thanks! I’ll mosey over to see you shortly. 🙂
Thank you for the beautiful photos in Arizona. It makes me want to hop on a plane and fly to Tucson straight away.!
Me, too, actually, Carolyn. Thanks for visiting!
Hi Samantha … short and simple – also they’ll be good learning curves about places or areas we can look up ..
I’m sure I’ll enjoy your A-Z … cheers Hilary
Thank you, Hilary. So nice to see you here. I doubt few of my photos will be as stunning as yours of Cornwall, but I hope they will make a nice tour for those who haven’t seen parts of the U.S.
Of course, I am looking forward to reading your A-Z posts — bound to be fascinating. Meanwhile, re Cornwall, presently I am contenting myself watching “Doc Martin.” Such wild and beautiful scenery, I can see how Daphne du Maurier was inspired.
Cheers,
Samantha/Carol
Just stopped in to see what condition your condition is in.
R.
Oh, hello, R. Doing well. Haven’t posted lately because I was arranging drop cloths for Moriarty while he was painting a mural on the folly wall a la della Francesca and now he’s off at zither camp.
Thanks for stopping by. Come back soon and see the mural. 🙂
Samantha
What a majestic waterfall. Can you imagine the people who first saw that? What must they have thought?
Hi,
I couldn’t get the webcam link that you printed in the blog but that is okay. The article gave me a great picture of water falling over rocks. Sometimes, the GEMA, something similar to ASCAP that protects the rights of authors, photographers and filmmakers prohibits us from seeing video clips that have not been registered at GEMA.
However, I love the picture. It is wonderful.
Shalom,
Patricia
I don’t know why the webcam wouldn’t work, Patricia. Maybe it’s an overseas thing. I think Susan had a problem with it, too. It’s a nonprofit that offers it, the Yosemite Conservancy, so it should be available, for fundraising purposes. It could have to do with the functioning of the Adobe Flash Player, too.
Anyway, the image shows the contrast between my spring photo when the snow is melting and now in August with the falls dried to a trickle.
I do appreciate your reading and commenting on all my 5 Day posts, dear Patricia. Thanks for taking the time. And I have written you some long replies. I can’t resist when one story leads to another. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi,
Your pictures and the stories that stem from them are very interesting. I have learned something new. I had no idea that Delaware had the oldest schrooner. I thought the oldest was in Louisiana.
Thank you so much.
Shalom,
Patricia
Specifically, Patricia, the Maggie is “the oldest continuously working Delaware Bay oyster schooner under sail in the United States.” It’s important to be specific about that. I researched her history, captain lineage, and history of oystering on the bay all the way back to the day she was built and commissioned. Utterly fascinating. She’s never been out of commission, rare in itself. Clearly there exist other types of schooners that are older.
I was working in a hair salon one cold, blustery, sunny January day in 2004 when a guy came into the shop and said he wanted his ponytail colored green. “I can’t wait to hear what the guys on the boat say tomorrow,” he said. It was too windy to be out on the bay that day. I asked what kind of a boat; he told me about the Maggie. I asked my newspaper editor if I could write a story on that. He agreed. The story expanded to three parts, and including horseshoe crab conservation, which the editors called “the fish package.” I met Jean and Thumper and through them a circle of really special friends, good friends to this day, including Michael Oates (http://302stories.com), who has made several video documentaries on the Maggie, Delaware Bay oystering and horseshoe crab conservation..
Stories and stories and stories come from this one green ponytail in the hair salon incident.
Thanks!
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi,
This picture is relaxing. It reminds me of Monterey. I lived there when I was stationed at Fort Ord. The fort no longer exists. It is sinking into the Pacific. I went back in 2008 and was sad to see that happening. However, I enjoyed being stationed there. My room at the brand new barracks built for us looked out onto the Pacific and every morning I would get up and see the ocean. It was a wonderful time.
Thank you for sharing your memories of Santa Monica. I was never there but I can imagine its beauty and feel the essence of it being home for you.
Shalom,
Patricia
Beautiful as Redondo, the Palos Verdes Peninsula and Southern California are, Patricia, Monterey has a more dramatic, stunning beauty. I envy your getting up every morning and seeing the ocean.
The Navy took us to Calif. Our first apartment had a patio over a three car garage, with a view of the whole Santa Monica Bay coastline; but, interestingly, we moved there in June — totally new to SoCal. I looked out over the ocean each day and saw the sea mist, having retreated early in the morning, sitting out on the horizon. I got up one morning in October, and, lo, there were the Santa Monica Mountains and Malibu to the north and out to the southwest, Catalina Island. My first view. It’s as if at certain times of the year they set them out there for all to see. 🙂
Thanks! And I didn’t know Fort Ord was gone.
Shalom,
Samantha
Yes, my dear. It is sinking into the Pacific Ocean, and I feel so bad about that. That was my first duty station in the United States and the last duty station before I volunteered to come to Europe and landed in Frankfurt, Germany In October 1974.
Amazing for me was the early mornings at Ord. They were cold, even in July/ August, but by 10 am the sun was high and it was hot. I learned at Ord to always take a jacket with me in the evening because the temperature would drop dramatically because of the Pacific.
Reading this post made me look back and see that I have been allowed to travel to many places within the United States and also here in Europe. Sometimes I am not fully conscious of what a blessing that is, but reading your post made me aware of how wonderful it is as I re-connected with Ft. Ord and thought, Oh yes, I remember when….
Your articles revived the memories that I have of California and its beauty.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, ah those jacket nights. I do miss it all, too, Patricia. I think I wrote somewhere that homes on the western side of the Palos Verdes Peninsula are sliding, too. They have to sometimes weekly replace portions of Palos Verdes Drive West, that runs along there, because parts of the road slide leaving a gap between that section and the next. And the repaired road is very bumpy. You have to drive really slow.
You are so blessed to have traveled so much and now to be in Europe.
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi,
Hannah Whiteall Smith was also a part of the friends and she wrote a book that is still being read by some people to this day. I have read her book, The Christian Secret of a Happy Life, and marvelled at her wisdom. I believe she was born in 1832 in Germantown, Penn. (Not sure about that).
Thank you for highlighting this in your 5 Day Challenge. Many people are unaware of the number of people that helped with the Underground Railroad. Many people of my colour survived and were not recaptured or hung because of the people who were willing to risk there lives to help..
Shalom,
Patricia
The name Hannah Whiteall Smith is familiar, Patricia. I may have encountered her in one of my readings or video documentaries. I try to read and watch everything I can on the slaves, bolitionists and the Underground Railroad. There are alcoves in walls of buildings in our town, and buildings, that are believed to have been on the Network to Freedom, though nothing has yet been proved.
This is an integral and monumental part of our history that of course we weren’t taught in school. I have William Still’s book (the abridged version) and a few related others here in my home library. How brave and wise those people were. I am awed.
As an aside, Germantown is a section in the northwest area of Phila., the “Quaker City.” My paternal great grandparents lived there for a time. Though my great grandparents died before I was born, I remember as a small child hearing my grandparents discuss the Civil War. They must have heard stories from my great grandparents, who were born in the 1850s. I was too young to understand or recall what they discussed. Too bad there are no hidden tapes. 😉
The photo of the space under the Friends Meeting House here doesn’t do it justice. You can’t stand up in it. It is very small. I held my film camera at the opening and fortunately got this good picture.
Nor did I know, I must add, that I grew up on land that was part of Thornfield, the Garrett farm. Of course, many things in the area are named Garrett, including Garrett Road, that we traveled often; yet I didn’t know at that time who Thomas Garrett was. Even though we lived on what once was his family land and I attended school on that land, we never studied him. Also, the Methodists and others did much to help the abolitionist cause, but that wasn’t the focus of my story here.
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi,
I can honestly say Bodie would not be a place I would settle down in or a place where I would have desired to be born. It is much too cold and since I have an intense dislike for cold weather, I wouldn’t go there.
Thank you for the pictures, the history and the film clippings.
Shalom,
Patricia
Bodie’s great in the summertime, Patricia, but, as with you, I would not like to be there in the winter. It just goes to show, some people will do anything for gold.
So glad you took the time out of your full itinerary to come by and visit Bodie on my blog. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi Samantha – well I’m going to say ‘yes’ I will post some pics on my return and some history of Herstmonceux; and ‘no’ – it isn’t ‘a castle’ in the true sense – it is not in a sensible position for defence, and was built for style and expression, rather than as a castle per se. I nearly got the details all correct in the post I wrote about it under my H in 2012 A-Z Challenge … but will amend that slightly anon … I hadn’t visited then.
Thirdly – I don’t want to surprise you too much – you may never have been to a proper castle .. but I wrote about 23 of them in the 2012 Challenge; XYZ were various informatory posts … I selected castles that were different in character from the norm and the expected – eg Windsor and the Tower of London … I did do Windsor – under Q for Queen’s Castle …
Should you remotely wish to start at A – here’s the link and you can select from the other castles!! http://positiveletters.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/is-for-alfreds-castle-berkshire.html – or see the summary at the end under Z – but I left out the photos of the castles and included others in the surrounding areas … it is long! Mind you the weekend is upon us …….????
Cheers and I’ll await your comment on this! Take care – til anon – Hilary
Oh, I must visit these castles via your blog, Hilary! Thanks for letting me know and providing the link. Just short of Harry Potter, wouldn’t it be nice to click on a link and physically arrive at the physical place where we want to go. Ah, well, I’ll put that on the list for my next lifetime.
Cheers.
Samantha
Hi Samantha – my dotage is a-creeping up .. but who knows! The idea and thought is inspiring … off to see a Castle now … Herstmonceux … has an interesting history and though it’s nearby I’ve never been – been to the astronomical bit (Observatory) .. but am looking forward to a meander in Elizabethan gardens, a tour of the castle and generally a good look round …
Enjoy your day – cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — You will take photos, right? And post them on your blog, with a story?
What a wonderful day you will have (or have had by this hour). I have never been in a castle, an actual castle centuries old, with turrets and such.
Enjoy!
Cheers
Samantha
Hi Samantha … I was too lazy to look up close … I would have known the trees weren’t pines – and did know .. as Yosemite is in the west … so the trees had to be ‘otherwise’ .. ie sequoias, cedars … and perhaps pines .. who knows.
In 1978 before I went to South Africa a couple of weeks later … I flew out to NY for a wedding of a friend in the Cathedral of the Pines – probably New Hampshire .. but I remember an avenue as per your picture … with a ‘smallish’ clearing … some huge trunks and pine needles everywhere .. that formed the basis of the Church … where they married. The pics I found are not as my memory serves me … somewhere I may have some photos – where .. is anyone’s guess!
Yes I’d love to come over and spend time with you .. and see Yosemite – must be incredible … one day perhaps – if I haven’t hit my complete dotage by then!!
Thanks for replying .. but yes the Cathedral aspect took me back to Sarah and Yank’s wedding all those years ago …
Take care – cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — What a cool place that would be to have a wedding at the base of Yosemite Falls — the many tourists would certainly increase the guest list. Glad it reminds you of Sarah and Yank’s New England wedding — it must have been especially beautiful. I hope you come upon those pictures.
There are many species of pines in the West, and right there in Yosemite. But, before our dotage, you must visit and we can go identify them. 🙂
Cheers,
Samantha
Hi Samantha – those falls look amazing and what a great place to be able to walk through that Cathedral of pines – if that’s what they are … fantastic view – no wonder you’re hooked. Water is extraordinary and so strong … quite daunting when it comes from a great height …
Cheers and good luck to Gwynn for carrying on the challenge .. Hilary
Hi Hilary — I had to look this up. It’s a question I’ve been wondering about and should have looked up years ago in my days of wandering among high mountain conifers. The sequoias and cedars are members of the cypress family, as opposed to the pine family of conifers, maybe you know. I think these are mostly sequoias here, but probably with some pines mixed in. I’d love to be able to return and check for you. Wouldn’t that be fun! You could come over and join me.
It is a cathedral, though. One can do nothing but stand and gaze in awe at the magnificence, imbued with the scent of those trees.
Thanks for coming by, as always.
Hi Samantha – what a great story … sad about the disease – I hope they can help clear it up. Wonderful to see the Dredger and read the story .. and then to have been able to have a sail … fascinating – and it made me look where Delaware was … I hadn’t realised it was so small … still live and learn .. a drop of the ocean!
Cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — Yes, sad about the disease; oysters once common fare are now a delicacy, and it affects the incomes of the watermen, their catch regulated to limited numbers. Biologists think the diseases are caused mainly by runoff — mostly from fertilizer on the surrounding farms, but from other contaminants, as well.
Yes, Delaware is our second smallest state — comprised of only three counties. It’s good in that you have easy access to government officials; you’re known more often by a name than a number. But, at the same time you have to be careful what you say, because everybody knows everybody. Despite their small numbers, Delawareans get around. No matter where I’ve traveled or lived, I’ve run into Delawareans, to the extent that I wondered if anybody was left in the state. 🙂
Thanks!
Well now, that’s pretty impressive! I went straight away to watch the webcam but it’s not working on my side. The photo is beautiful and breathtaking viewed between those magnificent trees … and especially your wonderful descriptive prose. I reckon even I could write poetry were I to see them. Thank you Samantha for this slice of mother nature in all her glory.
And Gwynn, you spelt it wrong – it’s pleasure not pressure. I look forward to your posts!
It was John Muir who used the word glorious to describe Yosemite, who wrote the poetry — and the book The Yosemite, and got Yosemite designated and preserved as a national park. This is good. Yosemite Valley has a twin, Hetch Hetchy Valley, but sadly that one couldn’t be saved. The Tuolumne River there is dammed and the valley filled with water for San Francisco. Due to recent technological advances, all that dammed water there is no longer needed to serve SF water and electrical power. There is a grassroots move on, therefore, to demolish the dam. I have photos. Will write a story at some point.
Sorry the webcam didn’t work. That’s odd. Maybe it was just momentarily down or not available to S.A. I don’t know how those things work. Anyway, it shows Yosemite Falls as just a trickle, and the spring snowmelt water stain on the granite walls behind the falls.
Thank you, Susan, and thank you for pointing out to Gwynn her misspelling. 🙂
Well, I’m laughing Carol. I really enjoyed your post and description of Yosemite Valley and Falls… until I read about me and went EEEKKK… NOW what am I going to do?? I really am going to have to do some work to see what humor I can find out there!! PRESSURE!!!!! 😉
No pressure; just be yourself, Gwynn. Like the rules say, have fun — way up there on that Pacific NW peninsula. Didn’t you have a picture of a ferry or something and a talking bag story? Something like that. Pictures of birds and their hunting routines; you know … like that.
You’ll do well. Everybody will love your stories.
Lovely post Samantha thank you! I remember reading a more detailed one on Maggie May a few years back and your wonderful Friend(s) – and your taking her on a pilot ride! Is she still operational – i.e. dredging for oysters? One day, we’ll have oysters and champagne whether there or in Plett!
Oysters and champagne in Plett sounds delightful, Susan. I’ll hoist my sails to that. 🙂
Thumper and his crew take the Maggie out on the bay dredging nearly daily. That is his means of income. He and Jean live off the land, by choice. And, sadly, oyster dredging on the bay is very limited due to depreciation in numbers from disease. Authorities are constantly seeding the bays — both bays — the Delaware and the Chesapeake — to grow more oysters.
Maggie is a classical and beautiful schooner. The pictures are stunning and the history is intriguing. You are lucky to have such a wealth of history surrounding you. Lovely post!
Thank you, Gwynn. You have history surrounding you, too. I mean, after all, the Maggie is not a Viking ship.
🙂
Just to add – and to ask – the Louis L’Amour novels – weren’t they about cowboys and such like? I remember reading these highly charged, quick paced novels under the blankets the night before school exams.
Yes, Susan, Louis L’Amour, Cormac McCarthy, Larry McMurtry among other authors wrote Western novels. I haven’t read them, but my favorite, probably is Larry McMurtry’s “Lonesome Dove.” I haven’t read the novel but I saw the movie, the series, featuring Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones and Angelica Huston, a gritty, desolate saga set in Texas.
Gripping stories.
There is another movie I really like and have watched several times, “Tombstone” (1993), about Wyatt Earp and his brothers, starring Kurt Russell, Tom Paxton and Sam Elliott. The ambience reminds me of Bodie.
Good on Thomas Garrett and others of his ilk who did what they could to prevent slaves being sold. Sadly, for many a long while, we had the same thing here in South Africa, whites and blacks for separate entrances and exits, loos, beaches, buses and heavens knows what else while we lived under apartheid. Now there is no such thing but the memories linger on.
I will read the link to the magazine article on this Samantha at a later stage thank you for providing it (load shedding keeps on happening – black outs, in the middle of winter). Keep on crusading with your pen; these are stories that need to be told.
Thanks, Susan. The only blacks I knew growing up were our housemaids. Then, I moved to Washington, D.C., and worked with a green-eyed, light-skinned beautiful woman who told me her stories of growing up in Northern Virginia (across the Potomac from D.C.), having to ride in the back of the bus even when there were seats up front, and traveling with her family through the South — you had to plan well where you could stop for food, restrooms and gasoline.
Thankfully, much of that kind of discrimination is in the past.
Thanks. I’ll keep writing them; these stories are important to be told, as you say.
That ramp down to the beach could be the ramp down to one of the main beaches (Beacon Island Beach) in Plettenberg Bay! Extraordinary! The mountains though in Plettenberg Bay are off to the left looking toward the sea called the Tsitsikama mountains. Yours look as if they are more in front of you looking to the sea … from the pier I guess.
What happy memories Carol! I can imagine Kellie yelling at you more Mom more! Even today I perform in the waves if the family is watching – e.g. overdramatise a tumbling in the waves! (am not suggesting you did/do the same, really!) Thanks for sharing this with us!
Yes, Susan, from your photos, Plettenberg Bay reminds me much of that area around Redondo Beach. The mountains to the north, the Santa Monica Mtns., where Malibu is, form part of the mountains surrounding L.A., forming the L.A. basin. It’s like a bowl with three sides, the fourth open to the ocean. Consequently, the smog — the sea breeze blows the smog up against the mountains and it can’t get out, especially because commonly there’s an inversion layer over the basin — cold air on top of warm air, like a lid. The American Indians called the L.A. basin “the valley of smoke.”
To the south in my photo is the Palos Verdes Peninsula, with San Pedro and Long Beach, both pretty flat, south of that. The peninsula juts out into the ocean, with stunning views from the cliffs. The land above the ocean is constantly sliding, so houses slide and they have to keep repaving the road — daily, weekly, monthly.
Thanks for the info about Plettenberg Bay. I like to know. Fascinating.
I haven’t swum in the ocean in a long time, and I miss it; though I think at this stage of my life even the gentlest waves might knock me down.
OK, and about Kellie: When her kids were little she’d take them to Disneyland or some amusement park and say to her companions, “Here, you watch the kids. I’m going to get on this ride.” 🙂 She hasn’t changed much.
Thanks!
YUP… Good old Redondo Beach, where we were neighbors and never knew it… I don’t think… unless you were my client at the B of A in Palos Verdes Estates. I’ll bet I wouldn’t recognize Redondo any more since I left in 1976 when Heather was 15 months old. I loved riding my bike along the Strand down to Venice and back. Prior to Heather’s arrival I spent a great deal of time on the beach body-surfing. It was a fun time. Beautiful post that brought back LOTS of memories.
Yes, I miss Redondo, Gwynn. Too bad we never met there, that we know of. I never banked at the B of A in PV. Redondo has changed a lot since you were there, as I noted in the story. When I went back in the late ’90s, it had changed much in the few years since I left — even more people and traffic, and a new demographic of Yuppies, those who could afford to live there.
You know, we rented our apt. on Camino de las Colinas for $135/mo. — 2 bedrooms with a patio over a 3-car garage and a sweeping view like the one above — from PV to Point Dume. On winter and spring nights when the waves were big I could hear them pounding on the shore.
Ah, me. Whatever happened to those days.
I was air mattress surfing in Hermosa one time riding wave after wave, while Kellie, 3 or 4 years old, stood on the shore calling “Do it again! Do it again, Mom!” 🙂
Thanks, Gwynn
Hi Samantha … it is sad – yet heritage and life stories are built on these eras. Thankfully some escaped and got free again … this reminds me of Solomon Northrup in 12 Years a Slave – who was a black man born free … but was re-enslaved … very good film – interesting history to be reminded/told about.
But checking up on Solomon Northrup – because I knew about the violinist .. but couldn’t remember ‘from where’ exactly … I found a story about a slave who settled in Cornwall and performed around Cornwall, rather than risk going to London. Fascinating – I’d never heard of him either … I might write about him at some stage.
Thanks – great story line .. cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — Yes “12 Years a Slave” captures (as it were) this story completely. In 1850 our U.S. Congress enacted The Fugitive Slave Act, as you may know, mandating that all runaway slaves, even in the North, be captured and returned South. If a Northern sheriff didn’t capture one he knew to be a slave, then the sheriff was heavily fined.
One former slave, Frederick Douglass, spoke for abolition, and went to live in London, I believe, so he wouldn’t get caught, even though by then he was a free man. He loved the English and they loved him. He stayed for many years, but was eventually drawn back to work for the cause. After the end of our Civil War, Frederick Douglass spoke at our local Smyrna (Delaware) Opera House, for which I volunteer these days.
Do write about the slave who settled and performed in Cornwall. I’d love to know it.
Thanks so much for coming by. I enjoy your visits.
Cheers,
Samantha
Hi Samantha .. extraordinary ghost town – you can see why they filmed there … ‘beautiful views’. Fun to see – thanks for sharing and yes also we can see where the idea of cowboy movies came from.
Glad you’ve taken on the mantle of the 5 day photo blog challenge … I’m still managing to stay clear of blogging – til mid September …
I enjoyed the story line and the photo .. and the video … cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary. I love that area up there in the Eastern High Sierra. I have lots of photos. I may do an A-Z Challenge on photos or sense of place next year and include some of these Eastern Sierra photos.
Nice that you are taking time off from blogging. I’m getting pretty blogged out, myself. Don’t get much else done — including the dusting — and Moriarty doesn’t dust, so….
Thanks for coming by. 🙂
Cheers,
Samantha
The really sad part is this almost sounds like the Jews hiding from Nazi Germany. It is so sad that treating people so badly is a part of our history. Excellent post.
The same story repeats itself, Gwynn. This is why I chose to write on this subject, for the deeper meaning, hoping that somebody in addition to you will read it and take thought. This is my personal crusade as my fingers ride the battlefields of history upon the pen.
Thanks for your complimentary comment.
Good Morning,
Every things changes; nothing remains the same. Your avec le temp remind me of this and confirms my own perception that life is to be lived to maximise the gifts that have been planted within us.
The French singer, Patricia Kaas, reminds me a lot of the singer Melina Mercouri from Greece. She was an activist and participated in Greece’s revolution in 1967. She had to leave her country and live in exile but later became a member of the parliament in 1977.
So, you avec le temp speaks to my heart. It confirms the necessity of fulfilling your life purpose because everything changes.
Shalom,
Patricia
You are so right, Patricia — maximize the gifts and live life to the fullest we can. I strive to do the best I can with what I have, to fulfill what I perceive as my life’s purpose, as you do and exemplify so well.
I remember Melina Mercouri — that takes me back. I didn’t know she was a political activist and a member of the Greek parliament.
Yes, everything changes. Thank you for being my constant friend.
Shalom,
Samantha
Most interesting Samantha thank you! That really was the wild west. I can see where Clint Eastwood got his inspiration for cowboy movies. Amazing to see the preacher man get out his gun and shoot. As Gwynn says, educational. May your dream come true to visit at nighttime; hopefully the Phantom will help you record. And to have Dickens there to help sniff out ghosts may be useful …
Since I was a child I loved the Wild West, Susan. So, I was thrilled when we flew to Tucson when I was 16, in 1958 — I was in cowboy country, just like Roy Rogers! Tucson was wide open spaces in those days — Arizona was. And I’ve always loved Tombstone. Then when more than 30 years later I got to spend time up in the Eastern High Sierra, there I was again — in cowboy country. So many westerns have been filmed up there, including all of Gene Autry’s pictures. I love it up there in that high, dry air and the mountains and the sagebrush.
I have photos of inside that Bodie church. There’s a really old little pipe organ in there. And, yes Moriarty and Dickens may help me connect tithe the ghost prospectors and ghost dogs.
So, if I’m out there while you’re visiting Susan in Arizona, then you’ll have to come on over and we can visit nighttime Bodie together. What’s truly amazing are the stars blanketing the night sky and the satellites among them. No artificial lights around for miles and miles.
WOW! I’ve been close to the Brodie area but never there. In fact, I didn’t know about it. Thanks for the educational and fun treat! Great job!
Bodie is not to be missed, Gwynn. I love it there.
Thanks for the compliment. 🙂
Hi Samantha – lovely story .. the more I read of Moriarty and Dickens – the more I become enamoured by them … and feel they’re talking to me too. Yes – Gifts do come from unexpected places and at times we can ill afford them and wonder why – then the realisation …
Once we realise there’s a reason – it’s easier to accept the next time … and as Susan’s doing to try and understand ‘the whole’ of that gift …
Ah the gift of bird poop …. we have blackberry poop time soon! With seagulls around .. it’s larger than normal …
Borscht – love it .. and a thick bowl with crusty bread and fresh butter – too good … cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary. Thanks for coming by. It does help to understand the whole or at least the learning to be gained from that gift. I do try to remember this passage every time I receive one of those unexpected gifts, and hopefully I reach the realization.
Next time you visit my blog, I’ll ask Moriarty to have some borscht ready for you. No telling if he’ll comply — he’s so unpredictable, you know.
Meanwhile, stay out from beneath those seagulls. 🙂
Cheers, Samantha
Hi,
I love this one with Moriarty, and I love his gifts to you and to Dickens. I have laughed through this one as I contemplated some of Moriarty’s wise words. And of course, listening to Pavarotti and Friends is kind of like the cherry on the cake. I have that CD also.
Moriarty’s sharpness is a force that causes you to be creative. His answer to you when you said what will readers think when you haven’t posted for a while had me cracking up. I have two characters in my series that I am working on that give me the same smart aleck answers. Especially the man, who insists that he is my protector. He wakes me up some time at 2 am saying, “that not the way I talk. You have to change that sentence in my dialogue now. I don’t like it.” And he won’t let me rest until I get up and change it. That’s why I sleep with my iPad by my bedside. We’ve come to an agreement that I don’t have to go downstairs to my office and change it. I can do it on my iPad since my writing software syncs with all my computer components from iPhone to iPad to MacBook, to iMac.
So my dear, your quote applies to a very real situation that takes place in everyone’s life and you have used a situation between you and Moriarty and Dickens to describe the process of problems forcing us to display the gifts in our hands. Great job.
Now I know that my problems reveal the gifts that are inside me, and I agree. I probably would never have grown or experimented with certain things if I had not tackled the problems.
I can’t wait to read a book about Moriarty and Dickens.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Patricia
Pat — Moriarty insists he’s not my fall guy, and as he looks over my shoulder when I write up my experiences with him, he often tells me, “That’s not how I said that sentence,” so I have to go back and change it. I wish I had your setup of synchronized Macs/Apple products. That’s my ideal. But, in the meantime, I’ll concentrate on spying on Moriarty to insure he doesn’t hide the blog snow shovels before next winter.
I am looking forward to hearing more from your characters. I so enjoy the Prophet and Child.
Moriarty’s pushing me to publish that book about us. I ought to have him call Theo my computer tech to find out what’s the holdup on getting my refurbished Mac Pro. He would have some sharp remark to make, and the process might speed up.
Those Pavarotti & Friends CDs are so wonderful, beautiful and moving.
Thanks for the compliments. Always appreciated. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
Good Morning My Dear,
Before I begin to work on my backlog, I thought I would sit back and relax by reading your day one of the 3 Day Quote Challenge, and I am glad I did. Your first day has given me strength. What a wonderful article on Pavlova. The strength of her character, her endurance and her perseverance comes through.
What impressed me most was that she realised that it was a constant practice, constant working to make herself better in what she did, and she did excel in so many ways. She was the number one because of what she endured. She stayed focused and when she danced, it was an experience that touched the hearts of everyone. She drew them into her world.
Seeing Pavlova and reading about her in this article gives me the strength to keep on writing. To be the very best writer that I can be in whatever I write.
Thank you so much for going into detail about the great woman whose footprints left a great mark in the world.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, Pavlova inspires, Patricia. She created an aura around herself, a brand. She used to arrive at events, where her fans were waiting outside, in an automobile with the interior lit, and then step out with a grand flourish. Frederick Ashton, who met her, tells that story in the video here, if you haven’t watched it.
Studying ballet was hard work, but fun, and felt good: you have to feel a passion for it. I would arrive at class sometimes feeling like a slug and leave feeling exhilarated. I think it’s that way with anything you seriously enter into in life; it grabs you spontaneously with a passion and you can’t let go.
Shalom
Hi,
Thank you for mentioning the other 3 short cuts. I have just seen the interview about her. It is an in depth look at the woman Pavlova. To think that he thought she was ugly when he first saw her and then she started dancing and drew him into her world. She was indeed an extraordinary ballerina. She was in a class of her own.
Shalom,
Patricia
A lovely poem, undoubtedly more lovely in the original French. It seems sad, but then that’s just me not wanting to let go. A poignant and beautiful reminder to enjoy the moment while it lasts, but to also let it go when it doesn’t. Thank you, Samantha.
I agree, Sara. Thank you. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could have a basket of the things we liked the best in life and we could pick one out and live the good parts again. Oh, well, I guess that’s what nostalgia is all about. 🙂
Just lovely – so real and true Samantha thank you…just last evening we were listening in the car to a CD that my husband had bought – French music. And we were saying how delightful it is and so different, so little accompaniment to the singing in those deep throaty voices that express so much even if we were not familiar with the language. But – a universal language nevertheless ‘… and we feel frozen in a bed of chance…’ –
I do like French pop music, Susan — well, the classical, too. Even if I don’t understand the language, I get the feeling — the music and the feeling are universal, as you say. There’s that synchronicity again — interesting that you and your husband were listening to French music as I was posting this. There’s something about French thought — melancolique ending on an upbeat; deeply thoughtful yet laissez-faire — feeling frozen in that bed of chance.
I appreciate your thoughts. Thank you.
Lovely post. Yes, with time everything changes. Being able to deal with change is an essential part of life. Many people can’t deal with change… it is sad. Change in life is inevitable.
Both songs are so lovely and compelling. Thank you.
Things come, things change and things go away, Gwynn. It is the chain of events.
Poignant poem, song and performances.
Thanks, Gwynn
I like the quote. I wish I could think that way more often. But as you say, it’s easier said than done.
Oh, absolutely, Lori, easier said than done — sometimes I just want to hold onto the past in hopes I might magically bring it back.
Thank you for coming by and commenting, Lori. 🙂
That’s a great quote, and important, I think. I find it comforting that the problems we face happen in order to teach us something–about ourselves or our lives. I sometimes think the whole meaning of life is just one big lesson. We’re here to learn, for what reason, I don’ t know, but somehow that seems important.
And borscht and baguette sounds positively yummy right now. I need to go eat breakfast… 😉
“If you were perfect, you wouldn’t be here” — a spiritual master, well, really, more than one, told us that. I don’t know the reason exactly, Sara, but I do believe we’re here to learn.
Borscht and baguette reminder — now you’re making me hungry. 🙂
Thanks!
How beautiful and yet fascinating. Ballet is an interesting art, of which I know very little. But the amount of discipline that goes into it is quite mind boggling. And I had no idea one must possess that special, ethereal “something” to even be considered a ballerina. Thank you for the insight.
And thank you for the nomination! I will have to give this one some thought and see if I can find some interesting quotes. We’ll see. 😉
Yes, ballet might appeal to your ethereal storytelling side, Sara. The discipline of ballet practice arises out of a deep passion for the dance. Dancing ballet always made me feel spiritually high, even when I thought my leg would fall off when I had to do 16 more high kicks.
As for the quotes, I’ll bet your characters, Oswald, for example (I love the name), could come up with some quotes. 🙂 No pressure, though.
This took me back Samantha to the years that I was a ballet student! Yes the older the pointe shoes the better. Not sure if I resorted to slamming them in doors to soften, maybe jumping on them. Can you believe that Dulcie Howes the doyen of ballet in Cape Town recommended me to the Royal School of Ballet London? Not on so far as my father was concerned … finish your schooling first. By which time I had grown out of my shell a fair bit … and discovered the opposite sex!
The clip was magical thank you and I’ll follow up on the Markarova interview when time permits. Yes, dedication to one’s craft pays no matter how difficult and this moments of happiness in achieving a little more are worth the effort.
Thank you! And also for acknowledging me dear friend.
There is a kinship dancers share, Susan; we are of a particular thought group and sensibility. This adds sense to your and my friendship. To be recommended to the Royal School of Ballet by a prima ballerina assoluta is quite an honor. I could’ve watched you dance in great ballets. Wow. My daughter and a friend who took class with us were both told they could become professionals if they so chose. They chose not to — my daughter because she wanted a more rounded life and our friend because she opted to become a mathematician. She taught university math and then became a lawyer. She plays piano, as you do, and now shows Dobermans, lives on a farm in upstate N.Y.
My mother gave me lessons when I was 8-10 years old. I saw those older girls on pointe and thought that’s what I naturally should do. But, my mother stopped my lessons, so I didn’t go back until I was 30. Dancing on pointe was never easy for me, though I loved it, in my 30s and 40s. Nevertheless, I have a deep passion for ballet — even if it’s just taking class.
Thanks!
Richard Bach’s quote is powerful. It’s made me think of something extremely unpleasant that happened recently in a group I am in – the effects of it still ongoing – and I am wondering about the gift that it contains. So multi-layered! But it is an important consideration and I am now looking at it all in a different light thanks to this post of yours. I too had to stand up for my dignity and cause so my heart felt thanks to Moriarty and you. Please tell him.
The clip by Bono and Pavarotti is lovely – One.
Richard Bach’s book “Illusions” IS powerful, Susan — the handbook for the reluctant messiah. How timely that you and I often write about just what the other is struggling with. I do keep “The Messiah’s Handbook” pretty much handy. And interestingly, Richard Bach’s subsequent book was called “One,” which I hadn’t thought of when I chose Bono’s “One” to accompany this piece.
I hope you — well, I know you will — find the gift among the layers.
Moriarty was looking over my shoulder as I read your comment. He is smiling. 🙂
OMG… the Blue Bird of Happiness found you!!! 😉 What better luck can you receive than that!? 😉
🙂
I keep receiving gifts where I have to learn a lesson. I would prefer to receive the gift of the Lottery, Thank You! Heck, I have to walk the waterfront to receive the gifts that Dicken’s receives… lucky dog!!
You’ll love this, Gwynn: Just when I finished my final edit, posted and shared this, I went out to the backyard to take down my laundry. A bird who had eaten deep red berries had pooped on my white bed sheet.
It’s a gift of good luck … right?
Quite inspiring! Ballet obviously was an important part of your life. It is such a graceful dance. I do admire people who can do it! Thank you for the education.
Two and a half hours a day, six days, sometimes seven, a week; yes it was important, Gwynn, and it still is. Kellie and I have a family of friends from those days, and whenever I watch a ballet my muscles are tired at the end from moving them with the dancers, even from my chair, throughout the performance. It comes automatically to move with the dancers, lifting, elongating, turning….
Thanks.
Hi Samantha – I’ve kept this back for ages to read .. and then reply … how lovely and I do look forward to more stories, more of Moriarty and Dickens .. and generally more of the Scheherazade Chronicles …
You did Emma proud and she will appreciate you adding to our knowledge of dementia and caring … good luck to you bringing those stories into the light, or onto the page …
Cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary. What a pleasant surprise to come to my blog and find you have been here and commented.
I sent my British friend Barbara (who lives near me here in Delaware) to your website. She is a retired history teacher, has taught history around the world, knows a lot about Cornwall and wanted to know more. I don’t know if she commented, but she is fascinated with your site and your history and lore of Cornwall. She loved it. She maintains a house in England and will be over there in a few weeks for the summer. I’d tell you where, but the name escapes me at the moment. Somewhere around London, I believe, and maybe near the coast.
Thanks for your visit and inspiration. Moriarty has a lot to say, so he’s been pressing me to write another blog post. 🙂
Cheers!
Samantha
Hi Samantha .. I’m so pleased Barbara enjoyed the postings etc … I’m ‘shocked’ she’s a history teacher – but delighted she appreciates ‘my history’ …. I was hopeless at school! Yes, I mean it. I think I must be a (very) late developer!!
Looking forward to more Moriarty and Dickens … and ‘see you around’ .. cheers Hilary
I will most definitely come and join, and pour myself a glass of wine or a cup of Lapsang Souchon, depending on my mood, and then curl up in a chair to listen to you and Moriarty. I might even bring a treat or two for Dickens. Listening to a storyteller weave a tale is one of the great pleasures of this world so I look forward to all the stories you will tell us! 🙂
Such a kind compliment, Celine. Thank you. I look forward to your visit. Moriarty does, too, I think. He’s blushing. Of course, Dickens is always up for a treat.
I agree with you — listening to a storyteller weave a tale indeed is one of my great pleasures and the world would have greater peace if more would listen, I believe.
I apologize for taking so long to reply. My computer has been down, so I’m using a notebook computer and trying to keep up. 🙂
Oh no, sorry to hear that. Computer issues are the worse….Hope you managed to get it all sorted soon!
I do, too, Celine. That is, I hope my computer tech does — he’s had my computer for over two months. I wrote the A-Zs on a notebook computer — that was a challenge in itself. 🙂
Thank you Samantha for your delightful stories and for your invitation to join in at the cupola. May I request blueberry scones and thick thick cream please – and also to leave the bowl of the mix for me to lick – as a human (myself) and not as Dickens. He can lick my fingers … I so look forward to this meeting, listening to stories, drinking a glass of whatever’s on offer, and viewing the blue deer and maybe a camel or two.
Superb, Susan. It so happens that I just bought fresh blueberries to put in my scones when I bake them tomorrow. Will certainly save the bowl. Dickens can lick fingers; he doesn’t mind. Moriarty’s rushing around — no he’s not; he never rushes — he’s going around cleaning the blog. I think he’s up washing the windows in the cupola right now.
What a joy to look forward to. 🙂
Hi,
You can bet that I’ll have a nice glass of red wine or a glass of champagne when you and Moriarty get together. I am already a fan of his and I think you two are excellent partners along with Dickens, of course. I don’t want to forget Dickens.
So I accept your invitation. It is really inspiring to enter into the world of a storyteller.
All the best.
Shalom,
Patricia
I will have Moriarty set the table and lay out some cheese and crackers, tuna salad finger sandwiches, miniature chicken salad croissants, garlic hummus and pita chips with Mediterranean seasoning and some sliced mango, raspberries, pineapple and grapes.
Dickens is not quite tall enough to lay his nose on the table, but he’ll be right at your feet waiting for crumbs to drop. We will enjoy animated conversation, says Moriarty. When you enter into our world, Patricia, you will further inspire us. Thank you.
Slalom,
Samantha
Hi T.J.
Reading your story made me think of one of my favourite writers, Catherine Marshall. She used to write a lot for Guideposts and wrote many books that are still being read today. She was quite a woman. Her first husband was Peter Marshall, who was also a Chaplain of the United States Senate and died at the age of 49, leaving her behind with a young son, Wee Peter, who was just nine years old.
Your story drew me in from the beginning. I am a person that believes we are warned when changes are about to take place in our lives. Sometimes they happen right away, and sometimes not, but the feeling that something is about to happen is there and I have learned not to ignore that feeling.
Thank you for sharing and especially about that third person. We are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses that have passed through to life eternal.
Love you.
Shalom,
Patricia
P.S. Thank you my dear Samantha for this feature. It was a joy to read this Monday morning and it was very encouraging to me.
Shalom my friend.
Patricia
Patricia, thank you for your words of wisdom. I know T.J. will want to read this. I will pass it along to her, and she may reply. So, watch for that if you can.
Shalom,
Samantha
Thank you, Patricia. How interesting that you mention Catherine Marshall and that she wrote for Guideposts, too. I read her book CHRISTY years ago and found it very spiritual, very moving. There was a series based on that book, but I did not care for it: the writers introduced a lot of soap-opera-ish elements in it that undercut that spiritual element.
I believe that the two worlds are more interconnected than we realize — that those who loved us in this life, love us still and find ways to be with us.
Love you, too, and sie gesundht, as my grandmother used to say.
T.J.
Catherine Marshall wrote three books after her first husband, Peter Marshall, died that have left deep imprints on my life. They are non-fiction, 1. Beyond Ourselves, 2. To Live Again, 3. Something more. I bought them and read them so often and highlighted them in red, yellow, blue, green, whatever colour that I hadn’t used to indicate that my eyes had opened to a principle that I had not seen before. Her first fictional book was Christy and her second book is called Julie. I started reading Julie and have never finished it. I don’t know why, but it didn’t draw me in as Christy did. Christy was a fantastic book.
I am glad that I wasn’t in the States to see the television adaptation of Christy. I am one of those people that thinks a film adaptation can never take the place of actual book and how the story is told. So, I stay away from a lot of movies because I have read the book and the descriptions from the book are so clear in my mind, that I am often disappointed when I see the film.
C. Marshall second husband was Leonard Lesourd. He had three children and she helped raised them. Lesourd was one of the senior editors of Guidepost Magazine.
Peter Marshall, her first husband was a Scottish and I must admit I am partial to Scots because I have some Scottish genes in me. When I visit Scotland, I feel at home, like I’ve returned to my roots.
Just wanted to share with you a little more about my relationship with Catherine Marshall. In fact, I have a letter that she wrote me personally. I had written to her about my own writing desires; that I knew writing was in me and she wrote me back a very encouraging letter, personally. Today we have computers, but back then I received a letter from her and I still have it.
Wishing you a nice day, Lady and thanks for the German. That is cute.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you for all the additional information on Catherine Marshall, Patricia. I really didn’t know much about her, as CHRISTY was the only one of her books I ever read. And, FWIW, I just looked her up and found that we share the same birthday as well as a Guideposts connection.
I, too, dislike film/T. V. adaptations of books that I love. For me, there are only a few that come close to the books that they’re based on: “Watership Down,” “Pride & Prejudice” (the BBC version), “The Age of Innocence,” and “Possession.” In the case of “Christy,” the writers played the-doctor’s-wife’s-not-really-dead card so that they could have her appear and mess things up just as he and Christy were about to marry. That, of course, spoiled an important part of the book — namely, that he had lost his faith because of his wife’s death.
I think it is wonderful that Catherine Marshall wrote and encouraged you. What a treasure.
You are an extremely apt story-teller. I clearly see you sneaking around looking for books that tell stories. You have a wonderful mind for detail. Well written!!
We Virgos have a mind for detail, as you well know, Gwynn. And, I do love reading and telling stories. Thank you for your compliment.
What a beautiful and yet sad story. It made me shudder a bit, and I got the urge to send my husband a message after that. Beautifully written and so poignant.
True, Celine. I will pass along your comment to T.J. I think it will mean a lot to her.
Thanks for coming by.
I am glad that my story touched a chord, Celine. The ties that bind us are such mysterious things.
My dear Tammy, I have no doubts as I’m sure you are aware. What a beautiful, soulful, loving experience. I know they visit us from the other side. The picture of Tim gave me the most calm, spiritual feeling. You wrote this experience so well, that words escape me. Thank you for sharing your love story.
I have forwarded your comment to T.J., Marsha. Well-put. I couldn’t have said it better. Thanks!
I know, Marsha. Your comment about Tim’s photo moved me. It’s one of my favorite photos of him — his intelligence and quicksilver personality really shine through in it.
I’m glad that you shared my story, Samantha. Thank you — I hope it helps others who are grieving.
Yes, it does, T.J. Plus, it’s comforting to know that we are not alone. It confirms what we think we see or feel, that presence of the other who has passed. This phenomenon intrigues me, and I’d like to explore it more. Additionally, this is simply extraordinary writing. If all three of my readers see it, hopefully that will help a very deserving writer. 🙂
This is a lovely and endearing story. I had posted on Tammy’s Sketch People site as well.
Yes, I saw your post on T.J.’s blog, Gwynn. I posted a comment right after you. I could not resist reposting T.J.’s story here. It is so poignant, true and beautifully written.
Thanks. I know T.J. will appreciate your compliment here.
What can I say, Gwynn, other than thank you for understanding (no pun intended) the spirit of this story?
What a great song! I love the “Hennery”. 🙂 I hadn’t heard of filk music, but it sounds really interesting. I’ll admit I have a tendency to tune out lyrics in music, and just listen to the melody, so any response songs I might have heard would probably have gone unnoticed. And that’s a wonderful bit of serendipity, there.
Maybe I appreciate the “Hennery” more because Zola Taylor was from Los Angeles, and I lived there (Redondo Beach) for 30 years, most of my adult life until recently, when I moved to Delaware. I see you are from California, too, although I don’t know whether from Northern or Southern. To me, though, the “Hennery” sounds L.A.-ish, and it makes me homesick and it makes me smile.
I hadn’t heard of filk music, either, and I must admit, too, that these days I gloss over the lyrics and just listen to the melody. Nevertheless, I remember every word from every song that was popular back — way back — in the 50s when I was a teenager. 🙂
Thanks for coming by, Sara, as always.
Such a great post! Thank you for including my blog. The answer songs remind me of East Coast versus West Coast rappers who seemed to use the question and answer method. I will be setting this post up on my page to publish soon. I will leave a link here when it’s ready 🙂 and of course, you will most certainly get proper credit. Thank you.
Well, I’m not into rap music, Mary; it’s enough that I overhear it on the street. 🙂 But, that’s interesting to know, and I wondered if they did engage in answer rap, because it seems natural that they would.
I’m glad you will be setting this post up on your blog. It fits your venue, and I thank you for inspiring me. I don’t know what triggered my recollection of that particular song, “Roll With Me, Henry,” but it intrigues me that I recalled it on the 60th anniversary of the cover version’s topping the charts. And then that my writing of blues music, which I know little about, should occur the day B.B. King passed, also on May 14. You’ll no doubt want to tie his death into this post.
Thank you so much, Mary. I’m glad you came by to connect with me on the A-Zs.
Wrote about you today! http://www.jinglejanglejungle.net/2015/05/musical-conversations.html
This is wonderful, Mary. I have shared the link on my Facebook page. Thank you so much. Beautifully done.
Samantha! I honestly can’t believe that I am getting to your reflection post only now. I’m sure I receive your posts automatically? I don’t recall receiving this one. I missed out on Hilary’s too and commented on hers only yesterday but hers I cannot sign up to.
Anyway, enough of all that. But I will go back and check for May 5th.
It’s wonderful that Kern, Hilary, Sara (besides the others who we ‘know’), those wonderful women were supporters of your blog. It gives me such pleasure that I was instrumental in a small way in encouraging you to take part. Your work deserves a larger ‘platform’. It is always a delight to read your posts which leave me gasping with literary envy I have to say .. and Kern nailed it when she said you bring your heart and soul to your writing.
Please send my very best wishes to Moriarty, the Phantom, and a special tug of the tail to Dickens. One day I hope to meet them at the round table when we’ll have wine, blueberry scones, thick cream and irises and camels in the near distance.
Dear Susan — Moriarty’s blushing; and Dickens is wagging his tail. (I think he’s actually smiling, too, at Moriarty’s rare blushing.)
I signed up to receive notification of my new blog posts, but I haven’t checked that email box in ages, so I don’t know if the notifications are going out. I lost widgets and gadgets when my website was down, and then I had the A-Zs, so I am just now getting to fixing things.
I thought that since I was seeking intelligent readers and good writers such as Kern, Sara, Hilary, Fee and the others to support my blog, then I should tap yours, and I am thrilled. Thank you. And thank you for your kind compliments. Ah, a larger platform: now I must go out and build that.
Here’s to seeing you at the round table. Cheers!
I love the idea of artists responding to one another through their songs! As you say it’s kind of like a pre social media form of social media – that’s wonderful!
I love the serendipity that led you back to this song! And on the anniversary too – that’s pretty amazing.
And what’s more amazing is the passing of B.B. King on the same day. There must be some connection, but I don’t know yet what it is.
I love the answer song idea, too, Celine. It’s odd that I only just now found out about it after all my years of nearly constantly listening to music, all kinds of music.
Thank you for coming by and commenting. It means a lot to me.
Just now getting around to visiting the blogs in the challenge. April was a busy month for me. Congrats on completing the A to Z Challenge! Looking forward to next year! See you on the Road Trip!
Mary http://www.JingleJangleJungle.net
Hi Mary — I am really glad you stopped by — and for a particular reason: music is my first love; in fact, some of my posts have soundtracks. Unfortunately, currently my mp3 player is down; now that the A-Zs are over, I will work on fixing that.
I just visited you site and left a comment on your “Reflections” post. I also read your “Tequila” post and that recalled for me — out of the blue — the first rock ‘n’ roll song I ever heard, back in 1955, when I was 13 — “Roll With Me, Henry,” sung by Etta James. So, upon recalling that song today, I set off on a Google expedition to find it and learned it has quite an interesting backstory.
Back here on my blog, I interrupted a series on music that I was posting, to begin the A-Zs. Now I will return to that: I will write a post on “Roll With Me, Henry.” I will let you know when I have posted it, and if you’d like you may re-post it on your blog, as long as you credit me and link back to my site.
Thank you for coming by. Some say there are no coincidences, but it so happens that the Georgia Gibbs cover, “Dance With Me, Henry,” topped the juke box charts on this date 60 years ago — May 14, 1955. Wow.
Don’t yet know if I’ll do the “Road Trip” — it depends on if I can fit it into my writing/reading schedule.
Best!
Then I forgot the honourable mention – appalling manners us Cornish have … it’s been a delight meeting you .. and Susan’s blog seems to have been a great spin off for some wonderful writers and blogging friends from this A – Z … I will be forever lurking! Cheers Hilary
Thanks, Hilary. I am delighted to meet you, too, and shall return to visit you and learn more about Cornwall. Last year I learned about Calabria and the foot of the Italian boot’s vulnerability throughout history; this year Cornwall. Utterly fascinating.
When I sought spinoffs from Susan’s blog, I sought people as intelligent and interesting as she, and you are among those. 🙂
Cheers!
Samantha
Hi Sam – I am slowly catching up – very slowly. Now I’m getting to grips with your Chronicles and now of course realise Dickens is Moriarty’s beloved black dog … there’s me thinking he was Dickens of literary fame, also stepping out of the spectral wilderness to help you … mind you having run off – perhaps he is leading you to pastures new.
I loved the Chronicle take … and like you I need to start at the beginning and follow your whimsical mind through … I think I did – as I was very impressed with your thoughts on Emma and your journey with her to her new pastures in heaven.
I’ll be back ‘soon’!! Cheers Hilary
Yes, Hilary, without being overly redundant I tried to note in most of the episodes in which Dickens appeared that he is Moriarty’s dog and that Moriarty is The Phantom of My Blog, because I realize readers are jumping into this midstream. But, I didn’t want to overdo, thus creating stumbling blocks for regular readers — you know how it goes.
I read a wonderful book last year by Gay Talese, one of our best American writers, “Unto the Sons” — 600 pages, hardback, dense type, recounting enthralling tales of his experiences growing up in Ocean City, New Jersey, the son of an Italian immigrant from Calabria, a tailor, and the history of his family and the Italian people, since before the Etruscans, in evocative detail, indeed since the first human set foot on the Italian boot. He does not miss a stitch. It was a lot, yet Talese always seemed to know when to re-identify people and places for his reader without seeming redundant. I’m still working on mastering that. So, I apologize for not making clearer the identities of those characters seen out of the corner of my imagination — and not that Dickens the dog isn’t inspired by Dickens the author.
I think you are right about Dickens (and Moriarty) leading me to new pastures. I allow my characters to do that, and so far it’s worked for the best.
Nice spring weather for exploring new pastures. I think I’ll go see what’s out there.
Thank you, Hilary, as always, for your kind compliments and insight.
Cheers!
Samantha
Hi Sam – hopefully Barbara will give a shout out when she visits … I’m still catching up … and must write another post shortly – probably at the weekend! I just saw your comment on my Z for Zennor post … but felt I must call in now …
I will be back to read properly too .. I need to take Moriarty under my wing, and make sure I’ve understood the Dickens connection in amongst the chronicles of Scheherazade … I shall return anon … that glass of Zinfandel beckons! Cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — I just now saw your comment here. Sorry I missed it yesterday. By now you’ve made the Moriarty/Dickens connection as told in the Scheherazade Chronicles. Conan Doyle’s Moriarty connection with Charles Dickens would be … well, it might be interesting. Charles Dickens might have put Moriarty to intriguing use. –That thought and I’m only drinking my morning coffee — no Zinfandel yet. That’s for later — and please do stop by to share a glass with me. 🙂
Samantha, huge congratulations on completing the challenge. I feel that I can’t impress on you enough just how utterly magical I found your posts. Your writing is beautiful, thoroughly imagined, and inspiring. Since the challenge has finished I’ve really missed my evening routine of sitting down before bed with a cup of apple crumble tea and reading my favourite A-Z Challenge blogs. I always saved yours until last because your writing was so calming and I enjoyed having your words in my head as I drifted off to sleep. I look forward to keeping up with your writing in the future.
Fee | Wee White Hoose
Fee, your gracious compliment really means a lot to me — as warming as apple crumb tea (I must look for that in our local markets), and most encouraging.
I am very glad to have met you. I shall return to The Wee White Hoose to read more and to catch up on your earlier A-Z posts I missed.
Thank you so much.
Cheers!
What an elegant and creative Reflections post! Congrats on finishing the Challenge and I’m glad it was such a good experience for you. I’ll definitely be back to read more.
I am so glad you came by, Nick. Thank you for your kind compliment. I went back to your site and read your “Nick Wilford, Freelance Editor” post. I do the same thing you do — writing, editing, proofreading, copyediting, formatting for indie print and epub books. And — subconsciously editing the backs of cereal boxes.
I’m disappointed that I found you after the A-Z fact, but will return to read more; in fact, I plan to take a brief break from writing posts and return to read earlier posts of favorite A-Z authors I met along the way. Besides, my doing so will give Moriarty a chance to hang a new header photo and otherwise clean up around my blog without my being underfoot. 🙂
What I like so well about Moriarty is his independence and is self-confidence. You’re sitting there talking to him about the challenge and he says, ” Some of them said they liked me.” That is a great sentence from Moriarty and it has me laughing. 🙂
I so enjoyed visiting your blog on a daily basis and yes, I do hope that you take the time to be a part of it next year. Notice, I didn’t say, “find the time” because busy people with purpose in life never have enough time, we take the time, regardless. So I look forward to reading your blog posts and I wonder if my dear Moriarty and Dickens will make an appearance or two.
Thank you also for your recommendation. That is a good idea and one that I want to follow up on for my own blog.
Love you and Happy Mother’s Day.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you, Patricia. What a happy surprise to have you come by and visit me on Mother’s Day. A great gift.
Yes, Moriarty’s comment did make me smile. So understated. I’ll bet he spent the rest of the day admiring himself in the mirror.
True, we do make the time for what’s important. My friends are important, so I try to keep up with them. I’m already thinking about next year’s A-Zs. May do a “flash” story based on a photograph, if I can find 26 titles to match corresponding letters of the alphabet.
Thank you again and again for reading my posts and commenting. It means a lot to me.
Moriarty will be back. Except when he’s taking his zither lessons, he’s usually lurking around somewhere in my blog, and he normally has Dickens with him.
I love you, too. Be well. Belated reply to your email coming up in the next few days.
Shalom,
Samantha
What a great way to reflect.
I had a few comments disappear into a black hole too – except I never learned to copy them 🙂
Thank you, Annalisa. Glad you came by. I appreciate it.
It took me a while to get the bright idea to copy my blogger and BlogSpot comments before posting them. 🙂
“…the dead are more alive than we…” I just LOVE that.
Beautiful writing, and although I came into this story mid-stream (this is the post you alerted me about when you visited me), it carried carried carried – and makes me want to read more. I am so there in that house with that woman in white. How chilling that others saw her who weren’t aware that she could be there.
Yes we do agree on something profound – storytelling matters. My blog is usually not ghost focused, but very much focused on that. Still the ghost stories matter in so many ways too… the story of your devotion to your mother is incredibly touching. I look forward to really delving in.
Thank you, Jeri. I am glad you came by and commented. Yes, the dead being more alive than we is definitely food for thought. Since my mother’s passing I am becoming more aware of this aspect. And I now believe — just in the past few days — that when my uncle was dying of cancer back in 1973, my sensing a man visiting me, in the form of a dark shadow, was indeed he. This intrigues me and I’d like to learn more.
Thanks again for the After Party. 🙂
Oh Sam! You are way too funny! Your fellow must have been related to Henry V111. He coudn’t decide what to do with his wives…….divorced, beheaded, died…divorced, beheaded…survived as wife number six outlived him.
Perhaps he was related to Henry VIII, Val, but more apropos to this story, he was more closely related to Scheherazade’s Sultan, I think. Frankly (to toss in yet another name), I think Henry got the idea from the Sultan (or in this story, the pumpkin-hatted pasha. 🙂
Thank you for visiting and commenting.
Enchanting as always. I’m inclined to agree with Kern, I’m a little bit jealous my blog doesn’t have a ghost. It’s just me, and maybe some tumbleweeds. And thank you for sharing the story of Scheherazade. I recognized the story after reading it, but I didn’t connect it with the name. Now I understand why you’ve named your blog that, and it’s beautiful. Thank you for the shout out, too!
Tumbleweeds are good, Sara. They present a good image in which to relax between intense story scenes.
Yes, I thought I had better come right out and say who Scheherazade is and the intent behind my blog name; sometimes I can be a little too subtle.
Do serialize your stories. I think you’d be very good at that, and I look forward to reading them.
I’m so glad to have met you and I have subscribed to your blog, if the sign-up went well. So, I will see you soon. 🙂
See, this post is exactly the reason I’m so glad I found you through stalking the commenters on Susan Scott’s blog. It’s your creativity and inventiveness that first captivated me, and the heart and soul of your posts that kept me (and will keep me) coming back for more.
I’m a little bit jealous that your blog has a ghost. I may have to conduct a seance to summon a spirit to haunt mine–I can only hope that spirit is as entertaining as Moriarty and his dog Dickens.
Here’s to stalking the commenters, Kern.
Well, I think every blog has ghosts. Moriarty would know; I’ll have to ask him.
“Heart and soul” — thank you so much for such a kind compliment. (Moriarty says utterly observant — but, then, he would.)
I am so glad to have met you. I have subscribed to your blog, if all went well at the sign-up, so I will see you again. 🙂
Lovely post. It is wonderful to meet new friends a long the way. I hope you derive everything positive from the Challenge!! Hopefully your computer works again too. I’ll be without mine for a few days… EEK!!
Congratulations on an excellent job! Hugs, Gwynn
Thank you, Gwynn. Taking up the A-Z Challenge has been a pleasure. And I made it all the way through without a word processor. All I had was WordPress on my blog and this Lenovo Notebook with a screen and typeface so small that I cannot read it from the distance of my external keyboard (my buttery keyboard, if you recall) that I attached to the Lenovo. My computer’s supposed to be ready tomorrow — unless there’s a glitch Theo thays. 😉
Congrats to you, too. Thanks for being here all the way.
Hugs
Very sweet!
R.
Indeed. Have some more lemonade, R.
🙂
Thanks!
fascinating!
Why, thank you, Beatrice. What a joy to have you come by and comment.
Cheers!
What a fun post to end A to Z with, I had a chuckle (I confess, I had to google zither – what a gorgeous instrument!). I like Moriarty and Dickens a lot already – I’m looking forward to going back and reading more about them.
It’s sad that A to Z has ended, but it will be nice to go back to normal life, with dusting and other chores getting done so we’re not all living in chaos 😉
I agree with you, Celine, about the A-Zs ending and getting back to dusting, laundry, etc.
Moriarty says he’s glad you like him, and Dickens is wagging his tail. Their stories are interspersed throughout my blog, and I am planning to collect them into a book.
Thanks! Nice to have your visit again.
Hehe! The end is not nigh, it’s just the mac and cheese. Phew. A fun and imaginative end to a great series of posts. Congratulations for surviving! I think we’ll all need to get busy dusting.
It was great having met you, Samantha. I look forward to your future posts. 🙂
Yes, thankfully just the mac and cheese, Sara.
So glad to have met you, too, Sara, and I will be back to read more of your delightful and imaginative posts. 🙂
I’m laughing again!-:) This is so funny and I’m falling in love with Moriarty. I can see everything so clearly from your descriptions. You have a keen sense of humour.
Outliers? I’ve got a bunch of those too. If you look at my desk the only thing you see is paper everywhere. Then there’s my iPad. It’s got a whole bunch of outliers where I woke up at 2 or 3 in the morning and began typing out words that The Prophet or The Child was dictating to me. My these characters. They can be really pushy when they have grabbed hold of your imagination. They know they are a part of you and they can be quite fresh.
Samantha, I have so enjoyed your blog during the A to Z. You have been a blessing to me. When I needed to laugh, then your Moriarty was there with Dickens. Beautiful.
Congratulations you made it, and I have gained insight into a dear friend that I love.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, these pushy characters grabbing hold of our imaginations, Patricia. Thank you for gently prodding me to put their antics into the A-Zs.
I, too, have gained insight into a dear friend. I think of you often and I love you, too. I would love to hear you sing one day.
And, speaking of our friendship, I will be back to reply to your touching email soon. It’s just that momentarily I have gotten behind, because Moriarty wouldn’t be pushed into doing my laundry, so I had to catch up on that this morning. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
Love, love love! Congratulations on completing the A-Z! I’m so glad I found your blog in my travels this month. I’ll definitely be back in the future 🙂
Fee | Wee White Hoose
Scottish Mythology and Folklore A-Z
Thank you so much for your encouraging compliment, Fee. That means a lot to me. So glad to have found you on the A-Zs, and I will be back to read more. 🙂
Microwave END. What a way to go. So perfectly Samantha. There is always an adventure in your posts and characters beyond imagination. I will miss and I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of the follow up book. Thanks you for all the emotions, that covered so many areas of humanity.
Thank you, Marsha. Your comments are always so insightful. I try to relate my stories to universal human experiences. So, hopefully, as you say, I have succeeded a bit. There’s always more, and I will write more. I think Moriarty’s busy right now, though, unpacking his suitcase and seeking a zither teacher. 🙂
Book coming up, as soon as I get my computer back. Thanks.
Hi Samantha – the Zephyr wind can gently blow all which ways .. a great tale with many twists .. and here’s the ZZZing around the Round Table – are you coming over to Cornwall to Tintagel .. or will you try another Round Table setting … but I will definitely join you for some Zinfandel … congratulations and good to meet up with you – cheers and see you shortly .. Hilary
Hi Hilary — I plan on coming over to Cornwall to Tintagel, at least virtually; would love to join you for some Zinfandel, at the round table or anywhere.
I am so glad to have met you. Thank you for coming with me and supporting me on this journey. It means a lot to me.
BTW, I have an English friend here, Barbara, whom I told last evening about your writing on Cornwall. She was very excited and provided some of her own historical knowledge of the area. I emailed her your blog link. So, she’ll no doubt visit and may or many not comment; I don’t know. She is a retired teacher of math and history and has lived all over the world — even taught at Guantanamo.
Cheers. See you shortly. I got a little behind, as I couldn’t get Moriarty to do my laundry, and had to catch up on that. 🙂
Samantha
Goodness, what an escapade! See what happens to you when you don’t get enough sleep! 😉 But, I felt I was right there with you the whole way. I did enjoy your journey. I hope you picked up many friends on your journey. We DID IT! Congratulations!!
Well, Gwynn, since you were right there with me all the way, you could’ve helped catch the 12 lb. zither flying at me. But, oh, well, this Storyteller got enough sleep that she managed the catch despite a black, fluffy dog being in the middle of the whole thing.
Yes, it’s been quite a journey and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you for taking the journey with me and for your support. Much appreciated. Made some fascinating new friends, too — some really good writers.
Hugs.
LMWATWT, (Laughing my way all the way through), love it.
Write a lot more!
Ever,
R.
I slept with the windows open last night and awakened this morning to a zephyr at dawn and then to read your LMWATWT (glad you translated) — glad you laughed.
I think the maiden would have been more forthcoming had not the pasha spoken in text lingo to her, so that she could get a handle on what he was about….
Thx for the writing encouragement, as ever, R.
S.
Ah whimsical to the last .. may the zephyr wind continue to blow in and out of your being, your space, your sight and sound Samantha , as you go hither and zither and not get into a tither … that mac and cheese for Jefferson is re-usable and I hope to partake of it and of course the Zinfadel when next at your round table.
Time now for some real zzz’s what say you?
As I go hither and zither, indeed, Susan. What might get me into a tither is trying to say zitherist 10 times, fast. 🙂
Yes, time for some real zzz’s.
And then for us two, mac and cheese and Zin and camel watching, I’d say.
Thanks for visiting my blog yesterday, Samantha – Hilary is a huge supporter of all the bloggers she follows 🙂 Lovely song.
Annalisa, writing A-Z vignettes, at Wake Up, Eat, Write, Sleep
My pleasure, Annalisa. I want to return and read more. Glad you liked the song. Thanks for coming by. 🙂
What can I say outside of the fact that the music was a great joy to hear and your article a highlight to read. I have had the privilege of visiting Paris, and some other towns in the province. I looked at the video and it made me think of the cafeteria where I had lunch when I was in Paris. I speak some French, so I looked at the entire video. It has made me desire to visit France again sometime in the future.
Thank you for sharing this. I enjoyed it tremendously. Music is the only universal language that can stir any heart. It binds and heals wounds.
Shalom,
Patricia
I would love to visit Paris, Patricia. People say it is the perfect city for writers, as it matches the writer’s daily rhythm of routine — getting up, going out for coffee, coming home and writing, going out to a café for lunch, writing all afternoon into the evening, and then going out for a late dinner. Suits me. 🙂 So, when I visit you in Italy, we can stop over in France…. (Wish I understood more French.)
For me, music is it — the universal language of understanding — that, as you say, stirs hearts and binds and heals wounds.
Shalom,
Samantha
Samantha,
You will find the same thing in Italy. The Italians and the French are famous for their morning coffee, but most Italians drink an espresso. But yes we will visit France too. The people are quite unique. I love the European flair.
Shalom
The song is gorgeous, and I immediately saw what they mean by ‘melancholy and light’ , it fits the music just right.
I think of the song as a greeting, it’s quite hopeful and positive in its own way. A goodbye is often a hello to something else anyway, I know I’ve certainly found that when I said goodbye to everyone I knew and moved across the world to Hong Kong. Goodbyes are never really goodbyes, not with those people who really matter, but there is always a hello after a goodbye.
You’re right, Celine. Goodbyes are never really goodbyes to those who really matter.
I suppose you could understand the French introduction to the song? I get the gist, but would like to know what she actually said.
Thanks for coming by.
Hi Sam, I hadn’t forgotten about this, just took a little while to come back to it with all that was going on!
In the intro, she explains that she finds it hard to write about her family and where she is from — it’s too close to her so she can’t find words that she’s happy with. She asked a friend – Richard someone (I didn’t catch the surname) to write the lyrics, telling him what she wanted in the song, and he came back a week later with perfect lyrics. They only changed a word or two.
And then she mentions the guest musicians, saying they have a great sensibility, they write melodies that make you dream, so she was really excited to see what would happen from the collaboration. As it turns out they clicked really well and all really enjoyed the process.
So there you have it! It’s such a beautiful song, I’m listening to it again as I write this 🙂
Oh, Celine, thank you so much for translating. I missed a lot by not understanding the French. I would love to learn French and Italian, and maybe I should seriously pursue that. Back in high school and college (in a past lifetime, it seems) I spoke fluent Spanish, but a few years ago I thought my Mexican coworker, who spoke no English, said he ate his horse for lunch, so that language needs brushing up.
As for the music, I really like Alexandra Streliski’s compositions and have her only album, “Pianoscope.” I thought she was French, but it turns out she’s French Canadian, although she has spent time in Paris.
Thank you so much for this. A treasure.
Although I speak about six French words, the video was understandable (is that a proper word in this case, lol?). Your post, of course, is so wonderful. The video was icing on the delicious cake. I look forward to you next book and simply know it will be excellent. Thank you for the warmth, passion, love and healing you have provided your audience. You are special beyond word Dear Turquoise Roo.
Wow, what a compliment. Thank you, Marsha.
And my next book — thanks for the encouragement and inspiration. That will be my next project, as soon as I get my computer back (instead of working on this Notebook), and have access to my files.
You are a reader, and I love your insight, always illuminating for me.
Lovely post Samantha, written in your beautiful style. The computer’s playing up a bit, so I’m not going to chance the playing of the video. Actually now it is playing. How lovely and light. I’ll listen through, what a beautiful woman she is … and though I don’t understand a word, the yearning and lightness comes through. And he so handsome.
So, we come to an end, always a new beginning … and I love Sara Snider’s comment and as she said about playing the notes. Yes, we’ve made new friends, found our way to others’ terrific writing, new insights into other worlds … and the song has come to an end …
He is so handsome, Susan, but my personal opinion is that he needs a shave — a little too shaggy for my tastes. But, anyway, I like Alexandra Streliski’s music and enjoyed the ambience of the café and the snow outside.
You say it all in your second paragraph — the song is coming to an end, but there will be new songs and new notes to look forward to playing. 🙂
I feel truly honored to have been mentioned on your blog, Samantha. You and Susan both write with poignancy and beauty that speaks of deep truths, that I honestly feel honored just to read your writing. So thank you.
The A to Z Challenge, for all its difficulties in having to blog almost every day, is wonderful for all the reasons you have mentioned. I think this year (my second year participating) has been truly wondrous in regards to all the amazing people I’ve met, you included. I’m glad you decided to participate, and I’m glad you found the experience to be a good one.
And yet another beautiful song by Alexandra Streliski. I found this one rather hopeful in its tune, so I will imagine it as a possible goodbye, but also a warm greeting. Because that’s often the way of it in life–one thing ends, but another begins.
I couldn’t have said it better, Sara. I guess this is why Susan and I have remained friends these three years — we’re both deep thinkers.
Glad you liked the music, too. I am really glad to have met you and hope this is the beginning of a new friendship. Glad you decided to take up the Challenge. I look forward to reading more of your wonderful and charming writing.
Thanks!
What a beautiful moment and memory. I love that you were able to give a party that your mother also enjoyed in her final days. Daphne sounds like an angel.
Yes, I think my mother enjoyed the party, Sara. Daphne is an angel. Amazing family. They have very little yet give a lot.
She doesn’t use a computer, so she is unable to read all the kind words my readers have said about her. I will pass them along — and she’ll smile, just smile quietly and then go on with the next thing.
Thanks.
Ahhhh, at last I can sit and enjoy a cup of Joe with my friend Samantha. A visit would be lovely after all of these years. I love the music. So soothing. I’m glad the Challenge has been a good experience. I enjoy meeting new friends too. I literally met one of the bloggers on Saturday as she lives in Port Townsend. Your cruise blogger lives not far from me too. See… you need to look at HUD here too. You would love Port Townsend!
I may as well stay here as live in Port Townsend, Gwynn. I want to be with people who love me, where I’m needed and around friends. Thanks.
Nevertheless, I loved the ambience of this Montreal café with the warm coffee, music and camaraderie inside contrasted with the human activity in the snowstorm outside.
Yes, and we need a visit. Glad you liked the music, too.
That is so true. Those were the irreplaceable offerings of friends that helped you get through Christmas, and it was gift where value cannot be measured.
I believe Emma lay there in bed and listened. She was contented and maybe she even thought of days gone by when she was the mistress at the table.
I too was at home in Georgia for my mother’s New Year’s Eve. We watched the year change over, and she was recovering so well when I left. Neither of us knew that within months her health would deteriorate and that I would be flying home to care for her and say goodbye.
This was a very touching post.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, Patricia, I feel fortunate that I have such extraordinary friends — who just took the whole thing in stride — and I like to think that among us we made my mother’s departure happy and pleasant.
It is comforting that you watched the turn of a new year and a new turn in your relationship with your mother and then that your were able to be there in the end.
Moments in our lives that touch us deeply. Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
I love to read your posts at the end of my day. They’re so calming. Beautifully written, once again.
I can’t believe that tomorrow’s the penultimate day – where did the time go?
Fee | Wee White Hoose
Scottish Mythology and Folklore A-Z
The ultimate compliment. Thank you, Fee.
Me, too — don’t know where the time went.
Thanks!
What a lovely Xmas memory Samantha thank you for sharing it with us! Good on Daphne for ‘insisting’ on getting Emma dressed for the occasion and for all the friends who came by bearing gifts and joy. May this memory live on …
Thank you, Susan. You put it all so well and concisely. The memory will live on.
Yes, and thanks to Daphne and all she did. She loves photography and photographed my mother in her last days, so I have a little album of her all dressed up and with backdrops. Plus a CD video of photos taken throughout my mother’s life that Daphne put together, too, for the funeral service.
Merry Xmas Dear Emma and company. I may, likely, always have this festive vision in my memory. As I’ve often said I’m as much an observer as I am a reader. You bring us into your presence. Thank you so much for continuing your loving and spiritual sharing of your celebrations as well as your challenges. I am going to miss this. Love, Coral Roo
Thanks, Marsha. I will miss it, too. But, I’ll see what other of these stories, that I didn’t get to tell this time, I can tell in future posts. Especially with Moriarty around: he is the constant throughout.
Love to you,
Turquoise Roo
I completely agree with Hilary’s comment. Your mom must have thoroughly enjoyed that Xmas with the dinner conversations, music, and after dinner chats. Daphne definitely was a treasure. The evening sounded quite fun and lovely. Wonderful post, Samantha! Hugs, Gwynn
Yes, Gwynn, as I just replied to Hilary, I believe Mother did enjoy the event. There was a sense of peace about her.
Daphne remains a friend and a treasure, as do her family, helping me in lots of ways.
Hugs,
Samantha
Hi Samantha … I’m sure your mother loved hearing the banter, and quietness of voices over the Christmas Fare .. what a generous and wonderful gesture to your mother – and Daphne sounds like a total godsend ..
Cheers Hilary
I sensed that Mother did enjoy the banter, Hilary. And, Daphne remains a godsend. She kind of watches over me, and she and her family help me in many ways even now.
So glad you came by. Thanks.
What a strangely comforting tale. Ghosts can be creepy, but not always. I was convinced my mother’s house was haunted while growing up (I’m still not convinced it’s not), and I saw plenty of creepy and unsettling things there. But there was one time I saw a woman watching me when I woke in the night. It wasn’t scary though. And when I woke the following morning, I felt sad she was gone. I think it’s lovely you have a caregiver ghost in your neighborhood.
Yes, our ghosts are mostly like the people who are living in our town now, Sara — no doubt the ghosts’ descendants. They are kind, open, warm and friendly people.
You are yet another child who witnessed an otherworldly spirit in human form. She was watching over you — because she knew you were tuned it and would someday write about these phenomena, as you do. How special.
Thank for the beautiful response! Your experiences have given me the chills. Loved both posts and you!!
I probably could talk endlessly on this subject of otherworldly beings, Marsha. Thank you.
XX
Hi Samantha … my mother for quite a long period would on occasions talk to her relatives who had passed on … the ones I knew and then we’d go on a journey with them … and I’d keep it in my mother’s time frame with them, and the practicalities of doing it in the 21st century … my mother was very happy … I never saw them. We ended up having a very happy gossipy chat all on the same wave length … just in somewhat different time frames … My mother had her marbles, but it didn’t matter if she lost them at time – it was good for her imagination to wander off … or her soul to explore the transition phase .. cheers Hilary
Hi Hilary — How wonderful you went on the journey with your mther and relatives. I do wonder if your mother had really momentarily lost her marbles.
My father, in good health a few years before he died at 90, said to me, “I wonder what it’s like when you die.” “Let me know,” I said. I thought he never did let me know, but maybe this is his way and simply haven’t recognized it until now.
Intriguing. Thanks, Hilary.
Hi Samantha … to a point I think she was in both dimensions … I wasn’t going to make a fuss … my sister-in-law tried to get my brother to correct her … but if it didn’t matter – why … I could see no sense. My SIL is/was a nurse too … Common sense is so much better at times …
My mother died and went down the tunnel to the light – but decided she didn’t want to go then … and so lived for another 5 years, in bed and fed via a stomach tube … it was fine … we mostly had good times and she knew what was what …
Cheers Hilary
Interesting that your mother changed her mind and lived another five years, Hilary.
Re correcting them, my aunt lives in a nursing facility and at 101, her mind goes in and out. I just mostly agree with her, because, as you say, why correct her at this stage. It’s fine. She and I are just glad to have the contact.
Cheers,
Samantha
Ah, visitations from the other side helping with the transition. I remember when some days had passed by after my father’s death, and we were in the sitting room, night time, curtains not drawn. Mike who was about 7 or 8 said, oh look Papa Jim has just passed by. When my mother died a few years later he was in the bath when I told him. He was about 12 and that afternoon he was out knocking balls on the tennis court. He said o, Mama Psi came by to say hello. He distinctly heard her and paused awhile to catch her –
When I dream of my parents who are often at the dinner table I know that they’re visiting and are nourishing in same way or the other – thank you Samantha for this affirming post.
Isn’t it wonderful, Susan?! That Mike saw them, as children often do, but then later had no fear and took the time to say hi and pass the message along, that’s special.
I am so glad — honored, really — to have received the affirmations. Interesting, too, how the children are often visited by their grandparents, as was my younger granddaughter visited by my mother (my daughter, as well).
Well!! You know my reaction!!! I am delighted that your mother had all those visitations, assisting her in her transition Home. Too have the awareness of loved ones that had gone before her, in communication with her. I hope we all understand that we have these experiences. The Woman in White must be a comfort to your town. I loved this post as I do the previous ones. Thank you for sharing. Love you very much my friend!!
Yes, I believe it’s a little step over the edge of consciousness to be aware of these visits, Marsha. Of course I thought of you when I was writing this post, Right up your path, I know.
Yes, Mother must have done something right to have had all those visitors. I like to think she would be well set with compassionate guidance on her journey as she passed.
I don’t know how much of a comfort The Woman in White, specifically, is to our town. She is a popular curiosity, though. I think, in addition to her, we have other compassionate spirits here, especially in the Pope-Mustard Mansion(1700s), three doors up from me, where the donut guy was working. The woman who owns that house has many stories to tell of her compassionate spirit housemates — a Revolutionary War soldier, possibly The Woman in White, and a prankster child. They wave to her and she waves back, says hi, and she has felt a compassionate hand on her shoulder.
What interests me is that in the first few months after we moved here, I was out in the backyard one windy November day, and I said to myself, “Oh, we have ghosts here in this town, lots of ghosts.” That’s before anybody had told me about the ghosts and their stories.
Anyway, I could go on.
Love you, too, Marsha.
Hi Samantha,
This is interesting because I remember my mother telling me about my grandmother seeing people they could not see. In fact, the day before my grandmother died, she told my mother that my granddaddy had been there and told her to get ready. He would pick her up when he came from the market. And the next morning, she crossed over in my mother’s arms with a smile on her face.
I have had two experiences that I consider heavenly experiences that have shaped my life. One a visit from my grandfather on my father’s side and then a visit from my grandmother on my father’s side.
They were very real. So I believe that we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses that have gone on before us.
Shalom,
Patricia
Healthcare professionals who daily deal with the dying mostly all say the same thing, Patricia, that they believe the dying receive visits by those who have gone before and that the dying travel in their last days.
I do believe, as you, that we are surrounded by these witnesses and guides — especially now, after sensing the presence of The Woman in White and having that confirmed. Now I can reflect on the presence of others I sense, and be pretty sure they are here. What an honor and blessing to be visited by your grandparents. Yes, and the more powerful of these visits are life shaping.
Sometimes my daughter and I have simultaneous sensings, even though we live miles apart.
I really do want to find out more about this.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
We do have a mansion with ghosts over in Port Gamble, but nothing close by to me. The only spirit I have sensed has been my brother… however, I just typed “mother” so maybe mom is trying to get a word in here.
Beautiful description.
Yes, Gwynn, quite possibly both your mom and brother are there watching over you.
Our town’s ghosts are friendly spirits, thankfully, except for Elizabeth, who is said to be nuts.
Thanks. 🙂
As I read your article the View from the Cupola, I listened to your music. Most of the time when I want to listen to music that is posted in a blog, I get “Prohibited! The music rights are not registered with the GEMA.” It was nice to find out that this was not the case with your article. It is a beautiful piece of music and it speaks of days gone by, of friends that we will not meet again in this life, on this planet. Yet, they are not forgotten.
Living in Europe, I have learned and I am still learning to carry an extra burden and that is the burden of being so far away from dear friends that live in the USA. Each time I go home and see them I know it could be the last time. I have shed many tears because of a phone call received that has informed me that a dear friend is no longer among us.
And then my involvement here in the European way of life where again I have people, dear friends, who have opened their hearts to me and made me a part of their family. When we are disconnected by death, it hurts, even though I know I will see them again.
I like your V – View from the Cupola because it reminds me of my own view from my Cupola. It is a bittersweet view mixed with tears and joy. It is a view that says, everything changes, nothing remains the same.
Thank you. Your article inspired me to think.
Shalom,
Patricia
Patricia, I feel the same tug as you — California or Delaware. I grew up in this area but lived my whole adult life, nearly 30 years, in Southern California and it feels like home to me. I have many friends there. But I have friends here in Delaware, too, and am established here in town. Definitely two different ways of life — that of small town vs. big city Los Angeles.
So, for now, it is what it is. And as Sara Snider put it on Susan Scott’s post about dreams being an unfinished symphony, it’s in the process, the playing of the notes.
If I were more mobile, I think it would ease my dilemma. I have a friend who grew up in this town but lives in L.A. Yet, he is ubiquitous, there but often here.
I hope this makes sense. I am rather distracted at the moment because the cable guy is here — fixing, no less, a splitter on my phone lines.
Shalom,
Samantha
Wow, that piano piece is so incredibly beautiful and inspiring, I love it.
This post resonated with me. My partner’s father passed away earlier this year after a long battle with cancer, and we’ve been dealing with some of the issues you’ve described here. My own grandmother passed away earlier this month, and that song brings tears to my eyes when I think about her. I like the idea that thinking of those who have gone before us is like posting a thought on the universe. Maybe somehow, somewhere, the ripple of such an act will reach them.
I agree, Sara, that hopefully the ripple of our thoughts will reach them.
This minimalist music that Alexandra Strelinski and others compose is defined as “melancholy and light,” and it seems to resonate with lifetime departures. (I think I may include this thought, expanded, in my “Y” post.)
I’m sorry for your and your partner’s losses of your loved ones. The good news is that they are released from their suffering. I like to think those gone ahead are still around me. I know you must miss your grandmother very much. Who knows, she may be looking over our shoulder and listening to the music, too.
Thanks, Sara.
“Although caregivers are repeatedly reminded by the observers to take care of ourselves, take time for ourselves, we don’t.” So very true. I don’t know if I mentioned that I work for the Alzheimer Society, but this is one of the things we work on with the caregivers we try to support. For the longest time our family caregiver education series has closed with the “self-care” session, but we find that if participants skip any session, this will be it. Many of our staff now dispense with this session altogether, building self-care exercises and “homework” into every other topic instead. We refer to “building resilience” rather than “self-care,” because (a) it’s less patronizing, and (b) it seems to resonate more with caregivers.
I love how you phrased this: “You have to get to know yourself again.” So many bereaved caregivers struggle with that loss of identity after so many years of shelving so many aspects of themselves. They struggle with leaving the support groups that have nurtured and bolstered them on their journey, and yet to stay immersed is to stand still–and that’s a poor way to live.
Four years to regain normalcy. That’s a long time, but then there are a lot of pieces to pick up and contemplate. And, as you say, the grieving is never over. It just changes, becomes easier to carry, perhaps. My own mother died more than twenty-years ago, but every so often a fragment of memory will trip me up and the tears find me again.
Such a beautiful post, Samantha.
You put the caregiver experience and aftermath so well, Kern. Good for you, working for the Alzheimer’s Society and that you incorporate self care into the caregivers’ sessions. Building resilience was a major thing I learned from caring for my mother. That has stayed with me. There was really a lot for me to deal with after my mother died — largely, financial considerations, which I am still working with.
It suddenly gets quiet after the loved one dies and the support groups leave. This is why I feel so fortunate to have met my “Roo” friends, among them Susan Scott, whom I met online a month before my mother’s passing and who still remain my friends. My hospice bereavement counselor continued to visit me monthly for a year after my mother died, and now, three years later, she and our hospice nurse and I are still friends and have lunch or dinner together occasionally.
Thanks for providing insight from your perspective. Hopefully some will read what we’ve both said here, and it will help them.
Awww Dear Carol, what gentle terms you use to express what so many fear: death. I believe as you do. The spirit is becoming accustomed to leaving the body. Today I spoke to a friend, from as far back as high school. We also worked together and have been close, I believe, many lifetimes. Her younger sister, has been actually dying of many ailments and has dementia. It breaks my heart. My younger brothers died fast. Margaret has suffered losing her sister all this time and Diane must be in a medical facility. The time my other family members, with long term illnesses, came to mind. Shorty thereafter I read your post. It reminded me of what I believe. That is that the spirit is in and out, preparing to leave? A fetus needs to have the spirit enter and leave preparing for birth? I don’t have all the answers, yet I believe a loving God would give our bodies time to adjust to this or the other side. Thank you for your thoughts. I actually feel relieved that it makes sense and someone else may agree. I go with what makes sense. And yes, I feel many around me. Thank you so much for sharing your understandings with all of who ponder life after life.
Life after life. Yes, to be pondered. Apparently this phenomenon of the spirit’s being here and already there is quite common, so I have read; but I didn’t know about while my mother was in that process.
It’s quite an experience to watch someone’s long, slow, decline and dying. I never thought I could face it — always avoided it — but when put into the situation, wow, what consciousness raising and a growing (evolutionary) experience.
If my sharing helps others, then this journey I have experienced is good.
Thank you, Marsha.
Your writing is just beautiful. Bless your Grandmother, my heart ached for her when I read the line about her friends’ passing.
“Often, near the end, the dying enter a process of departure, still here and already there. ” This is so true, and such a perfect way of describing it.
Fee | Wee White Hoose
Scottish Mythology and Folklore A-Z
Yes, Fee, my grandmother made her remark back in the 1940s, when people didn’t live as long. But, she, herself, had a good, long life living with and surrounded by family. It’s interesting, though, what bits of conversation little kids hear, when you think they’re not listening, and remember.
Since experiencing my mother’s being here and already there, I have read about this phenomenon and that it’s quite common. Intriguing.
Thanks for your compliment on my writing. It means a lot to me, coming from such an accomplished and beautiful writer as you are.
I listened to the piano piece as I read you piece and the music made me feel as if I was at the beach resting on a wave enjoying the rolling back and forth. Very soothing. It is difficult to go through the caregiving process no matter how involved in actual caregiving we are. The trauma, the judgment, the stress, and the sadness still are there. Mom has been gone going on eight years and I still feel as if I’m recovering… becoming ME…allowed to be me.
In fact, I lost a very good and dear high school friend due to breast cancer a few years ago. Her sister and I have become good friends so we celebrate on her sister’s birthday… remembering her. In fact, my “W” is in memory of the fun my friend and I had while in high school. She is still with me, in my heart.
But caring does not die with the person. Their spirit still surrounds us and encourages us to pick ourselves up to move in new directions and make new connections. I think we are doing that. You left a very beautiful post. Now, I may go play the music again. Hugs…. Gwynn
You are doing a great job becoming yourself, Gwynn. And I do recall your telling us about celebrating your friend’s b’day every year with her sister. That’s a wonderful thing to do.
Yes, as you say, their spirit remains with us and the gift they give us to take our lives in new directions is an honor.
Thank you for your compliment on my post, and I hope you were able to enjoy Alexandra Streliski’s piece again. Not dancy, but as you say, soothing, meditative.
Hugs,
Samantha
Thank you Samantha for this and the music which I’m listening to as I type. The music is very beautiful, lyrical, reaching for the stars and bringing the light back. (I wanted to play it again but I don’t know what happened .. please double check because it’s now on a different you tube setting – and my apologies if I am the cause of changing the setting).
My husband’s father Graham died at 97 many years ago, and it was a sadness to him that many of his friends had died along the way.
I especially wanted to remark about the new relationship that one makes with one’s self. I’m thinking of a sort of vacuum when a loved one for whom one has cared so long, is no longer there, and the void is ever present. But slowly the one left behind, catches up and uncovers the neglected parts of one’s self; and new discoveries are made. Samantha, you will always keep growing and reaching for the stars – and bring your light back to us.
I recognizing the urgency of setting everything in place for my next life, my transition from this lifetime and for the rest of this lifetime. I don’t know why this came out first in my reply to you, Susan; but it’s been on my mind and obviously of imminence. So, that’s where I am on my path.
The vacuum of being left behind by those who have died is similar, I find, to the empty next syndrome. It was really hard for me when my daughter, Kellie, moved out. But, now I have two granddaughters. I call them all The Three Kellies.
As for returning the YouTube video, they all end by showing other videos you might like. But there’s a little return/replay symbol in the lower left corner that you touch or click on and the video replays. Alexandra Streliski’s album “Pianoscope” is really nice. It’s just her, solo, playing her minimalist piano compositions. I first heard her music in a movie and from that, found her album.
Interesting, thoughtful times. Thanks.
Hi Samantha,
There is a lot to think about in this post. Sensing the spirit of someone that is still alive, loss and old friendships, caring for the carer. You describe it all so well.
Reflex Reactions
Yes, a contemplative overview, Ida. The conditions connecting the facets of the whole. An awareness I gained through being caregiver to my mother. I think you can relate.
Nice to see you here. Thanks.
The words are stuck in my throat. It seems so long ago, yet longer while your mom was in hospice and close to passing over. I joined many writing groups before your title said, “You’re here Marsha”. My first message to you proved me right and I stayed with only one other group and the lady who began that group, joined ours. Yes “ours”! You made it all inclusive. The following month we grieved with you and your family and friends, although they were strangers to us. You no longer were. You were a friend, a bestie, and a new member of a late blooming family
Carol, you have been and continue to be giving a karmic, spiritual connection that all of us have reached out for. I don’t believe in coincidence. You were chosen by our Creator to wrap us in this incredible group of ladies who would unlikely have ever been brought together, due to our varied places of residence. What a dream come true to win the Lottery and meet someplace special (Sedona comes to mind because of it is a mid location and spiritual focal point).
For LinkedIn to drop our group only made our love and respect stronger. Thank you LinkedIn!! I have had no reason to return, nor the time. Between you wonderful ladies, my family and friends and other emails and posts, I don’t need another group (although I do have many). This is my group of love and light. The spiritual meals I receive here are more than enough to fill me. I have had to drop out three times, due to illness and/or accident and to return, all arms have caressed me with unconditional love and the essence of eternal closeness. I never left.
I am proud to be Coral Roo and love all of my Roo sisters!!
Thank you, Coral Roo, for the kind things you have said about me, and for filling in the details about our group, that I couldn’t fit into my brief post, and for pointing out that indeed we are a group of light and love.
The Power of Collective Thought — When we all imagine our meeting and express the intention, we are bound to meet. We must.
Light and love to you, and be well.
Turquoise Roo
O my Samantha – poetic prose, thank you. I often think of we women the Roos, and fantasise almost daily about meeting up someday somewhere. Or my just hopping on a plane and visiting each individually for at least several days, walking, talking, drinking wine, seeing camels, kangaroos, gardens, irises, ducking pigeons in Paulsbo, meeting Moriarty, the Phantom, seeing cats, meeting Marsha, visiting Germany ..
I have a few good friends, two in the US, a few here in S.A. who I have to say I seldom see (and don’t comment on my posts – apart from Susan in Phoenix) – and I feel in my bones that we are really good friends to whom I can just be myself, no masks. This is what unconditional love is and I know that I am truly blessed.
And Samantha, well done for taking up the challenge, it’s been tough as we know! It’s wonderful too that you’ve met up with Hilary and Sara, both special people to whom I also owe thanks for their being supporters of our posts.
With love to you all, PogRoo (pale olive green Roo)
PogRoo, you have said it all so well about us Roos, and, too, my close friends outside the Roos, like you, don’t read my posts, most of them, or if they do, only Moriarty, my Phantom knows about them, because they don’t comment. That’s fine. I don’t read all the blogs and books I’d like to, either; though, I mean well. We’re all still connected.
As you say/dream, “several days, walking, talking, drinking wine, seeing camels, kangaroos, gardens, irises, ducking pigeons in Paulsbo, meeting Moriarty,” we must.
And, isn’t it wonderful, through you I have met Sara and Hilary. What a blessing and a joy.
The A-Zs, while intense, have led me into wonderful new worlds, ideas and friendships. Thank you so much for prodding with that iris stem. 🙂
Thank you!
TQRoo
How wonderful that you were able to find such an amazing support group. I’m thankful for them, because it has led me to finding your blog. Hopefully, one day you can all meet, and have many Thelma and Louise -esque escapades. 🙂
Yes, and through this group I met you and your delightful writing. You really do have a unique and special talent, and I look forward to reading each story. As I have said — book, please. 🙂
Thanks!
I totally agree with your warm loving comments. Yes, this group means a great deal to me. You all are special in multiple ways. I feel blessed to have found you and to be part of the group.
However, Vye and I have met as we had lunch together. And I’m convinced that you and I must have met years ago either on Camino de las Colinas, in Palos Verdes estates at the B of A, down at the Strand, or walking about the Hollywood Riviera. Life is so interesting as to what it throws our way… but invariably it also throws us a net for catching us.
Your post is poignant and heart-felt and you do mean a great deal to me, as do the others in the group. Thank you for bringing us together! Hugs, and love, Gwynn
Well said, Gwynn. I was going to say a lot of this in my post, but it kept getting too long, so I had to cut out a lot of it. Then I’d think of something else I wanted to put in and then the post got long and I’d have to cut that out.
I had forgotten that you and Vye met. And, maybe we did, too, back when, when there weren’t so many people in the South Bay. I banked at the B of A on Catalina, in the Riviera Village, though, not down on the Strand.
I may have started this thing on a whim, but it was each of who jumped in and committed to a deep and special friendship among us.
It is hard to put into words how much this group means to me. After the A-Zs, I will work on setting up Skype.
Hugs and love backatcha,
Samantha
Hi sweetheart! My eyes are kind of wet too just like Pat’s. How well I remember our early conversations and emails. We have all come such a long way in the past three years. Cleansing, Hurting, Laughing, Loving and Growing…especially growing with such amazing friendships.
Love you always,
LBR
What a special and unique connection we Roos have, Val. And, as I just commented to Hilary, I could not finish these A-Zs without acknowledging the ones who gently prodded me into taking up the challenge.
Yes, we have all grown and come a long way. We are committed and we set examples for each other and support each other. So rare.
Love you, too, Little Blue Roo.
TQR
Hi,
I have tears in my eyes. This article touched my emotions because you are so right we are the cheerleading squad for each other. There has been so many times when something you have said in our group has encouraged me at times when I was rocking in the bottom of the pit.
The Roos are more than fantastic, because fantastic can go away quickly. We are simply women who have committed ourselves to know who we are as we expose ourselves to each other.
I have learned so much in this group, and I am so glad to be a part of you all.
Shalom,
Patricia
Right backatcha, Patricia. This has been an extraordinary journey. The Roos are fantastic women, individually, and each is a part of the whole. Our commitment to ourselves and to each other is a rare phenomenon among members of society today, I think — in this age of texting and fast food.
You are one of the best among the best, Patricia. Your kind wisdom and unconditional love has buoyed me along the way.
I would not be where I am now without the inspiration and support of the Roos.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi Samantha – I hadn’t realised this connection .. what a great one that is – to give you a wholeness. The Roos – no wonder … the name, colours and ideas are perfect.
Unconditional love at the end of a life is essential … I had two, thankfully both had their wits, but the love and care right through to the core is what is essential, absolutely essential and then the experience becomes positive, not sad …
Fantastic post – delighted to have read it .. and to you for letting us know about your group … cheers Hilary
Yes, our group is extraordinary, Hilary. I think we are still amazed after three years.
I think unconditional love was the biggest thing I had to focus on when taking care of my mother. I had to give that wholly or I would sink. There was no getting around it. And my hospice team and other aides gave the same, so I learned and grew. I carry that with me now. Unconditional love and a sense of humor got us through. Yes, and especially at the end of life. I’m realizing that for myself now, at 73.
Re our Roos, I could not write these A-Zs without acknowledging the ones who prodded me into it. 🙂 And through us, through Susan, you are connected, too.
Thanks, Hilary
It was an honor to enjoy those special dinners with Emma at the head of the table. I often remember her sense of humor, like the time I picked Jetta’s dog bowl from the floor and placed on the corner of the dinning room table, her eyes on me and red lips smiling, said, “I don’t care for any.” Emma nver lost her sense of humor, Emma would be the first to smile.
Here’s to all the spizzle jitneys!
Ever,
R.
Yes, I was just about to write a post on that, R.
She never lost her sense of humor and especially enjoyed it when you were around.
Thanks.
S.
You have again proven that imagination is another word for reality!! Moriarty is as real Mozart and me. Thanks again for a very entertaining chapter.
Just wait till Moriarty finds out all I’ve been saying about him behind his back. He is comforted to know that you and my other readers believe in him, though.
Moriarty and I are pleased we have entertained you, Marsha.
Thanks!
Hi Sam – I totally agree with the others .. Mozart is the pseudonym .. Moriarty is real, real and has just been rejuvinating himself and giving Dickens a break from all that stroking …
The A-Z finishes in a week .. and Moriarty, the Man, needs to be around to help us all return to sanity .. wonderful tapestry tales .. cheers Hilary
Moriarty will be delighted to hear you say this, Hilary. I’ll pass this along to him. I’m sure he will thank you. Dickens, well, you know, he’s a dog. He does relish the break from all that greasy spam in his coat, though.
Moriarty will be back in time to help me clean up from the A-Zs. I doubt he’ll be pleased about the mess I’ve strewn all over the blog. 🙂
Thanks!
Absolutely wonderful. I LOVE your writing, Samantha 🙂
Fee | Wee White Hoose
Scottish Mythology and Folklore A-Z
What a great compliment, Fee. Thank you. And thanks for visiting again. 🙂
Oh Sam, absolutely love the big M! I sure wish I had one. I do have a white dragon named Marigold (her official name is Magic since she is an old Beanie Baby…even has the pink thread in her wings). She helps out when I get stuck with plots or story lines. She has been a really big help with the A-Z challenge.
She says “hi”
I forwarded your message to Moriarty, Val. He says hi back to Marigold. Moriarty’s thinking of taking his next vacation to Canada and visiting Marigold. I suppose, though, since he’ll be visiting a white dragon he ought to leave Dickens at home….
Nice you have help with plot and story lines. Moriarty would be more inclined to trip me with one of the snow shovels as I walk over to my computer. 🙂
Thanks!
WHAAAAT! make him real immediately please. I know he’s real. He makes borscht, has a dog, points out the blue deer .. Please Samantha, send smoke signals to him to say he can’t be gone too long in Willy Nilly and that we want him back pronto onto.
HE knows he’s real, Susan, even though his appearance is rather nondescript. I’m making myself hungry thinking of the borscht. Yes, yes, let’s both send smoke signals.
Actually, Moriarty will be back in a few days. He has to help me clean up after the A-Zs. 🙂
Thanks!
i am laughing. This one is excellent! I love how you bring Moriarty into the picture. Of course, he would be upset to know that some people think he is not real. He is just like one of the main characters in my series who thinks he is the boss. And what a lovely way to introduce Moriarty and his dog.
I think Moriarty has the upper hand on all of us. He knows how to take vacation! 🙂
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, these characters somehow get to thinking they have the upper hand, Patricia, and run away with the story. 🙂
Not only does he know how to take a vacation, he knows how to hide snow shovels and avoid dusting. I do need to learn from him.
Thank you, my dear friend. Glad you are laughing.
Shalom,
Samantha
That Japanese blog spam is real problematic. I try not to let it pile up, but when the grease sets in… yeah. Fun post, hopefully Moriarty is having a lovely vacation. 😉
Finally, I found a free version of Akismet to use on WordPress, so I no longer have the spam problem. But it was awful.
Yes, I imagine Moriarty is enjoying playing his banjo in Willynilly, Arkansas. He’ll be back soon. He’s gotta help me clean up after these A-Zs. 🙂
Thanks, Sara
Such a sad post, and yet I love that you were able to laugh about it. Because what else can you do, really, in a situation like that? It’s a good lesson, for all of us.
It’s true, Sara, we must laugh. And it really was a funny situation. My mother would have laughed, too.
Thanks.
Before long I expect Moriarty to walk right out of this blog as a real individual. I imagine him pictured, probably looking like R. 😉
{{{ }}} Moriarty would be mortified to learn he is not a real person, Gwynn. And, no, he looks nothing like R. Trust me on that one.
Thanks. 🙂
Fortunately, my mom’s words didn’t change, she simply could not keep the connection between her brain and her mouth going so she couldn’t get the words out or find them. It is sad watching this happen. It must have been a very frustrating time for you. I can relate!
It was frustrating, Gwynn, very much so, throughout that decade. But in the early and middle stages it was also funny. Laughing took the lid off the pot and released the steam. I am fortunate I had people to laugh with, both friends and healthcare aides, especially my hospice team.
Thanks. I know you can relate.
Those are the times that give us a grin and a butterfly or more in our tummies. As usual, your post triggered emotion. Very sweet!
Thank you, Marsha. I’m glad I was able to carry across that emotion in my writing. I like the “grin and a butterfly” wording. 🙂
Through it all, my mother never forgot her manners.
I was very lucky Sam. My mom never got to that point. She was always in the minute, just not five minutes ago. She always loved music and even though she couldn’t remember where she put her glasses, never could; she could sing along with almost every song that Brian played to her on his guitar.
Amazing lady! It will be five years in November since she strolled over Rainbow Bridge to meet up with my dad.
My mother retained her knowledge of and love for music right up to the end, too, Val. Just months before she died she sat at her electronic organ, read the music and played a piece. So, I think that’s more motor memory than intellectual. We have a friend who came and played his guitar and sang, and she loved that.
Time passes quickly. My mother passed away three years ago, already, this April 11; my father 10 and a half years ago, in 2004. And here we are, preparing to tread that Rainbow Bridge.
Thanks.
Yes, poignant yet humorous at the same time. I was in smile mode already when I read about you telling someone you were growing your own cottage cheese. It’s great that you’re recording the journey Samantha, for yourself, in honour of your mother, and for others. Thank you.
Thanks, Susan. Yes, my recording this journey serves multiple purposes — both personally and as a legacy. If it helps others, then it’s done well.
Actually, my friend R and I have developed a whole vocabulary of words that aren’t quite right; for instance, I will tell him to have a ludicrous day when I really mean lucrative. It arose from our not being able to find the right word when we’re conversing with each other.
Glad you smiled. 🙂
Hi,
This is a sad post. It is hard watching the ones we love die. To see their bodies shut down day by day is something that we constantly have to come to terms with, because that is the solution that leads to acceptance.
Shalom,
Patricia
It is the solution that leads to acceptance, Patricia. Well put. And her decline was very hard to watch at the end. That’s why I think my second book is better than my first, because it deals intensely with the end, with death and dying.
Here, a few years earlier, when she said spizzle jitney, it was funny. It had to be, otherwise I never would have gotten through it; and thank goodness “R” was there to laugh with me. My mother would have laughed, too, had she known. I’ll write more of that in an upcoming A-Z.
Thank you, my friend.
Shalom
This is absolutely wonderful! 🙂
Thank you, Fee. It was fun to write.
Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
I love this! For some reason, Dante speaking via satellite and with a translation voice over amuses me to no end. I would love to be peeking through the window at such a great party. 🙂
The Dante voiceover amuses me, too, Sara. It’s what’s so annoying about watching TV news sometimes — a Bashar al-Assad interview with a female translator voiceover, for instance.
It was a fun party to write about.
Thanks. 🙂
I know it was the failure of the post office that my invitation did not arrive. When you give a party, my goodness! What an imagination! Or perhaps it’s snippets of past lives, woven together. Whatever the party, I wish I had been there. Brilliant!
Marsha, it wasn’t an oversight, my not inviting you to the party, nor a failure of the post office. Except for Thomas Jefferson and a cameo by Leo Tolstoy, those present had lived very short lives. So, here we are in our golden years that they never got to experience, with a superb overview from the catwalk of my blog. OK, well, I did sit at the table and share a glass of wine — or two, maybe, I think; it’s hard to remember.
Mac and cheese and wine and discourse with a fabulous array of fascinating dead folk–best soiree ever! I’ve never encountered this round table concept, but obviously I’m going to have to find out more about it. I’m already drafting a guest list in my mind. I’m curious–do you always have the same cast of historical figures in attendance, or do you mix it up?
Such a fun post, Samantha. Thanks for this glimpse into the shenanigans perpetrated by your round table crew.
Actually, Kern, the round table idea is always in the back of my mind, but I’ve written only this one. I keep thinking of what I can write for a “Nights at the Round Table II,” but haven’t much focused on it. (“Nights at the Round Table” is the original title of a post that I wrote in 2011; this is a pared down, altered version, and I reversed the title words so it would start with R.)
See also my reply to Patricia’s comment, below — what fired this idea.
I’ll bet you with your wit you could write a good one. Let me know when you do.
Thanks for coming by.
Truly brilliant and extremely funny Samantha thank you! I swear this has made my day. I’ll read it again – probably more again ! It was a rambunctious ride with your wonderful friends…. one day I’d like to be at your round table raising high the roof beams … with the camels in sight.
Raising high the roof beams and indeed with the camels in sight, Susan. We must. Absolutely.
Thanks! 🙂
HEHEHE… your round table group reminds me of the mischief my books get into at night when I’m not around. Fun post. Did they leave any wine and popcorn for you? 😉
They didn’t leave any more than I imbibed when I was there at the table with them. The empty popcorn bowl filled up with Keith Olbermann’s script notes and Thurber readings. Edgar Allan Poe and Thomas Jefferson finished off the wine.
If you remember, I did note on your books mischief post that it reminded me of my Round Table story. Great minds….
Thanks, Gwynn
A spectacular, spectacular summit! Wine was much needed to cut the waft of that pungent apricot powder. This post set me to sneezing.
Spectacular,
R.
Summit set you to sneezing, indeed — that apricot powder. I replied to your comment on my FB page, too, R.
Glad you enjoyed this one. …Well, we can relate.
I love your roundtable. You have some very interesting people that you meet with. I discovered the roundtable concept as I was reading a book by Nathaniel Hill. Since then I have had one and my people gather round me and they are sometimes very funny.
You have a wonderful gift, Samantha, and I truly mean that. Get to writing that book, Lady. What are you waiting on?
Shalom
I’m waiting to finish the A-Zs, Pat, albeit champing at the bit to get writing that book.
I love the round table concept, too. I’d like to write more of these. I had an oak round table but gave it away in one of my moments of brain numbness. I do miss it. I love sitting around with a group of people with good food, wine and stimulating conversation.
I also love reading about moments in history where two famous people met; e.g., Chekhov/Tolstoy, Chekhov/Tchaikovsky, Hemingway/Fitzgerald, and so on. I read this morning that Keats and Byron held a bit of animus for one another. They were from two different worlds, class & social strata.
Nathaniel Hill — I must check him out. Thanks for the tip.
You have great insight, Patricia, into my writing and provide me with many ideas and much inspiration. Thank you for your support.
Shalom
My dear, I made a mistake on the name, it is Napoleon Hill. I just checked it in my library.
Shalom
🙂
Oh my dear, dear Samantha! Thou art truly clever with the quips! The absolute best one is Thomas Jefferson’s “gone with the wine”. Love it! 🙂
Yeah, I couldn’t resist the Thomas Jefferson quips, Val. Thanks.
Moriarty–such an interesting fellow. I agree with Pat, this piece has a lot of promise. An ending, but also a beginning to something else. Lovely. 🙂
Thank you, Sara. You and Pat got my point and purpose. Moriarty will return during these A-Zs, in a brief bio. 🙂
… and the beginning of a lovely and supportive relationship starts. I am delighted that Moriarty is there to help you in your times of need. Lovely scene.
I’m not sure what Moriarty’s intentions are, Gwynn. But, he’s around, for whatever reason. And that was a lovely scene, wasn’t it.
Thanks for coming by and seeing us and for your lovely compliment.
Samantha, this one is beautiful and I have a big smile on my face. I love the parting.
I am a hopeless romantic so I see it as the woman in love calling out to her lover,
“What’s your name?” And the man without a name says, “Moriarty.”
It is the remembrance of the value a woman once had of herself.
It is the restoration of a dream deferred.
It is the promise of a new beginning.
Believe me when I say I am sitting here smiling. I love this one especially because of its promise.
Shalom
All of that, Patricia. And, I am the consummate romantic, too. I love that you smile, and I believe in promise: it is a response full of hope.
Thank you for bringing into sharper focus the feeling in my storytelling. Sometimes, as Stephen King says, I just flail away at it.
Shalom,
Samantha
I’ll miss Moriarty, the Phantom. Perhaps he needs to be quiet for a while, but return he will, I feel it in my bones. Meanwhile he’s left you the blue and white iris, and the seeds of his love and care. Thank you Samantha and, as always, like Marsha, I feel your presence in every word written with the quill.
Knowing Moriarty, Susan, he’d take the good pens and leave me the quill. Your mind and mine seem to be on the same sort of train lately. In tomorrow’s post not only will Emily Bronte appear but also a quill.
Moriarty will be back in a bit of a bio under “T.”
After the A-Zs I plan to seclude myself with him and work on a book.
Thanks for your kind compliments, for reiterating Marsha’s words.
It’s romantic in a chaste way. Why is it I always feel that I’m in your presence, as close as beside or behind you (and I won’t push you down the stairs)? Oh! I know what it is!! It is your superb writing talents? Oh yes!! That’s exactly what it is. Love you girl!!
Glad you won’t push me down the stairs. 🙂
Otherwise, I try to imagine my readers in my presence as I am telling them the story. I’m pleased that it comes through.
Thanks, Marsha
A beautiful and dream-like entry. Like a dream, I feel like I need to sit in a quiet room and reflect on it to truly understand and appreciate it. I think you and the Phantom make a great team. 🙂
Sara, thank you. Yes, I do enjoy having the Phantom around — most of the time, heh-heh. I think we will go on together, maybe even team up in a book. 🙂
Hi Sam – what a lovely caring story .. end of life is so so difficult. I’m so glad my mother accepted we couldn’t look after her she was bedridden by a stroke, but could talk and had had a care home – so knew what was what. We had a good time … and at least I didn’t need to be there all the time .. but I was a great deal … I admire your courage in helping Emma stay at home – and some nurses are just brilliant aren’t they. Nurse Marge sounds an angel .. so pleased she was there for you both … with thoughts – Hilary
You know… I like it, up in the cupola…
Nicely done
Ever,
R.
Nicely said. I like it up there, myself.
Thanks, R.
S.
Another evocative post Samantha thank you. I swear I was right with you the Phantom and the blue deer as I was reading. I was that shard of grass on your right hand side. The descriptions of the blossoms … well I could almost smell the yellow roses and hear the music.
Those seeds – you’ve been planting them all along Samantha. I’m not surprised the irises are as tall as the forest trees.
Please say hello to Phantom and thank him from me for being there ..
I love the smell of the tall meadow grass, myself, Susan. Interesting about the seeds –they are beginingless, as I know you know.
The Phantom will be thrilled to know you thank him for being here. He is out of town while I am writing these A-Zs, but I will let him know as soon as he returns..
Thanks.
I like the way you bring the Phantom into your story. He’s that companion that visits you and at times maybe he frustrates you too, but he’s there. He sees the deer, the blue deer. When I was doing a leadership training at Ft. McCoy, Wisconsin in 1996, I woke up one more and turned my head to look out of the window, because my bed was by the window. Behold a deer look right into my eyes. It stood there outside my window and I lay in my bed thinking, hello Bambi. I will never forget it. Since then, I have had a heart for deer. I don’t even eat deer meat. So, it was interesting to see the Phantom pointing out the deer and giving you some background on the meaning. He was educating you.
The story continues to draw me in. I feel that people who read this book, especially, women will feel a closeness to the Phantom because of his gentleness.
Nice work, Samantha.
Shalom
Yes, the Phantom does have a tendency to spout off educative tidbits, Patricia. I just wish he’d stop misplacing the blog snow shovels every time it snows.
I have seen deer, been fairly close to them, in various places — here in the fields, in Florida, in the High Sierra, and in Arizona — various species. But here at home, when I roll over in bed and look out the window I see squirrels — and cardinals and other birds — in the dogwood outside my bay window. My bed is in front of the bay windows, of course. I’ve never eaten deer meat (nor squirrel).
I am glad the story draws you in, Patricia. I think it does others, too. It has drawn me in. I may just seclude myself with The Phantom and see what other stories we can tell.
You have made some good points here (edifying observations), including that the story of this kind and frustrating Phantom should be told in a book, and that the Phantom is of particular interest to women.
Thank you, my friend. I appreciate your insights and interest.
Shalom,
Samantha
Another sample of beautiful, serene, writing. So descriptive. I felt déjà vu when the blue deer arrived. Have I known him before?
Well, the Blue Deer appears in my blog post, “The Blue Deer,” Marsha, from June 2012.
Or, knowing your clairvoyance and psychic abilities, I wouldn’t be surprised you’ve encountered her elsewhere in the past. The Blue Deer is always with us, if we can see her.
Thanks. 🙂
Your posts are so beautifully descriptive. I feel as if I’m standing there too. Tulips are my favorite. I buy them for vases around the house. Now, if only I could find a blue deer…. Thanks for sharing your imagination.
My pink tulips bloomed this morning, Gwynn, and in full 70 degree sun, they opened too wide. I hope the petals don’t fall off. Tulip blossoms are so short lived.
Regarding the blue deer, I thought I saw one in my backyard, briefly, hanging around the irises that are getting ready to bloom, and that she promised not to eat them.
Thanks, Gwynn.
Hi Samantha – a wonderful way to remember your mother’s passing and that time – the Osprey is special … this is a lovely remembrance … cheers Hilary
Thank you, Hilary. There’s something mystical about the osprey, I think. My experience is that this beautiful bird appears in my life at strategic times and it flies right towards me, overhead, nods and then veers off.
A pleasure to see you here at my blog again. 🙂
Cheers
Samantha
Beautiful. I look forward to what comes next. 🙂
Thanks, Sara. That means a lot to me, coming from such an accomplished and imaginative writer as yourself. 🙂
Your talent is so lovely, I feel wrapped in the visuals that result from your words. I am above the staircase watching you and Jetta race for her treat. I am beside you as to speak with the hospice aide. And standing behind you and the prophet, receiving your special visit from the enchanting osprey. I was more than a reader. I was a witness to your magical, spiritual experience. Thank you for the stunning journey.
Thank you for your lovely compliment and observations, Marsha. The Phantom and I are glad to have you join us.
Good heavens!! We both wrote about Osprey… too funny. However, I LOVE your descriptions! As Patricia says, you are a gifted writer. Osprey truly are unique birds. Being up in your ‘control tower’ the Osprey must have felt you were trying to steal his territory. EXCELLENT POST! 😉
No stealing the osprey’s territory, Gwynn. Simply observing.
Yes, we Roos seem to be connected in our A-Z post titles.
Thanks for your great compliment on my writing.
O quite lovely Samantha thank you. Yes, those big questions are important ones that take time to flower. The vacuum will fill. Nothing can be rushed; it seems the osprey came by to give you a nod. Thank you for this lovely musical post.
Yes, the osprey flew in to give us a nod and a sign, I believe. Nothing can be rushed is what I’m learning — riding the waves — updrafts, or as I did when I was young, in the ocean.
Thanks, Susan. Well said. And I know you can appreciate the music.
Excellent! I look forward to reading tomorrow’s. You really are a gifted writer.
Shalom,
Patricia
Words I love to hear, Patricia, as are you a gifted writer. I look forward to our bestsellers. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
It would be nice if those bestsellers came in 2016, latest 2017. Then we could meet up in Italy, somewhere near San Marino or Firenza and have a nice evening meal and see the sights the next day. Maybe even take in a theatre show at the Scala in Verona, but that means traveling many kilometres with the car. The distances between those three places, I believe are about 3 to maybe 4 hours by car.
Have a nice evening Samantha.
Shalom,
Patricia
You are so tempting me to work very hard to achieve a bestseller, Patricia. You have masterminded our trip and it sounds ideal — especially Firenze; I especially have wanted to go to Firenze (in my “R” post I mention Dante Alighieri). I have actually studied a map of that part of Italy to find distances between Firenze/Tuscany and the Tyrrhenian coast. San Marino sounds interesting, too. Frances Mayes inspires me in her “Under the Tuscan Sun” series of books.
People actually do this, Particia. Why not us. Yes!
Shalom,
Samantha
This is beautiful, I loved the description. And I’m very intrigued by the Phantom! I really like the concept of a phantom of the blog, a fun and modern twist.
The Phantom comes and goes here at my blog, Celine. During the A-Zs, he will be here through Q (M-Q). We all have phantoms of our blogs, don’t we. Currently my Phantom is masterminding a trip to the Palais Garnier to visit The Phantom of the Opera, now that the weather is warmer over there in Paris and it won’t be so dank down on that lake where the Opera Phantom lives….
Thanks for coming by.
Samantha
Hi Samantha – I’d love to have your knowledge of music and be able to write to it .. this is lovely and then the bringing in of the sweet exotic elixir of nutmeg .. and the Phantom by your side .. love the descriptive ideas. I love nature and nutmeg .. cheers and thanks so much for visiting via Susan .. Hilary
Thank you for visiting, Hilary. Music is my first love. Sometimes I think I write and write to music just so I’ll have an excuse to listen to the music without appearing lazy. 🙂
I love nature, too, and I love to cook. So, here with the Phantom, it all comes together nicely.
Cheers
Samantha
How beautiful your words flow from the “page” to my mind and soul. Such a beautiful, spiritual text. I know the delicious scent of nutmeg and love it. This is one of the most lovely of all the writings I’ve read from you. Thank you for my trip to a completely new location. So serene. Hello Moriarty.
“A completely new location” — thank you, Marsha. It is that.
Thank you for your great compliment on my writing.
Moriarty says hello back and is so glad to have met you.
Wonderfully descriptive narrative . . . and the Phantom. 🙂
Thank you, Tyrean, for your wonderful compliment and for coming by to visit me again on the A-Zs.
The Phantom’s getting a big head with his newfound popularity. 🙂 He doesn’t dust, but maybe now he won’t want to sweep up after the party.
Samantha, this excerpt is beautiful. You also are very gifted in writing descriptions that draw people into what you’re reading. I could phantom beside me, looking at me as I read, and I heard the music, only I heard Bocelli singing Canto della terra.
Are you considering writing a book about you and your phantom? I believe that would be a very interesting book.
By the way, I love the smell of nutmeg. It is also one of my favourites seasonings.
Shalom,
Patricia
Patricia, this story was inspired by our friend T.J. Banks who, like me, writes to music and suggested I listen to Coyote Oldman’s album “Floating on Evening”; by Philip Glass, his Symphony No. 7, “A Toltec Symphony”: 3. “The Blue Deer”, and “Passage”; and by Charmayne McGee, author, “So Sings the Blue Deer”; http://mythagora.com/ for the story of the Goddess Iris; Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; and, of course, Gaston Leroux for his “Le Fantôme de l’Opéra.” And, oh, Puccini; how could any woman forget Giacomo Puccini?
I listened to the Coyote Oldman and “The Blue Deer” music while writing this piece. I noted that and the credits for my inspiration on my original version of this story “LXXIV: The Blue Deer” here on my blog. When my mp3 player plug-in was on my sidebar and working, you could listen to “The Blue Deer” as soundtrack while reading the post.
Now I shall look for “Canto della terra” in my Classical Archives online membership. Thanks. They have an extensive classical music selection that you can listen to online or buy and download, and you can make your own playlists — $7.99/mo.
I love your suggestion of publishing a “The Phantom of My Blog” book. Moriarty’s head has gotten quite large with his new popularity. I think it’s a great idea, and thank you for inspiring me. T.J. suggested it, too. I do have a draft of it in my Kindle.
Nutmeg is the first scent that came to mind when I wondered how to describe what Moriarty’s scent was. So, I thought, why not? I like it, too, have it in my coffee every morning with cinnamon and half & half.
Thank you, as always, Patricia, for your kind compliments and inspiration.
Shalom,
Samantha
You are so deliciously descriptive. I do enjoy your posts. Thank you.
Thank you, Gwynn. Now, you and R are making me hungry. 🙂
My dear Samantha,
Thank you for the delicious descriptive prose. The nutmeg tickled my nose.
R.
Your comment tickles me, R. Thank you! 🙂
(Moriarty flat-out sneezed.)
S.
O magical Moriarty, like Mercury with winged feet, here and there and everywhere! Thank you for being a friend and guide to Samantha and, importantly, such a creative muse for her! You’re welcome in my home too … maybe we can ALL meet and muse, sip wine and share much …
You should have seen Moriarty this morning, Susan, when he read your comment calling him magical. He was so lit up and excited he was dancing a jig and singing a song in Afrikaans, but quickly realized he doesn’t know the language. However, he has now added a visit to you in his travel plans. Will come down to J’burg (or Plett — he likes the beach) right after visiting the Prophet and Child and their kind and wise friend in Germany. I will be coming with him, of course.
He is amused at being called a muse. He is Samantha’s muse, of course.
Thanks.
I wondered if we would ever hear from Moriarty again, yet I somehow knew he was there to assist you emotionally. Who could boost you and keep you sane during such heartbreaking, difficult times? Thanks for bringing back.
He comes and goes as he pleases, Marsha; he has a mind of his own. And, you know, he did nudge me over the edge of the catwalk. Thankfully, it was a soft landing.
Needless to say, Moriarty has stolen the spotlight — to my great delight.
Thanks, Marsha
This really felt like Alice in Wonderland to me . . . and I thought it was incredibly creative and interesting. I think that the Phantom should stick around – especially if he’s willing to clean up after a party.
He doesn’t dust, though. And last winter he misplaced the blog’s snow shovels. 🙂 He comes and goes here at the blog. He’ll be in my next A-Z post or two. He is a favorite among my readers. I think they like him better than me.
Thank you, Tyrean, for visiting the Phantom and me and for your kind and encouraging compliment. Nice to meet you.
I’m laughing with you at your conversation with Patricia. I fully agree with her comments about Moriarty. He definitely is an expert Director and backstage hand. Now, I recommend that you convince him to pay you at least minimum wage for what you have done to help out. Here in Washington State they are pushing for a $15 per hour minimum wage… go for it. Don’t let him sweep you under the rug.
I thought it was the other way around, Gwynn — Moriarty helping me. He may have other ideas, though. Who knows what he thinks. In any case, we’ll have to set up our Scheherazade Chronicles nonprofit in Washington State so that one of us, at least, will be paid that high minimum wage, if it goes through. Btw, we do have a nice antique Persian rug up in the blog cupola.
Yes, Patricia, the Profit and Moriarty are masterminding plans. I’m packing my suitcase. 🙂
Thanks, Gwynn.
I think your Moriarty is genial and fits to your person. He’s there, invisible but yet presence because he challenges you. From reading your blog, I’ve always thought he is the mastermind working for your good.
Shalom,
Patricia
Moriarty appreciates your compliments, Patricia. He has masterminded travel plans to Paris to the Palais Garnier to visit the Phantom of the Opera soon, now that the weather is warmer and it won’t be so dank down there on that lake where that phantom lives, and he tells me this morning that while he is over there in Europe he might just stop by and have a chat with the Prophet and the Child.
🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
Please let him know that he’s very welcome. The Prophet will bring out a bottle of his best red wine, and The Child will drink out hot chocolate and overwhelm Moriarty with her endless questions.
🙂
Shalom,
Patricia
In that case, I think I’ll come, too. 🙂
Shalom,
Samantha
Thank you for your lovely reply Samantha … Just gone 5 a.m. now the rising sun a way off still. The camels are not in view at this early hour. Amazing that we are connecting at the same time, something extremely special about that. I’ve had tea and coffee already.
I thought the same thing about our connecting at the same time, Susan. Of all the people, all over the world, who could be reading my blog or my Facebook page, and he were are, an ocean and a hemisphere away, connecting at the same time. It happens to me often when I think of a close friend, they call me or vice versa. I would love to hear your thoughts on this sometime. I think it shows us there’s more to this than meets the eye — a facet of the unconscious realm? You and I are definitely connected, in more ways than on the Internet.
Samantha, as you can tell I am getting to your post very late in the day. Actually, it’s just gone 4.30 a.m. – we had an electricity cut out (grid under strain) from 6.00 p.m. last night which meant no connection with computer etc. Anyway, I woke earlier with a dream and checked that lights were now working and am now at my desk.
When the lights go out and one sits in the darkness. And the wait is long and the grid/matrix feels weak. The path seems trembly, less sure, faith tenuous, doubt paramount. But as sure as the sun rises, the gate one has been patiently sitting besides will fully open and like the lion released into the wild, so will you Samantha, the lioness leaving the gate, continue to tread walk run.
Thank you for this beautiful post.
Interesting, Susan. Just as you posted this, I saw it — because I am getting to my blog comment and blog reading late. Not that we had a power outage, but when such instances occur, they do give us pause for thought — to break our routines and take out our lives, as with any dream, and view them from a new perspective. With your Dreams A-Z series, you have helped me more than you know, more than I know so far — a journey into awareness from a different face of the mountain.
I thank you. Thank you for coming by at 4:30 a.m., an hour I’ve been known to be sitting on my porch watching Camels, to impart your insight, wisdom and encouragement.
There are so many aspects of your care giving that I can identify with. Your expression of events is heart warming and heart breaking at times. The help you were able to receive, kept your job somewhat easier, and very important, it gave you other, well trained people, to talk to and vent to. It is such a lonely task, caring for an ill loved one. Harder still when that beloved soul cannot communicate with you. You have proven yourself an accomplished Lion at the Gate.
Oh, so thoughtful, Marsha. Yes, caregiving, as you and all caregivers know, is a lonely job. No matter how much help you have you are still alone.
I cried, yes, and I ranted, but, because of the superb help I had, we often could laugh, take the lid off the pot and release the steam.
Thanks, Marsha, for expressing your understanding and compassion.
Samantha, you did an amazing job of caring for your mother. I don’t know how you managed. Even though my mom was with assisted living, I too had to learn about being the Lion at the Gate, as there were times I had to go rattle a few cages.
The saying goes “there is a time, a season, and a reason” for what happens in life. I am still trying to figure some of this out. My path seems to be a long windy road. I am glad that I met you out here. This was an extraordinarily beautiful and poignant posting. Thank you for sharing.
Yes, We the Cage Rattlers, Gwynn. It’s a shame we have to be pushed to that. Re this long and winding road we’re on and the reasons, did you read Patricia’s comment here? What beauty and wisdom.
Thank you for your kind compliment on my post. Writing it was deeply heartfelt.
The Lion at the Gate rarely realizes what they are. They’re busy being what they are. A beautiful piece, and a beautiful role to fill. Glad I found you through the A to Z Challenge.
– Eli @ Coach Daddy (#1186)
Thanks, Eli, for coming by. Yes, it was an interesting, new role for me, being the Lion at the Gate.
Nice to meet you on the A-Zs.
And you will my dear. You will stay on your path, and you will stand, no longer as the lion at the gate waiting for it to open but as the lion that leaves walks through the gate, ready to explore what lies ahead.
It is never too late to move ahead. We do have our long stop signs, where we stay in a certain place because of our commitment, our covenant, but after we have stood that test, we are given the chance to move out as we continue our paths. The funny part about it is that I believe when we pick up our path again, we will be surprised that we are just where we are supposed to be. In other words, we haven’t lost any time, because what is there for us has also just matured.
I keep saying I am enjoying this series, but it is the truth. I sat here reading it and felt like we were sharing with one another.
Keep on going, Samantha.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, and your comment here feels like we are sharing, too, Patricia, in person. This is beautiful, what you say. The long stop sign. I love it, and it has been for me.
You know, I keep telling myself that I am right where I need to be, doing what I need to be doing, but sometimes I wonder for what purpose, when really I should have faith and trust.
You are right on the mark. Thank you, my dear friend. I shall cherish this.
Shalom,
Samantha
Thank you Samantha for this beautiful post. The photographs are quite lovely and remind me of Plettenberg Bay. Wider skies, wilder air, views that remind of Nature and her beauty.
Your post reminded me of a time when I was visiting my late mother in Cape Town. I was out for a bit and had said I would be back later. Well she was very angry with me when I got in … it was deeply distressing to me, and clearly to her as well.
Thank you for sharing your kith and kin with us in the gentle way that you do.
I just saw your comment here, Susan. I apologize for missing it earlier. Thank you for sharing your story about your mother. Mothers and daughters have very strong psychic, I would say, bonds.
Thanks for the view of your beaches, too. When my books become best sellers, I think I shall do a world tour of beaches.
I share this story in a “gentle way,” you say. I like that. I hadn’t thought of it specifically.
Thanks.
You do write a very loving description of your mother and aunt. It is wonderful that you had a wonderful relationship with these women. You are lucky. Your pictures of the beach and your family are lovely. I have always loved the ocean beaches as they bring serenity to me. Thanks for a loving and KIND post.
Thanks for your kind comment, Gwynn. Yes I am very fortunate having such a good family.
As you might imagine, I sure wish I were at the beach right now. Avalon, N.J., is such a quiet, relaxing town (on a barrier island). Regenerating. You and I could enjoy long walks on the beach there.
Your writing gave me the sense of being beside you. That’s great writing dear friend.
Your aunt was a wise woman. Who would have ever imagined, in 1960, one year after high school graduation, that our lovely mothers would age? Who thought our favorite family members would suffer from disabling health? These were vibrant people, full of love and caring for our young selves. Your life is completely out of your control when you love enough to care for them when the unexpected occurs. Asian families are prepared from youth to expect this way of life. To give up your life, as you know it, for an ill family member is devotion that many Westerners will hand over to others. God bless you and those who care for others enough.
My thoughts exactly, Marsha, re the unexpected way back in 1960.
Thank you for your kind thoughts, for sharing your knowledge and for you kind compliments on my writing. I love your insight on these issues.
Hi Samantha,
First, these pictures are beautiful. Are they painted or photographs? They have a serene, quiet look about them that makes one want to relax.
Your mother’s aunt was a woman of wisdom. Those words of wisdom that she passed along to you about being nice to your mother were tiny diamonds which later influenced your life ,and how you dealt with your mother when she was on this side of life.
Finally one of the crippling things about diseases are they rob a person of their energy and their motivation. They actually become different people, concentrating only on a few situations. When that too dwindles, they may hold on for a while, but normally they choose to go home, and I can understand that.
This is another heart rendering post. Sometimes I think, if only we would open our eyes to see that true life is found in our respect and harmony with people and nature that surrounds us, instead of the number of things that we accumulate. After all, we can’t take that with us.
I am truly enjoying your series.
Shalom,
Patricia
As I truly enjoy your series, Patricia. All that you’ve said above is wise and true, and, as usual, you are one step, one post, ahead of me. Tomorrow, the “Lion at the Gate,” and staying on that simple, non-accumulating path.
Those are photos, but I was influenced by my mother’s watercolors, and more so by a watercolorist named Carolyn Blish, who is part of the Andrew Wyeth/Brandywine School of artists, if you are familiar with them. I have a couple Carolyn Blish prints hanging on our walls, large beach scenes, that my mother collected. She is easily googled, if you are interested.
Thank you, dear friend.
Shalom,
Samantha
My Dear,
We have experienced many similar events. My father’s mother passed in 1981. I was in Germany, and she visited me before going on. When my mother called, I couldn’t believe she had passed because she had been sitting beside my bedside.
Again, your sharing of Emma’s passing reminded me of that time. I believe it is a way of the person saying goodbye for now. It gives us hope that we will see them again.
Shalom,
Patricia
I really wish I knew more about how this works, Patricia. Apparently it’s quite common for part of a person’s consciousness(?) — I may be identifying this all wrong — to travel before the whole person passes on. Moreover, my mother saw many of her late relatives within the last year or two of her passing. She even asked me, “Didn’t you see Doris and Alice when they were here?” Well, no, I hadn’t. But Mother would smile and look at some entity that appeared before her as a person she knew, whom I couldn’t see them, though sometimes I sensed their presence.
Yes, we have experienced many similar events, Patricia. So very blessed are you that your grandmother sat by your bedside before going on. I have heard from the wise that we travel in the same groups through lifetimes. Quite possibly I should say to you now, “It’s so nice to see you again!” 🙂
Ciao, ciao
Shalom,
Samantha
Sorry to hear about your mum. Dementia is a hard way to go. My mum didn’t have dementia but she died to early in 2005, and I miss her still so much. I’d love to know where she has gone. I talk to her often. ~Liz http://www.lizbrowneepoet.com
Liz, you are so fortunate to be able to communicate with your mum. I feel my mother’s presence sometimes; it is the unmistakable essence of her. Life is so short. I don’t know where those who have passed go, and maybe, if their passing was relatively recent, they don’t know where they are, either. My father said to me a few years before he died in 2004 at 90, when his aorta split, “I wonder what it’s like after you die.” “Let me know,” I told him. I don’t think he has. Or maybe he has and it’s so obvious I think I don’t see it.
Keep on talking to your mum. She may be listening and knows how much you love and miss her.
Nice to meet you on the A-Zs. Thanks for coming by.
Hello Samantha, Today is a long day as I write 11:58 pm in Michigan, USA. I read your comments in Susan’s blog —what a dynamic day! At first I was intending to inquire about your experience with Chopin’s PNO CTO in E Minor that somehow crept into Susan’s blog. Now I see more fantastic things about you, including your dedication and special purpose reactive to your important experiences – – -that you are sharing with the world. Congratulations, & thanks for your comments about me in Susan’s blog today. My email address is in your file at this post, but I will write it here. Feel free to contact me. JOERUBIN27425@gmail.com
Hi Joe — I am very glad to hear from you. It looks like we have some common interests. After you mentioned Chopin’s E minor piano concerto, I wrote my next A-Z post listening to the adagio movement. I write to music nearly always. In fact, I used to have an mp3 player on my blog sidebar, before my website crashed, and some of my earlier posts have soundtracks. When I finish writing my A-Zs, I will try to restore the player. I’ve loved classical music all my life and as I age and when I write I listen to that more than any other genre, mostly (except that right now Leon Russell is singing “A Song for You”). 🙂
Yes, re my experience with my mother, it IS all in how you react, isn’t it, rather than sobbing over what awful thing has befallen me now. I regard such situations as spiritual growth opportunities — although, naturally, I might not regard them as such at first, and I probably miss too many. Nonetheless, I am sharing my caregiving experiences with the world because a) I love to write, b) it is both a catharsis and a way to gain inner insight and awareness, and c) I hope my sharing my experiences will help and comfort others.
I will email you, Joe, than you will have my email address. You should know that Samantha Mozart is my pen name, so my email to you will come from a different name.
Samantha,
I have not (yet) had this experience, but I know of many who have. You capture it beautifully. Lovely to discover you on the A-Z.
http://shrinkrapped.com/
Thank you, Lorrie. I am so glad you came by. It has been said that if you are not yet a caregiver, chances are you will be. The really scary part, though, is who is going to care for me? Anyway, through my experience, I’m glad I always had someone to laugh with — friends and hospice team — one of the reasons I enjoy your blog.
And I meant to say your description of being there as she died, hospice nurse, chaplain and the organ, frankincense and myrrh oil from Israel was very touching. I can sort of see this in mind’s eye.. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Thank you, Susan. It was one of those rare lifetime moments. I am honored to have had that opportunity.
I acknowledge today 11th April as the 3rd anniversary of your mother’s death Samantha. How lovely to be remembered lovingly. She’ll be the butterfly in your garden or the dew on a leaf. Peaceful travels to her on her ongoing journey…
This is lovely post; all those stories of her presence even in her absence.
Thank you Samantha ..
Today I thought of you when I was wishing I had a secret garden, Susan, as I sat on my front porch in the sun, listening to the wind chimes.
Thank you for your acknowledgement and well wishes, and for the lovely butterfly and dewdrop images. Comforting.
Samantha, I thought I had posted a comment when I read your post but evidently not!
A lovely post thank you and I also felt a sense of calm at the handsome doctor’s approach. Some people have that ability to separate themselves from stress and just be themselves. I imagine you being that kind of person against all odds much of the time – moving through the stress as Lord Krishna does/did.
Well, you haven’t read my “L” “Lion at the Gate” post yet, Susan. I believe the doctor — handsome to make me pay extra attention to him — and he was probably a Hindu, came into my life to teach me to move through the stress. I have gotten a little better at it.
In fact, at that first visit and with every phone call and visit, he had the ability to stop me in my tracks and spin me around, just by virtue of his equanimity.
Thanks.
What a beautiful, magical journey that you show us for Emma. The love she and you surround the family with is so powerful that it’s difficult for me to find words. The message is so beautifully written, I felt a communion with the family. Thank you for sharing that love.
Well, you ARE part of my greater family, Marsha. My mother loved Florida, too (Marco Island, Naples, where she owned homes). I know she would have welcomed visiting with you.
You are a most loving spirit. Thank you.
This is a dear tale Samantha…so beautiful and loving. It is lovely to hear of a caring relationship between mother and daughter. Now that Emma said her “good-byes” I’m sure she is off flitting around experiencing the world.
Knowing Emma, she probably is out flitting around somewhere, maybe enjoying luncheon with friends in hats and gloves, enjoying the blooming daffodils and tulips, taking a road trip, or maybe she traveled through the New Jersey Pine Barrens to the beach.. (I think I’ll copy and paste this and post it on my FB page with a beach photo. I don’t know if she gets on FB much, but she’ll like the photo.)
Of this goodbye, I was somewhat prepared for it at my father’s passing on Sept. 16, 2004, when the whole family stood around his bed in the hospital emergency ward, as he was making his exit. And, out hospice doctor, nurse, bereavement counselor and chaplain gently prepared me for this moment with Emma.
Thank you, Gwynn.
I am in complete awe of anyone who looks after an elderly parent, and to do so for one who is suffering from dementia is even more awe-inspiring. I imagine there are few things more exhausting (emotionally and physically), heartbreaking, stressful–you name it, really–than giving up so much of your own life to look after another.
This post brings tears to my eyes. I can feel your frustration in it, and I can feel the relief of having finally found a good doctor. Thanks for sharing part of your journey with us.
Sara, thank you so much for your touching and insightful comments. I basically fell backwards into this and, trust me, had no-o-o idea what I was facing and for how long. All I can say is that it was what I needed for my own spiritual evolution. I had always avoided sick elderly, but I had to face this one, and build my own self confidence and awareness.
Thanks for coming by. So nice to meet you.
Hi,
I love people who are like this doctor. They tend to have a heart of gold. They don’t let anything or anyone bring them out of balance and THEY know how to treat people. Believe it or not my dear Samantha, I have found out that force and demanding doesn’t get you anywhere. It’s the calm, soft spoken person that wins with their meekness and humility, and it sounds like this doctor had it within him.
So nice to hear that you enjoyed him coming, and Dearie, the nice thing about it was that he was good looking. A good looking man always brightens up my day. 🙂 Sorry, I just had to add that because it does.
Love you.
Ciao, ciao,
Shalom
Patricia
Patricia
Patricia, you are right about the softness — I am still learning that. I believe to teach me this is one of the reasons he came into my life.
And, the doctor’s being so good looking — yet, way disappointingly less than half my age. To compound matters, he lived with a nurse, whom I imagined as a tall, willowy blonde. Nevertheless, he did brighten my days. 🙂
I have enjoyed your visit to my blog, Patricia. Thanks.
Ciao, ciao,
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi Samantha, an escape artist and a set of stairs, what joy. It’s so important to have access to the right Doctor I’m glad you found one that helped ‘you move through it.’
Reflex Reactions‘
Yes, an escape artist. Funny (now). The doctor helped immeasurably Meeting with him was like meeting an oasis of the mind.
I’m glad you came by. Thanks!
Well again we dive into a variety of issues facing the care of an elderly individual and the absolutely overworked care giver. Everything seems to happen at once. I, at times, believe that so much happens to stress us out, at one time, that we will more appreciate the calm moments. I felt the serenity, as soon as the doctor sat, began to speak to her and you relaxing, just a bit, with butter on your hands and a turkey in the oven. And even in her limited consciousness, I’m sure Emma had a wave comfort. You have mastered self expression.
So true, Marsha, about the stress, overwork and being, well, overwrought. The doctor was always indeed calming — to both Mother and me. He was just what we needed. They kept wanting to take him away from us, because they had a reorganization of teams and he was no longer on ours, but I wouldn’t let them.
I didn’t have butter on my hands when I greeted him, though. 🙂 Only my buttery mind wished I were 30 years younger.
For your last sentence, thank you for your very kind compliment.
It is interesting that my mom was a nurse, but she was not willing to care for dad’s mom with her dementia. You did an incredible job dealing with your mom’s antics and life. Watching out for your mom with her taking off must have been a trial for you. My grandmother fell and broke her him so she was tied to a wheelchair. It made it more difficult for her to escape… except when she convinced visitors that the nursing home was mean to her and had tied her in the chair for no reason. Then she would attempt to stand and fall again.
Listening to your stories brings back so many memories of my grandmother and her dementia. You survived a harrowing experience… Congratulations.
Heh, it was part of Mother’s nature to suddenly take off. And, during her dementia, when she could have gotten hurt during one of her escapades, and sometimes she did, it was extremely frustrating, Gwynn.
My only way through it was to write my blog, laugh a lot, and rant to my ever so patient hospice nurse, social worker/bereavement counselor, chaplain, and, yes, sometimes even the doctor.
I have a friend whose mother is in a nursing home and telling people how mean they are to her there, and I’ve heard that from others; so it’s common among dementia/Alzheimer’s patients. And my aunt, 101, is not strapped to her wheelchair, thank goodness — how cruel — but, as when she said to me one day, “Listen to this,” raising herself off the seat, all the bells and whistles went off and the nursing facility staff came running from every direction. Harrowing, but we survived, and as you know well, humor helps.
Thanks.
Hey Sam
Are some of your letter/articles out takes from your book? Some I remember and others I don’t.
It’s impossible to dance around the real experience if that’s what I want to write about, Val. And I tell these stories of our experiences once again hoping that they will help others in the same or similar situation. So, yes, the stories are the same as those already posted on my blog and published in my two books, but the passages, however similar, have been reworked. That’s the way it’s done in ethical writing.
My Dear Samantha,
I keep on relating to your posts because I went through similar things with my mother. But my mother wasn’t aggressive. She didn’t know who I was, but when I started singing and asked her who I was she would say, you’re my beautiful daughter. But in the mornings when she awoke and I went into her bedroom and said good morning, she would look at me and say good morning as if she were speaking to a stranger. When I think of it now, she was very kind. She loved when I read or sang to her, and when I was there I did it often.
Thank you for sharing this. I admire how you loved your mother through until the end, and it was time for you to say goodbye.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you, Patricia. I think your mother must have been a kind and beautiful person to have raised such a kind and beautiful daughter. How special that you wore able to share with your mother you gifts of singing and reading.
And, having the opportunity to love and be with my mother through to the end, all I thought and keep thinking is “what if it were me?”
Thank you.
Shalom
Samantha
What a wonderful nurse! My son spent a month in the NICU and the nurses make a huge difference in how the day can go for a parent. I spoke with other NICU parents who were there for 6 months and they felt the same way.
Absolutely, Stacey. I cannot say enough good about nurses. They are there the moment you need them, go above and beyond the call of duty, are knowledgeable and compassionate. They will take the time to listen to you and explain what’s going on, what you need to do in the care of your loved one. Our regular hospice nurse, Tess, remains a good friend three years later.
Thanks for coming by and for your lovely comment. I hope your son is doing well now.
To repeat Gwynn, “Your mom was lucky to have you”. What a blessing you are!! Help is so important and it’s so hard to literally fight for. My wish for all caregivers is the ability to secure assistance from the state/US. We’ve paid our taxes and the family members have as well. By the time it arrives we are so burned out that we never really get a break, even then. Great expression of your experience.
Absolutely, Marsha. Getting the help we need when we need it is a point I am trying to highlight in these Caregiving posts.
So, now, help comes so late that we caregivers don’t get a break until after the person passes on, and then it’s really too late; nevertheless, we must cope.
Thank you for saying this.
Your mom was blessed to have you. I too remember the cries from people in nursing homes as their family or friends walked away. The nursing homes then were particularly sad. It truly is amazing that you received so little help. Your story is amazing. You were a bright light for your mother. She was lucky to have you.
Thanks, Gwynn. I could have used you to come by and point that out to my mother sometimes. But, seriously, I’m sure she knew. It was not an easy time for her. I would not wish it on anyone.
Thank heavens for those helpers Samantha! And bless Nurse Marge! Smiled at her ‘day off’ when she attended your mother’s funeral! Bless Daphne too! Loved what Patricia said about Elizabeth – truly there are special people in the world.
Thank you for this post.
Yes, Susan, few have what it takes to be a hospice caregiver. These are the most extraordinary human beings. Daphne, of course, was not hospice, but she could have been.
Thx,
Samantha
Hi,
This touched my heart because I too had a wonderful nurse, Elizabeth, from Hospice that helped with my mother. The day before my mother’s funeral, she came by and sat with us because she had to work the next day and couldn’t attend.
Your mother was blessed to have Nurse Marge, and you were too.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, Patricia, and our regular hospice nurse, Tess, who recently and for more than a year underwent chemo for stage 4 breast cancer. She is recovered now, as far as I know. Life deals us some strange cards sometimes. I don’t know what I would have done without Tess.
Shalom,
Samantha
S.,
Love Nurse Marge!
Great story telling.
R.
Yeah, I do, too. She’s a very cool and unique person. Most all of my hospice help are.
Thx, R.
S.
If we don’t hang onto our sense of humour for dear life, we’re doomed as caregivers. My sister and I are the primary caregivers for our aunt, who had no children, and we’re so grateful to have each other as witnesses to the incremental losses, but also to the darkly humourous moments. I laughed out loud when I came to the line in your post, “‘I’ll have you fired!’ One could only hope.” Oh, yes. Yes, yes, yes.
Our aunt can be belligerent too, but for the most part right now she’s weepy and anxious. There’s no easy part of this disease.
Another eloquent, powerful–and darned funny–post.
Kern — I’m sorry to be so late in replying to your comment. I only just now saw it. I am so glad you caught the “hanging onto our sense of humor” in this post. It is wonderful that you and your sister are caring for your aunt, so giving of you, and that you two have each other as witnesses.
As you say, the ONLY way through this is to laugh — and, you know, I feel comfortable writing about my mother’s antics because had she been aware, she would have laughed, too. She had a great sense of humor, that English sense of humor, and could laugh at herself.
I am glad I made you laugh — part of my purpose in sharing my experiences with other caregivers.
I wish you and your sister — and your aunt — well. I do enjoy your witty writing. I think you’re going to write some great stories about your own experiences with this disease. Thanks.
It is so sad listening to these occurrences. Emma could easily have hurt herself or you in grabbing for these obstacles. My heart truly goes out to you, because as I mentioned I saw my grandmother and my aunt go this way. It is PAINFUL. I’m sorry.
Well, this one was funny, Gwynn. –Even sort of in the midst of it, albeit I was trying to keep her from wobbling and falling, while keeping my voice down so she could still hear me, hard of hearing as she was, and so my neighbors couldn’t.
Of course I wasn’t laughing in the midst of the event, but I did soon after.
Thanks.
This was gripping Samantha. Tragic, full of pathos. Growling at the gate is a thought that comes to mind.
It sounds like a dance, many times not merry at al … we want our loved ones to eat nourishing food, but as you imply the body knows best. And the kind nurse.
Thank you Samantha … a poignant post.
Growling at the Gate is coming up, Susan. But this episode I had to laugh about after it happened.
It is a kind of a dance, now that you mention it. Mother loved to dance, as do I.
Mother always made me eat all the food on my plate — I still do, not good for weight reduction — so naturally I thought she should eat all the food on HER plate, because, anyway, I was giving her smaller and smaller portions. 🙂
Thanks.
If this wasn’t such a serious subject, I’d be laughing my behind off at your description of this scene. I thought, for a moment, I was watching a scene from “Victor/Victoria”.
Please forgive me! I see comedy too much for my own good. My mother took care of three family members with dementia and I helped with two and know it’s not a laughing matter. You are such a wonderful writer that my humorous side took over for the first few sentences. It didn’t take long for me to see the seriousness of the situation and relate it to the times to the heart stopped in fear, that our loved one(s) would be seriously injured. Great job Carol!!!
It’s meant to be funny, Marsha. Glad you got it. It wasn’t funny at the time, though. Even my mother, had she regained her senses, would have laughed. That’s why I can write these serious yet funny later episodes about her. She would have laughed, too.
The only way I got through these episodes was to be able to laugh about them later.
“Victor/Victoria” — I think Robert said that, too,
Thanks! 🙂
I find it hard to believe we are up to “G”. I have been so busy with the spring season upon me I have not been able to keep up with my “ABC’s”. Hopefully I can catch up.
Love the title of this post. I wonder how you would look with a crown of candleabra.
Cheers,
R.
Well, that was just a candlestick holder, R. But, you know, it was an alphabet of events, one after another.
Spring season. Ah. Budding signs of growth.
Thanks,
S.
Hi My Dear,
So sorry. I understood from what I was reading that she fell and broke her arm. I thought the arm injury meant a broken arm.
Shalom,
Patricia
Oh, no problem, Patricia. I don’t know about you, but, I, myself, am getting rather bloggy-eyed at this point.
Shalom,
Samantha
You are courageous Dear Carol. I am sending this to be certain it works on this phone. As I’ve been telling all my contacts, emails don’t work for me but FB & most websites will send. Please let me know if you receive this. Now I will read today’s entry to this challenge. ❤️ You!
Got it, Marsha. Thanks!
I can so relate to the trauma you experienced with your mom, not knowing what would happen next. I too am glad the “fall and broken arm” helped you get support.
Did your mom have a low blood pressure? I am learning that a low blood pressure and lack of water will cause falls too.
My mother had high blood pressure, Gwynn, and, before I arrived on the scene, often did not take her medication because it made her dizzy. Blood pressure medications and when and how they are taken have changed since then — thankfully for me. Mother, due to the high blood pressure, had vascular dementia. When she fell in the kitchen, she apparently blacked out, lost her sensibilities momentarily. Mother didn’t break her arm when she fell and my gardener’s wife helped; she just twisted it.
Yes, many days for me during my caring for my mother were traumatic — I’m sure for her, too, and that she recognized that on some level. In fact, I do believe that I am still suffering from PTSD.
Thanks.
I could feel the falling Samantha, you described it so well and your attendance on your mother. Bless those helpers who came to your aid.
Amazing how it sometimes (most times) take another to pint out ‘you need help’. I reckon we get so swamped by doing what needs to be done that we forget we need help.
Thank you for this post.
Good insight, Susan — getting so swamped doing that we forget we need help.
Yes, bless those helpers, and the Roos who came to my aid, too.
Thank you for your kind compliment.
Oh Carol,
Somedays you must have wondered “what next?”. I definitely remember the days of sleeping with one ear and one eye open and not getting much of it.
I knew that I’d found an angel the day I discovered your post with the world’s longest title on Linked in……thank you, thank you, thank you my dear sweet Carol
Sweet comment, Val. And, yes, you’re right. Often, now, I’ll be working at my writing or getting into bed at night thankful that I will not be suddenly interrupted by some catastrophe, as much as I miss my mother.
Yes, that LinkedIn title was posed as a question, not meant to be a title. But, then, the group and subject expanded and I met you Roos. I must say, though, long as the title was, it was specific, so it kind of kept out the riffraff, except tor the woman who said she was having an affair with a man named after a cigar.
Thank for coming by and commenting, Val. I really appreciate your kindness.
Hi,
I feel sorry that she had to break her arm for you to get aid assistance but I am glad it happen. That gave you six weeks of being able to find a little time for yourself and maybe to catch up on some things that had been falling behind.
I like the fact that your neighbors and friends are very caring. It seems like you had a good support group among the friendships that you had made and that was indeed a blessing.
Shalom,
Patricia
Hi Patricia. My mother did not break her arm, thankfully, just somehow twisted it. But the physical therapist gave Mother a range-of-motion exercise routine, which I had aides from subsequent agencies follow. I really didn’t have much time to catch up on things, because, once I got help in 2008, it was only five hours a week, sometimes a few more, until I got 30-hr-wk Attendant Services care (story to be told under “H”) in August 2012.
Yes, I have the most wonderful neighbors. Maybe I’ll write about them under “N.” They are the kind of people who will leave cabbages and squash from their gardens on your front porch. Indeed a blessing.
Shalom,
Samantha
I’m sure it’s very hard watching a loved one go through such a difficult time, and it certainly comes across here — the emotional output is great and very touching for the reader. I’ve watched a love one become ill and perish, but it was relatively quick. It’s the long road that takes so much out of us. Thank you for sharing, Samantha.
Thanks, Silvia. So true. It’s long and you have no idea how long it’s going to be. I cannot begin to fathom how difficult it was for my mother. I often wondered what she was waiting for, especially near the end — maybe to see my brother, whom she kept asking for, but he lived a day’s drive away. Sitting holding her hand all night one night, when she was agitated and confused and wondered where she was, I told her it was OK to go. I think she grasped that, difficult as it was for me to say, and didn’t stick around much longer after that.
Caregiving can be so complicated, emotionally and in every other way. We try so hard to understand, interpret, translate, find our way into the other person’s reality. Sometimes we get there. Many times we don’t. Learning to be patient with ourselves is almost as challenging as learning to be patient with the person for whom we’re caring.
Beautiful post. So glad I found your blog.
So glad you came by, Kern, and for your wise and complimentary comments. Yes, patience for myself and the cared for has been a spiritual growth experience. And, to complicate matters, I kept wanting to say to my mother, “I TOLD you before to do this,” and of course she wasn’t a child and she wasn’t going to learn and remember. With her it was just the opposite.
Carol, you write when such feeling and emotion, I seem more like an observer than a reader. Being a caregiver is not possible for everyone and very difficult for those who do the job. It is a job. One we are unprepared for, even when we have watched members of our own families care take. You did a wonderful, loving job.
Oh, thanks, Marsha. I do write with passion in general, I think. I suppose one of the reasons I became caregiver for my mother is that I had watched family members taking care of the elderly in our family while I had carefully avoided it, living out on the West Coast while they were all here on the East Coast. But, the one with Mother, I could not in good conscience walk away from. Nevertheless, many times in the midst of a crisis I said, “I can’t do this! I just can’t do this!” Then, I’d go ahead and do it.
Hi Samantha, I nearly used the term thick fog to write about my own mum’s deterioration. I look forward to reading more. I must tell you it was extremely difficult to find your blog. Your google plus page needs to be updated with this blog link. it currently has the salmon salad and mozart dot com address that takes me to an advertising page for replica watches… if it it weren’t for the connection between ourselves and Susan Scott I may not have bothered investigating further… i eventually found you through your good reads profile, even your amazon page has the salmon salad address on it. Thanks and all the best – i find adding a link to the comments (like I have done below also helps
Reflex Reactions
Thanks for visiting and commenting, Ida. Odd we have trouble connecting when we share this common caregiving experience. I had trouble finding you, too. Finally had to google you by your name and add Reflex Reactions to connect, although Susan helped ultimately. I apologize for your difficulty. My computer has been down since October and I am using a notebook computer to connect to my blog and to Facebook, but will not have access to my personal files for about another week when I get my repaired computer back. So, I have not kept up with Google +, which I rarely visit, anyway; nor have I been to Goodreads, though smart of you to think of going there, and to Amazon. So, it is by a thin thread that I am able to connect online to write these A-Zs, prodded to do by Susan. Also, when I changed my blog domain name and let the old Salmon Salad and Mozart expire, I lost my blog and it took months for my web hosts to restore the files, which were actually on their server, but hidden.
OK, so this is a whole blog post right here. Thank you for reminding me of these outdated links. I’ll work on changing them. Important. Posting a link is a good idea, too, on the comment.
Thick fog is another way I view my situation with my mother and her dementia. I wrote a poem, somewhat related, about it. I look forward to reading more of your stories of your experience. Thanks again for sharing them.
And, isn’t Susan wonderful? She’s a master at following through and connecting people, among other talents.
Hi,
I felt your pain in this article. It is hard to watch a person whom you love degenerate. You keep trying to make it better and you find that you cannot. Yet, I believe that Emma recognised your love and care for her. There were times when only for a few minutes that she recognised who you were and was glad that you were there.
Shalom,
Patricia
This is true, Patricia. She did always know that I was her daughter and my name. But she often was not pleased with me. 🙂
Yes, there were those brief moments near the end that she’d come back. Those times proved to be red herrings, though, precipitating the next decline, from which she never recovered.
Thank you, Patricia.
Shalom,
Samantha
Watching the decline of your mother is a horrific experience. Waiting for the next bump in the road and not knowing when it will hit. You had great patience! I hope you have recovered from your experience. It takes time.
Oh, I don’t know that either of us was that patient, Gwynn. The experience teaches patience, though, and the awareness that you just have to let go sometimes and have faith and trust.
The fallout persists, both the positive and negative aspects.
Thanks.
Visiting from A/Z; I read your other entries here for the challenge. I do admire you for the caregiver you chose to be for your mom in her final years. I’m sure she did appreciate the care you gave her.
betty
Thanks, Betty, I appreciate your coming by and reading these stories of my mother’s and my journey through her dementia. I must admit, I was shooting in the dark all the way, and possibly should have started seeking help sooner. I think she did appreciate my being there for her, even though she said otherwise in her darker moments. I will say more about the Help under “H.”
Good on your friend for her sense of humour Samantha… I had to smile after feeling the angst and wrench reading this post Samantha. I guess there’re nurses and nurses. Those who are good are very very good and those who are bad are horrid. The horrid ones stand out in such sharp contrast to those who are loving and kind. Mind you I guess they would stand out sort of on their own and we can just wonder why?
Yes, Susan, angst ridden as it often was, in the end we could laugh. That is a blessing and a testimonial to what great help I had in the last couple years, and to my friends.
Nurses are extraordinary, most of them, thankfully. They often can tell you more than a doctor will, and they are so conscientious and compassionate. I could never do as a profession what they do. Thankfully there were only a couple horrid ones.
Thanks!
You had many awful experiences, for sure. As I read about Tess’ substitute, I wanted to reach through time and space and slap her silly. I can understand putting aside our spirituality and grabbing the drop cloth. That immediate anger that rolls us into our ninja clothes. I hope you reported her, while breathlessly sobbing your eyes out. It’s so painful to watch those we love, die in our presence. To have a so called professional behave, as she did, is heartless. Know you are and have been loved for your selfless efforts. Written beautifully!
Marsha, thank you for your kind compliment on my writing.
As for the nurse, her attitude could have been more compassionate, for sure. I did report her. As it turned out, the doctor told me that those long-time hospice nurses, and he, did not know that the Medicare regulations had recently changed with the implementation of Obama Care, and that included continuous care. So, the mean nurse was up to date on the new regulations and that’s why she arbitrarily discontinued the continuous care without consulting Tess or the doctor, both of whom were not up on the new regs.
Nevertheless, I so often ran up against healthcare aides not showing up or changing their plans due to patient emergencies, that I could rarely make plans of my own. There are hospice volunteers who will sit with the patient, but they are required not to do anything but sit — no bathroom help and the like. So, I really needed someone there who was capable of helping my mother in such situations, and that was usually me.
Yes, I learned to wear my ninja outfit. 🙂
Hi,
I am amazed at what you went through. Even more shocking is the attitude of the nurse. With her attitude, you don’t have to wonder why some people are afraid to leave their loved ones in the care of Personal Care homes.
It is sad that love and respect for others has grown so cold.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, all of that is true, Patricia. But I must say, and I will write an A-Z post about it, in the end — and it took my years, obviously — we got amazing help through our hospice team — the nurse, the social worker, the chaplain (all women), the music therapist (something you’d be great at), and the doctor. These are extraordinary people, and the nurse and social worker/bereavement counselor remain my friends. All of them would sit and listen patiently for an hour to my rants and we’d end up having a lot of laughs together. My mother and I were so fortunate. And, of course, there was Daphne (not from hospice) and three other aides, who were wonderful and remain my friends; but, in between — as our chaplain told me, I had to learn to be the Lion at the Gate. And then I met you Roos. So, you never know — the Child has to follow the path to reach the blissful destination/outcome.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
Profound post Samantha thank you. I swear life is so strange and hard at times. Forget about having any choice in the matter – this also is I think what makes life changing in front of your eyes and having no choice. But, we can react to what happens and you did so in the best possible way. In a way it was a case of the helpless helping the helpless in my view. The blind leading the blind .. and the bottom dropping out. Your lifestyle and your old self had to be left behind and a brave and courageous one forged even more.
Thank you.
And, through that change, that long, dark passage, at the end there was light, even brighter than before, and I met you. You just never know, as you said. I am grateful.
Thanks.
I too, Samantha, for meeting you. Thank you.
Your post moved me – life definitely has a way of dropping surprises on us when we least expect them. Thank you for sharing some of your story.
Thank you, Laurel for coming by. I believe that when it’s time for life to show us a new perspective, to enlighten us, sometimes we must simply be stopped in our tracks and spun around, as if we’re trying to pin the tail on the donkey, but we’re mistakenly across the room after the guppy, instead.
I agree with Pat’s comments. You definitely were ‘sucker-punched’ by the disease but you stood up to the situation. Life definitely throws curve-balls at us periodically, but you stepped up to the plate and hit a homerun.
I don’t know about the homerun part, Gwynn, but I did my best. My mother’s saying, “I’ll have you fired!” might indicate that I only made it to third base. I think I use her line in an upcoming A-Z post.
Anyway, thank you. So glad you came by to read and comment.
You are so wise and right on about this, Patricia. Thanks so much for your kind thoughts.
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi,
I think we are hardest hit when the plans we’ve made change before our eyes. With you, it was the realisation, that your life as you knew it would be on hold for a while. It is good that you did not know how long it would be on hold. That fact would have probably scared you and forced you into making a decision that you couldn’t live with afterward.
I admire the fact that even though your face was against the wall, you decided to peek over and take up the challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia
So very moving, Samantha. This part touched me beyond words: “… held fast to Daphne’s finger just like Emma had held fast to Daphne’s arm … when Daphne was turning her in bed. Emma was so afraid she’d fall, even when in bed.” And the watercolor done by Emma is precious. Thank you for sharing this with us. Just lovely.
Thank you, Silvia. I’m so glad you came by.
Samantha
Hi,
Thank you for sharing this beautiful memory. I, too, love butterflies. There is something special about them.
Shalom,
Patricia
Patricia, I don’t know why your comments don’t automatically post to my site. They used to. Yes, there is something special about butterflies. I promise not to take them off the lettuces and herbs in my garden this year when they’re in their larva stage. Some of those have quite fancy stripes and dots, so I know they’re going to become beautiful butterflies one day.
Thanks, as always.
Shalom,
Samantha
So beautiful, it’s written in the same magnificence of a delicate butterfly lighting on Daphne’s loving finger. Brought years to my eyes with more common ground with my own mother. I’ll always remember your sharing your experiences with Emma with our caregiver group more than 3 years ago. Love you!
Isn’t it something, Marsha? More than three years already. Unbelievable. Yes, our memories of our dear mothers. It’s an interesting journey going all back through this to write these A-Z posts. It’s almost like she’s here again. And, maybe she is, watching over me, as might have been your mom when you got teary eyed.
Love you, too, you special Roo. 🙂
Thanks.
This is so delightful and loving. You did have a special Hospice caregiver for Emma. I’m sure Emma has been flitting around in the flower bed enjoying her garden and watching over you.
Oh, yes, Gwynn. There’s more to this butterfly story. Now and then, a butterfly flits around me at the most strategic moments.
Daphne, I should note, is not a hospice caregiver, but worked independently. I got her through a different agency. She lives nearby, however, and continues to be a special friend, keeping in touch, making sure I haven’t fallen down the back staircase, I guess. She and her family have been very kind and helpful to me.
She is also a school crossing guard and watches over the kids — making sure the have food and warm, dry clothes.
Thanks.
O Samantha, so beautiful and touching, fragile like the butterfly … thank you …
Thank you, Susan. So very kind and touching of Daphne. She’s a special person. Mother always smiled when she saw her.
Absolutely beautiful!
R.
Why, thank you, R.
Hi,
It is so nice having you as an A to Z Blog Colleague. Your theme is an enrichment for the Challenge and I look forward to reading your post.
Shalom,
Patricia
Hi Patricia,
I only just now saw this post. I’m so sorry. Anyway, thanks for commenting. Much appreciated, as always. I did enjoy the challenge, both the discipline and meeting new people, great writers and storytellers. Thanks for the nudge to do it and for your consistent support here.
Shalom,
Samantha
Heavy stuff. My 90 year old mother is dancing a line right now, and it’s as unsettling for her as it is for us. Thank you for sharing so simply and clearly.
Megan, it is unsettling for them. They know all the way through, that something is amiss. That’s hard to watch.
Thank you for coming by and sharing your experience.
I remember your posts when this was your life, dear Carol. Reading this today, I am again relieved that the hardest times are behind you. Yet because several of us were caregivers, we could care for one another in a common manner and love, support and feel compassion for you and Emma. You have a beautiful way of expressing your care. I am so glad that I know you and can read such heartfelt words.
Marsha, yes, just my thoughts — we Roos care about each other because we have all been caregivers. These hard times are behind me, so I had to steel myself to go all back into it again to write these A-Z posts. But, if it helps others then it’s worth it.
Thank you for your kind compliments. I am so glad to know you, too — my caregiving for Emma brought me some good things, too, like meeting you.
Expressive and well-written as always. Dealing with a Dementia patient is not for the faint of heart. I know what my grandmother and aunt were like with their dementia so I don’t envy you dealing with your mother.
No, it was not easy, Gwynn, but it was also my honor. Thanks.
Hi,
I truly admire your tenacity. As I read this first article, I thought no one can describe the pain and the suffering of someone with dementia unless they have been up that road with them.
You walked that road with Emma. It was a complicated journey, but it has changed your perception of life.
Beautiful article.
Visiting from A to Z Blog Challenge 2015
Shalom,
Patricia at Everything Must Change
You said it all, Patricia, so wisely as usual. Thank you, my friend.
Shalom
Beautifully written Samantha thank you. Extremely evocative of the anxiety, both on you and on her …
Yes, Susan, much anxiety. Thank you.
S.,
Excellent!
R.
Thank you, R.
S.
Maggie S Meyers has always held a spot in my heart. I worked many many years on her for Captain “Pretty Harry” Killen. I had since left her and went on to captain my own work boats but it was on board her that Pretty Harry gave me my Captain’s name of Captain “Hair Back” which stuck with me for many years I worked my own boats and with others on the water as a commercial waterman. Even as being my own captain, I still returned and worked a lot more years aboard the Maggie with Pretty Harry. I was very fond of the Maggie. I would truly LOVE to have the chance to ride on her at least one more time before I pass on. I spent many hours piloting and working on her on the bay in the past back when we worked her to dredge oysters, crabs, conks and horseshoe crabs. I am no longer a waterman as I had to give up that life due to health issues, but the Maggie will ALWAYS be a special girl to me. Does she still have the same engine in her, the one Pretty Harry had installed which came out of a WWII army tank, after all, Captain Pretty Harry Killen was a tank operator in WWII under Patton, or has the engine been updated with a newer engine? Thank-You So much for posting this article about her, may she continue to have the great life on the Delaware Bay!!
Tom, I am so sorry to only now be replying to your wonderful comment. My computer has been down since the end of October, and then so was this website. I am only just now getting everything in working order again. I am so glad you took the time to comment here. I am very good friends with Jean Friend and Frank “Thumper” Eicherly, who now own and are lovingly restoring the Maggie. I have heard that during the past few months Jean & Thumper are having the Maggie’s second mast restored.
A few years ago, Ron Sayers (Sayers Jewelers) showed me really old photos of the Maggie when Harry Killen owned her. Ron is married to Ellen Killen, as you may know.
I will phone Jean and Thumper and read them your comment here. Thumper always welcomes visitors aboard the Maggie. I have sailed onboard numerous times.
I will definitely get back to you on this and see if I can get you and Thumper connected. Thanks so much.
Samantha
Hi,
Reading this makes me think of the Mama’s and the Papa’s. I still love the song California Dreaming. It came out as i was dreaming about how I could make my desire to leave the United States a reality.
I don’t envy you waking up to jackhammers and dust, but it seems as if it gave you inspiration to write this post, and if it did, well done. Thinking about folk songs from the Loving Spoonful, Peter, Paul, and Mary, and also the memory from Jimi Hendrick awoke within me nice memories of the past.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Patricia
In a frustrating situation, I ask myself what am I learning from this — like asking one’s spirit guides — the child and the master on the lily pad. And with the jackhammer I got my answer big time, Patricia. A great way to turn a negative into a positive. What a wealth of music and joy; and it continues to today.
I have one more post to write regarding that day, though, Patricia, and that’s about ’50s rock ‘n’ roll, what they call DooWop now. It all brings back so many fond memories.
From the ’60s I have 500 LPs, all in storage in Calif. I wish I could pull out an album and play Jimi Hendricks or Peter, Paul and Mary, but to bring them here to Delaware is not in my budget presently. So, to have this music brought back to me on TV that night was a gift.
Thank you for making the time to comment, my friend. Now on to your other comments. 🙂
Hi,
First let me say, this is an awesome post. Reading it was delightful. Secondly, you are so right about musicians. We listen to each other and in my own opinion, I think musicians are the best listeners in the world. We are patience and we really want to hear what a person have to say. In my band, we have two or three things that we watch when playing together. !. We watch each other. Every now and then you will see one of us glancing at a member in the band. 2. We pay close attention to the singer. You never know when they might change the tempo if they want to get a certain part of a song across, and 3. ‘We pay close attention to the audience. When we look out on the faces that we can see, we look the people in their eyes and we draw them into our world.
Thirdly, there have been some changes in good Old Europe. Many of the instrumentalist are young and dynamic. I personally know one of the players (plays trombone) for the Frankfurt Symphony Orchestra. The orchestras in Europe have also become very multicultural.
Finally, Daniel Barenboim is absolutely fantastic. A few years ago, he did an experiment in Berlin where he invited kids from problem neighborhoods in Berlin to come and make music. The project was for 12 months. Some of the kids had no knowledge of music at all. Afterward, the results was fantastic. They were so good that a small film was made about the project.
I enjoyed the article. I see this is part 2 and I have read it before part 1, so I will skip over to part 1 and read the beginning.
Great job.
Shalom,
Patricia
I thought you might like this one, Patricia, long as it is. All you say about musicians is true — of course you would know. I love watching them watch each other; I find it fascinating.
And, yes, I have noticed a slight change, modernization, shall I say, of European orchestras; they do have some multi-national and younger members. It’s funny, I watch so many of these great world orchestras perform so often, that I get to recognize the members. Then I start wondering about them — what their families are like and what they eat for dinner. Do the Viennese eat a lot of sausages, for example.
As for Daniel Barenboim, I cannot say enough about him. I just love him and I think it would be one of the great highlights of my life to meet him. He reads many philosophers and I really like the way he thinks. He has done so much good for the world. I read his first book, “A Life in Music,” and couldn’t put it down. I also have his piano master class series on DVD. When he explains music, he explains life. Daniel Barenboim is a real world treasure.
Thank you, Patricia. I value your input, especially on this piece.
Much love to you.
Shalom,
Samantha
Wow! I didn’t know all of this about Fitzgerald, even though I have read one or two of his books. I was never that crazy about him, but you have opened my eyes to his pain. I believe that is a pain that many writers go through: the pain of producing a manuscript that has life and is better or just as good as the first manuscript that was published.
So thank you. I also had forgotten that he had died young and that he had lived in Delaware, so your post really filled in lots of gaps.
I enjoyed reading it because I saw a side of Fitzgerald that I had not seen before.
Shalom,
Patricia
When I had to read “The Great Gatsby” for a college course back in 1960, Patricia, I have to admit I skimmed over it and couldn’t see the big deal. But soon after, something, I don’t recall what, connected me to Fitzgerald, and I’ve since felt he is my kindred spirit. I read everything I could find that he wrote on how to be a good writer, and, truly, he was my first teacher; I still follow his guidance more than that of any other writer.
I think few know he and Zelda lived in Delaware for two years. When I found out, I jumped on that and wrote the piece for the Wilmington newspaper. I typed it on an IBM Executive typewriter, before computers, and had notes, research material and drafts all over the place. Looking back, I don’t know how I got it done without a word processor; but those were the days.
I like what you say “I saw a side of Fitzgerald” — well-put: “This Side of Paradise” or “This Side of Fitzgerald.” I’m glad I discovered a little about a writer that few know about him, and it made me feel like I know him better. He gave me a respect for him and a respect for writing and other writers, an appreciation of all the hair pulling and moments of wanting to just quit that result in making the final output look like it flowed easily.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
My Dear Friend,
I just to say that I feel the same way toward John Gardner. When I read the first book from him, On Becoming A Novelist, I thought he had looked into my soul. Since then, I have almost every book from him and I read him over and over. He is really my teacher, a kindred spirit, who I learn from over and over. He is also one of my mentors sitting around my invisible roundtable.
Next year, I plan to attend the Breadloaf Writer’s Workshop in Erice, Italy, where Gardner left many imprints about his own philosophy of writing. And he too died young. He was 49 when he died in 1982 from a motorcycle accident with consequences no one could explain. The sun was shining and he was not under the influence of any kind of alcohol and not a drug abuser. He was on his way home from helping his sick father who had a farm in a small city in New York. The police were baffled at how it could have happened because his motorcycle was also not going at a fast speed.
We lost a great writer with John Gardner.
Shalom,
Patricia
I’ve never read John Gardner, Patricia, although I’ve heard of him. But, looking at his works just now on Amazon, I see I should be reading him. So, he is on my list. It’s amazing the number of writers and books I want to read: I could read and read all day, every day (my pleasure to do so) and still not catch up. One of my goals is to read as many authors as I can before I die — that’s a big order. I’ll do my best. I have many books on my personal library shelves that I have not read. I continue to collect them.
Thanks for reminding me of him, dear friend.
Shalom,
Samantha
I meant to say, Patricia, I envy your going to the Breadloaf Writer’s Workshop in Erice, Italy, next year. Wow. An experience of a lifetime. Good for you! Can’t wait to hear all about it.
Shalom,
Samantha
Such a rich history of Fitzgerald in Wilmington! I so enjoyed imagining the setting for The Great Gatsby through your words Samantha thank you! It was also interesting about the future tenants of Ellerslie when they left for further adventures.
May the history of life continue to dance for you Samantha!
I crafted an artful reply to you, Susan, when my browser crashed, so I’ll try again, but be brief.
It’s easy to imagine the history of Ellerslie as I saw mostly through the evocative writings of Fitzgerald.
Zelda and I had one thing in common, besides our writing, that of deciding we would begin studying ballet at age 30, a time when most ballet dancers’ careers are over. She erected a ballet barre in Ellerslie’s great hall in front of a huge, gilt mirror and practiced relentlessly, later studied in Europe.
After the arrival in Wilmington of the Swedish, Dutch and English, E. I. du Pont de Nemours arrived and founded a gunpowder plant on the hilly, wooded banks of the Brandywine River in the Wilmington area (the river so named for its color). Before that, the du Ponts were active in France during the French revolution, knowing Louis XVI and were friends with Thomas Jefferson. The du Ponts built Delaware, were like royalty here, cousins marrying cousins — resulting in some strange offspring — hence the feudal atmosphere. (I tried to research specific details re the du Ponts in France, for I no longer recall them exactly, but that’s when my browser crashed.) Both my parents worked for the DuPont Co.; that’s how we got to Delaware from Philadelphia.
Thanks, as always, for commenting.
A very interesting post Samantha. You are lucky to be surrounded by such wealth of history. You did an incredible job on this. I enjoyed it very much.
Thank you for commenting, Gwynn. I am lucky to have the mental and emotional awareness of the history that surrounds me. I am interested in and curious about nearly everything. And learning that my kindred spirit author spent time here in Wilmington, well….
Fitzgerald did not convene with my 2011 “Nights at the Round Table” guests. Perhaps he was basking on the Cote d’Azur. I’ll see if he can make it for the second convening. Perhaps he and Zelda can dance on the table while boiling women’s purses in a pot on the stove in the kitchen — under Moriarty’s oversight, of course.
I LOVED your cast of characters, er’ your authors and musicians. It sounds as if your evening was entertaining and educating. You had the opportunity to move and groove, and even laugh. Hopefully, they left some wine for you and didn’t eat too much popcorn. Did they at least pick-up after themselves?
Definitely a fun and descriptive post! I’m learning from you… at least I’m trying! 😉
Ah, yes. Who am I to tell them life is short when they all died so young, except, of course, Thomas Jefferson, who contented himself with scraping the mac & cheese off his lapel. E.A. Poe fed the raven all the popcorn; that’s how the raven got stuffed. Moriarty does the cleanup around the blog — except the dusting; he doesn’t dust, nor does he seem to be able to locate snow shovels.
Thank you, Gwynn, for taking the time to read and comment on this post. It’s one of my favorites. And thanks for the compliment; always inspiring.
What wonderful stories Samantha from beginning to end. What a gift it is to listen well, and to be heard when one is ‘speaking’ whether through music, writing, painting, talking –
I felt the exuberance of your stories and your appreciation of being part of the audience and really hearing … and knowing that there are no borders, only this moment and the spaces in between.
I will come back to this post and check out the link for Rhapsody in Blue – thank you for this. Also to re-read your post!
About two Thursday nights we attended The JPO – Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Pinchas Zukermann conducting Beethoven’s Egmont and playing the violin in Bruch’s Violin Concerto no. 1.. Transported, transformed ..
Thank you –
Had I known you were going to see Pinchas Zukerman perform in person, Susan, I would have robbed a bank and hopped a plane to Johannesburg, even if I had to sit on the wing. He is one of my favorites (and when I can’t think of his name, I just think “Handsome Man”). He plays his music, whether on violin, viola or conducting, so sweetly and sensitively. I would think he is a very sweet man. That Bruch violin concerto is beautiful, definitely transporting. In fact, I have the recording of Pinchas Zukerman playing that concerto with Zubin Mehta conducting the L.A. Philharmonic. I think if I had heard that in person, in the theatre, I might have been blown out of my seat.
Too, Pinchas Zukerman is part of that group — Zubin Mehta, Daniel Barenboim, Itzhak Perlman, Emanuel Ax, Yo-Yo Ma, and once, Jacqueline Du Pre. They were the classical music “rock stars” of the ’60s and ’70s, I think. There are some wonderful DVDs of them playing together. And, I do love the viola, especially the rich tone of Pinchas Zukerman’s.
There’s one DVD where Zukerman, Perlman, Du Pre, Mehta (on double bass) and Barenboim play the first notes (rehearsing) of “The Trout” quintet, and Daniel Barenboim stops them, saying, “That sounds AWFUL.” It does. They play it like they’re running to catch a bus.
You are so fortunate to have seen this performance.
Thank you for telling me this story. Once again, synchronicity.
A great part of music is that it does not wait – it gives back immediately, as you are playing. The joy emerges and blooms. I used to play church organ accompaniments with a tenor, for funerals, and special holidays. During rehearsals, he’d always worry that the organ would drown out his singing, so we used great caution going into the performance. But, usually, by the time he reached the climax of a song, his voice would so fill the church that I had trouble hearing the organ, even with all the stops out.
I like your observation that music does not wait, Gary — the joy emerges and blooms. Well put.
I would have loved to have heard you and the tenor in that church. That music must have soared. I’ll bet the congregation was truly uplifted. I would have attended church just to hear that music.
Thanks for your thoughts and comments here, Gary. They mean a lot to me, coming from a musician. I am smiling.
Thanks, Samantha. This week has not had enough music – my temp assignment this week is in a room with a television constantly blatting the news channel. The only song I could get started in my head was “Isis” by Bob Dylan, which I don’t consider one of his best. Now I can hear the Mamas and Papas. Thank you for this.
The synchronicity of non-music with music has always fascinated me. Various random rhythmic sounds cue songs – there’s a binding machine in our mail room with a hydraulic mechanism that plays, with a very jazzy rhythm, the first four notes of Duke Ellington’s “Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me”.
Wonderful, inspiring post. Thanks, Samantha!
Glad I changed your tune, Gary. 🙂
Your story of the machine playing the Duke Ellington-like jazzy rhythm reminds me of many, many years ago, before computers in offices, when I worked in the actuarial department of an insurance company. We had these huge electric calculators, like high, oversized typewriters, on our desks. Al, who sat behind me, would say, “Listen to this,” and he’d hit lots of 8s to create a calculation where the machine would go on and on in this very syncopated jazzy rhythm until it finally came up with a solution. It was funny. I went to iTunes and listened to those first four notes of “Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me,” the jazzy version. I rather like that — you could almost dance to the rhythm of that binding machine….
Thanks!
My dear Samantha,
Your composition soars with compassion, exuberance and beauty. It appears that you have done some forensic work of your own. So very glad that someone handed you the guitar and the tambourine. An historical view significant for the ages.
Ever,
R.
Soaring — thanks, R. I am glad, too, and most fortunate that I have been handed the guitar and tambourine, many times: it opens those aspects of music that give us insight and a broad and long overview.
Soaring — come back and listen to the last two pieces on my “The Dream” playlist here.
Thank you.
S. & the Blue Knight (Moriarty’s Other)
Yes, without borders, I have returned here to enjoy fully #’s 42 and 43. Thank you for calling me to do so.
Cheers,
R.
Yes, yes. 🙂
Yes, without borders, I have returned here to enjoy fully #’s 42 and 43. Thank you for calling me to do so.
Cheers,
R.
Glad you enjoyed, R. Wild and soaring.
Cheers,
S.
This is an excellent post! I truly WISH we were all musicians as maybe we could produce some phenomenal sounds! Sadly, not all music lovers are musicians… I’m a perfect example of that statement. But worse yet, not all people love music.
It would be terrific if we all interacted as if playing in an orchestra with Cheshire grins on all of our faces. Unfortunately, at this point in time, I think the world is tone deaf! You have set the baton high… I hope people step up to the plate.
Very musical… I’m dancing to the rhythm! 😉
I love your comment, Gwynn. Perhaps we are all musicians and just haven’t listened attentively enough to ourselves to catch that. But, yes, I do know some people who are not interested in music — weird, to me.
True, an ever rising crescendo of Cheshire cat grins is what we need.
Keep dancing. Love that you caught the rhythm.
“The jazzy syncopated sounds of the squirrel crackling dogwood berries and thwacking them onto the chain link fence and ground below: is this then not music, too?” As much as I like squirrels, and I like squirrels very much, the sound effects of their foraging would never make my iPod’s hit parade, Samantha. Musique concrète never rocked my world, but I did like the use of sound effects in Summer in the City.
V., I am so sorry I only just found your comment — and it wasn’t because I didn’t hear it over the squirrel thwacking. I don’t know why WordPress didn’t go ahead and publish your comment immediately.
Anyway, the squirrel thwacking sound is OK, gentle, though not for an iPod playlist, I agree; but the squirrel ate all the pretty red berries which I so admire through the autumn. The squirrel didn’t even leave any for the speckled birds which annually gorge on them during their migration south.
I agree with you on the Summer in the City sound effects.
I’m glad you came by. Thanks.
What a wonderful and evocative post Samantha thank you! A trip back in time to Summer in the City, the back of my neck getting dirty and gritty – I didn’t have to check on your post for these words! And the Mamas & Papas .. Barry Mcguire as well … Eve of Destruction … I wish I had an Ipod …I’ll check out the youtube links you’ve provided, thanks.
I like silence sometimes when I’m working. Though putting on Willie Nelson as I do often, the same one, is wonderful.
I like Robert’s quote by Walt .. must be Whitman …’All music… – It is nearer and father than they’.
Well, there’s more to come, Susan, re the music. It was an amazing evening of music from all eras, of a day that began with a jackhammer. I think my seeing “Summer in the City” performed that night was a sign reminding me that there’s always a positive side. I didn’t know Barry McGuire wrote “California Dreamin’,” or if I did I had forgotten. Interesting to hear The Mamas & The Papas singing backup, rather than lead, and to learn that singing backup is how they got their start.
Anyway, as little as I’ve read of Walt Whitman’s work — he produced so much — I am always amazed as his insight. He died in Camden, N.J., across the Delaware River from Philadelphia (sort of an East Philadelphia) and we, therefore have a Walt Whitman suspension bridge over the river.
I do like my iPod; I can make playlists (one of my favorite pastimes), and carry them with me. Although, mine is old and can’t do all the new ones do; friends gave it to me when they upgraded to a new one.
Music, like the published word, transcends time. So it’s like the composers are right here with us when we listen to or read their works, as I’m sure you are aware; it’s like they’re communicating with us telepathically. I like that.
Thanks. Oh, and btw, Robert looks just like Walt with his long white beard. 🙂
My dear Sam,
This world would a lonelier more conservative space without the sounds of music. Thankfully there are those that listen, and, hear it; as good old Walt once said, “All music is what awakes within us when we are reminded by the instruments; It is not the violins or the clarinets – It is not the beating of the drums – Nor the score of the baritone singing his sweet romanza; not that of the men’s chorus, Nor that of the women’s chorus – It is nearer and farther than they”.
Ever,
Berry Thacker
Thack you ever so berry much, Walt.
🙂
I definitely believe that your squirrel was “berry” musical. He was enjoying the rhythm of nature. Maybe the squirrel wanted his sounds to blend with the jackhammer in “Summer in the City.”
I enjoyed your post as I listen to “Fun, Fun, Now that your Daddy took the T-Bird Away.” You took me back to the 60s, although on some level I don’t think my mind left there. 😉
Yes the squirrel is attuned to the rhythms of nature, Gwynn, and his timing is impeccable — every morning promptly at 8, he or she is out there enjoying breakfast. And, I might add, back later for lunch.
Glad you enjoyed your ’60s West Coast rock music as you read.
Thanks. The minds of most of us of a certain age have not fully left the ’60s, I believe.
My Dear Friend,
Reading your article has given me much joy. I have the book from Gay Talese, Unto the Sons, and even though I haven’t started reading it yet, because of other pressing priorities, I look forward to the time when I can sit back and lose myself in it.
I am privileged to be able to travel to Italy, and I travel there as often as I can. I also have acquaintances in Southern Italy, which in many ways has not changed. It is still the friendliest part of Italy, although the Italians are friendly all over Italy. Southern Italy is the heart.
I enjoy eating a pizza at one of the local pizza bars. I don’t care where you go, the pizza is fantastic and no one can make pizza like the Italian people. I love it. But they are excellent Mediterranean cooks that can cook anything wonderful.
I agree with you concerning their open hearted way of meeting people. Whenever I am invited to a home, the first thing they want to do is feed me and don’t forget the expresso. I believe they drink expresso throughout the day. That is a habit that I have taken from them, but I start drinking my expresso in the afternoon.
The Italians go on vacation from August 1 to August 20 or 21st every year. It is always refreshing to see them playing with their children and to hear the laughter and excitement in their voices when I am in Italy during that time.
It is because of this warmheartedness, this reckless way of engaging in life that I have chosen to live out my life with my home in Italy. I look forward to it and rejoice when the time comes and it is time for me to cross over into my new home.
Now I am busy learning the language. I took a Greek course at the university and not Latin. How I wish today that I had chosen the Latin course. However, I am making progress with the language, and I look forward to spending 12 to 16 weeks or more next year in Italy.
So thank you so much for this beautiful article. It made me homesick, and I haven’t gotten there yet. You drew me in and for a few minutes, I was living the dream which is the desire of my heart.
Sending you greetings and a big hug out of Grosskrotzenburg, Germany.
Shalom,
Patricia
Dear Patricia,
I thought of you when I was writing this. Thank you for telling me that I drew you in, for I could not have achieved that had it not been for my Italian-American friends and Gay Talese who drew me in. My association with them has been and continues to be the heart of my life, and so I do envy you your focus and smart planning to live out the final years of your life among the Italians on the Amalfi Coast. One day a little boat may draw up to the shore and you will see me stepping out. Most of the Italians I have known — grew up with outside Phila. and worked for in L.A. — were of Southern Italian descent, although I have known Northern Italians as well, as I said, and some friends whose ancestors are from all over Italy. My friend Martha, whose dog I “Wallie-sit” for, is one of those.
Family is primary in Italians’ lives — family and eating, it seems.
You will love Gay Talese’s book, and, yes, its detail of subject does require intense focus; it is not a book for a light reader; but it was fascinating, a book which you will have no trouble with, and I couldn’t put it down. Plus, Talese’s writing is so lucid he leaves no question of his meaning and paints a vivid landscape.
An Italian tradition Gay Talese describes and I just love, wish we could do more of here, is the passeggiata, the evening stroll around town or round and round the piazza, men arm in arm, and women arm in arm. They just stroll and chat. You may have seen this — or engaged in it.
Too, I have heard that the Italian language is not easy to learn because of the nuances of meaning. I did study Latin and Spanish, and a little French, so that might make it easier for me — or more confusing due to retrogressive learning. I have wanted to learn Italian, though, especially since reading Liz Gilbert’s “Eat, Pray, Love.”
You will also like Frances Mayes’s “Under the Tuscan Sun.” Her prose is a step down from Talese’s, yet she is poetic and paints a beautiful portrait of Tuscany and surrounds. She talks about the Italian August holiday, the daily siestas and the espresso bars — plus, she prepares recipes from her and her husband’s garden. She is a gourmet cook, who coincidental with you, grew up in Georgia.
What you tell me here about your Italian experiences is so interesting, Patricia. Thank you for sharing. A big hug to you.
I could go on, but … another time.
Shalom,
Samantha
Samantha,
Yes, the language is difficult but I am making progress. I too have French at the University. Italian and French have some similarities so that I am actually experiencing a revival of my French. What I learned is coming back to me quickly. I have an Italian tutor here and some Italian friends that are helping me because Italian is such an expressive language.
La passeggiata, the evening stroll, is something that they still do and when I am there, I look forward to walking and talking and window shopping arm and arm with good friends. I had the privilege of taking my girlfriend with me in 2012 before she left Germany to go back to the USA to get married. She was so happy there. We walked arm in arm and shared so many things that I’ll never forget. That can only happen in Italy. In fact, she didn’t want to return to Germany.
No doubt it will be a big change for me and a big challenge. A new country, a different language and learning new friends. Each of the European countries are different and adjustment is the key word. I look forward to the adjustment.
If you ever decide to visit Italy after 2016, please let me know. You will be very welcome in my home. I am not sure whether I will settle down on the Amalfi Coast. I am looking into Erice, Matera, and somewhere outside of Rome, maybe on the country side. Erice is wonderful because it is in Southern Italy and I believe I would feel very comfortable there. But the region around Rome or Tuscany is also tempting because I want to be able to continue with my music and be near an airport because of my writing.
We will see, but regardless, wherever I choose to live, you will be welcome.
Thank you for your lovely response and please forgive me for spelling espresso incorrectly. I was writing from a different computer yesterday evening and because of tiredness was having difficulty using it.
Have a nice evening my dear.
Ti abbraccio. ( It means hugs to you in Italian)
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, I believe it was Frances Mayes who said the Italian language is so expressive, Patricia, creating for some, difficulties in learning. And then I thought of Italian opera, and thought, yes, the Italians speak like they’re singing — they’re always singing.
No doubt your friend was very happy there. And, so you know of la passeggiata; this would do me good, evening strolls rather than TV or movie time.
Well, wherever you decide to settle, Patricia, I will be most happy to visit (I need a bestselling book first). Thank you for the invitation. Who knows, I may wind up visiting Tuscany after all, fulfilling a dream.
Re espresso — my finger always goes to type expresso and I have stop and correct it. I understand.
Ti abbraccio (literal translation, “I embrace you”?)
Shalom,
Samantha
Thanks for further elucidation Samantha! I’ve never read Talese … will seek him out.
Here’s to camels, wide open spaces, blueberry scones and more delicious food! xx
I had not read Gay Talese, either, Susan. But, then, I read “A Writer’s Life” and “Unto the Sons.” I’m usually not into American journalist/authors of that generation, that genre — more into the earlier Romantics. But Gay Talese is one of the best writers I’ve read in a while. I just ordered his 1995 book, “Writing Creative Nonfiction: The Literature of Reality,” since that kind of writing is mostly what I have published, for $4.00 from Amazon, used, including shipping.
I intend to publish my magazine stories in a book soon, so Talese’s Creative Nonfiction book will serve as supportive research to let me know what I did and didn’t do, and what I might need to change.
Here’s to …!
xx
A wonderful post thank you Samantha!
What is tutti Italian – last paragraph?
I smiled at your mention of how you liked being fed by the Italians in yr earlier years. This would have made a deep impression on me too. Anything or anyone associated with food has a place in my heart and stomach.
I enjoyed this post for its history. And it is so true that we cannot expect others to have the same sense of fervour or loyalty about leaders, war etc… you described the honour among Italians so well. It makes better sense to me.
Thank you!
Thanks for commenting, Susan. I always appreciate your thoughts.
“Tutti Italian” means all things Italian. Tutti is the plural of the Italian word tutto. All things that I read, books and periodicals, throughout the winter and spring were about all things Italian, including conversations and emails with our friend Patricia. My entering into this world came not from a conscious thought; it just happened spontaneously, one thing leading to another. “Tutti” is most commonly seen, for us non-Italians, in musical composition notations; for example, there is a solo and then all the voices join in.
The Italians feeding me and my working with the Italians was the heart of my life. Italians still feed me: my friend Martha, for whom I “Wallie-sit,” often feeds me — with veggies and herbs she has grown in her garden. In fact, she gave me the starter herbs, pulled from her garden, for my herb garden.
I did not describe the honor among the Italians. Gay Talese did, so aptly. I simply repeated him, though culling a few words from a 600+ page book, deciding what to include and what to leave out, was not easy, especially since I have combined two stories here. Gay Talese is one of our best writers. He spoiled me for writers whose books I read to follow. He writes with such lucid detail; I never had to question the meaning he conveyed. And his research is impeccably thorough.
Anyway, I could go on — perhaps eating and discussing my fervor for Talese’s memoir/history. Next time you visit the U.S., we’ll eat blueberry scones and sit on my porch and watch the Camels.
🙂
Very excecellent!!!
R.
Thank you, R.
S.
It is funny, as looking at your picture of Ocean City and seeing the Strand sign, I immediately thought of Hermosa Beach and the Strand there. It is fun remembering old times. I enjoyed hearing your story of long ago! Memories seem to always stay close to one’s heart!
How quickly you read this long piece and commented, Gwynn. Thank you.
Yes, well, a strand is a strand. And, frankly, it is my love for Ocean City that drew me to Redondo — something about Redondo reminds me of Ocean City; even Hermosa does a bit. You know, this year they started having summertime concerts on the beach in Hermosa.
It is interesting how memories telescope time. Why, it was just last week that I dated Len D’Ignazio. Oh, wait — that was lifetimes ago. I’d like to go eat at his family’s restaurant. It’s not that far away from me, about an hour. Maybe one day soon.
I wondered what made Dickens leap up and bark. He was napping after eating that sandwich. Then he heard his name called, and you woke him up.
M.
The Dickens, you say!
R.
Samantha
Every time I come here, I feel like writing. That’s the essence of inspiration. I hope that someday you’ll let your protagonist out of the drawer!
g
How very kind and thoughtful, Gary. Thank you.
I hope to let my protagonist out of the drawer one day soon, too. Thank you for encouraging me. (No doubt he thanks you, too. He has used up a whole box of tissues with his sneezing.)
S.
I have always loved hearing writers and artists talk about their creative processes, and you did not disappoint. Far from it. I have always admired the imaginative often whimsical twists and turns that you and Moriarty take in this blog, and now I know a little more about the back story. It’s like a well-made reversible quilt: the underside is as intricate and beautifully sewn as the side everybody sees.
Thank you for passing the baton on to me and for all your kind words.
I have always loved hearing writers, artists and composers talk about their creative process, too, T.J. I am glad I did not disappoint. I find it psychically draining writing about my interior machinations. It seems too self-indulgent somehow.
You have continued to inspire me to interweave fact with the imaginative — and the whimsical — OK, so Moriarty’s family does live in Willynilly, Arkansas. “A well-made reversible quilt” — I love that image. Thank you. I smile.
You are most deserving of carrying the baton. Can’t wait to learn more about you, now, and your writing process.
Hi,
First, let me say thank you. It is a proven fact, in my opinion, that most people do not learn from history because they shy away from it. Yet, history shows us the mistakes of our fore fathers, of civilizations that no longer exist, and of wars that have brought hate instead of respect, understanding, and brotherly and sisterly love.
Your article hit a soft spot because I too ask myself when will we ever learn. Yet, I must confess that even I am sometimes guilty of acting irrationally and reacting before I look at mistakes made in the past.
The poem from R suits this article so nicely because it confirms your poignant words and the picture displayed enhances the words that are not written but yet these words ring silently loud in your article.
Excellent job, my dear and I sincerely hope you are having a happy fourth of July.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you, Patricia, for your lovely and thoughtful comment, as always.
Yes, I sometimes, too, simply haul off and react unthinkingly. I cannot imagine shying away from history, yet many do, despairingly. Thankfully, I love studying history, world, American and my own, and strive to learn from it.
I think my growing up in Philadelphia has a lot to do with my love of history and my patriotism, in particular my aunt’s taking me to Independence Hall when I was four. It had a strong impact on me and I’ve never forgotten its significance. Nor have I forgotten the new brown and white saddle shoes with the red rubber soles I wore that day — but that’s another story. 🙂
A quiet fourth for me, but it suits me just fine.
Shalom,
Samantha
Hi,
It was refreshing to hear some of your thoughts on writing, although I must say I enjoyed reading the entire interview. So, you see pictures first and then the words began to form. For me, I receive a certain piece of dialogue. It can be a scene or several sentences where the protagonist is talking, and I sit at my computer, knowing that something is about to happen.
Excellent job on your answers. I felt the care and the love that you put in your answers and they were encouraging and helpful for me.
Shalom,
Patricia
I do think in pictures, Patricia, and that often makes it hard for me to convey thoughts in simple, clear, concise language. I start hearing dialogue very quickly, too, and then I hear paragraphs. Sorting it all out is like unknotting a skein of yarn. Generally, I am not a fast writer — so many thoughts and images at once.
I do experience that same sense as you, where I’m sitting at my computer typing up what the protagonist is saying or doing, and I’m always intrigued and that keeps me going. I am always interested in learning other author’s writing process. Thanks for sharing yours. And, I’m still smiling with the story of the Profit and the Child.
I did think of you on this Independence Day over there in Germany, wondering how you experience in Europe our great American celebration of a freedom that almost didn’t happen, save by a miracle.
Thank you.
Shalom,
Samantha
This is so pleasing Samantha thank you .. a million images and I felt as if I was flying on the magic carpet. May the wind underneath always keep you afloat and when you touch ground may Moriarty, phantoms and blue deer meet and greet you when you pick up the pen and wave the sword and sip on the nectar.
Thank you, Susan, for your compliment and the lovely images and good wishes you present here.
I thank you again for giving me this opportunity. I am honored.
My dearest Samantha,
Love your arrangement of baton twirling. Glad to see you have successfully passed it along. Great to read about three fantastic writers cascading through the blogosphere.
Ever,
R.
Well, I finally got past the twirling, R. Indeed, I AM among good company: Besides T.J. and Susan, especially, all others in the cascade are excellent and accomplished writers.
Thank you for you compliment.
Ever,
S.
Hi Samantha .. this was a poignant post indeed and R’s prose/poetry equally so. That’s always fascinated me – the assassination of the Archduke Ferdinand and how this triggered (pun intended?) so much, effects continuing to be felt. I must go back to the books and check this out further.
No, we do not learn from history it seems. Freud called it: the repetition compulsion i.e. that we repeat things until and when the lesson is learned. Every now and then I think of my father and wish that he had told me of the war years. I think I did once try but got the impression that he didn’t want to talk about it … he flew for the RAF.
Those towers are magnificent.
Thank you for this reminder and honouring.
Hi, Susan,
I lived through the Second World War, albeit here in the U.S., out of the fray, so I thought at the time. The War ended when I was five. I was aware of it because my father and my uncle were away, and my family talked about that. But I did not know that German submarines were sitting right off our coasts. I did ask why we had black shades on our windows that must be drawn at night, I remember our fighter planes flying overhead and all the little surveillance blimps in the sky. I remember, too, saving the cans of bacon fat, unavailability of silk stockings, and that if you could get a car, it was black and built just before the U.S. entered the war. After the war, my father bought a 1946 Hudson and he had to install the back seat and the bumpers himself. We have photos somewhere of that. The factories were still outfitted for the war effort.
My uncle never talked about the war, his time overseas, although he was not in the direct fighting. But, when I asked him, he did say that his job was to take the helmets off the dead soldiers (in North Africa, Sicily and up through Italy). My brother told me on this Father’s Day that my uncle was a paymaster. I didn’t know that.
A very belated thanks to your father for flying for the RAF. Did he fly a spitfire? There are only a few of them left. Beautiful airplane.
I didn’t know about the observation towers lining the Delaware Bay on both shores, New Jersey and Delaware, until I saw Robert’s photos.
Yes, these Allied men and women of both those great wars deserve high honor. I cannot even imagine….
Thank you for giving me Freud’s theory of repetition compulsion. I am one of those who does that until I learn my lesson. I’ve gotten better at realizing I need to recognize that pattern sooner and change it.
Thanks for your thoughtful comment.
Yes, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand has always fascinated me, too, and the events surrounding that, and that of Czar Nicholas II and his family.
I think the Crusades have never actually ended.
Samantha
Sadly, you are MORE ancient than you think. They don’t teach WWI in schools now. They may not even talk about WWII. Join the “Ancient Obsolete Club” with me.
They didn’t teach World War II when I was in school, either, Gwynn. That is because it had just happened. We kids were in the duck and cover contingent.
Cycles repeat themselves, and ancient history is no longer taught in schools, so kids don’t see how the cycles relate to what is happening now… SAD!! Of course I would like to know what our politicians were doing when they were supposed to be studying history.
Robert made some excellent points!
Well, I’m not that ancient, Gwynn; at least I don’t think of myself as that way. But neither is modern history taught in most schools. As for the politicians, you can’t raise any money by adhering to history — got to tell the people what they want to hear; and the people don’t care to research for the truth what they hear.
Yes, Robert made excellent points; deeply thoughtful poem. Worthy of repeating.
Thanks, Gwynn.
As for the answer to your question my dear Samantha perhaps on the day Christ returns but I don’t see much chance of it happening before then….I know, sad but true.
I know, dear Val. I agree. The question seems almost rhetorical.
I really appreciate your comment. Thanks!
Well, well, well..
My dearest Samantha,
Thank you for featuring my poetry and photography in your blog post.
As long as greed trumps learning from history, and willful ignorance prevails, you may continue to ask, “When will they ever learn?”.
Ever,
R
Well, you know how it goes, R — and on and on and …
Tall art here — my pleasure to repost such worthy work.
Ever,
S.
I loved this Samantha thank you! It got me thinking of my own father, more than usual. So an extra thank you for this. The photos are lovely … as are the memories. My father would also always say ‘look it up’ when I wanted to know the meaning of the word … And yes, your Uncle Bob has a similar look to my father .. we are after all connected? Seven degrees of separation? And as Roos, very definitely so …
This was a pleasure to put together, Susan. I don’t know why I felt compelled to post this now; it just seemed time.
I found that “Look it up” perpetually frustrating — mainly because when I did, and do still today — I want to know the meaning of every other word on the page, and so sit and read them. Not that I remember most of it, but it is fascinating, especially the ones about architectural elements and those critters with all legs and pincers and feelers.
Definitely we are connected, if not only through the Roos then maybe also from way back — possibly through the one my father and uncle said may have gotten chased out of England? 🙂 There IS that love for music, too, that runs in both our families.
lovely! a lovely set of memories and – as usual – beautifully written.
Thanks Carol.
They are wonderful memories, aren’t they, Beatrice? It’s good to bring back what seem to me, from my childhood remembrances, a simpler era. Though our memories date to the same time, yours from Scotland may be somewhat different and I’d love to hear your stories. We were all so young. Of course, that was all only yesterday, wasn’t it.
I’m so glad you came by and saw this one. I wanted to leave a bit of a legacy of these three fathers who formed my early childhood and meant so much to me.
Lovely as always. Thank you for sharing.
Bettielou
Thank you, Bettielou. I thought it’s about time I talked about the other side of my family, whom I am much more like — often much to my mother’s chagrin. They formed my roots.
Beautiful! Your grandfather looks like a Greenwood (my mom’s mom’s side)
Val
Thanks, Val. This nostalgic story and photo gallery IS kind of up your alley, yours and T.J.’s. Susan says my uncle looks like one of her relatives, so maybe after all, we Roos are all related way back.
We did have some Greenwoods on my mother’s side, but I think they may have been friends of the family, not relatives. I so often wish I could turn aside to these relatives and ask these questions to refresh my memory. There’s a photo in an album of a young, handsome, kind- looking man and on the back of the photo is noted “1913.” I have no idea who he is. Sad. I fear one day 100 years from now someone will see my photo and go, “Who is that woman?”
This is a kind and loving tribute. You were very fortunate to have them in your life. Happy Father’s Day! Gwynn
Yes, I was fortunate, Gwynn. I always knew that. It has been said that we choose our own parents, before we are conceived. If that is the case, then I chose wisely.
They were kind and loving, educative and funny.
So very sweet…
Happy Father’s Day,
R.
Thank you, my dear. They were unique and special people — inimitable. They would no doubt say so themselves — that kind of humor.
Happy Father’s Day to you, R.
ya, i’ve seen Public Television, and some animals are always The Food. Zebras, antelopes, and those other things that hop through the veldt, look like deer, taste just like chicken. And, in the end, the Bear always gets his salmon. Whoooo took Mr. Little Rabbit? I could give you a very short list. .. I grew up in mortal terror, brought on by my neighbor playmate, Marsha, that an eagle would swoop down and grab me by the shoulders and carry me away. As Yusuf Islam used to sing, back in 1971, “Hoo, Baby It’s a Wild World”. Don’t be food.
At least the eagle did not swoop down and carry you away, Gary. I lived in fear that Philip was going to put another worm down my back, as he did when we were 5.
Poor baby bunny. I guess that’s why rabbits are said to multiply like, well, cats, actually.
It IS a wild world (I have that album, btw) — and it’s not so easy avoiding being food.
Thanks for commenting. I do appreciate it.
This is lovely and I look forward to dipping up and downstream here! I came over from Susan Scott’s site. I have nobody in the basement (living in the north we only have a crawl space) but there are beings who resides within the tall white spruce that guard this property. They are fierce and loving, impatient and gracious, salty and sweet. I’ve just started to meet them for they need me to prove my worth with my own discipline but they are visiting more and more.
Thank you so much for coming to visit, Jan. And I thank Susan for connecting us.
A tall white spruce — how lovely. I’d love to meet those residents — how wonderful for you to have the comfort, protection and guidance of those special beings. That they are visiting more and more proves you are upholding your end, for they will meet you halfway. And, I’ll bet they have many stories to tell.
So good to hear from you. I do hope you will return.
Apropos snakes and their habits of significance ( and in celebration of Susan Scott’s introduction), and your love for stories you might be interested in this short one, and log ago blog I once wrote to kick start a collection. You can find it here http://philipparees.wordpress.com/2012/05/08/kicking-off-the-collection/
Thanks, Philippa. I appreciate your coming by and commenting. And I am honored that Susan Scott has thought to pass the Cascade Blog baton on to me.
Thanks for the link to your collection kickoff story. I will go read that in a few days. Presently, I am working on a special Father’s Day blog post — so, after that.
I do hope you will visit again.
My Dear Friend,
I take my hat off to you in reverence to your sensitivity and willingness to speak out on such matters. Yes, I testify that such things still happen in the Deep South. There are still some unwritten petty rules that have not been changed, and one of them is parking. No, black man or black woman would think of parking before a white person’s house without asking. If they did, either his or her car would be towed away when he or she returned. It is hard to change the mindset of some people.
But since living in Europe and also having travelled extensively in the United States, Canada and all of Europe, I have come to the conclusion that the problem is not a color problem. It has nothing to do with race but with superiority and the egoistic belief that another person is better than someone else, and you see this throughout the whole world.
By the way, I love your report about the snake. I am not a snake fan either. I would have grabbed Wallie and we would have stayed in the house until someone removed the snake. You were very courageous.
Shalom,
Patricia
I found it poignant, Patricia, that the man thought he should ask before parking in front of my house. I was so touched by that incident that I felt I had to speak out on it. I had not given thought in recent years about who can or cannot park in front of whose house. I kind of thought it had gone away — Brad Pitt in New Orleans and all that. But, I should know better just from my own experiences as a Yankee in the Deep South, an uncomfortable feeling. But, yes, you are right. Another aspect of worldwide discrimination, I think, is fear of the unknown other — instead of approaching in love, the other is approached in fear. Moreover, whenever I find myself thinking I am superior I commit some terrifically bumbling act that puts me right back in place.
Ugh — snakes. I never encountered a snake until I moved to Florida in 1994, and there I saw plenty. I keep my distance, as I know they can leap and climb. I don’t know how courageous I was in this instance. Wallie and I made a wide circle around it and stayed out of the backyard until the next day, when I dared to gaze upon it from a distance. It was shorter, and as it turned out, all that was left was an empty skin, so apparently it did shed its skin and slither on. It’s the first I’ve seen in my yard, but I know they’re around.
As always, thanks for sharing your thoughts, Pat. It means a lot to me.
Serene posting except for the shrill squawk of the owl – methinks a baby rabbit was taken suddenly. I have always hated nature films where some poor unsuspecting prey becomes dinner for another. If I had to find my own food you can bet I’d be vegetarian.
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for commenting, Lola. I actually find the call of the barred owl fascinating; I suppose I find them comforting because I’ve heard them all my life, except when I lived in Southern California and Florida. I, too, do watch nature films or any TV news story where animals become prey. I turn it off. I do eat chicken and fish, but as long as it doesn’t look like what it was — I suppose that’s like sticking my head in the sand. I eat mostly vegetarian meals, though.
I hope you stop by again.
Hey Sam, yes it truly is sad that in the 21st century anyone need live in trepidation of anything.
I’m hoping that the current generation and their children will finally have the knowledge and courage to really live free. free of fear in all of its ugly forms.
We can hope, Val. Yet it is in human nature that some be other than kind. My observations seeing the younger generations less xenophobic are encouraging, though.
Thanks. You Canadians seem to have a pretty accurate overview of us Americans. 🙂
Ooooo, Wallie is a handsome pooch indeed!
Dogs, owls, snakes, baby rabbits … all have a sense of trepidation about them, (although Wallie more a sense of anticipation) as well as the man from Alabama.
I must confess initially I thought that ‘barred owl’ must be a mistake and you meant ‘barn owl’ but I checked and indeed a screeching scary sound!
May the man from Alabama know that skin colour is just that – and that our blood is red irrespective of skin colour. May he encounter more humans such as you …
Thank you Samantha … another enjoyable post! Some creatures furry, some feathery, some scaly –
Wallie IS handsome, Susan — and anticipatory. The dog in the bottom picture looks most like him, except that Wallie has a tan nose tip. Rabbits have a lot of predators, I’ve realized from watching them around here — dogs, cats, raptors, snakes, lawnmowers….
I thought the same as you about the barred owl: first I thought it was barn owl, then I thought it was the Shakespearean Bard Owl, poetic, akin to Edgar Allan Poe’s raven, but, no, it’s barred. I find their call at once comforting and unsettling; I love hearing them, though. They call to their mates across great distances. They’re quite loud, especially when one’s in the tree right outside your bedroom window. I was honored by a visit from one one night while sitting on my front porch. It circled in and sat on the utility wire. I wrote a blog piece about it, XLVIII. “The Owl,” January 24, 2012.
Yes, it is cultures that differentiate us rather blood, skin color.
Thanks, Susan.
So what type of snake curled up in your yard? Is it hunting the baby bunnies? Do you have poisonous snakes there? Sadly, there are different snakes across the U.S. you never know what type of snake you will find and whether it will hurt you or not… no matter what color it’s skin is.
I don’t know what type of snake it was, Gwynn; probably a rat snake. They are harmless. I have seen garter snakes, which look just like my garden hose, and black snakes here. Garter snakes are semi-venomous. I believe I read today where we have rattlers and other poisonous snakes in Delaware.
Re snakes of various skin colors, I felt sorry for the man from Alabama that still had to live in that fear. I parked in front of a store on the street of a nearby city once and the woman proprietor came running out and told me I couldn’t park there if I wasn’t going to shop there. I never did shop there.
Thanks for stopping by here, and you can park wherever. No problem.
My Dear Friend,
What a lovely way to spend your time and to think that you are now one step closer to getting a piano is a very pleasant surprised.
I believe we turn the events of our lives when we start moving toward those precious dreams and desires that we have in our hearts. You, for example, met a couple that you had been desiring to meet, Rick and Tish, and they are musicians. How wonderful that at this moment a connection appears.
Personally, I love reading about the past. History can help us prevent making the same mistakes if only we would examine it. So, I too am interested in what you find out from those letters from the soldier who made it through the Civil War. I am quite sure that you will read and sense the changes that he went through. That could also develop into a series of articles from one soldier’s perspective about the Civil War.
As for your ghosts, I will pass on that one, but I do believe there is a heavenly realm that is too vast for our minds to comprehend.
I enjoyed reading your article, enjoyed watching you enjoy yourself, and I could really see you laughing through the way you wrote your article.
You did an excellent job of describing your scenes.
Shalom,
Patricia
Yes, I agree with you, Patricia, that achieving our dreams starts by taking the steps towards them, with passion and intention. Where there’s a will there’s a way: I believe this.
Regarding history, why repeat the mistakes of the past if we don’t have to, by learning from others’ experiences. In the movie “The Monuments Men,” Lt. Frank Stokes, played by George Clooney, states, “You can wipe out an entire generation, you can burn their homes to the ground, and somehow they’ll still find their way back. But if you destroy their history, you destroy their achievements, then it’s as if they never existed. That’s what Hitler wants, and that’s exactly what we’re fighting for.” This is a powerful statement and cannot be said enough — especially in these days where in the U.S. teaching of history, literature and the arts diminishes daily.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments here, Patricia. I always look forward to hearing from you and learning from your wisdom.
Shalom,
Samantha
Excellent as always!
An excellent town and week, Bettielou. Thank you. Richard Bailey gave me a litany of praise for you, Bill and your mom. We had a nice chat. And those butterflies — my mother, you, your mom and Richard Bailey’s sculptures. Do you know that when I came home and sat on my porch, a small yellow and a large translucent blue butterfly flew around me. I think your mom and mine have met in the afterlife, dressed in hats and gloves, of course. They were probably headed to luncheon somewhere.
And thank you for stopping by here and commenting, as always.
Lovely post Samantha thank you. Sounds an extremely edifying way of spending a Saturday morning! Lovely also to see snippets of friends you’ve mentioned in times past.
I am much hopeful that the piano will manifest! Am putting a bead on that – piano piano piano for Samantha … piano piano piano.
Thanks for noting my snippets of friends mentioned in times past, Susan. I didn’t want to go through their stories again, obviously, since they are already posted here on my website, but they deserve mention. It’s amazing how we’re all connected, though, and especially in this small state.
It has indeed been a lovely and edifying Wednesday evening, Saturday morning and week.
Thank you for the piano piano piano bead — I’m hoping, hoping, hoping. I believe one will turn up. Then I’ll have to practice every day. Should be my pleasure.
Hi Samantha, It sounds as if you had a lovely time exploring the history of your town. Plus, you hinted that you may have found a free piano for your home. I’ll cross my fingers for you. I am disappointed that you didn’t describe your hamburger though. 😉 You are very fortunate to live near such history. I know you will enjoy it!
We are steeped in history here in our town, Gwynn. It is all around us; I live in one element of it, my Victorian home in the historic district. As I keep telling you, you have much fascinating history out in the Seattle area, too — the Native Americans and your Poulsbo Norwegians, to name some. I describe the burgers in my first paragraph, Gwynn. Mine was prepared medium rare topped with bacon, tomato and red onion. Of course, I took half my meal home — huge portions.
I have been enjoying this town, its history and its residents, most of whom have grown up here, for 12 years now. I think I will continue to.
Thanks for the wonderful food. Home made potato chips, burgers, and whatever that was on the top of the Odd Fellows Facebook page, I want some! Now I’m so hungry I can’t stand it, and then it turns out it’s in Delaware, and I’m in Wisconsin.
There’s so much history around us. Those who preserve and appreciate it are a gift we will someday appreciate.
I think that was the bread pudding on The Odd Fellows Cafe FB page. I’m not sure. I should ask Howard Johnson, the owner. The food definitely was delicious that night (always is). Of course, I took half of it home. No way I could eat all that in one sitting. One day they’ll figure out how to send packets of food via email from Delaware to Wisconsin.
Yes, history creeps up on us; that is, it’s not old when we’re young, and then we get old and our buildings, whatever, have suddenly become historic. To this end, some of our beautiful Victorian homes in our town were torn down for parking lots before they got old enough to become historic.
Thanks so much for coming by and for commenting, Gary. I truly appreciate it.
Cheers, Gary. I was hungry, too, and didn’t get any of that burger. Samantha took it home instead of bringing it here to the blog so I could have some.
Nice to meet you. Thanks for your coming by.
–Moriarty, the Phantom here
Hi Samantha, I posted a response yesterday but I see it’s not there .. I’m glad I came back to check.
I loved this post and this wonderful remembrance of your mother. May your memories linger longer as you visit and look upon the azaleas and tulips, the irises and roses. Mother Nature and our mothers belong together. Their influence is boundless. May Emma rest in peace and when she comes to you in the night or day, know that you are loved and that she is looking upon you.
Thanks for reposting your comment, Susan. I find it so frustrating when my comment on someone’s blog vanishes into the ethers.
Definitely my looking upon the azaleas, tulips and roses contributes to lingering memories of my mother; always will. Yes, mothers and Mother Nature — I think that’s how my mother viewed it.
I do feel her loving presence once in a while, and her boundless influence.
A belated happy Mother’s Day to you. You are so blessed with those two handsome, talented, loving boys. Methinks they reflect your wisdom and motherly caring.
This is a wonderful tribute to Emma your mother, Samantha, thank you for sharing it. May the memories linger longer. Mothers Day is long past but every day is mothers day really. How lovely to note the rose buds, irises, tulips and azaleas. Here’s raising a glass, milk in the morning, wine in the evening to mothers, past and present.
Can’t figure out why this one didn’t post right away, except that your ID is susan rather than Susan Scott. I like the glass-raising ritual — morning milk (make that coffee for me, with milk in it), and evening wine. Yes,
My mother loved her flower garden. She would be appalled at my negligent maintenance. So, I hope she doesn’t visit on one of my off days. 😉
I’m so happy for you that you had such a loving and wonderful relationship with your mother. She sounds like an impressive lady. What a wonderful tribute to her.
Yes, I am thankful, Gwynn. She never thought of herself as being impressive, though; that’s the thing. She was modest and unassuming. Thanks.
Oh, what a beautiful tribute to your mother. I love the way you started this piece with the image of her wanting to pour milk on the ceiling, as that must be how it feels to celebrate Mother’s Day without her. Sorry to be a day late, my friend, but a belated happy Mother’s Day to you!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
I have our friend R to thank for reminding me of that opening line, Kathy, that I wrote to him in a 2009 email. He was sorting through his emails recently and deleting them, but resent this one to me, because it struck us both funny. The interesting thing is that my mother would have laughed, too, had she still had her sensibilities.
No need to apologize for being a day late. I’m still behind on my blog reading. I’ll get to yours; I read 8 Lame Adventures this weekend with about as many more to go. Oh, well, now that it’s warm and muggy here, I found reading about the NYC snow actually refreshing.
Thank you for the Mother’s Day wishes. I hope yours and Sara’s was wonderful.
Hugs from Delaware,
Samantha
My Dear Friend,
Tears gathered in my eyes as I read this. You have put so much heart in what you said, your descriptions of Emma, and how loving she was as a person. She was indeed your best friend, and I know that you miss her.
My mother’s first name was also Emma. She was named Emma Elizabeth when she was born. The Emma came from my grandmother’s mother on my mother’s side of the family. It took three or four years before the memory of her not being here on this side of life faded away. Until that happened, Mother’s Day was a day of loneliness, because I missed her. It has been twelve years since she died, and what I treasure most now is the beautiful memories that I have of our last years together, and especially the time she spent with me in Germany, two years before she died. She came alone, because my daddy was unable to come due to poor health. But she stayed a month, and we had the best time in the world. I will never forget that time.
Thank you so much for sharing this, because it made me look in my treasure trove and think of the wonderful times, I had with my mother.
Shalom,
Patricia
No wonder you were so moved by my story of Emma, Patricia. Such a precious time you shared with your mother in Germany, indeed one to be treasured always. My mother’s real first name IS Emma, although she went by her middle name, Roberta. She was named after her mother’s mother, Emma (who came to the U.S. from Lancashire, England) — one more thing to add to our list of things you and I have in common — great grandmothers on our mother’s side named Emma. My daughter gave my younger granddaughter the middle name of Emma, after my mother, Sophia Emma.
Thank you for your touching comment, Patricia, for sharing the story with me of you and your mother.
Dearest Samantha,
Beautiful tribute to your mother on this special day.
I enjoyed this completely.
Happy Mother’s Day to you.
Ever,
R.
Thank you, R, for the Mother’s Day wishes; and I am completely happy you enjoyed this post completely. I think Emma would be completely pleased to know you have revisited her here.
Ever, S.
So the Liebster award has tracked you down, Samantha. I like the name Lobster Award much more. I once Googled it trying to determine who was the mastermind behind this one, but I think they’ve either joined the witness protection program or have just dropped out of the blogosphere completely. I thank you for the shout out. That was very kind, but like Kathy, I am spread so thin, I don’t think I will ever get around to answering that scroll of questions. My head would explode. And I certainly would never answer them honestly. It’s like the offspring of an invasive procedure. But again, thank you for thinking of me.
I agree with you wholly, V. I did a Google Lite search on the Liebster, and couldn’t come up with the mastermind or demystify how it’s supposed to work. I may do that Lobster Award blog post, though, after I’m finished Wallie-sitting for my friend’s Bichon Poo. He and I walked past a church today and he picked up a little cracker and crunched on it. I think he ate a church wafer; maybe I should’ve given him a sip of wine when we got home.
Clearly, I am spread thin, too, otherwise I would be reading your blog — my favorite. I will catch up.
I’m so glad to hear from you, though. Thanks for coming by.
Well, thank you so much for the nomination, my friend. Fascinating to learn these details about you. I didn’t know you were from Philadelphia, or if I did I’d forgotten. It may take me a LONG while to do what this award asks me to, I’m afraid. I’m not really into the whole meme thing. But, again, I thank you, and I’m honored. (You know, I’m beginning to realize the emails about your post come about a day late. I received your email on Thursday, but didn’t see the email notification about the actual post until Friday.)
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Nor am I into the meme thing, Kathy. By the time I got done following all the rules and writing the Liebster Nomination post, I felt like I had won the Lobster Award, and have considered writing a post about that, with a big, red lobster image on top. I almost didn’t do the Liebster; I think it’s merely a way of networking, almost like a chain letter rather than an award. Anyway, that the nomination was actually an award confused me, too. I wondered who was on the jury to elect me the winner. Someday I may figure out how to put the Liebster badge in my sidebar. It might look impressive. Just thought I’d pass it along to one of my favorite bloggers, plus my post gives a shoutout on my blog to the blogs I follow. One of these days, I’ll set up an actual blogroll.
I subscribe to notification of my own posts, and there is a day to three-day lag. These come via Feedburner.
So, you are welcome, Kathy. Your blog is among the best.
Hugs from Delaware,
Samantha
I do not even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post
was great. I don’t know who you are but definitely you are going to a famous blogger if you are
not already 😉 Cheers!
Hello Samantha, thank you for this post. I will link to your 2008 story hopefully on the weekend. There was a novel I read some years ago, I wish I could remember the title. It was so hard to read of the cruelty of one to another. The export of slaves from West Africa to the US and UK. It was told by a woman and the ‘journey’ to the steps of English parliament in about the 1700’s or 1800’s. I’ve tried to find it on internet with no luck. I will keep on searching. It really brought home man’s brutality yet among it all the desire of the slaves to retain dignity. It was a riveting read though extremely painful.
I haven’t seen the film, but intend to though I am nervous about seeing it. I know that son David took his girlfriend to see it a few months ago on her birthday but she was too distressed to watch it all the way through. Those of us who have learned of slave trafficking must never forget. By not forgetting we may as you say develop kindness – I would add compassion to all who are no different to us. Our blood runs red no matter the colour of anything else.
True, Susan, what you say about compassion towards all. I guess I didn’t find “12 Years a Slave” shockingly distressing, though distressing indeed, because I am familiar with the plight, living here in the U.S. But, I will say, the Deep South can still be a scary place, even for a Yankee (a Northerner) such as I, when you’re in the bowels of redneck country. I am so glad I got to research and write this story. I learned a lot. I have always thought of my pen as a sword — to use it as such is my primary objective in storytelling.
I’d be interested to know what you think once you’ve read my magazine piece. I emailed it to Beatrice about a month ago, and she really liked the story it told.
I would love to read that book you mention. The story line sounds familiar. But, I don’t recall the title or author. Let me know if you find it.
Thanks for your deeply thoughtful comment, as always.
My Dear Samantha,
I was visiting your website this morning because I wanted to see your Liebster Blog award and decided to look through it. The poem by Thomas Wolfe is a very fitting poem for The Scheherzade Chronicles. It leaves a swift taste of the melancholy that causes us to think and reconsider our paths and what we are doing to fulfill our purpose in life.
Your introductory greeting brought to memory my own childhood. I thought about the days when I visited the library and walked through the aisles grabbing books to read. I even smelled them to see if they had the aroma of the land or the subject they were addressing.
And it reminded me of Mr. Jake. My first personal storytelling experience was written on my sub conscious my this man. He visited my grandparents on my mother’s side and whenever he showed up, I and my sisters and my one brother would sit at his feet and listened to him tell stories about what he had seen. I was fascinated by his art of storytelling and in some ways that is a part of my own delivery of a story.
Your introductory is excellent. It drew me in and I couldn’t help but respond. Because you drew me in, I decided to subscribe to your blog articles per email. I am not able to log on to your thread because my priorities at the moment will not allow me, for lack of time, but I do love reading your articles and now am assured that they will come into my email box whenever there is a new one.
Keep writing. You are telling your story in so many ways and there are so many people who need to hear it.
I personally am happy to have met a fellow traveler on the journey.
Shalom,
Patricia
Dear Patricia,
Thank you so much for coming by and your very kind compliments here. Coming from you, it means especially a lot to me. Re my introductory, isn’t it interesting that sometimes we go back to read something we’ve written a while ago, and are impressed, like, “Did I write that?” (emphasis on the “I”) At least I have these wonderful occasional experiences.
I did answer some of your comments in private email, so I won’t repeat here, but, yes, I love this Thomas Wolfe poem. It is probably my favorite poem. Every time I read it, it opens new doors for me, gives me new thought perspectives. It is deep and melancholic. I had one of the peak experiences of my life about 30 years ago when I had just finished reading “Look Homeward, Angel,” about the marble angel, and thinking about how I wanted to be a professional writer but creating obstacles for myself. I went to Jerome, Ariz., and there met a guy all covered in white powder. He took me up the hill to his studio overlooking the open copper mining pit, and there, in the back of the studio, lay in a wooden box in a bed of straw, a white marble angel he had just sculpted. This was my sign to write, no matter what.
So wonderful you had Jake, the storyteller, in your life. Definitely a sign there, I think. Kids need to be told stories. Clearly, your beautiful, flowing writing and deep thought show that you had many, many storytellers in your life — in person and in print.
Thanks for signing up to receive my posts by email. You will find that the notification will give you the initial lines and then you have to click on “read more.” Will this be convenient for you? I like people to come to my site, but I could change that.
And, yes, so special to connect with you, to meet a fellow traveler on the journey, a rarity, indeed.
Shalom,
Samantha
I have opened comments again due to the arrival of sincere visitors who would like to respond to this story about storytelling. And, I absolutely love comments; I love knowing what you think, hearing your stories and exchanging ideas with you.
Plus, I am encouraged that I have a reader or two, therefore a purpose to continue writing my blog.
Thanks!
My Dear,
You have brought back so many memories that I have not thought about in a long time. I remember the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793. I remember it from my history class. We had a History teacher that was courageous. Even though it was illegal to mention it and it was not in any of our History books, (I am from the Deep South) he dared to teach us about it.
I have heard and read about 12 Years a Slave and hope it comes to Europe because I would love to see it.
What I didn’t realize though were that the majority of the slaves never made it through all the way. That is so sad. The United States and especially the Deep South has lots to answer for. They destroyed many lives and tore apart people in families that will never be able to know their ancestral background, and I for one am one of them.
Thank you for this informative article.
Shalom,
Patricia
Well, I’ll tell you, Patricia, back in 1967, my husband was sent to U.S. Navy training school in Brunswick, Ga. We came down from the Phila., Pa., area and lived on St. Simons Island for four months. I was blown away when an older woman, a native Georgian, said to me one day, “You never call a black man ‘Mr.’ You always call him by his first name.” But that kind of discrimination didn’t occur only in the South. We had our own de facto segregation in the North, as well, as you know. The history we were taught in school was white man’s history — women and people of color apparently didn’t do anything worth remembering. Your history teacher was indeed courageous.
But, the worst, to me, is the separation of slaves’ families. I cannot imagine having my children torn from me, or my husband, or anyone close to me. And, at least I have the ability to trace my ancestry.
That William Still had the wherewithal to record these escaped slaves’ stories is a treasure for us. His mother escaped slavery in the Deep South twice — the first time with her four children and was caught. The second time, she had to leave two of her children behind to expedite her travel. She got to New Jersey, got married, had more children, among whom was William Still. Many years later, when he was recording the stories of escaped slaves, his brother from the South showed up in his office.
This is a fascinating story. I learned a lot. I’m so glad I had the opportunity to write it.
12 Years a Slave was playing here in Cuenca for a while, but the day we planned to see it threw us a monkey wrench. We missed it. Alas. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that I didn’t know or remember the bit about the Fugitive Slave Act or that slaves were not really safe unless they made it to Canada. Fascinating post, my friend!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Thanks, Kathy. It was a good movie, factually accurate. I don’t suppose Netflix ships to Cuenca. I didn’t exactly pull my story facts from my mental archives, as I’m sure you realize. I didn’t know about the Fugitive Slave Act, either. It was enlightening research. The Congress enacted all sorts of compromise legislation back then — ante- and post-bellum. I am fascinated by the one where they decided they’d free the slaves as long as they could ship them all back to Africa. What most blows me away, though, is William Still’s interviewing the escaped slaves, recording their stories and publishing them in a book. I have the book, got it from Amazon. Also, I found out that I grew up on the land outside Phila. where Thomas Garrett’s family farm was. The home is still there. This may account for the egalitarianism among present day inhabitants there — Drexel Hill, Pa.
I will return to visit you soon — at your blog. Have been following three friends who spent April taking the A-Z blog challenge. I was busy enough reading and commenting; I don’t know how I could have written daily posts, too.
Hugs from Delaware where it’s dark as night and rainy.
Samantha
Mankind continually treats others of different races cruelly from kidnapping people from Mexico to work in the orchards and fields to forcing women and children to work in the factory “sweat shops”, to underpaid females in todays time.
Or look at what Hitler did to the Jewish people or the cruelty taking place in Africa or even in Russia. Why is it that some people consider people of different races a threat? It truly is sad.
Thank you for reminding the world of the cruelty that existed. Hopefully, people will grow kinder and smarter… EVENTUALLY!
It’s not only race against race, or culture or religion against the like, but also it carries across to cruelty to animals, Gwynn.
I don’t think it will ever change, for the most part. It’s in human nature. All we can do is learn our history and by so doing make a few others aware, and maybe derive more kindness.
Anyway, you have no idea (’cause you’re not sitting here) how beautiful the dogwood tree outside my window looks at this moment this evening, in full white blossom against the slate gray sky in the rain. A metaphor for kindness indeed.
Wow, what a wonderful assortment of tea opportunities you have had. It’s fun to see those grand spaces and places and learn a bit about the buildings’ histories, as well. And your header tulip photo is lovely. Happy Easter, my friend. Hope you are well!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Happy Easter to you, too, my friend.
Yes, I love teas, Kathy — the occasions and the food, of course. The people of the Smyrna-Clayton Heritage Assn. did an amazing fundraising job, and continue to do so. It takes passion for such an achievement. And, I must admit, I am blown away every time I enter the Opera House. It truly is beautiful. The other thing I didn’t mention is that the third floor, where the art gallery and/or meeting rooms are (where you get a stellar view of the town), and the clock tower have been restored. And, naturally, every time I am out walking, just as I get in front of the Opera House, the clock strikes, and it is loud.
Our hospice chaplain, Mary Beth, took that photo of my white tulips just after my mother died. They are lovely, and are about to bloom again this year.
All is well here, though my computer was down for a couple days — some odd glitch with it. You know how computers are — they take odd notions sometimes.
Love and hugs from Delaware,
Samantha
Wow! Sam. What a beautiful story!
Love and Hugs,
Val
Teas are such beautiful and girly occasions, Val. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Love and hugs,
Samantha
A lovely reminder of times past co-mingling with the present Samantha thank you. The histories were really interesting with the detail that you’re so expressively good eg the fire-man frozen to his ladder on Christmas night. A good hot cuppa would have revived him immediately.
Next year in March-THREE hours of tea and tipples, sandwiches and scones… Maybe I’ll put that on my calendar.
Indeed, Susan, do put next year’s tea on your calendar. You would love it and what a treat to have you actually here as a guest.
The fireman frozen on the ladder came from research for a story I wrote in 2003 for our daily newspaper, The Wilmington (Del.) News Journal, on the occasion of the re-opening newly restored Opera House.
Thanks for coming by and visiting my afternoon tea story.
Your renowned care for prosperity is most evident in this beautifully presented piece. Unlike that particular red, carmine, that was actually made from blood, used by Turner, on the robes of Kings and Cardinals, even on the lips of screen goddesses, as well as on the canvases of many other famous artists without a care for the future, only serving their immediate desires, your careful arrangement of words have been smithed in such a way to preserve these stories for antecedents through the ages.
As ever,
R.
Your renowned care for prosperity is most evident in this beautifully presented piece. Unlike that particular red, carmine, that was actually made from blood, used by Turner, on the robes of Kings and Cardinals, even on the lips of screen goddesses, as well as on the canvases of many other famous artists without a care for the future, only serving their immediate desires, your careful arrangement of words have been smithed in such a way to preserve these stories for decendants through the ages.
As ever,
R.
Three’s the charm…
Your renowned care for posterity is most evident in this beautifully presented piece. Unlike that particular red, carmine, that was actually made from blood, used by Turner, on the robes of Kings and Cardinals, even on the lips of screen goddesses, as well as on the canvases of many other famous artists without a care for the future, only serving their immediate desires, your careful arrangement of words have been smithed in such a way to preserve these stories for decendants through the ages.
As ever,
R.
Thank you for your kind compliment, R. And, I do feel an obligation to use my storytelling gene inheritance to continue the family tradition and record these stories for my blood progeny.
As ever,
S.
Ah, descendants, yes. At least you didn’t say decadents.
Actually, R, I do care for prosperity, and I believe, based on my recent Irish findings tracing the family tree, the genes of those antecedents preserved and handed down the storytelling instincts to me, for which I am most grateful.
As for your iPad’s choice of words it thinks you dictated to it, well, I’ll read on to your proofread and edited versions.
A very lovely historical review. A film rolled in my mind of you, the sole entity, (played by the youngest granddaughter), gazing into the dark green watered pool and bouncing from chairs to chaise and from divans to settes in the old home, until a voice awoke me, sharply, “Just sit still!”, then I continued to read and enjoy this event filled story.
Ever,
R.
Actually, R, I behaved according to proper afternoon tea protocol. Had I not, no doubt I would have been thrown into the pool. As for my younger granddaughter, her mom and I agree she would like afternoon teas, too, though she’d be a bit more active than I at that age.
This is a fun article. You have a wealth of history in your family and in the area where you live. I can tell that you LOVE tea sandwiches. I’m not sure we ever ate tea sandwiches out here on the west coast. However, I definitely can visualize the grand event. Lovely story.
I can tell, Gwynn, that if you DID have tea sandwiches out there in Washington State that you’d be the first to the tea table. Thanks for commenting so quickly to my new post, so hot off the press I hope you didn’t burn your fingers.
Actually, you DO have history out there. There’s that Lewis & Clark thing where when the expedition got to the Northwest and didn’t like fish, the salmon abundant in the rivers there, they ate their dogs.
It was a lovely tea. You would have enjoyed it. Thanks. And yes, those sandwiches love me as much as I love them; I may as well strap them around my waist as eat them. 🙂
Ah, Robert, what a wonderful poem! What a sweetie you are! And thanks so much for sharing it with us, “Samantha.”
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
I could not but share dear Robert’s poem about my dear mother.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Kathy. I have forwarded your message to Robert. I know it means a lot to him.
Hugs from Delaware,
Samantha
My Dear Samantha,
Time goes by quickly and yet the love and memories we have for those that have planted so much in our lives never fade. This is a beautiful tribute to your mother. In many ways she still accompanies you on your journey; you cannot see her, but she’s there watching you grow and learn as you master your own life.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you for this beautiful message, Patricia. –And I can literally feel my mother accompanying me on my journey, instructing and correcting me, as usual, and hoping I’ll get this life thing down eventually. 🙂
On another note, I have been reading and learning a lot about Italy recently — inadvertently (?) stumbled into this; always liked the Italians, though; so have been thinking about you and will email you about it when we’re not so occupied with the A-Zs.
Shalom,
Samantha
It’s me again Samantha. May that ship shift from the silt – I WILL meet you and Robert in person, one of these seasons.
Sending love from Johannesburg on this chilly Sunday morning.
Thank you, Susan, and thank you for believing we WILL meet. We both look forward to it.
Love to you from another gorgeous spring day here in Delaware. Supposed to be 80 F, 27 C today with leaves and blossoms budding on trees and tulips about to bloom.
Two years … have just lit a candle in my study for your mother, you and Robert for the anniversary of her death. This is a most moving poem and tribute. How lovely that Robert and Roberta are so ‘connected’ – this is very special indeed.
I wish I was there (were there?) to have a glass of chartreuse with you both.
How kind and thoughtful of you to light the candle, Susan. It IS interesting that Robert and Roberta are connected. She really enjoyed him; he made her laugh. He is an artist as was my stepfather, and so was Roberta, so she and Robert connected that way, too.
Ah, sharing the glass of chartreuse with us — that’s worth another trip to the U.S., Susan; or our flying to you (when our ship gets unstuck from the silt and comes in).
Thank you.
Robert’s poetry IS lovely and very touching. I’m sure your mother is applauding Samantha! It is hard to believe that she has been gone two years already.
Yes, time flies, Gwynn, as it were.
My mother is applauding Robert, at least with a big smile, for sure.
Thanks.
Dearest Writer,
An honor to have my words displayed here, on another day budding chartreuse.
The Red-headed Woodpecker still visits me daily…
Very happily and fondly remembering Roberta,
R.
Thank you for your kind thoughtfulness, R., and for your touching and beautiful poem.
S.
Dear Samantha;
The Bardo and the lit candle for 40 days commemorating the passage from life here to death wherever denotes the hugeness of it all. and, to be recognized by ritual…
Thank you,
Susan
Thank you, Susan. I really appreciate your visiting and explaining more about the Bardo. I did not know about the lit candle for 40 days ritual. I like that. That passage is huge, more than I can grasp at this stage. After my mother died, per our hospice chaplain, Mary Beth’s suggestion, I did have a house clearing party six weeks after her passing. All my supportive and spiritual friends who had known my mother came, as well as our hospice team and one extraordinary healthcare aide. This potluck dinner party cleared and lifted the vibrations in the house. It is a wonderful thing to do and a special way to honor the deceased and help them on a peaceful transition.
Incidentally, tomorrow, April 11, is the second anniversary of my mother’s death.
I have to agree that many mistakes are opportunities–to grow, to change, to, indeed, be transformed. Thanks for these beautiful insights, my friend.
Hope your week is going well. We just got back from the beach. I’m trying to sneak in a visit with you before my workshop gets going. Sorry to be so rushed.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Thank you for taking the time to stop by and comment, Kathy. I am so glad for your visits.
I envy your getting to go to the beach; I haven’t been in a couple of years. After my summers as a child at the Jersey shore and living 30 years in So Cal, I do miss it. I am so excited for you and your and Sara’s workshop. Hope she gets well fast, and I wish you both the best.
Hugs from Delaware (about 15 min. from the Delaware Bay beach, not the ocean, alas)
Ah… metamorphosis, a treasure to look forward to.
With the fearlessness and innocence of a child, knowing and not knowing anything, I aspire; to do anything, go anywhere: seeds blowing in the wind and and roots shackled, ensconced in the loamy soil of this old home, cast off, cast away…
Ah… Metamorphosis a treasure to unfold…
Ever,
R.
Metamorphosis: A gift to open and unfold. It is a constant, daily, unfolding of a gift. There is no avoiding, escaping, and there is always more.
“There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. We seek problems because we need their gifts.” –Richard Bach, “Illusions.”
Sometimes I ask myself, “What did I do to deserve THIS gift?” But, there it is.
Thank you, R. Ever and ever.
I love this. Plain and simple. The tree will put out new shoots from that stump. We are constantly re-inventing and preparing ourselves for that Take 2. (Btw, I love that line about a mistake being “simply an opportunity for a take two.”) And I think — and hope — that the same is true of the afterlife.
Thank you, T.J. The “mistake being an opportunity for a take two” I learned from a spiritual master I followed. It is comforting to know that, and allows you to let yourself off the hook. It supports us in taking positive action, putting out new shoots, making a fresh start.
I, too, hope the same is true of the afterlife.
Very thought-provoking post Samantha. I truly can relate to your mind-set and thoughts. As I age and crazy things go wrong with my body, my family’s health history springs to mind and scares the daylights out of me. I have heard many beautiful thoughts about passing too as it seems the body enjoys the relief of passing from a caterpillar to a butterfly to flit off into nature. Lovely post.
Thank you, Gwynn. The Susans truly inspired me on this one; their thoughts enhanced those I already had, experiencing my parents’ death. Experiencing their death made me less afraid of dying. Mostly, I’m afraid I’ll miss something here on earth. But, from my experiences with the supernatural, I suspect I will still be able to witness what’s going on, if I so desire. I may just not be that attached, though.
BTW, FYI 🙂 , the sunset photo on this header is on Redondo Beach.
Samantha, how delightful to come across your post now – which I’ve been wanting to do all day but nary a chance this side in San Fran.
It sounds like you experienced a pang at the sight of the tree all transformed from living to not living. Or maybe I’m projecting. That’s the feeling I got anyway. But, like you, I would have been hopeful that the tree will seed again even if another place, nearby to offer its shade yet again.
Yes, living in the now is difficult but not impossible. You were living in the now when you came across the tree. When you felt hope. When you make blueberry muffins.
When you write, when you experience… Every moment is a now moment –
I love the picture of the book which encapsulates the end and the beginning.
I love your post and a big thank you for it. I’ll work out a way to send it to Susan in Az.
Garden of Eden Blog
“I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree.” Yes, Susan, you projected the pang correctly. Over the past few years residents of our town and our town itself have been cutting down venerable trees. When I count, the fallen trees probably number close to 100. Some of them had to go, because their roots were pushing up streets and sidewalks or because they were rotted. But when I awoke one morning to the sound of chain saws at the little Episcopal church across the street, that really needled me. They cut down four historic Norway spruce because the squirrels were a nuisance. Now I have to look at the back side of a church rather than trees. I raised a following among local horticulturists and gardeners and I wrote a letter to the editor of our town newspaper, citing lines from Joyce Kilmer’s poem: “Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.”
The squirrels planted four walnut trees in the flower bed in front of my porch. I planted one in my backyard, gave one to my hospice nurse, donated one to St. Andrew’s Episcopal Boarding School (setting for “Dead Poets Society), and just last week donated one to a local historical estate. They all were beautiful, healthy young trees and I could not countenance their being chopped down. I do love trees, for the quiet peace they give to us humans and to all the critters who make their homes within their branches.
Re sending this post to Susan in AZ, you can simply forward your email notification to Susan, if that’s how you receive it.
The picture of the book I got from someone’s Pinterest page. It must be an old book, out of print; I can’t find it at any booksellers.
And, yes, I am most definitely in the now when I write. Writing takes me away from all else, as I’m sure you have experienced.
Do enjoy San Francisco — what a wonderful trip you have had — and I hope you have a pleasant flight home. Speaking of “now” moments, what a special joy to talk with you on the phone. We must do it again. 🙂 Thanks for your thoughtful comment here.
Your comments about writing are very interesting. I wonder how much the time of the year/season impact what we write. Does the cold or wet or hot weather impact how we feel and think, therefore it comes out in written word? Or how much does our own activities or mindset impact how we interpret another’s writing? Does your friend see your writing as passive aggressive as that is their personality coming to play?
I think the good news is that winter is nearly over so with the advent of spring starts another life and another was of seeing things for our writing. Thanks for your thoughts.
Indeed our surroundings invest themselves in our feelings and thereby our writing, Gwynn. An element of my Blue Deer Writers Workshops will be time spent observing and sensing nature and our surroundings.
Regarding our observations of others, we must be watchful to not overlay our own personalities and experiences on others so that we see a reflection of ourselves, as the moon reflects the light of the sun. Some years ago a friend gave me shiatsu treatments and he always paused to clear himself first, before he began. He set this example of wisdom for me. I remember to consider it when reacting to others.
Thank you for taking the time out of your pressing A-Z schedule to visit and comment. I appreciate it.
Oh, so sorry to hear about the dead puppy on your lawn. I remember a recent comment you left on my blog about your wanting a dog. Wish you could get one. I don’t know what I would do without mine. Hope you are doing well, my friend.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
I suppose this cold, snowy winter it’s been good that I haven’t had a dog, Kathy. My yard is not fenced, so I would be out there every few hours with the dog. Of course, they make these really long, extendable-retractable leashes now…. I do miss having a dog, though I want to be sure I can afford the vet bills. My friend Martha, who has Wallie, also has a big orange tabby cat, Gilmore, who was offered to me out of his litter of kittens, but I couldn’t afford to take him either. Yet I get to see him all the time, too, and he once stayed at my house for a few days when Martha was out of town. So, I suppose I have become an animal aunt for now.
I am doing well, Kathy. Thank you so much for your loyalty in stopping by. It means a lot to me. I have gotten “blogged down” — behind on my blog reading; I’m promising myself to take a day to just read blogs and catch up. I do enjoy reading them.
Hugs from snowy Delaware,
Samantha
Maybe the pup’s purpose is to remind us silly humans that life and time are precious and that we need to use both to the fullest.
Puppies are play machines and we need to play too!
A good point, Val. I have a good friend who views life as play; a constant reminder for me. And, she and I have such fun when we’re together — yielding many laughs and good memories.
The fun play is one reason I like having Wallie around. He’s a funny one.
Thanks.
A delight as always, Samantha, thank you, capturing those thoughts and transcribing them onto paper. Virginia Woolf: Nothing is real until it is written.
Poor little pup, dropped too soon, a life unloved and unlived. Maybe this is true of many of us. Alive but not living really, wrapped in our ego, barely reaching out to another. Spring is such an opportunity for change and for joy and life to burst forth. The winter cycle to reach completion allowing a new one to emerge. Imagine if we had those cycles within! Well, we do, but imagine if we paid more heed to them, allowing for completion of each, emergence of each, in fullness and ripeness.
I too am in the dark as I write this…is that a green light winking I see up ahead? Is it a ‘go’ sign or just a friendly reminder of green growth about to burst forth? Maybe both…
Thanks for the Virginia Woolf quote, Susan. I tend to agree with her; writing it makes it concrete; that is, grounds it, provides solid vision for our thoughts.
I like your analogy to the pup and to aligning ourselves within to the cycles, to being cognizant of our cycles. A welcome reminder. And isn’t it interesting that at this equinox you have chosen to visit the other side of the equator.
The green light also relates to The Hermit holding the lantern at the far end of the tunnel, as you probably know, on the Tarot deck.
Thanks, as always, for your thoughtful wisdom.
As I sit reading, in the dark, face lit and readers reflecting back onto the glowing screen I enjoyed this composition on a particular theme.
Always keep dancing toward the green light.
Ever,
R.
Will always keep dancing, R., and toward the green light or any light.
Thanks as ever,
S.
You have hit the nail directly on the head when it comes to abuse. Subtle abuse can be especially hurtful as the person being abused may not at first realize what is happening… and slowly like darkness closing in one can no longer see the sunlight. Sadly, the abuser may not realize they are in the wrong… control is a controversial subject that needs to be looked at more thoroughly. Hopefully, the abuser will educate themselves and stop the abuse. Great points, well made.
I hope you read both magazine stories, Gwynn. Thanks for your thoughts.
Abuse by any other name is still abuse. Were the abuser to turn about and seek education (s)he would lose control.
Therefore the need for advocacy of raising awareness and for support.
Yes, I have read both articles and studied the patterns of abuse due to my own family situations. Subtle abuse, that one is almost not aware of, or doesn’t feel “good” can almost be more damaging than outright abuse. When you are being hit you obviously know what the problem is, but when the abuse is subtle through words it can be equally painful or worse as one doesn’t know exactly WHAT the problem is and how to define it. I’m very familiar with this type of abuse.
Our dear Gwynn,
Samantha and I are both sorry to know that you suffered abuse. We are glad, though, that you have taken positive measures to learn about the pattern and to reverse the effects.
One positive outcome of your experience is that it enables you to understand and help the North Kitsap…Coalition kids.
Now … it’s warm and raining here today. I think I left our blog snow shovels outside; I’d better find them and put them in the closet before Samantha finds out and wallops me over the head with one.
Cheers,
M.
Hi,
An excellent article. I personally read the book by Brownmiller, Against Our Will and I am current reading a very interesting book by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ph.D. entitled Women Who Run With the Wolves. This book also addresses some of the issues of abuse.
The film, Deep Throat, I remember very well. I was an inquisitive young girl when it came out and I registered in my mind the cry that it caused in our society. I am very sorry that Linda Lovelace had to experience abuse, and I must admit that it is soothing to know that she did not do that on her own free will. I truly hope she can overcome her pain.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thanks for reminding me of “Women Who Run With the Wolves,” Patricia. I have been wanting to read that — one of many on my long list.
Interesting about “Deep Throat”: When the film was released, my magazine editor wanted me to do a think piece on Linda Lovelace, so he took me to the theater, in a sleazy section of Hollywood, not far from Hollywood and Vine, where we watched the movie. Not my usual arena, but I’m glad I went; I learned about and was able to raise awareness of abuse. And then in 2009, I was thrilled to see someone in Delaware chosen to ride on the inaugural train with Joe Biden and Pres. Obama, someone who not only was advocating awareness of intimate partner abuse but also lived in the town next to mine — Quincy Lucas, now Quincy Rose. How could I pass up writing such a story.
The last I heard, which was some years ago, Linda Lovelace (Linda Susan Boreman) was married (to Larry Marchiano) with children and living in New Jersey or on Long Island. She died in Denver, Colo., April 22, 2002, of injuries sustained in an April 3 car crash. She was 53.
I should say, too, Patricia, that Linda Lovelace told her side of the story in the book “Ordeal,” published in 1980.
Thanks for commenting.
Shalom,
Samantha
I read both the pieces Samantha and they are as relevant today as ever. The bullying and need for control happens on the macro-level as well. Sadly the abused often colludes with the abuser which is why it is so important that resources are made available to the abused, so that they know it is not right on any level.
As the comments have said, we need to be vigilant at all times.
Thank you for reading the pieces, Susan. Yes, they are just as relevant today. Their frequent resurrection raises awareness hopefully to prevent the abuse of bullying and need for control from reaching the macro level.
Yes, as the stories tell, the abused often colludes with the abuser: the abused thinks she (or he) is doing everything wrong, that she/he is to blame — as the abuser would have her believe in his/her effort to maximize control.
Great words, as usual, Carol.
They speak of the truth, Marsha. Thank you.
Very, very powerful stuff, Samantha, and something that we unfortunately can’t relax our vigilance in regard to —
Yes, powerful, T.J. Can’t get much closer to the human condition than that. And the causes, effects and remedies cannot be reiterated often enough.
Thanks for coming by and commenting. It’s good to see you here.
Samantha
An important issue, for sure, Carol. I thought about this in political terms. Made me think of Putin. Sad what’s happening over there, though I don’t know the answer.
Hope you are staying warm, my friend.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Yes, I do extend this to thinking of it in political terms, too, Kathy. I am dismayed at what’s happening in Ukraine. I have pondered this, and I don’t know the answer, either.
Thank you, my friend, for stopping by. Snow again today, but the good news is the neighbor girls, young teenagers, have shoveled my walk; so, I’m staying warmer than I expected. What a treat.
I’m finally catching up and commenting on your marvelous blog posts. Just as I read the one about your dogs’ unpleasant antics, I learned that I will be Wallie-sitting for six days for my friend’s Bichon-poo, Wallie. So far, he has impeccable house manners.
Hugs to you from Delaware.
Samantha
I’d like to help. It’s snowing again, and I can’t find the snow shovel again….
M.
Sigh….
S.
Thank you for addressing this important topic.
With the pervasive dog whistle sociopolitical milieu imposed on us by the nepotistic and dynastic that are in power, seeking more control, dehumanizing others in order to engorge their coffers; it is no wonder, the mob, whether or not they are kind, generous and compassionate people, take on petty tyrannical tactics to feed their starved sense of self importance.
Yes, it is well to be informed and vigilant.
In the words of Madonna, “I’m not your bitch, don’t hang your shit on me! ”
Ever and sincerely,
R.
In this specific instance of individual, often intimate partner abuse, it can lead to physical or spiritual death.
Thanks for reading and commenting, R, as ever.
LOVE your strategy, Carol! Very wise–though I can’t imagine being bored by that in regular conversation. Have a great week, my dear!
Well, now, if I do visit you in Cuenca, Kathy, we’ll have lots to talk about. 🙂
Thanks!
Oh, I’m so glad to have a post from you. Like Robert, I’m impressed with your ability to incorporate history and culture into dialogue. Well done. I, too, am a fan of ballet, but not much of fan of sports, I’m afraid. And I love borscht, too, by the way. My kind of post all the way around. Do you suppose they have purple cows in Sochi?
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Kathy, I’m so glad to hear from you. I will be visiting your blog soon. I suppose incorporating history and culture into dialog is what I bore people with when I talk to them about it. So, I write the words into someone else’s mouth instead. I know my subjects are esoteric, therefore that makes me glad to find you, a reader who shares my interests.
Thanks for visiting and your supportive comment.
Hugs back to you in Ecuador,
Carol
A wonderful post Samantha thank you! Trolling through the centuries of time with you was very special. Your observation on leaders being undermined by those within their groups was also of value. It has happened, is happening and will continue to happen. The time and place may change, circumstances and the people change but the dynamic barely changes.
You missed the purple cow? You’ll find it next time …
Thank you for such an engaging post!
Thank you, Susan. This is true — throughout history, the undermining of leaders from within their own group. This is the nature of the human beast.
As for the purple cow, our father always kept us engaged in thinking, and clearly we inherited our imagination from him. 🙂
My dear Samantha,
Wow… You really have been busy for the last six weeks…
Very nice, the history flowed like a cinematic documentary in my mind.
The treads, the bites and the baguettes delicious and tied together tidily and colorfully with a voluminous purple bow.
Thank you for writing.
Ever,
R.
Thank you, R. Your encouragement keeps me writing. Invaluable.
As ever,
S.
Oh, my friend, I wish I were in a position to help, but we are currently living on social security, as well. I will share your post via social media and check out the link you share. You are in my thoughts and prayers!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
I figured you two were living on Social Security, Kathy. So, I understand completely. And this is why Ecuador appeals to me so much.
Thanks for your kind thoughts and for sharing.
Hugs from Delaware
I’ll go purchase a lottery ticket… it would benefit us both.
Thank you, Gwynn. I have made the same request for you silently.
Things must turn around for many of us. This stuff’s getting really old and tiresome.
Love and Hugs.
Would that I could I would grant your request and an instant…
Here’s wishing that someone will.
Ever,
R.
Thank you, R. I know you would. Thoughts and prayers count.
Ever,
Me
Good Morning My Dear Friend,
This interview is filled with good, healthy advice to writers who have just started writing or those who are very insecure and lack faith in their writing. Of course, it has many highlights for those people who have fallen into the caregiving role, but this interview also points out so deeply the use of writing as a catharsis, a way of dealing with what a caregiver goes through.
I like your choice of authors. They reflect the development of your own writing style. Having read Chekhov, Tolstoy, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, and Wolfe, I too have gleaned some of their nuances into my own writing style. I feel it is so important to let new writers know the importance of reading, and I feel you have done that eloquently here in this interview.
Your interview is altogether an excellent all-around view about some of the intimate characteristic traits of Samantha Mozart, and I really enjoyed reading it. Great interview.
May you continue to write and prosper in the year 2014.
All the best.
Shalom,
Patricia
Thank you, Patricia. Yes, those are the points I wanted to address re writing, the fundamentals and that writing can be cathartic.
Glad you like my choice of authors — yes, they do reflect in one’s work. Hemingway said something like, “You don’t have to tell of your experience; it comes through in your writing.” That is true, especially of a good writer, and these great authors’ rhythm and flow come through, too.
Ah, yes, the intimate characteristic traits of Samantha Mozart — that was fun.
Thank you for your well wishes for 2014 — and to you, too, Patricia.
Shalom,
Samantha
I so enjoyed this Samantha thank you! I actually came across it a few days back while in Plett and read it then but was unable to comment on ipad. Thank you for reminding that we each have a story to tell but we need to show up and put down, edit, and get rid of that inner critic. And what a good idea to read it aloud and get a different perspective.
Thank you – an elegant piece of writing …
Thank you, Susan. Sometimes I read a blog post and then am unable to comment at the moment. So, I’m glad you came back. Getting past the inner critic and the part, where, after you show up you think you have nothing to say — writing through that, sort of like tromping through the weeds to the castle — is what I want to address in my writers workshops.
Having Alex in my computer read my pieces aloud helps me to find those syntax or punctuation errors. I know what I’ve said; he doesn’t, so he doesn’t overlook them.
Thanks for your compliment. I am looking forward to reading your next book, certain to be as well-written as your first.
After too much Pinot Noir, one might find a bunny tail in that drawer. But where has the hare gone? Ah! To the wine cellar I suspect. I can’t imagine this writer’s protagonist, allowing herself dehydration, to cleanse the creepiness of a lonely existence in a drawer.
Sounds like a good excuse for my protagonist’s getting stuffed in a drawer, Marsha. When I return to writing my novel, I have to include that scene.
In truth, I HAVE included that scene of his getting stuffed in a drawer. I figured I’d have to, given that I hadn’t seen him in so long. The actual scene is more silly than creepy — but that’s me, and no one gets dehydrated. I wouldn’t let that happen. 🙂
LOVED hearing your thoughts on writing, Samantha–especially your process. Sounds a bit like mine. And how cool that you are interested in starting a nonprofit that would focus on storytelling and the humanities!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
I’m always comforted to know that my writing process sounds like that of another writer’s, Kathy. I suppose it reconfirms for me that I am a writer. I am currently reading Gay Talese’s “A Writer’s Life,” and find that his process is similar to mine, too — yes, but on a higher scale and he is far more disciplined. Plus, he wears impeccably tailored suits and I wear sweats — there’s a difference right there.
And, yes, I would love to establish and implement/execute that Scheherazade Chronicles humanities/storytelling nonprofit. It seems a ways down the road, but maybe that’s my way of creating obstacles for myself. I’ll look at that more closely.
Thanks for coming by. I read your year end post and then didn’t comment — I got interrupted. I’ll be back.
Hugs from Delaware,
Carol
I love knowing you and reading you magical words.
Marsha, thank you. You are so kind. It’s good to have a follower or two. You’re the best.
Love, Samantha
My dear Moriarty,
It is most excellent how you have uncorked and served generously the thoughts of our favorite writer. Buoyed by broad smiles I enjoyed the melodic movement of the prose in this purposeful post.
I rose with Samantha to pour a perfect draft of Pinot Noir.
Here’s hoping Samantha’s protagonist is set free of his drawer of confinement.
Thank you for this revelry of a review.
Ever,
R.
I assure you the conversation was my pleasure, R.
I will say that the idea of being stuffed in a drawer creeps me out.
How about you and I vanquish that potential in rendezvous to revive the revelry via converting another bottle of that Pinot Noir to a vaporized state.
I remain,
Moriarty
My dear R,
“I write these few lines through the courtesy of Mr. Moriarty.”
Thank you.
S.
| I do not even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was great.| I do not know who you are but definitely you’re going to a famous blogger if you are not already 😉 Cheers!
Thanks. And thanks for stopping by.
Samantha
Oh, Samantha, what a lovely Christmas story. I’m so sorry to be late getting here. We had guests from the US and then did some traveling between the 25th and New Year’s. I’m trying now to get caught up. Hope you are staying warm, my friend.
A belated merry Christmas and happy New Year!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Hey, Kathy, I fully understand. I am always behind on my blog jogging as you know. And, I knew you had guests — what fun; so realized you were otherwise occupied.
Thank you for complimenting my somewhat dizzying story. Always good to hear from you.
Wishing you a merry year. Hugs back to you in Ecuador.
Samantha
Samantha, evidently your post office mistress doesn’t seem to know that a house flattened the Wicked Witch of the West years ago… too bad! The witch evidently was reincarnated to your post mistress. Your story, as always, is enchanting. I feel that I am there with you.
My wish for you is a Christmas filled with laughter, good friends, and maybe a glass or two of wine! 😉 Merry Christmas… Gwynn
Gwynn, the postmistress can’t do much about the Post Office Witch, the clerk who ranks so high in the union. Telling anybody in town that you’re going to the post office raises a good laugh and a sympathetic nod.
Glad you enjoyed my story. I felt like, at my friend’s home, I was in a 19th century time warp. Truly enchanting.
I will raise a glass of wine to you, Gwynn, tomorrow. Merry Christmas to you, too, and to your family.
Samantha
Just lovely Samantha thank you! Post offices! argh! my worst. Those queues. And only a few behind the counters.
Such a light lilt to this post, I so enjoyed it. How lovely to see Wallie again! please give him a pull of the tail from Susan in South Africa.
When I next raise a glass of, I will toast you and Moriarty and give thanks for your always delightful posts through the year.
It seems every time I go to our post office, Susan, I come home with a story to tell. Who knew I’d have such fascinating adventures in a post office.
Wallie doesn’t have much of a tail, but I think when he was gazing so deeply at me, he was really asking, “Are you ever gonna pick me up?” He is a rescue dog, and thank heavens he was rescued. He is truly a special dog. And, I will give him an extra hug for you.
Tomorrow I will raise a glass and toast you, with Moriarty, as long as he doesn’t get confused and actually make toast.
Thank you, Susan. I hope you are enjoying an enchanting Christmas Eve.
Lovely as always. You must introduce these lovely animals and their humans to Moriarity.
Love and Christmas hugs,
Val
For some reason, Val, Wallie’s human’s computer or smart phone freezes up when trying to open my blog site. So, I will email her this one (and then she can read it to Wallie). Moriarty, you know, has a fluffy black dog named Dickens. Wallie seems to get along well with other dogs — when he’s not chasing squirrels –, so maybe he and Dickens would get on well.
Thank you, Val. I wish you and Brian a wonderful and warm Christmas.
Love and Christmas hugs,
Samantha
What a good way to create a great time!
R.
Definitely!
Thanks, R.
Well … my 2013 is a little more enchanted for having read your, In the Christmas Tree.
Here’s wishing you love and happiness.
Ever,
R.
May your stocking be filled with love, happiness and enchantment in 2014, R.
Thank you.
Ever,
S.
Great announcement, Samantha! Hope you get lots of participants. I may have missed it, but did you say how many weeks are included for the $300?
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Thanks, Kathy. It’s eight weekly 2-hour sessions, or 16 hours. (And then of course we’ll all want to continue for another eight weeks.) 🙂 It looks like I have more online interest than Delawarean, at this point; but that may be because it’s easier for me to get the word out online. So far no local newspaper has taken an interest in publishing anything from my press release. And the local libraries don’t like to post that kind of stuff. I HAVE contacted a large, local writers group, but haven’t heard.
I disseminated my info on Dec. 12, so only a week ago.
If I do an online workshop I may add more weeks and shorten the hours; not sure what I’ll do yet.
Hugs back to you in Ecuador. May you and Sara have a beautiful Christmas with your friends.
Samantha
It’s snowing again today and I still can’t find the snow shovel. I think my dog, Dickens, buried it. In fact I’m pretty sure that’s what happened.
Sorry, Samantha, for losing the blog keys again and locking you out. Good thing R and Gwynn found them in the holly bush next to the door.
M.
It’s stopped snowing and the sun’s out now, Moriarty, so I think you can go outside and look around for the shovel before we get that big snowstorm. Somehow I don’t think Dickens buried it.
Did you look in the blog basement? It might be down there.
Samantha
It’s spooky down there with the boys in the basement.
M.
Lovely post, Samantha. I’m afraid I miss the snow at this time of year. It’s nice to have warm, spring-like weather all of the time–except for around Christmas. It just doesn’t feel like the holidays yet.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
I missed the snow, too, Kathy, when I lived in Southern California; I missed the change of season — the autumn leaves. That’s the one thing I like about living here — the turn of the seasons, especially fall.
I am so glad you stopped by. I definitely intend to visit your blog; I’m just behind, basically overwhelmed by mundane stuff. So, thanks for keeping in touch. It means a lot to me.
Hugs back to Ecuador, and I’ll be by to visit soon.
Samantha
I regret that I must close comments for this page due to an overwhelming amount of Japanese language spam.
Samantha
A beautiful post Samantha thank you! They are all so beautiful when looked at under the microscope. Each snowflake is different to the next one with their definite and delicate structure as you so poetically said. Beautiful too as they collectively blanket the land in its whiteness.
I love all that you have written about snow, it softness and centering, its purity and purpose ..
I love the idea of the serenity of snow as per Gwynn –
Thank you!
Thank you, Susan. It’s nice — and essential, I think, to give pause and quietly observe nature all around us. Nature provides for me my spiritual foundation. I suppose this is partly due to my spending so much time outdoors as a kid, and even now when I can.
It’s a joy to know someone in the southern hemisphere for whom I can give a momentary shift in seasons. 🙂
The soft melodious sounds of your wordsmithing here evoked a calm and dignified sense that enabled me to back the overloaded van, in the piling up snow off the Williamsburg Bridge in a slow and ordery fashion.
Once I exited th Hollan Tunnel I did not see another snow covered road until a few miles from Hopewell. It was then that I took notice of the cypress, cedars and oaks snow laden lining the road and the padding of the van tires on two inches of freshly fallen snow where gentle souls had filled in the tracks before me yet caring me home.
Yes, a calm and dignified post – thank you.
R.
Soft and melodious sounds — that is nice, R. I’m glad to know I achieved that, that the rest of your travels were safe, the roads clear, and that you were inspired then to observe the beauty and the sounds along your journey of the freshly fallen snow.
Thanks again,
S.
I enjoyed your posting. Snow is so serene. Your thoughts remind me of my childhood days when I loved sledding in the snow. Now, when it snows I love looking out through the snow covered branches at the serene bay as I sit holding my cup of hot tea wrapped in warm toasty sweaters.
Now, I’m hoping that what you have written is not contagious and the weather Gods will overlook it as I have to be out bright and early tomorrow A.M. Stay warm!
I’m with you, Gwynn, on enjoying the snow by looking out the window at it. It does remind me of my childhood — sledding, shoveling, my brother’s runny nose…. Our mother made sure we spent plenty of time out in the snow. We were not allowed to run in and out; it was out all the time or in some of the time. I remember the exhilarating feeling when we finally did come in and take off our snowsuits and boots, when our toes and fingers and face tingled in the toasty warmth.
Thanks. 🙂
Well … As I read this stranded on the Williamsburg Bridge the snow is piling up.
I love how you mapped out this essay and all the alliterations.
Snow jobbed,
R.
I don’t know how much mapping I did, R, on this post. It began as a journal entry in the morning and then made its way to this blog.
Yet, I am comforted to know it helped you find your way through the traffic in the snow.
Thanks.
S.
Reading your posting is such a treat. I love your detailed descriptions as I feel I have landed in your Wonderland. I’m so sorry that we no longer live at opposite ends of the same street so that I could come over and share that glass of wine with you and listen to your stories.
I smile, Gwynn. Yes, we could exchange many colorful stories. There on Camino de las Colinas, I did have the oak round table, the magic candle, the wine and the view of the ocean, the sound of the waves breaking on shore. Now you and I live at opposite ends of the country and these things live where Moriarty surfs in my mind.
Thanks. 🙂
My dearest Sam,
Incandescently interesting and illuminatingly imaginative. Entrenched with all you have written here, I will be pouring , drafting and climbing those stairs most often to enjoy your pleasing wordsmithing.
For now I must brush past the peeling paint as I descend the spiral stairs to proceed to the yard to do some packing and shipping, or, I could borrow your magic carpet and deliver the items in person…
Keep drawing keenly drawn portraits.
Ever,
R.
For one as imaginative as you, R, you may borrow my magic carpet anytime to fly wherever you wish.
Thank you.
S.
Out of the corner of my mind I noticed that you had added a few words to your first paragraph – luminous.
When my license to apparate expires I’ll be over to borrow your magic carpet. Had the fireplaces in your home not been covered over I would use the silvery floo powder to come visit – wicked – my broom is in the shop.
With deliberation,
R.
Can you not just magically go through the fireplace wall covering, R? I’ll betcha there’s still some silvery flue powder behind that wall. Magic carpet operating licenses expire only if you imagine it so.
Thank you for acknowledging me.
M.
How could I not, M. You live inside my mind.
S.
The description of your home is so colorful I’m sure I could find my way around with no trouble, provided I don’t slide down your staircase. The home I grew up in is now 100 years old, but it doesn’t hold a candle to the unique design of your home.
I can so relate to your desire to build a library. I grew up with one. Now, finding a home with enough wall space for all of the floor to ceiling shelving is definitely a challenge.
Plus, I definitely can see you and Susan sitting on your porch enjoying your glasses of wine watching your neighbors do cartwheels. Hopefully, Susan will venture to the west coast too.
Your posting is so descriptively written. Excellent job. I do so hope your Thanksgiving was bountiful.
Hi Gwynn,
Thanksgiving was bountiful. I hope yours was, too. You may find your hundred year old childhood home equally as charming as mine. This home is actually deceptively small, a little over 1800 square feet. The outstanding feature, though, are the bay windows in the dining room — they stop everybody who enters, and my bedroom above, with its hexagonal shape and corresponding bay windows. The bedroom would make a great music room, because the acoustical shape just embraces the music.
Anyway, all I need do now is give out my address and I’ll have every Nigerian emailer at my doorstep.
Thanks! 🙂
Wow, Samantha! Really a lovely piece so full of imagery – I saw you doing the Christmas tree; looking after Jiminy, Juniper and Jennifer. Those seven flights sound amazing – a tall thin house with all its creatures and chimneys and cellar… I so want to come and see it. I have a feeling I will … and I’ll bring a book or 3 for the bookcase. What an exciting project! Books are just about my best buddies…
Thank you for this lovely piece on place .. I so enjoyed imagining you in it.
Happy Thanksgiving! May it be a blessed time for you!
Wow, thank you, Susan — for the compliment and the thought of your coming to see my house. I would be so thrilled. I do have a guest room, with a king-size bed, so you and Neil are most welcome.
Books are just about my best buddies, too, along with music. I feel so blessed that I came into this lifetime with an appreciation and love for these two. These are among the things for which I am most grateful this Thanksgiving — and my special friendship with you, too.
Thank you Samantha! I too am so grateful for my love of music and books, friends, family…
I just checked with the husband re when he may be going on a golf trip – now it seems to be in June. Thank you for saying about his also coming .. but methinks if I do make the US trip, it’ll be on my ownsome! We can sit on the porch and look at the Camels …
Camels. Funny. I am sometimes amazed by the strange things I see when sitting on my front porch — even at 4 a.m. in a small town. I do hope you come, and we can sit on my front porch — possibly not at 4 a.m., though. How exhilarating your visit would be.
Gosh! Exciting. I look forward to your being able to make it, Susan.
Oh, Samantha this is a delightful post, my friend! Love the descriptions of your house with the many stairways. Sara and I sold our old home in downtown Lexington last March. It was over 100 years old but not nearly as special as yours.
Happy Thanksgiving, my friend. Hope you have a lovely holiday!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Kathy, so good to hear from you, and glad you love the descriptions. Writing this really proved to be a good writing exercise, worked the brain muscles. I’ll bet your home in Lexington was quite charming, as I have seen from the photos.
I wish you and Sara a happy first Thanksgiving there in Ecuador. At least you have an oven and all the necessary kitchen equipment this time should you be preparing the meal.
Hugs to you,
Samantha
Nifty.
M.
Cool. Happy Thanksgiving to you and Dickens.
S.
I love houses with history, and yours sounds as though it has plenty of it, Samantha. Plenty of personality, too. I enjoyed this post a lot — I could see everything so vividly. You might want to try reading Gladys Taber: she is another writer who writes beautifully about place.
I’m glad you enjoyed this post, T.J. It really was tedious to write and nearly became one of those writer’s darlings that got heartlessly flung down the stairs. But as with climbing staircases, this became a good exercise in writing.
I will check out Gladys Taber. I love reading stories about place. Thanks.
My dearest writer,
Yes, the music lasted right through to the last word…
Puissant plodding and formidable flinging…
Here’s hoping yours is warm and productive…
Cheers,
R.
Thank you, my dear R. Enjoy your Thanksgiving tomorrow and no doubt your turkey breast wrapped in Foyle.
Cheers!
Yes, perfect… and, perfectly enveloped with Foyle… The Hide…
Safe travels to you as you edge your way o’er the state line.
Ever,
R.
Yes, The Hide. How apropos.
S.
Goodness, this is SO beautifully written and SO, SO true. We don’t know where art comes from, and that is, indeed, humbling–something I’ve never understood but just appreciate for what it is. Mystery.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Kathy, I am humbled by your kind compliment, coming from you who write so beautifully and masterfully yourself.
Yes, the appearance of one’s work of art suddenly appearing on the page is humbling. Perhaps it comes because we do have the courage to explore the mystery….
As always, I am so glad to see you here.
Hugs back to you in Ecuador.
Samantha
Susan’s words are so wise and extremely appropriate. As we look into the world we may or not appreciate what we see, but once it becomes a picture it can take on a whole new depth and with it perception. You truly paint an interesting piece of art. Beautifully stated.
Thank you, Gwynn. The art is in seeing the picture or hearing the music before you create it in physical form. Yes, depth of character and perception.
The painters last evening inspired this word painter. Again, thanks for your kind compliment.
Lovely Samantha thank you! There is no answer to the paradox of Art reflecting Nature or Nature, Art. Perhaps they are both and not exclusive to each other .. and is Beauty is the eye of the beholder?
My eye perceives Beauty in your writing. It may be temporal but I like my reaction, NOW. This is what matters in my view …
So, something sacred in your post in amongst the mundane of the rolling grape …
It’s all the same, isn’t it, Susan — art vs. nature or nature vs. art: the sacredness of the rolling grape. Yes, I believe beauty is in the eye of the beholder and the reaction in the now, because it IS temporal. And as we change, so do our perspectives.
Thank you. I always enjoy your comments and deep thoughts. I wrote this one partly with you in mind.
My goodness you have a lot of intensive comment throughout your blog pages. After your visit to my blog I wanted to check out what you do at your site. Impressive!
I too love the fall, but as you are well aware having lived in So. Cal. we don’t get much of what I would call the autumn experience like folks back east get. I do miss that, but we on the other hand get our own weather perks.
My phone is not all that smart or popular for that matter as I rarely get calls on it. I do carry it with me when I go out walking, not so much with any expectation that someone might call me, but just in case something would happen. I’d hate to start suffering a heart attack or some weird health event. I like to have the phone just in case cause you never know.
You have a very nice site here.
Arlee, what a happy surprise to hear from you. I apologize for taking so long to reply; I haven’t been on my site in a few days. Thank you so much for your complimentary comments. And, yes, SoCal does have its weather perks, despite the lack of discernible autumn. I do miss the place.
I’ve seen some reasonable offers on iPhone 4Gs lately — not the newest model, but worthy, and I’m thinking I really should get one — just for emergencies and in case I spot a scene that would make a good photo. Hopefully soon.
Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope you come again.
too terrifically terrific Samantha! How I wish I was there! Maybe an online writers’ workshop? Hey? Hey hey!!!
I do’t have a smart phone – only a seriously old cell phone. Am thinking of getting with it ..
Hey, Susan. I definitely have considered online writers workshops. I might have more success with them than having 2 or 3 Delawareans come to my house. I have to put more thought into how I would do them, though.
For the ones in my home, I would start — first session — with participants sitting in a circle around a candle and orally telling very short stories. I also would like us to take short walks. So, I’m thinking about how I could virtually (online) do that. I’ll think on that. Shouldn’t be too much of a stretch. Also, I think I’m going to change the sessions from 10 hour and a half ones to 8 two-hour ones, so you get an extra hour for the same price. I have to think about how to work that online, too. The exercises would be much the same, except you couldn’t read your writing aloud, if you chose, to other participants — unless we all had Skype, and I don’t.
This is exciting. Let me work on it some more. Glad you suggested it.
Oh, and glad to have another member of the Seriously Old Cell Phone Club. 🙂
So much to love about this post, Samantha. Sorry it has taken me a day to get here.
First, I LOVE the purple chicken–fabulous image.
Second, I LOVE the sound of “shift and lift” in your waterfall description.
Third, LOVE that you are starting workshops.
Fourth, I LOVE to see my dear friend V here. You know she was one of two bloggers who were witnesses for Sara and me when we got married in April. Jackie Cangro was the other. She’s on my blogroll, as well. And damn, I need to update that thing. It’s been almost two years. Embarrassing.
Happy weekend, my friend.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Kathy, so good to hear from you. Always a pleasure.
Yes, waterfalls do actually make that shifting and lifting sound don’t they? Not only are the terms descriptive of appearance, they do make that sound. I hadn’t thought of that.
I knew V was one of your marriage witnesses; I didn’t know about Jackie Cangro, though. I’ve been a loyal Lame Adventures follower for some time; that’s how I got to you.
I should make a blogroll, rather than just having a list of blog links in the left sidebar. I’m going to change my whole landing page soon, anyway. But don’t worry about being late to my new posts. I still have one or two of yours to read. I will. Today would be a good day, but I’m going to watch a piano master class this afternoon and then to visit my stepmom — so, tomorrow? I hope. I look forward to reading your posts, so I’ll visit soon.
Hugs back to you in Ecuador. Hope you’re having a fun, adventurous weekend.
Fall is my preferred time of the year, too, until it segues into winter, a season that can be rather rough depending on the extent of the snowfall and how low temperatures drop. I just appreciate anytime of year when I am not sweating profusely or shivering uncontrollably. I don’t know if writing ever gets easier, but I do think that inspiration can strike at anytime and it has certainly behooved me to always be prepared. This is why I carry small notebooks with me if I ever need to jot down ideas. You suggest going out without a cellphone, but if I did that, I’d be bereft. This past summer, my cellphone carrier, Verizon, for a $30 upgrade fee, gave me an iPhone for free and the contract is only one cent more than what I was paying for my dumb phone ($60 vs. $59.99). This device has all kinds of apps. One I like a lot is called Notes. When I get ideas for stories and my notebooks are not handy I can quickly write them using that app and then email my notes to myself which is sweet. Much of my first draft of my recent blog post was composed in Notes over the course of a week while toiling at The Grind — one of the perks of having a job that only requires use of 3% brain capacity. The camera in the iPhone is also decent and convenient (D&C, if you prefer to give that a new meaning). I was out walking without my Canon point and shoot when I saw “the pumpkin” I needed to photograph to illustrate my Halloween blog post. I was very pleased to be able to take that shot with my iPhone. I prefer to embrace the latest technology. If not going totally gadfly with it, I don’t think technology needs to remove us from nature, but if used with restraint, it can enhance the experience.
V, not so long ago I thought, “Geez, everybody’s walking around at night carrying flashlights; their faces are all lit up.” Then I realized they were texting on their smart phones. I think you know that’s what I meant — the ones who walk right into you because they’re so busy with their noses in their phones.
I only have a dumb cell phone, but now you’ve sold me on an iPhone (the only smart phone I’d have), because the rate is not much higher than I already pay for my triple-play Comcast with phone. And so often they cut me off mid phone call. I pointed this out to them the other day — after they cut me off twice before I could get through to a rep — and it turns out their computers track this stuff, so they will give me a credit, but the repair tech has to come out and climb some ladders first. I do think it’s a great idea to carry — especially — a smart phone, and to have a camera always available. Also, I have heard and read about Notes (I always carry a little notebook and two pens in case one dries up) and think it’s an excellent app, which I have forgotten to download — I should note a reminder.
Many of my inspirational writing ideas come to me in the middle of the night, though, when I’d rather be sleeping.
Anyway, I’ll upgrade to an iPhone when my writing workshops draw standing room only crowds. Here in Delaware, a state with a population of three, we’ll see how all this works out for me.
What a pleasure to have you come by and comment. Thanks!
If you do upgrade to an iPhone, shoot for a promotional deal. I got lucky and Verizon came to me with the offer, but my friends, who all have the same phone as me, are paying $100 for theirs (before taxes and fees). Milton was flummoxed about that and he asked me why mine’s so cheap and his is so expensive. Naturally, I said, “Because I’m a white female and you’re a black male.” Fortunately, he has an excellent sense of humor. As I told him, I will tell you, ask your cellphone carrier for a better offer because once they have you hooked as Verizon has Milton and my other friends, they’re not going to just give it to them without their asking.
This is the game I just played with Comcast, V. You have to call every 6 or 12 mos., tell them you’re comparing various services and prices and then ask what they can offer. This time the guy gave me a special offer for only $10 more monthly than I had been paying, which was $20 more monthly than the previous year. So, I sighed and told him I would have to look elsewhere. That’s when he took the extra $10 off.
Were I to get an iPhone, I would not go with sneaky, ruthless AT&T, who are my dumb phone carriers, but probably Verizon, only slightly more affable to deal with; but, then, I’d tell them what I want to pay and would stay firm on that — well, I might bend a little for an offer including fresh-baked gingerbread topped with whipped cream. We’ll see. Right now there’s no rush.
Thanks for this guidance. We all need to stick together on these issues.
Samantha, this piece is fabulous as it truly is a treat to the senses. I applaud you for creating and naming your workshop. I hope you fill your living room! Excellante!!
Gwynn, my living room is big, so yours is a wonderfully big wish. Now, let’s work on my big dining room with the big table….
I must say that T.J. contributed at least an antler towards inspiring the Blue Deer name.
Thanks for reading and your kind compliment.
An amazing piece, Samantha. I especially love the last line…and the fact that you’ve named your new venture the Blue Deer Writers Workshop.
It had to Blue Deer, T.J.– the only way to break out of the box and to the truth of the inner you. The Blue Deer seemed to symbolize best my intentions, inspired by Natalie Goldberg.
Your compliment means a lot to me, in many ways, but especially since you know a lot more about writing and good writing than I.
Yes, delicacies of external stimuli.
Very, very agreeable.
I salute you.
R.
Thank you, R. — y estoy de acuerdo. Salud. Warms the insides.
R,
Oh, you must be my neighbor across the way, whom Moriarty pointed out to me, in that castle with the pointy turret hat.
We will tread across the meadow one fine day and pay you a visit. Dickens will join us. We’ll carry a light so hopefully we will not fall into the well along the way, or our names will be Red.
S.
Dearest friend, dear Old Light,
From an open window, wide, of the tallest turret, in the northwest quadrant of the palace in my mind, as dusk settles, a pall shaken and spread over the landscape, I, standing at the round dark oak table with a myriad and multitude of uncommon literate minds, a herd not unfamiliar to you, gazing northward toward your Paris-like lighted studio and conscientious cupola, as the church bells toll, we, each, raise an orb of hand blown glass, damming a perfect pour of a blend of fine red wine, with layers of dark red fruit complimented by hints of vanilla and mocha, to salute you, your low talker, the folly, your steep spiral staircase and your celestial catwalk to the moon.
With some success, trying to get there, early,
R.
“Truth is the bottom of a bottomless well.”
– Sebastian Venable
“Truth is the one thing I have never resisted.”
– Catherine Holly
Hello. The blog door was stuck, but I pushed my full body weight against it and got it open. The wooden blog, as it is, must have swelled during our spell of excessive humidity.
So, trumpets and drum roll please — our blog is now accessible once again.
M.
Thank you, Moriarty. Looks like somebody stayed up all night to work on our blog accessibility.
S.
My dear Sam,
Love, love… your new blog title – how apropos.
You are bountifully bound to preciously present twenty thousand tales here.
With much affection,
R.
I don’t know if I have that many nights left to live, R., but I devote thousands of hours to creating on the tales.
Thanks and with much affection,
Sam
My dear old friend,
I’ve always denied the legend that you’ve been around since Methuselah.
However, I do look forward to a myriad of many, many more narratives imaginatively recounted.
With adherence,
R.
Yes, R, and I am well-stocked with fuel to fire the imagination for some time to come.
S.
Well done, Samantha! My favorite line here is about Dickens barking “on general principles.” My dog Lucy does that daily. Heck, even hourly.
So, Moriarty is an actual person? I mean, the character is based on an actual person?
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Thanks, Kathy. Dogs do bark just on general principles — I think it’s one of the things their mothers pack into their little suitcases with them when they leave home.
Moriarty would be dismayed to learn that he’s not an actual person. After I imagined seeing him in his first couple of appearances here at my blog, readers began asking me — in off-blog contacts — how he was doing, what he was up do; so we are allowing his character to develop. 😉
Thanks so much for coming by.
Hugs back to you in Ecuador,
Samantha
Dear Samantha,
Thank you for writing the story of my great great aunt, Manon. As a writer herself, she would be pleased, I think, with your rendition of her work.
Oh — gotta go — Dickens is chasing that mauve and black raccoon.
M.
Dear Moriarty,
Thank you. I am charmed that you have commented.
Please, I hope you caught Dickens before he caught our blog’s mauve and black raccoon.
Samantha
My dearest Sam,
The music has outlasted my swift reading of your fourth act and echos hauntingly as I thumb characters here on my iPhone.
Sebastian was always a cop out though I quietly admired his way of going his own way; still, blowing off others with the excuse that you care not for their works, in the end is selfish and self defeating.
Your story within a story tied up very nicely with a very apt bow.
I do hope you will pursue, further, more and many tales of this sort.
I stand by my last two comments on your previous post.
Ever,
R.
P.S.
I will be rereading Flight Path now – a long cool draft, quenching a thirst of thirsts in the corners of my mind.
My dearest R,
Thank you for another of your ever supportive compliments. I do hope to write more tales of this sort, a number of which I have unfinished in my writing files. My dream has long been to write/publish more of this sort of fiction.
Yes, Sebastian did row against the tide and go his own way, Sebastian Flyte, that is, in “Brideshead Revisted,” as did Jude Fawley in “Jude the Obscure,” even if their actions were self-defeating. I suppose that’s what makes them such revered characters, their human failings.
Yes, the music does outlast the story; an element writers strive to achieve, integral to a well-spun yarn.
Ever,
Samantha
As always, Samantha, descriptively written. Does he read and comment on your writing any longer? An interesting and thoughtful conversation. Well done. Gwynn
Thank you for your compliment, Gwynn. Yes, Moriarty and I do have some thoughtful conversations. He’s an interesting character, though sometimes he comes up behind me and nudges me over the edge of the catwalk, while other times he brings me deep purple and white irises.
And, here, as you can see, to my surprise, he has read and commented on my post.
Your writing is so vivid and descriptive. How do I learn to be like you when I grow up? Well done. Take a bow!
First, thank you, Gwynn. I will take the bow after you read Part 4, which I will post soon, if I am still worthy of that bow.
As for you, you write well. I think Kathy expresses the answer to your question well, below, saying to write whatever pops into your head. That punctures the writer’s block. And then the writing flows from there.
I have always been imaginative, a dreamer, and I had to learn to harness that. Also, I was so shy growing up that I had plenty of time to observe. So, awareness of one’s surroundings and of the reactions of others is essential. This observance was always there in the back of my mind; to wit, my mother’s telling me not to stare at the people sitting across from me on the trolley car when I was 3 or 4. They fascinated me, and I was studying them. And I always listened, overhearing many conversations, which I still recall from my youngest days. Too, I think it stems from reading the classics all my life, the great poets and authors whose style I strive to emulate.
So, now, I think, “What would it look like, how would he react, what would it feel like, smell like?” attempting to show rather than tell.
Good question, Gwynn. It gives me something to work with when I lead my writers workshops.
Thanks.
But, see, your instincts are right on the mark. Sometimes going with the flow pays off. Don’t worry about me, my friend. I know how much time it takes to write!
By the way, you’re right about writer’s block. The best way to overcome it is to write whatever pops into your head. It’s essential, and often the only way!
Yes, it’s amazing what comes out of your pen and onto the page once you get past that initial thought, Kathy. Thanks.
I’ll be over to see you soon.
Oh, Samantha, I love the opening image here–beautiful language. Also, since epics always begin in the middle of things, this piece lends an epic quality to your tale.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Oh, thank you so much, Kathy. Your comments on my writing mean a lot to me, these from a fellow writer, one involved in a writers group there in Cuenca.
Beginning in the middle lending an epic quality to my tale, I had not thought of. It just seemed easier to me to start at my first thought and write it out from there. 🙂 It IS one of the ways to overcome writer’s block, I think — just start writing from that overpowering image in your mind, the one that’s held in front of you as by a friend going, “Ya can’t miss THIS.”
Hugs back to you. And I will be over to see you via your latest blog post. Writing this tale put me a bit behind.
Unhappily, I must close this post to comments prematurely. I have received more than 600 spam messages, mostly in Japanese, consuming more time than I have to dedicate to deleting.
My dear Ms. Mozart,
May I dare to compare thee to Shelley, Austen, Fitzgerald and Barth…
Devotedly,
R.
My dear devoted reader,
Dare all you like. (Mary Shelley, I assume to whom you refer.)
Love it.
S.
Dearest Sam,
Yes, it is Mary I refer to here. Though, Percy Bysshe Shelley is floating in the gossamer ether of the Kindle on my phone I have yet to find time for him; though at any given moment he may climb that darkened set of steps to be seated at the round table in the palace of my mind.
Your affectionate reader,
R.
Percy Shelley is one of my favorite poets. If you like Keats and Byron, you will like Shelley and Swinburne.
Sam
My dear Samantha,
Ah… well… as satellites continue to traverse a curved path and our globe keeps on spinning and tilting, your story within a story is intriguing, inventive, intelligent and intense – literature: accomplishing it’s ancient purpose of amusement and revelation.
Very pleased to find that there will be further insallments.
Ever,
R.
Thank you, R. High compliments. There will be more, true, one more installment to this “Sebastian Quartet.”
I loved this evocative piece thanks Samantha and the use of The Phantom… I could almost hear the music. Great conversations!
The responses of Gwynn and Robert echo mine. Wearing masks – the persona – has become almost automatic for many of us. I wonder why… fear of revealing our vulnerabilities? How refreshing it always is to meet someone ‘real’ …which in turn enlarges our own pleasure in simply being ourselves.
I guess we all wear ‘personas’ at times … sometimes it’s appropriate that eg the math teacher wears the persona of ‘teacher’ even though at heart he’s a cowboy. And ‘The
Butler’ – what could be a more graphic example of a mask.
Blue deer,
Puce hair,
Shadow dust,
Oh we must
Get out of here …
Love you poem, Susan. Would that we could get out of a lot of this stuff that’s going on these days, especially here in the U.S., the ever expanding void between the top one or two percent and the rest of us.
Thanks for your thoughtful comment — hopefully those fingers are healing and it’s getting easier to type.
My dear Susan and Sam,
Would that we could get out of here alive; abscond this valley of ashes rediscover our golden mirage and live our incorruptible dreams.
Ah, well… at least we have the green light…
Against the current,
R.
I’m working on it, R. Follow your heart.
Hi Samantha,
Great story you’ve got going here. Is this the second of a 3-post chapter, and part of an ongoing narrative? Do you have a synopsis anywhere, so I can catch up? Or maybe I’m just too tired. Only slept a few hours last night. Insomnia sucks!
By the way, I get social security, as well. One of my reasons for coming to Ecuador. It goes a LONG way here.
Hugs,
Kathy
Hi Kathy,
Thanks for stopping by. This post is Part 2, and my story will have a Part 3 and maybe a Part 4 — depends on when I can rein myself in. There is a link to a Part 1 (The Folly) in the left sidebar. I did set up this blog differently from most WordPress blogs, since I use a web host and then this sits on a WordPress platform, so it’s a little more difficult to navigate than your standard WordPress blog.
Older posts are in the Archives section. I started this blog as a journal of my mother’s and my journey through her dementia, obviously. But since she passed on in April 2012, I have diversified, as you can see.
Cuenca certainly sounds inviting. I will reply more fully on your blog. Part 2 of my post here, “Masquerade,” does address, apropos of your Ecuadorean-low-cost-of-living point, the middle class being squeezed right out of the States, the retired especially.
So did you finish your bottle of wine? You do realize that chocolate and red wine go quite well together. I’ll bring the chocolate goodies and you bring the wine. Those definitely are the necessities over salmon and chicken, wouldn’t you say?
You realize we all wear masks of some form. Heck, we even trade masks so we can fool others. People fear that if they see the real “us” that their friends will run with their tail between their legs as they scream for protection. It is too bad that “reality” isn’t advocated or taught.
So are you going to share the diary and family pictures? I enjoyed the visual pictures you create. Thank you!
I’m not one to waste things, Gwynn, and that includes wine. I look forward to our meal together.
Overlaying one’s own emotional experiences and manner of acting and reacting upon another is a way of masking the essence of that other human being from one’s own awareness. Some people do not wear masks and they deserve to be met with an open mind and be received at face value. This is the means to accepting another unconditionally.
This story is allegorical. In any case, I do not know that I can come up with a photo of my Phantom.
Thank you for your kind comments and your thoughts. I am always interested in knowing what others think, the many the facets of the whole. How else, then, can we communicate, help one another and achieve oneness?
My darling S.,
I’m thirsty… It is 5:45 am; a pale silver gray sky is peeking through cavities in the verdant canopy while a symphony of insects chirps with urgency an ambiguous song. As I sit reading with relish the network of fine threads you have so skillfully knitted I am beamed to your catwalk and hover and look keenly over your shoulder anticipating what, then you will do with the toys in the attic and the boys in the basement.
I witness a number of false faces every weekend; it is a ploy that buyers use to register that they will not pay the price you are asking for your goods: screwed up, distorted mouths and eyes with a groaning larynx – I prefer puce hair.
I was privileged to view another artist’s great work this past week – two faces was a running theme in, The Butler, a film by Lee Daniels – the butler was supposed to not show any reaction to what he overheard while serving the president, very well played by the subtle style and performance of Forrest Whittaker, and the Potus’s masks for the nation and the true faces they wore in their private lives, profoundly portrayed by John Cusack as Nixon, to name one.
Yes, next thing you know they will be gilding their loins.
Cheers to your fine storytelling.
As one does,
R.
My dear R,
“Toys in the attic” and “boys in the basement” — I like that.
I know you prefer puce hair. I prefer that the color be identified by another, more poetic name.
Looking forward to seeing “The Butler.”
Thank you for your fine compliment.
Ok Here I go…I am lost in the hallway trying to find my wine glass because I’m yearning for the taste of that Oak Barrel Red Wine. I am captivated by your artistic web and sitting on the edge of my seat until your next journey in the shadows of your pen. Until your next post, my friend…
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 Jackie, you are so funny. This rates 5 smiley faces. And I can so relate, as you know.
Thank you for this delightful and imaginative compliment.
Now I am compelled to write Part 3. It would be irresponsible of me to leave my three or four readers with PTSD, forever wondering how it ended.
See you soon, my friend.
Lovely work as usual. Moriarty is growing stronger….Do you think hemight soon be demanding a book of his own?
It is my intention that Moriarty grow stronger, T.J., as I’m sure you suspected. I have, indeed, considered his having a book of his own (and then the Netflix or HBO TV series …) and have collected chapters on his activities in his very own file. 🙂
Thank you, as always. Love your ideas.
Hi Samantha, since reading “The Folly’ last week, I smile every time I say or anyone says: ‘indeed, indeed’. Some years ago I bumped into an old friend who said what he most remembers about me is leaning into the fridge and saying: ‘indeed, indeed’. What a thing to be remembered by.
What a wise being is ‘The Phantom’. S/he always reminds us gently of what is important and not to be neglected. Please send The Phantom my warmest greetings. And ‘R’ too whose comments are always a delight to read, as are all for that matter.
I have a problem with the word ‘tolerance’ but I am just being my usual prickly self. I for one would hate to be tolerated. I wonder how races, groups, creeds etc feel about being tolerated. I know it’s usually used along with compassion but how I wish that word could be expunged from our language!
How lovely to read about your find and I look forward to reading about this in your next post.
Thank you for this delightful read Carol.
As always, Susan, I so enjoy your comments. Re the word “tolerance,” I as a writer — and even when I’m not writing — struggle in my reach for the most meaningful word. What I meant, as you suspected, was unconditional support and compassion, without expectations and judging. I got lazy and didn’t want to say all those words. But that was the meaning I intended to convey.
I will certainly give your warmest greetings to Moriarty. It will make him feel better about being my fall guy.
R, I know, will delight in your delight in his comments. He so appreciates your thinking and writing, and I know he will see your compliment to him here.
Indeed, Susan, I use the word indeed often. I think this was a bit of a gibe, in a positive sense, at myself.
Hello my bestie carol….
I love your stories, and I agree with Gwynn.
I can read anything you write carol because it always so comforting.
Always,
“Accumulation like piles of greasy crumbs”
Always a soft read….
Love ya carol….
Lind
I love comments. Thank you Linda. I should have figured you would relate to the pile of greasy spam crumbs. Sometimes I drop metaphors before realizing they are such, and then I am pleasantly surprised.
“Always a soft read,” thanks. I believe I’ve got some crunchier ones in my word pantry, coming soon.
Love you, too.
Samantha
You colorfully write about tolerance, compassion, and history. Evidently history is no longer studied, as if it were, maybe there would be more tolerance and compassion in the world. There is so much we can learn from others if only we would wipe the fog from our windows so we could clearly look out onto the world.
I truly hope you enjoyed your read, on into the night.
Gwynn — True, true. The pendulum (or clapper) is going to have to swing back — very soon, I hope.
You will hear more about my read into the night, upcoming.
Thanks.
Samantha
My dear Samantha,
Reading your thoughtful ongoing narrative while a gossamer precipitation rat-tatted on the skylight of my small dome of a tree house, somewhere in time just like the strength of wine, I was reminded of too many that care too little for compunction, compassion, thoughtfulness and tolerance, understanding, let alone history; their own or anyone else’s for that matter. Indeed, as it were, their folly, as a rule, has been to insist on the subordination and conformity of others. Much better, it may play, to have silenced some bells than to have to endure the broken record of their minds.
Keep no secrets and record the truth; make history.
In a bay window reading your imaginative tidings the darkness of night encroaches and I have read long into the light.
Ever,
R.
My dear R, Those that are better silenced are not bells, as it were, to begin with; indeed.
I suggest you read my friend Rocco’s comment on my “The Scheherazade Chronicles” page. He says it all. https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Scheherazade-Chronicles/143470255827764?ref=hl.
Thank you for reading long into the night.
Ever, Samantha
S.,
However, those I refer to that I have elected to turn off and the few that I must resort to tuning out, from time to time, firmly believe that they are the bells.
R.
R.,
I suppose.
S.
Oh TRUST ME… I definitely understand your desire to support a FRIEND!! I would not have thought otherwise. I know Tess will enjoy her lunch with you and Geri. I’m sending healing vibes her way. I hope she is a fighter as I think she is going to need to be. Take care!
Tess is a fighter, Gwynn, strong; and I will give her your healing vibes.
Thank you.
Samantha, your ripe pain bursts from the page. I’m so sorry for Tess. She is in my prayers.
I too have bartered over the years. My ballroom dancing instructor lived at my house and I received her dance instruction. It was an excellent trade in my mind.
Hopefully, the stress of having your friend in cancer treatment, is relaxing in the knowing that she will do better in time. Take Care!
Gwynn, thank you for your kind thoughts regarding Tess. I will be accompanying her, along with our Hospice Bereavement Director, Geri, for her treatment this Thursday, the 22nd. The three of us will pick up sandwiches — sandwishes? — and enjoy lunch together as we have over the past four years.
And, by the way, I don’t consider being with Tess bartering. It’s purely and simply supporting a friend. I would do that for anybody, whether or not they are open-minded enough to get it. I know you know where I’m coming from.
Thanks. And sorry for my delay replying to you. I’ve been preoccupied with other stuff this week.
Love, Samantha
My dear Samantha,
Your cheerful optimism is communicable.
Best wishes for Tess.
A lovely prayer from Susan.
Benefitting,
R.
Thank you, R. Cheerful optimism: I suppose there are some situations that are so traumatically off point that you just have to flat-out laugh at them.
Yes, lovely prayer from Susan, and I pray that I will be strong enough to deal with this new and despairing development.
Dearest Sam,
Never underestimate your power and strength. Tangible or intangible I notice it and remind you.
Ever,
R.
Heh-heh. Thank you, R. I often need that reminder.
And what a lovely Eco-system it is Samantha! I’m all for bartering. It makes sense to me. A fair trade .. which in itself gives rich meaning to life. It’s community building, an exchange of knowledge, talents, fruits .. Giving, giving back, receiving in kind or in a different way, but always ‘meaning’ attached and behind it.
And small kindnesses mean so so much. A smile, a touch, a friendly glance …
I enjoyed this post thank you .. A sadness to it in the beginning (all healing thoughts to Tess) yet ending on a hopeful and inspiring note. And yes, those eyes of Jeremy Irons get me every time.
Beautifully said, Susan. I agree wholeheartedly. This concept is important to me — especially the small kindnesses.
I will be going with my Hospice social worker/bereavement counselor (Geri) to at least Tess’s second treatment (she had her first yesterday) in two weeks, if not future ones. The three of us will enjoy a takeout lunch together while Tess is waiting around and undergoing the process. The roles of the carer and cared for are reversed. The three of always had such good laughs together. We want that to continue.
Those eyes of Jeremy Irons — of course, of course. I’ve added two more to that — Michael Kitchens and a new, young Irish actor, Andrew Scott, and as always, the inimical John Hurt.
Hello Samantha, my goodness what a wonderfully passionate piece, thank you very much. Music can evoke so much. I remember Andre Previn conducting on the South Bank in London many many years ago when I was living and working there. As the London Symphony Orchestra’s music soared so too did my heart and soul. I will never forget those experiences.
We grew up with classical music as children, my boys too. Such a valuable part of our education I think and for which I am grateful.
I think I so enjoyed the Colin Dexter Inspector Morse books, in part because Morse so loved his music.
Iso enjoyed your post thank you and the last line is powerful indeed.
Susan, thank you for this. I am glad to share my passion for classical music with another who has experienced a lifetime with it. It always makes my spirit soar, and the “Morse” TV series — and now the prequel “Endeavour” series — threads such moving music throughout — always interrupted by a dead body, of course.
Your experience seeing Andre Previn conduct the London Symphony reminds me of my experience (and my daughter’s) seeing a young (and handsome) Zubin Mehta conduct the L.A. Philharmonic.
I believe your boys’ music, so wonderfully creative and enjoyable, is inspired by the classical music they grew up with; you can tell — their music has texture and intelligence.
Maestro Daniel Barenboim giving a Beethoven sonata master class said that when you first play a piece you see the front of the mountain, then when you play it more you learn more about it and you see the back of the mountain; then when you see the front and the back of the mountain, you see more of life — you see how everything in life is interconnected. This is why, he stressed, it is sad that many American schools have discontinued music education. “Music isn’t just something you do,” he went on, “music is a way of life.”
Thank you, Susan.
You definitely show a wealth of knowledge of classical music. It obviously is entwined in your soul. Very well written and expressed.
Yes, Gwynn, classical music is entwined in my soul. As Susan states in her comment, I, too, grew up with it, and my heart soared. Music does inspire me to compose my stories with passion; as music itself tells a story.
Thank you, thank you, R. And thank you for going back and posting your comment on my post, after I corrected my link error. 🙂
My dear Sam,
Aside from needing something new and interesting to read I am so pleased to know that I was not the only genius working all day today.
And, by the way my best records are always playing loudly.
As ever,
R.
Thank you, R, for your genius comment and for the genius compliment, although, of course, one must be realistic ever so much as one dreams…. 🙂
My dear Sam,
Aside from needing something new and of interest to read I am so pleased to know that I wasn’t the only genius working all day today.
And, by the way, my best records are always playing loudly.
As ever,
R.
A truly wonderful post Samantha, thank you, and a timely reminder of being human – and the gift of those values you used in this post. Even though impermanence is so real, some things have more substance than others.
Yes, I think it IS these memories that ground us and help us navigate the reality of impermanence. Indeed reminders of being human.
Thank you, Susan.
Love this, Samantha — especially the part about stealing flowers from your garden being akin to stealing pieces of your soul. There’s an analogy I could get my trowel around. Seriously, Samantha, it made me think of all the times someone has tried to pilfer from my soul (most notably, the time a “friend” called and asked if she could copy a love letter I’d just received from a guy I was seeing so that she could send it to a guy SHE was seeing!!!!) and how important it is to fend off such pilfering hands.
Nostalgia and I have always been good friends, and I am grateful for all the memory-pictures that I carry around in my invisible handbag. Your post reminded me of all that — and of how terrible it is when we lose those pictures.
As usual, T.J., I couldn’t have conveyed my thoughts better than you have here. I had an interesting experience just now when I was in the midst of commenting on a friend’s Facebook page and suddenly found myself in the middle of someone else’s movie (video), and then spent 10 minutes finding my way back to my friend’s page and my original intent. Life is like this. We travel through a series of metaphors designed to enlighten us to the truth. This experience deserves a blog post, I think.
Oh Samantha…. I grew up in the best Brady Bunch neighborhood. My parents taught me early that it was not correct to pick other peoples’s flowers out of their yard. We were not allowed to take short cuts through someone’s yard with out permission. If we broke something we had to own up to it before we were asked if we had done it. If we did something wrong- we had better be the fastest runner, bicyclist or whatever it took to get home and tell on yourself before another Mother called your Mother….and when “your Father gets home” scared the beejeebers out of you… your just knew it was the end- end of the world. I ask one question- what happened? I can’t even scare the beejeebers out of my own 17 year old just to humble her attitude just a little bit. I take her to a 3rd person councilor just to be able to communicate with her. This world has changed. Changed for the worst I would proclaim now. Where are the good old days… we are getting old.
Ditto on all you said, Jackie. Yes, we are getting old — and you are so much younger than I. I don’t know what happened. (I don’t know how I got this old, either.)
Nevertheless, thank goodness you are in my life, and I am so glad to see your comment here. I thought of you when I wrote this. I always write my blog posts to someone, as if I were writing an email or a letter; you were among the ones this time.
Thank you.
It seems we visited Paris together yesterday in our conversation about nostalgia and ways of the past versus now. Because of technology, keeping up with communications is a job in itself. Yet, I remember the “good old days” when I had to type and mail letters. I’m much happier with email!
I enjoyed your memories and reminiscing.
I’m much happier with word processing and email, Gwynn. My typing is not what it used to be — partly — or mainly — because I slouch sideways in my chair with my feet up. Not what they taught us in typing class.
Yes, Paris, always Paris. I think Moriarty just booked a trip there. He didn’t buy a ticket for me, I don’t think, but I suppose he will tell us all about it when he returns.
Yes, the Phantom of your blog is from a more enlightened area of this country.
I enjoyed the article on nostalgia; I thought of the film “Hugo”.
Thank you for writing this; your experience has been what I have witnessed on my sojourn.
Here’s looking at you kid.
Sincerely,
R.
Yes, R., Hugo. But you were a primary source contributor on this story.
Here’s looking at you, kid. Sincerely,
Samantha
i thought i had posted a comment on this samantha, but perhaps not. i certainly remember reading it and enjoying it so much for its richness, allegory and imagery. life is indeed about relationship, whether between people, art, soul, spirit – everything.
thank you so much for a lovely piece of writing.
I do apologize for not replying to your comment sooner, Susan. I have been remiss on visiting my blog site, preoccupied with other, mundane, life relationships less enchanting than art. But I suppose managing those relationships can be construed as an art, too. They must be artfully attended to.
Thank you for taking the time to return to my blog and write such a lovely comment. I do appreciate it.
sadly the video didn’t load in spite of my trying a few times. but bravo heather for defying the odds and to your husband for walking alongside you and being your right and left hand. may your family be blessed with ongoing good health. and all kudos to your marvellous wondrous doctor.
thank you samantha for posting this heart warming and inspiring story of life – and its challenges.
Heather is one strong, determined woman. She definitely is the perfect example of positive thinking. I shared her story.
Indeed, Gwynn.
Yes, it was a miracle that the Queen Mom was able to help her extremely shy husband overcome his stuttering.
The bow is only a courtesy and tradition and Her Majesty is more of a figurehead now and no longer rules as a traditional monarch.
Yes, that’s a great story, Val, about the Queen Mom and Edward VI. Last night I watched a documentary Prince Charles did for his mum’s diamond jubilee. I remember when Edward died and Elizabeth’s coronation — I watched the ceremony on TV. And I was saddened by Lord Mountbatten’s assassination in 1979. I loved this tribute Prince Charles did; he was so personable, and it was very touching. I felt like I was sitting next to him watching old family films. So cool. I think I will write a blog post about it.
George. I meant George VI, not Edward. I guess my confusion arises from my beheading after being married to Henry VIII, where I was the little known Wife VII.
Great message of determination and hope.
Now if we could defer some of the stuttering queens that are trying to control us today…
Miraculously not bowing with determination,
R.
Agreed, R. Thanks, as always, for being my most devoted reader. 🙂
Looking forward to reading your new book.
Thank you, Carol. I appreciate that. I hope you enjoy it!
Can’t wait to get my copy.
Thank you so much, Connie. I think this one gives good insight into the healthcare professionals’ and caregivers’ experience during the final, declining stages of dementia.
My dear Samantha,
And, happy melodist, unwearied,
For ever piping songs forever new;
I most enjoyed this post, unwearied,
And, seriously, congrats to you.
Your devoted,
R.
Quite nice, my dear R. Thank you, as ever.
Interesting and wise post. I am looking forward to seeing how you tie all of these subjects together in your book. History continues to repeat itself in a variety of ways… in the cycle of life.
The pictures are quite lovely as they tie together your thoughts on life. Thanks!
Thank you, Gwynn. Tying my thoughts together in my book was simply living life, observing, and reporting on it.
I view repetition as the gift of a take two and hope to make corrections thereby.
Yes, somehow this post, in thought intense and with its creative bent, called for encounters with images for respite.
Wallie sounds perfectly darling and obviously a great conversationalist who responds well to one who knows what he is saying, needs and wants. Would that we humans could be so inclined!
This was a lovely light post thank you so much, it was so enjoyed by me and has me smiling again on the re-read.
June is here Samantha! So when is he coming again?
Wallie will be here June 13-23, Susan — a nice, long stretch for the two of us. We should enjoy many long conversations. 🙂
Yes, would that we humans were so inclined.
Thanks.
What a fun post Samantha! Since you didn’t post a photo of what a bichonpoo looks like (grrrrrrrrr) I had to Google it. What an ADORABLE pooch! Milton loves little white dogs that look like Wallie, but he doesn’t have one. I suppose I fill that void in his life. If you can, try to photograph your ballsy bunny. I’d like to see him .. or her. If it’s a she, you might have a colony under your shed any day now. You’d need that like a tumor.
Hey, thanks for posting the badge to my book on your site. That’s very kind of you.
I thought of posting a Wallie look-alike photo, V., but I don’t have one or a way, presently, of photographing him. I’ll have to ask the human he resides with. However, all the ones online look just like him, but I hesitated to use them because I didn’t want to infringe on copyrights, possibly.
As for the ballsy bunny, one day I’ll buy a digital camera and then hope he/she stops by again. As you say, maybe by then I’ll have a surplus of bunnies; maybe the family will come for a visit..
It is my pleasure to post the badge to your book. You more than deserve it. R bought a copy; hopefully my other blog follower(s) will, too — hilarious, uplifting, especially on those funky days, and — Nora Ephron, step aside. Seriously.
Thanks for stopping by.
If only you could tell some humans only once…
R.
Good one, R.
Or… upon holding a mirror up to said humans they deign observe an iota of truthy reflections versus the convoluted distorted high horses they perch themselves on calling it, “the driver’s seat”, let alone being demanded to regularly remind them were they left their balls.
R.
Life in the funhouse arcade, R.
Ditto V’s comment.
Sounds like a new wave group…
R.
🙂 It’s those distorted mirrors.
Loved it, Samantha. What a word-picture! And it reminded me anew how wonderful the companionship of animals is.
Thanks, T.J. Easy writing when it comes to animals. They are the best people. He couldn’t get many words out for the interview, though.
Our four legged friends are so special. Btw, I think my neighbor’s retriever chased the bunny that was in our yard over to your house. When you have a chance, will you send him home please. I can so relate to your lovely story.
Oh, these bunnies have lived beneath my shed for many years, Gwynn, at least the ones the cats haven’t eaten. Yes, that’s what that sweet kitty curled up in your lap, purring, does when it goes out, and fails to mention when it comes back in.
Thanks, Gwynn, for your compliment. 🙂
Hey Sam
Pretty cool. Not sure why but I always thought Moriarty was a cat phantom. One of those lovely tuxedo cats with the white patch under the throat!
No, that’s Bootsie, my former neighbor’s cat, Val. Moriarty is a real phantom. 🙂 He doesn’t like to wear tuxes because he thinks he will be confused for the Phantom of the Opera.
Love the blending of the philosophical and the playful…how the blog becomes a room that we enter. Somehow it reminds me of the old movies that began with the opening of a book, inviting us to step inside as spectators. Which you’re obviously not. This is much more like “Lost in Austen,” the mini-series that I recommended to you once before.
Thanks, T.J. These pieces are so much fun to write. I do enjoy unleashing my imagination. I had forgotten about “Lost in Austen,” so just added it to my Netflix queue; while there, added Ken Burns’ documentary on Eugene O’Neill, which I was reminded of the other day. Said to be haunting. I loved Jack Nicholson’s portrayal of O’Neill in the movie “Reds,” one of my favorite movies.
I like stories within stories, like “The Neverending Story” movies, and stories that start in the middle and at the end. I like the “stepping inside” perspective.
I am not sure if it is the creggies or the candle, or Moriarty with his messed up mop, or your writing Samantha about deep and sad things that makes me feel mystically moved. What is the Theory of Everything? It is what it is – you couldn’t have put it more clearly and concisely. We just have to have the consciousness to see it – for what it is. YOUR creative act of writing creates a reaction, to which we react yet again…
Thank you for this lovely piece and to Moriarty for being your friend. May he visit again and light, delight and snuff candles, waiting for another enlightening.
Susan — The Theory of Everything is explained by theoretical physics that links together all known physical phenomena. While I can get a general overview of this theory, for deeper understanding I would have to be Stephen Hawking. I have placed a link to his book in my right sidebar. Probably not bedtime reading, though edifying.
Would that my physicist boyfriend George, who died of a brain tumor, were still alive to explain this to me, but that’s the stuff of things past.
I wish I could be enlightening, but mostly I’m just fumbling in the dark.
Here I have reacted to your reaction to my reaction triggering writing this piece. And I thank you for your kind compliment. It spurs me on. 🙂
I’m convinced that Moriarty is “R” and I absolutely can smell the essense of the candle that Moriarty just snuffed out. Beautiful.
R and I can both assure you, Gwynn, that Moriarty is not R. The two are separate characters, and I have written stories about R, published here on my blog and in my book.
You compliment that the essence stays with you means a lot. Thank you.
Love it!!!
R.
Thank you, my friend.
Hi,
I really enjoyed your article and the reasons that you gave for nor being able to hate. As an expatriate living outside of the United States of America who is also a believing Christian, I don’t hate either. I tend to shun away from the eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth philosophy. Sure those young men were wrong, but hating them doesn’t make it any better because it destroys your life and not the lives of those who committed the crime.
My prayers go out to the bereaved families and to those who are injured. Their lives have changed tremendously and I pray that they find the strength to move on and continue living.
Ciao,
Patricia
I’m not an eye-for-an-eye person, either, Patricia. I don’t think I ever have been. That doesn’t mean I condone what they did, but it’s not going to do me any good to “get even.” Ditto all that you’ve said here. My prayers, too, are for the bereaved families and those injured. I pray they find the strength.
Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to read my post. I know how busy you are. Do get some sleep sometime. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your husband, as well.
Ciao,
Samantha
You’ve given me a lot to think about, Samantha. I like your bringing Poe’s ‘Tamerlane” in — it adds a whole other dimension to your post and a powerful one.
I like texture, T.J. — enter Poe. And I have always savored the name Tamerlane as poetic. It just kind of rolls off the tongue (in most cases). The name and his story woven along the Silk Road are so exotic — like the song goes, “Far away places with strange sounding names….” Poe’s poem, written now almost two centuries ago, shows that human nature does not change (unless the human works at it). How paradoxical that what is so intoxicatingly exotic is also so appallingly horrid. Indeed a lot to think about.
Thank you for suggesting compassion. That may be what is missing all the way around.
And, thank you for writing truthfully.
Ever,
R.
For me, R., compassion is this simple — I always have at least one foot stuck in the sh*t somewhere. –And I hope someone will understand, be patient and not judge. I hope to treat others the same.
Thanks.
Ever, “Carrie” 🙂
Lovely post thank you Samantha, interweaving current with historical events. Love the EAP..thank you. I’m glad you haven’t joined the chorus of haters who wished those 2 brothers fire and brimstone – we don’t know their stories, yet.and it just adds to the pile of hate. But yes it was amazing and wonderful how Boston rose to the occasion and captured them .. Bravo!
Yes, Bravo, Boston! –And to all those involved, from first responders to families to capturers. Thank you, Susan.
Hi Sam
It is wonderful being a writer. We get to say what others are afraid to. We are their voices. It is an awesome gift and even more awesome responsibility.
In our free nations, yes, Val. The ability to write is an awesome gift, one I feel obligated to share, albeit being watchful that this sharing is an awesome responsibility. And I am thankful for the opportunity to avail myself of our fourth estate.
Yes, the entire bombing is such a sad story. It leaves me desolate, feeling there is no hope for our world sometimes. I suggest you use your delightful imagination and create a NEW PEACEFUL WORLD for us… please!!! 😉
I wish I could, Gwynn. I would start with myself, and spread the joy from there.
Like!
Thank you, R.
Your posting was poignant and beautiful. It is hard to believe that Emma has been gone a year. I’m sure she is in a lovely place watching over you, her granddaughter, and great granddaughters. I’m hoping you planted flowers around her headstone. I’m sure she would love the beauty. Now she is free, just like that butterfly… off to enjoy the beauty of the universe. I’m happy for her. Now, it is time for you to go on with your life.
Thank you very much, Gwynn. Yes, she has flowers around her headstone. Knowing her, I’m sure she has gone on with her life, even if checking in on us every now and then, as I have gone on with mine, as far as I can go presently.
This was so beautiful Samantha thank you so much for sharing your wonderful prose with us. It was all very evocative and from the beginning to the end I had all these images quite real in my mind.
My thoughts are with you as a year has passed since Emma’s death .. no doubt she still flits in and out like a beautiful butterfly ..
Thank you, Susan. This title and theme were inspired by Emma’s adoring aide, Daphne, at the end, who took photos of her and made an album for me, who stimulated her and made her smile, even in the last weeks. Shortly after Emma’s passing, Daphne, spontaneously inspired to write a poem about her, was writing the poem that evening when a butterfly flew into Daphne’s room and flitted about the ceiling light.
Thank you for your thoughts, and Emma does still flit in and out.
O thank heavens for those hardy folks who did all they could to preserve the natural wetlands and marshes! My metaphorical hat is tipped towards them and I bow before such fine folk.
Lovely post thank you Samantha and the photographs are beautiful!
Yes, I cannot thank them enough, Susan. They fought for many years what felt to them like a losing battle. But they stuck to it, despite how it could hurt their careers. Delaware’s was the first Coastal Zone Act in the States. It set the precedent; but, despite that, there are lots of loopholes making it easy for a developer or a manufacturer (chemicals, oil and the like) to worm their way in; so the vigilance and efforts to protect the environment are ongoing, involving lots of legal disputes.
Thanks. And I could spend days there along the Blackbird, and its neighboring creek through the marshlands, the Appoquinimink, taking photos. It IS a beautiful, pristine, area, that hopefully will remain so.
I loved this Samantha thank you! Just back from work and I get to my computer and see my son David has disconnected mine and is using my connections onto his computer on my desk. Such funny equipment I have never seen … this blooming thing talks every now and then. I know he’s sleeping (after late night gig last night and busy day – interview on radio etc etc) and in prep for tonight’s gig … but hell’s bells I wish I knew what was going on!
I don’t know about face-time. I know about it but as sure as eggs are eggs learning about skype was hard enough so face time can do an about face in my not so humble opinion.
There was a TED talk a while back about resurrecting the woolly mammoths from DNA .. it was interesting – so there is hope for us!
I’ll look for that TED talk, Susan. I have been more of less following the woolly mammoth story since I was visiting Mammoth Lakes in the late ’80s-early ’90s.
Actually, my computer talks, too — I highlight passages and it reads them to me. In fact, I chose one of the voices as my Phantom of the Blog voice, and had it call my friend Robert (R) and leave a message. Fun stuff.
Davey on the radio! Wow! He and The Kiffness are becoming famous. You have two extraordinary sons, just like their mom, Susan (and probably like their dad).
Thanks.
Hey Sam
Ain’t technology fun? I really love the comment about the flock of talking heads.If Skype and Face Time become the only ways we get to communicate we’ll all be a flock of talking heads….Yipes!
Love,
LBR
Yes, that would be something, LBR, all of us talking heads; it would become a carnival sideshow.
Actually, I’ve been using computers since way back, like you — back into the early ’80s, actually even back to around 1970, and I love them. That technology fascinates me; it often frustrates me, too, especially when it doesn’t listen to the words I’m talking at it.
Love, Sam
Oh My Dear Carol,
This article had me laughing. So you have an iPod. I love those things but I must say I have the third generation iPod. I haven’t been keeping up with them since I started using my iPad. iPads have a much bigger screen.
I find it absolutely fantastic that you are wading out there in the water, moving with the flow, and even though Skype has received competition from Face-Time, don’t worry about it. Skype will be around for a long time. Face-Time can only be used by people who have the iPhone or iPad or the MacBooks or the iMacs. So, my dear, enjoy your Skype. I really look forward to dropping in on you.
Great article, Lady. This one is laid-back and easy going. It is as if I can see you sitting before your window, looking out your window at the squirrels.
Ciao,
Patricia
Yes, and the squirrels are feeding me copy, Patricia. 🙂 Actually, a sweet female cardinal perched on the branch as I was finishing writing this post yesterday, and she sang me a sweet song.
I use my iPod touch only for music — playlists I put on it, Patricia — oh, and New Yorker and other podcasts, so that sometimes while I am eating dinner I have someone reading me a story — very cool. It would be nice to have an iPad and especially a MacBook, but those are still in my dreams.
I will let you know the instant I get Skype; I would love to have you drop in on me. I look forward to it!
Ciao
Wondrous.
Better to be beneath the Laughing Willow than the Whomping Willow.
Way to smell the wind.
No longer extant,
R.
No whomping, nor even weeping, R. Just messing about with technology in a sort of a play on Kenneth Grahame and his “The Wind in the Willows.”
… and The Whomping Willow is a play on J. K. Rowling’s Whomping Willow.
R.
Yes, with all the recent postings about computers and technology, I too am feeling extinct! You are a clever and colorful writer. Thanks for the review of some of our conversation. I look forward to you receiving the webcam so we can Skype and meet each other in person!
So on your computer screen I won’t resemble a telephone, Gwynn. That’s not really what I look like, I don’t think. I do enjoy our phone conversations. Everything is copy, said Nora and Delia Ephron’s mother. Thank you for the compliment.
My Dear Friend,
This is a extremely moving piece of writing, and I can identify with every word you have written. I had to take care of my mother along with my brother the last year of her life. The cancer came back, and then she had two strokes. The first stroke wipe out part of her memory, and the second stroke led her into dementia. I was in Germany, but I went home five times, for three weeks each time, to relieve my brother and give him a chance to breathe a little.
Although I have other sisters, no one took the time to come by, and they had a problem relieving my brother who had given up his job to concentrate on taking care of Mama. My brother and I did it together. The three weeks when I was there, he relaxed, and I can honestly say each time I flew back to Germany, I fell asleep on the plane before it took off. I was just that tired.
Yet, I don’ regret it, and I am happy that we did it that way. My mother was able to die as she wanted to, at her home.
I so agree with you about making plans about what you want to happen to you and arranging a care plan. It is so important to do that while you still have the ability to do that on your own.
So thank you for venting. Thank you for your open and honest sharing. Thank you for telling it like it is because many people don’t know and are surprised when it hits them.
You have written a very informative article that I have truly enjoyed reading.
Ciao,
Patricia
This is why I told it like it is, Patricia. I figured it was about time I did so. True, most people, as I, are surprised when it hits them. So, thank you for sharing your story about your mama. I know there are more of us out there in this caregiving situation, but we just don’t say anything about it. We just do. We want our loved ones to spend their last days as peacefully as possible. And, as you said, I do not regret what I did. I don’t know how I did it, yet I did. Would I do it again? Probably so.
Thank you, Patricia, for your beautiful comment.
The true way leads along a tightrope,
which is not stretched aloft
but just above the ground. It seems more designed
to trip one than to be walked upon.
Beyond a certain point there is no return.
This point is to be reached.
– Franz Kafka.
Samantha, thank you for this post. I raise my glass of toccata to you and all the superb comments and metaphors.
It is always amazing and heartening to me the source of strength that is there in each one of us; and how often it is that we need to go through horribly painful experiences to reach that point where we acknowledge and use that strength. And how others do come to help and how we need to accept their willing help. So often it is harder to receive than it is to give.
May your strength continue to runneth over.
Thank you.
Susan, thank you for the Kafka quote, one of my favorite authors. I trip over that tightrope often. You put so succinctly here the essence of life — the pain, the source of strength and the blessing of the willingness of others to help.
Thank you, as always, for your deeply thoughtful comments.
Wowie T.J. You have described it absolutely perfectly. It is trench warfare and it cann take a long time before our eyes adjust to the light. It took me over two years to come up for air after my parents went into care here in Lethbridge. It also took a wonderful man in my life to really help me to thrive again. Fortunately for me he was also my very best friend.
The wonderful man, Val. Yes. You are fortunate in your BFF. Thanks.
S.,
Putting it mildly, you have gracefully stated the truth.
Would, that your toccata juice globe runneth over.
Ever,
R.
Thank you, R. I raise a globe of peace to you.
Ever,
S.
Boy, talk about Post Traumatic Syndrome Disorder after a soldier returns from battle… is exactly what a caregiver goes through after dealing with the family member, the family, bills, caring for the family member, etc. You have definitely summed up caregiving. I totally agree with T.J. Excellent!
It definitely calls for a goblet of toccata juice, Gwynn. Thanks. I know you know, too.
This sums it all up, Samantha. Care-giving is, in my mind, the equivalent of trench warfare: and when it is over, we crawl out of those trenches blinking like moles in the sunlight, amazed that there is another world out there.
You bring the war home, as they used to say. You make it real. Thank you for being our not-so-foreign correspondent and a damn good one.
T.J. — Blinking like moles in the sunlight. No kidding. I love your entire analogy here. You hit this subject, the feeling, the experience point-blank. Not only that, but you got in in advance of my little army of words — I was making minor edits — to dates, music, while you were commenting. Love it! Thank you; I know you’ve been there in those trenches.
Well written and quite graphic. Evidently, it connected with the dark side of my soul and scared me. It haunts me.
Yes, Gwynn, the water goblin is haunting. I am sorry it scared you. I grew up with fairy tales. My mother read them to me from when I was very small. I knew they were fairy tales and loved their imaginative stories and the colorful illustrations.
But, I also knew that such creatures as goblins and big frogs that kissed you and princesses and handsome princes stumbling over a glass slipper in the night were symbolic. If there’s a goblin, I know it must be confronted and done away with, much as I’d rather run away from it; but I know it would catch up with me sooner or later. I am just fortunate to have been blessed with such a mind. I don’t think my brother was; he still swears there was a monkey at his second story bedroom window in the Phila. suburbs and he is afraid of the dark.
Yes, the story, as given on Wikipedia is quite graphic. I immediately had to transmogrify that horror into something symbolic of reality.
Your writing is always very powerful, but this one felt like it was pulled out of your soul. I think it moves all of us because we’ve all gone through those dark nights, not expecting to come out of them whole. Like the baby in the story, we expect to be torn in two or worse. The young woman came out of it battered but whole and stronger, I’ll wager, than she was before, and so have you. Perhaps the decapitated child in the story is not a literal child but her child self. Just a little something to mull over.
Astute observations, T.J., and the child-self in the dream. Yes, it was pulled out of my soul. Thank you for listening and reading and thinking, and for your kind comments, as always.
Well, that was an extraordinary piece of writing Samantha thank you for sharing that with us. Amazing how deep we have to go sometimes in order to clear the confusion, and we have to be courageous yet calm at the same time. But also as R says, shake the hell out of it. Though it is the very hell that is also the salvation-paradoxical though this is.
Your dream seems to have come at the right time. In line with the water goblin story in some way. Peace be yours …
Amazing the timing of the dream and my discovery of “The Water Goblin” music and story, Susan. Seems everything comes just when we need it. I have faith in that.
Yes, to reach that paradoxical salvation, we must brave the dark depths. You have served as my inspiration, bolstering my courage to face and explore this dark chasm. I feel much better now, though not all the way out and up lounging on my balcony in the warm sunshine surveying a tranquil, blue sea. But are we ever all the way there? It seems there is always something more lurking in the coves.
Peace be yours, too, Susan.
Love, Samantha
Way to embrace the dark; shake the living hell out of it and move forward.
Roads are made by placing one baby step in front of another.
Eat more fish…
Ever,
R.
The thing about fish, R., is that it lights up my brain and keeps me awake all night reflecting on how I should go about shaking the living hell out of the cause of the darkness, or rather if it would be easier, upon seeing it as an illusion, to simply letting it go.
Ever onward,
Samantha
But, look, R., better I eat fish than goblins. Yes?
S.
My Dear Carol,
I must admit that your article along with the music caused me to think about my own life and my friendships. You see, I am also one who has a hard time of saying goodbye. It is difficult for me to move on when people are involved and yet I know that not all of the people that I meet or friends that I make will follow me throughout my journey of life. Those few that do are not usually recognized until you have a crisis. Thus, true friendships in my opinion arise out of the furnace. They are pure gold and usually they are the ones who are sitting in the shadows rooting you on.
Yet, I can testify that there are people whom I know where misperceptions have occurred and I have had to reach deep within myself and overcome my own pride and self righteousness, even though I have been badly hurt. It is these times that I experienced my dark night of the soul in which that what I speak out of my mouth or what I write in my blogs become a test for my reality, for my own integrity and for what I believe in.
The music with Dvorak elicits peace and then confusion. As in all my tests of life, the confusion comes as in Dvorak’s Water Goblin. I am here and there, insecure, frustrated and angry. The parts with hectic in this piece beautifully describes this. But then comes those times of enlightenment where the peacefulness of the stream goes over my soul and I know that I know that I have the strength to reach out and take the first step or to part and go my way in peace with those that no longer are a part of my life and Dvorak plays these peaceful solitude parts very well.
Thank you for an inspiring article that I truly enjoyed reading.
Ciao,
Patricia
Beautifully said, Patricia. Thank you for taking the time to write your thoughtful comment. I write to share my experiences, not to elicit sympathy, but in hopes of supporting others with similar experiences/feelings.
True friendships arising out of the furnace — in those dark nights: I like that. True.
Thank you, Patricia.
Ciao.
I thought you’d like that metaphor, Catharine. And I thought you might relate. Thank you.
Very beautiful; haunting and poetic. I thought the symbol of the water goblin was very apt. Thank you for writing this! I can relate.
Best,
Catharine
Thanks for your lovely post about relationships Samantha! You seem to have a pretty good grip on them – how could you not? But I do think that as we get older we gain a little wisdom and know what is important to us and what is not vis a vis relationships. People do disappoint from time to time which always makes me wonder why I put them ‘up there’ in the first place. Which means that I am disappointed in myself for my foolishness in the first instance.
Conflict – where would life be without it?
Maybe sometimes it is necessary to have it in order to grow and stretch. When there are misunderstandings this is an opportunity for both sides to be heard – both voices expressed. And it is extraordinary how often the other hears what they swear they heard even though the initial person was not even thinking along those lines. So huge projections invariably happen … and a projection is the ideal tool to clear up misunderstandings …
Well done on your blog … I much enjoyed it thank you.
Susan, I have much enjoyed your comment, many wise thoughts in your toolbox. I am disappointed in myself and feel foolish for putting people up there who disappoint, for allowing myself to be disappointed. Yes, I agree that conflict is sometimes necessary to bring to light the misunderstanding. Working diligently through the conflict, I believe one can achieve a breakthrough. But it takes bravery, hard work and patience. Thank you for handing me the projection tool to clear up misunderstandings. I shall use it.
Love it… Can’t talk now my garlic has just been served!!!
R.
Ah, yes, it was you I sensed visiting my blog, R. Hope you enjoyed a fabulous garlicky meal.
I think you have a very healthy and practical outlook on relationships. I tend to avoid conflict, and that can allow miscommunication to fester, but if I’m close enough to someone, we can usually work things out and grow. When sex is part of the equation, I have a fairly doomed outlook. Many of my platonic friends I have had for years and decades. Lovers, on the other hand, come ad go. They have been a thorn in my side ever since my first girlfriend going back more than forty years. Sex just complicates and eventually kills a good friendship. Sometimes I wish I could just go to my local grocer’s, buy a fuck in a can, use it, and then hook up with a member of my posse to see a show and grab dinner.
I love your last line about going to the grocers and afterwards hooking up with your platonic posse, V. You’re right about the sex thing — it’s been my experience, mostly. My friends with whom I have these great platonic relationships I have had for years, 40 years for some — men and women. Truthfully, I don’t like confrontation either, would prefer to avoid conflict. I don’t like conflict. I am generally naive about relationships, I think, but it was a good exercise to write about them here, makes me think more deeply about them, thanks to the suggestion of our friend, R, with whom I discuss relationships ad infinitum (ad nauseam?). But, for the close relationships, with bravery, upending clears the miscommunication.
Look here — I am so thrilled! I have almost my own magnificent 7 commenters!
Thanks for your honest sharing of your thoughts.
Once again, Samantha, I love the way you weave all those not-so-disparate strands together. “[ ]The cupola of this blog” — wonderful image. And I liked what you said about understanding canceling out frustration and things needing to be upended sometimes.
You are always right on target, T.J. Thank you. I thought of you when I wrote about the upending and the canceling out frustration. I owe you an email from some time ago. I will get caught up. I wish Moriarty were a better typist — I could dictate. 😉
I’m sitting here with a smirk on my face. Yup, I hear you loud and clear! Excellent posting, by the way! 😉 Hmmm, I don’t have any roses. If I leave you a tulip will that work? 😉
I love tulips better than roses, Gwynn. That will work just fine. Thank you! Maybe we can Skype soon and smirk together. 😉
beautiful as always Sam! Say hello to Batik for me.
I will give Batik a big kiss for you, Val. Thank you!
sorry I meant blog not e mail …
I figured you meant blog, Susan. But hopefully you will be thanking me for my email tomorrow. I will try to get caught up on those then.
o and here’s a rose for you …
Beautiful, and it smells so sweet and fresh. Just picked not doubt. You are so thoughtful. Thank you. Um, did you wear gardening gloves? 😉
O I like this visit from you very much indeed Samantha thank you! Just back from a dinner – lamb so soft it melted in the mouth – plenty garlic in/on it – and the most delicious pudding – but it is so late now .. waaay past my bed time. I will comment again in the morning – or the evening.
Yours came through as I got onto the computer and I felt compelled to add my 2cents worth. Just wanted to say hello and thank you for a delightful e mail ..
Know, Susan, that while you were commenting I was eating dinner — plenty of garlic and onions — mac & cheese and big salad. Your lamb sounds delicious, though. Sorry I missed that. Mmm … what kind of pudding did you eat? Sounds like a perfect meal. Thanks for stopping to say hello. Sleep well.
Oh, Sam. You get it right every time! I’m so glad that your mom’s caregiver keeps in touch. She’s one person who knows exactly what you’ve been through.
Bless you girl!
Val
Thank you, Val. She is a very caring person. Was always wonderful and patient with Mother, and I could rely on her to always be here no matter what.
And she is moving to Florida soon, so I will have someone to visit there, should I decide to travel there, despite my lack of appreciation for tree frogs on my toothbrush, snakes slithering among the potatoes on the farm market shelf, lizard fights — they fight and hiss at each other like cats –, palmetto bugs too large to wash down the drain and mosquitos the size of stealth bombers.
Hi
This is really profound. It’s difficult missing someone, and I love the way you wrote about this.
Catharine — Coming from such a beautiful poet and deep thinker, your compliment means a lot to me. Thank you.
Samantha
Hello my dear friend,
You touched upon life experiences that all of us feel and have problems dealing with, the forgotten faces. Like you, it is much harder for me to deal with faces where we have parted out of a false arrangement of words as you so nicely put it. Words that were said without thinking and they cause rifts that change things forever.
I too loved Sleepless in Seattle. It is one of my favorite movies because it is a true love story with a happy ending. I did not know the woman who wrote it died at 71. In fact, I have learned something new because I did not know Nora Ephron had written it.
Time passes quickly. Living in Germany, I have lost contact with all of my school friends. Somehow we all went separate ways and I notice that time not only passes but it changes things.
I have one or two friends who I met years ago when I first came to Germany. We grew close and we are still friends even tough the three women I refer too have been back in the States for years. But I have also met other people who I have never seen like you, Gwynn, Linda, Susan, Dianne, Vye, Val and Catharine and all of you have become just as close.
What I am trying to say in all of this is that I believe life goes through stages. Everything must change and we have to let things go. It is difficult, and I have a hard times dealing with letting go, but we have to face these changes and let go.
My mother visited me in Germany two times while she was living. She loved to go to a store called Fegro because it reminded her of a Walmart in the U.S. and we went there often when she was here. The first couple of years after she died, when I would go to Fegro, I could feel my mother’s presence beside me and I received a melancholy type of feeling. It was only as I began to let her go, that her presence left me.
No, I will never forget her, but by letting go, I found myself moving forward to fulfill my own purpose in life and as I read what you have shared, I see you doing the same thing.
So thank you for all the help that you are giving so many people through your writing of your experiences and how you dealt with a very difficult time in your life.
Love you, Lady,
Ciao,
Pat
Pat, thank you for your beautiful, as always, comments. Yes, I try to let go, but it is difficult. As T.J. puts it, just when you think you’ve let go, it comes up behind you and mugs you when you least expect it.
I do hope I help people by writing about my experiences. That is my mission.
Love you, too, Pat. Thank you for your kind thoughts. I am so honored to have you as a friend. I hope someday soon we will meet.
Samantha
Altogether extraordinary Samantha …
John (in the US) is the friend of Lisa; Lisa forwarded your blog after reading it, to John. It is John who wrote to me or copied me on writing to Lisa – I forget – and quoted the ‘.. the unspeakable and incommunicable prison of this earth’ and went on to say all those lovely things about your writing and about forwarding it on to his two adult children. So it is thanks to John really for this, this spurring you on to write this beautiful blog. His use of the word matyroshka must have pierced your Russian soul. His whole email letter was a work of poetry … to urge you to acknowledge it for the work of art that his letter is, and for you to respond in kind … and to acknowledge the synchronicity of this particular thread.
How fortunate we are to have had people in our lives whose memories we cherish. Memories will never die … and come to us at unexpected moments and give us comfort when we feel sad. They step aside for a moment and let us know they are here. How lovely to feel your Mum and her faithful dog.
It is so necessary to speak about that which gives us unease. You do this with grace about the grave, humour in among the hell, kindness with kin, patience with the appalling ..
I will check out the Nora Ehpron link, thank you for sending it.
Good on Moriarty for ensuring you read and heard John’s words: ‘The woman writes exceedingly well’. (please pass on greets from me to him).
May the sufferers never be forgotten …
Thank you for this post Samantha …
Thank you, Susan, for your kind and thoughtful comments. I was unclear on how Lisa’s and John’s emails got forwarded, so I shall correct this in my post.
When I write my journal here, I try to find some humor in a situation that is not at all funny to make my readers smile, at least a little.
Taking care of my mother, I learned to have patience with the appalling — not something I thought I chose, but I must have needed to learn it. Speaking of what gives me unease gets it out, a catharsis, and hopefully lets others know they are not alone. Repressing feelings is not good, as you so aptly point out in your “Lilith …” book. It’s like squeezing a balloon — the air pops out someplace else.
I like what you said about memories never dying and stepping aside for a moment to let us know they are here. That is comforting.
Moriarty does serve many purposes well. He read your comments over my shoulder and he says hello. 🙂
Yes, may the sufferers never be forgotten. Your words and John’s are poignant. Thank you for letting Lisa know, and indirectly, John, about my blog.
Indeed, John’s email was a work of poetry and I would love to be able to publish it whole here. It is a message to everyone, I think, not only to his children. How intriguing that he saw my blog journaling as curious matryoshka-like construction. He’s right. I hadn’t seen it as such.
Samantha
Pensive and well conveyed; beyond the fold of perverted rearrangements of words, illusory thoughts and and erroneous deeds of those we seek not to control.
Honest and poignant; soulfully expressing human experience; communicable.
Poetic and joyous in a celebration of those that have invested to venture beyond the fold.
Timeless.
Ever,
R.
And for all, R, for all. I have all in my heart.
Thank you once again for reading my words, reflecting on them, and commenting.
Ever, Samantha
Tomorrow, dear Carol. For tonight, just know your words stir me, as deeply as your soulful writing. The timing is perfect.
With love and great respect,
Dianne
Yes, Dianne. My deepest sympathies. I know Bobby will always be in your heart and the hearts of his family.
Love, Samantha
Boy, Samantha this speaks to me on many levels… having lost family through death and dementia…my aunt doesn’t know who I am. Then having lost friends over time or misplaced words, and even death. However, no matter how the loss is derived these people are still part of my heart. Your story speaks volumes about the importance of remembrance through stories and what resides in our heart. Thank you.
Yes, Gwynn, so many people tell me this, and since they are my feelings, too, I thought it time to address the subject. It seems we all share these experiences. We are not alone in this.
Thank you.
Samantha
Hi My Friend,
In response to Who Cares? Let me answer, I do and so many other writers who have the vision and the inner spirit to realize it is not all about us and our small little world.
Thank you for a very interesting article. I like the way you began it with your thoughts on Valentine Day. I am not a Valentine person because as a teenager no one ever gave me a Valentine heart, even tough I yearned for one. So your beginning was superb.
Then linking your article up with synchronicity was another tease that tickled my interest in what you had to say. Wonderfully written and a soft introduction into your paragraph on being dressed down. Even though people exist that are so focused on themselves and what they do that they are not interested in others, I find it also hard to take unwarranted and unfair criticism. It is like a punch in the gut and you wonder why did I say anything.
Let me reassure you as others have already done that you are on a mission, and if you don’t do it, no one else will. Your writing, your selfless desire to help others is changing the world one person at a time. Keep up the good work and keep on writing. Don’t ever let anyone rob you of your purpose in life.
Finally, I love your closing with Anderson Cooper. I think that says it all and I am so happy that you posted it.
I really enjoyed this article and I hope you get your clocks back to striking at the same hour.
Love you, Carol.
Ciao,
Patricia
Patricia, I cannot even begin to tell you how much your thoughts and words here mean to me. I am so blessed to have such supportive and caring friends such as you, you who take the time to read what I have written, all the way through. Yes, as Leo Tolstoy said, help one person and you help the world — one person at a time.
My very big Valentine’s heart goes out to you with much love, Patricia. My eyes well with tears at your heartening words. Thank you.
Once again I am in awe of your gift of words. Thank you!
Happy Valentine’s Day! Your many friends care for you. Anyone who has one true friend is indeed blessed. You have many.
Bettielou
Thank you, Bettielou. You are very kind. And you are among my closest friends. I will never match the quality of your scones, though. 🙂
My dear Samantha…all I can say is Wow!
love,
Val
Wow, Val. Thank you.
Love, Turquoise Roo
Yes, Carol, this piece is definitely a tribute to your dear heart, your caring for others, and your excellent craftsmanship… Ok, Moriarty made me write that. I loved the flesh and blood you left on the paper, and hopefully your tears will dry soon. What an incredible tribute you have produced! You define wisdom and caring in your writing and we all can benefit from what you teach. I have learned a great deal from you. So thank you!
Thank you, Gwynn. One might say I was pushed into making this tribute — my reaction. I learned from this experience. Just remember that I learn from you, too. Good teachers learn every moment they are teaching. Yet I wasn’t thinking about teaching here, rather supporting writers, writing and readers.
Wow, she said. And wow. This is powerful stuff, Samantha, and should be required reading in every writing class.
Congratulations — you’ve just rallied the troops!
Gosh, thank you, T.J. I will try to remember to include this when I teach writing. And I am rallying the troops against what my friend R terms book burning. Books are people’s souls, writers’ souls. Burn their books, you steal their souls, and the souls of the seekers.
I care, you care, many care and may many more care, Carol. You, I, many know this even when apparent that there are those who don’t care. It is how it is and those who do care know the value of this; it is never doubted or questioned.
I remember Anderson Cooper and his automatic helping the young girl who had been badly injured. The starfish story that Dianne posted says it all. Small acts of kindness make the world go round. As do words, carefully crafted, such as yours.
I love your Valentine’s blog – you have and do the gift of giving whether it is Valentine’s Day or not. You give every day, every day is Valentine’s Day whether Wednesday, Sunday or Friday.
Happy Valentine’s Day Moriarty! Thanks for looking after our friend Carol … she is valuable to all of us. She keeps the clocks clicking and clocking, and who cares whether they are on time or not? Just so long as they don’t stop.
You have the gift, too, Susan. In fact, you inspired this post, as you can see. So, thank you. We carers and Roos and writers are valuable to each other.
Moriarty appreciates the Valentine’s Day wish. He is blushing.
“For truth is truth though never so old; and time cannot make that false what once was true.” Let us hope. –Thank you for this, R. Thank you for your compliment. It took me long enough to write this one — “one hundred false starts”, as F. Scott Fitzgerald so aptly wrote.
I trust the wine and Tchaikovsky made a fine bouquet. Let’s raise a glass and hand a rose to every writer of truth.
Ever.
Somehow this comment got misplaced, so I have copied and pasted it below to you, R.
Dearest Carol,
You are fortunate to have R in your corner, good friends are hard to find. And, Happy almost Valentines Day
Yes, R, has been a special friend for many years. How lucky am I?! Besides, he’s the one who gave me the heads up that Moriarty does not dust. 🙂
Happy Valentine’s Day to you, too, Dianne. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.
Carol, as I read this I did not know what to comment on first. By the end of it, all I wanted to do was sooth you as you have soothed so many others. It pains me to think that someone hurt you and perhaps questioned intentions that are pure or the wisdom of your words.
We all, I think look to a time in the past considered perfect. In that backward glance, we can make it whatever we like. We can look past the pain of a situation and consider the good that must have surrounded it somewhere. At least that is the hope.
I love that your author profile is in your local newspaper. Many more will be touched as a result.
As to the one doing, the “dressing down” I usually look for a positive in things, but for the life of me there seems nothing positive about what was offered. Is this person, perhaps jealous of your abilities?
Please, look past this obvious personal insult, and think of all the people that you help with your writing. When I was struggling with my Mothers Alzheimer disease in 1990, and beyond, groups of this nature was non-existent. The doctors could offer little in the way of help, or hope for that matter, and we were left to go home and try to figure it out. Alone and afraid.
The hope and help that you so graciously offer is immeasurable and in no way should one of questionable intent ever diminish it. The information that you provide helps in so many ways, but primary to me, it is that we are not alone and a place exists where we can express things most others would not understand, or appreciate for that matter.
I know wounds like the one you suffered take time to heal, but I sincerely hope that the love of those in our groups and those that reach out to you becomes a healing salve and speeds your recovery. Moriartry felt your pain and thus became pale.
The stories you share help so many, and I am reminded of the small boy at the seashore throwing back little, stranded creatures into the surf. His grandfather told him he could not save them all, it was meaningless. His response was, “I can’t save them all but to the ones I do save, it means everything.”
The same is true here and there is no question about those you help save……………….
Your comment is very wise and comforting, Dianne. Thank you for saying all that you have said here. I love the story about the little boy at the seashore. This is a story that should be known full well to those who engage in helping all sentient beings.
I know how very fortunate I was to have the help I had — ultimately — caring for my mother. In that sense, we were lucky that Emma’s dementia didn’t occur until it did, in the mid 2000s when she was in her 90s. Also, our living in a small state, and one with available funds during the economic crises greatly helped. That and my persistent nagging.
Such a deeply thought and well-written comment. I so appreciate it.
Dearest,
I prefer to let the tears roll over my fleshy cheeks. When I approached the end of the first paragraph, at the part where the blood red edges of the petals were crisping, I decided to open another bottle of wine; this installment has certainly proved that it deserved another pour. I hesitate to say that you have outdone yourself, but perhaps you have.
I raced through my first reading to Tchaichovsky blasting away: Marche Slave then Swan Lake.
I thank you a thousand times for your willingness to bundle your thoughtful thoughts in this masterpiece. Your arrangements of thoughts and words are inspiring. Don’t worry about finding the truth; the truth has found you.
“For truth is truth though never so old; and time can not make that false what once was true.
–The Earl of Oxford
This, “CI Who Cares”, is the most beautiful Valentine anyone could ever receive. Thank you for sending it.
Ever,
R.
“For truth is truth though never so old; and time cannot make that false what once was true.” Let us hope. –Thank you for this, R. Thank you for your compliment. It took me long enough to write this one — “one hundred false starts”, as F. Scott Fitzgerald so aptly wrote.
I trust the wine and Tchaikovsky made a fine bouquet. Let’s raise a glass and hand a rose to every writer of truth.
Ever.
Thank you for this wonderful tribute to music, to Mozart and Verdi, and for including the link to the Morley Safer story about Casa Verdi. A most heartwarming story indeed. My heart goes out to those Casa Verdi residents, wonderful, beautiful people.
And thank you, Steve, for your wonderful tribute to Mozart, Verdi and opera on your Valley Free Radio Monday Evening Classics the other night. You inspire me.
So enjoyed this Samantha thank you! And happy birthday to your brother! As well as those above whose musical legacy lives on and whose genius gives us joy.
I often wonder how and why I have mis-used my time and energies; we all have so much to do yet I know I distract myself in endless ways. Avoidance of self? Possibly, even probably …
I tried to access the video, but something strange was happening. I will definitely try again and will for sure see the film.
Thank you again!
Oh, the misuse of time, Susan. You are not alone. In fact, I’m setting a prime example today. Avoidance of self? Yes, sometimes — in a mini-vacation way. Hope you get to watch the whole video. Sometimes those links don’t cooperate and then later they do. Thanks, Susan.
Since I’m up way too late on a work night, I will try to watch the video later this week, but this will also require me to remember to watch the video — and remembering is always a bit of a challenge with a life as hectic as mine. You sound a bit melancholy. I think your friend’s observation, “You are always right where you need to be, doing what you need to do at that moment” is comforting, too, provided you’re not ever anywhere near a sidewalk that could swallow you whole and take you on a one-way ride to Middle Earth.
I reside a short walking distance from Verdi Square:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verdi_Square
Remember to watch the video, V. — just a reminder. 🙂 Those Italians … you know … they’re really a trip, a house full of divas — touching but with a humorous ending.
Yes, I have been feeling a bit melancholy; it’s the way the blue flu affects its victims. I don’t recommend it. I’m starting to feel human again. I didn’t have a fever, just very tired and bordering on insanity. Hopefully no trips to Middle Earth yet. 🙂 Our friend R. did get swallowed up by a sidewalk, actually one of those basement doors in the sidewalk that your mother always told you not to walk across, when the hinge broke. He fell into the cellar and split open his big toe. He survived and is still with us, as we know.
Thanks for the Verdi Square info — very interesting. I would be there every Sept. weekend if I lived nearby; sounds like a wonderful music festival.
Really liked what you had to say in your post, XCV. Tales from the Family Tree | Salmon Salad and Mozart, thanks for the good read!
— Lavern
http://www.terrazoa.com
Thank you, Lavern.
With or without ink there are those of us that might seem crazy to those that don’t seem anything at all – I prefer crazy – and that short film will make you laugh and cry; with deep, deep layers of poignancy.
As chance would have it; I enjoyed Dustin Hoffman yesterday as his portrayal of Ricco Rizzo in Midnight Cowboy, considering… deep, deep layers of poignancy.
Thank you for this thoughtful essay.
As ever,
R.
I see you’ve been chatting with the Black Monk, R. Glad you enjoyed the video. It is poignant. I want to watch it again. I can’t get it out of my mind. Deeply affecting.
Yet, still… this mortal garb of genius…
These intelligent and creative people left incredible legacies, but you see — they live on! Lovely.
Would that I had the funds, Gwynn, I would love to do what Verdi did — set up a retirement home with my writing royalties. Maybe there’s a home for writers somewhere whose pens are nearly out of ink. Meanwhile, I thought that perhaps I should practice my guitar, learn Italian and apply to Casa Verdi. On the days they let me out, I could visit George Clooney.
very nice Carol! Will watch the video.
The video is very touching, Val, and stays with you long after you’ve watched it. Thank you.
Yes, Susan and T.J. are correct, you did write a stunning and thought provoking piece. Preventing selling your soul and keeping your heart is quite essential, unfortunately I think several people in this world have not learned how to do this.
While you wander in your yard, I’m here looking out through the trees into the bay wondering if I will ever see clearly. Thank you for your insight.
Gosh, thank you, Gwynn. Looking through the trees out onto your bay, consider this: the past is like words written on water.
A stunning post thank you Carol. I can see you musing on a rock. Your experience of caring for your mother will always stand you in good stead. Getting through and past the mud after the stuck ness of it is no mean feat. Your heart and head, body mind and soul expands, and expands some more ..
Thank you, Susan. Thank you for clarifying and supporting where I am now. Even though fellow former caregivers, such as T.J. here, have alerted me to these times, each expansion is all new and I never know what to expect or quite how to deal with it, except to learn.
Wonderful piece — and an important reminder that sometimes we need to dwell in the in-between places.. That those places have blessings to give us if we can just turn the inside out.
Yes, they are blessings, T.J., when viewed at the proper angle. Thank you.
To wake, to think, to write…
Thank you for doing so…
R.
Thank you for thinking so, R.
Hi Dear,
I have nominated your blog for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award. Please go to my website at http://garciaandwalkon.me for instructions.
Ciao,
Patricia
Patricia, thank you for this nomination. I will go to your website. I am honored. I am sorry for my delayed response, but I only just now found your comment. I have not yet learned how to be notified by email of my visitors’ comments. Thank you so much.
I love that you, a classical music aficionado, is blasting ELO in your house! My colleague, who’s 24 and has depth, sometimes streams them at her desk, so don’t be so hard on the millennials! Glad that you were able to savor your bag of scones.
V., Sorry to be so tardy in replying here. I haven’t figured out how to receive email notification when someone comments. Many years ago when I was the age of the present millennials, I used to blast Led Zeppelin and the like in my Redondo Beach, Calif., apt. The neighbors were patient; my daughter, then about 4, would say, “Mom, turn that down.” Of course, about 10 years later I was telling her to turn her music down. I’ve always loved ELO, though, and have blasted them over the years. 🙂
I’ve been rather swamped (yes, with My Manhattan Project), but I’ve been meaning to get back to you. Sorry to stray from our ELO discourse, but have you seen this story in today’s NYT? I think you will like it very much:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/07/arts/music/are-those-pictures-really-mozart.html?hp
Really? ELO ! One of my FAvorites! I’m talking 8 tracks ago…. speaking of Jamminn…. today felt like a Bic Mac Truck ran over me twice- Goosebumps as big as saucers and I had Won Ton Soup and instead of scones…. Fortune Cookies. And I jammed to Johnny Cash’s Birthday Tribute as loud as a Concerto in Guitar Major. Flu Season is here. Big D is feeling it now. I enjoy your blogs… it brings me UP when I am totally down. Thank you Carol.
And your comments bring me up, Jackie. –Especially one as lively and entertaining as this — a Concerto in Guitar Major — I love it! Thank you!
Be well and get Big D well, too.
I always love to read what you have written. Your use of language is also music to me. And, of course I love being included in your thoughts. Thank you! I did take Ginger Ale and Ibuprofen to Robert this noon to help his recovery.
Well done.
How kind of you, Bettielou — to say that my use of language is like music to you. i like to think of it that way as I write. And how kind of you to take some recovery items to our ill friend.
When is conversation a virtue or a vice?
Conversation is a virtue when thought, word and deed are correct. …Am I right? Or off in a hay field somewhere?
I enjoyed your thought provoking posting, it is like wandering through a forest only to discover many hidden treasures. Thank you. I especially loved Orhan’s refrigerator light going on in comparison to today’s educational process. You hit the nail right on the head – WHAM! 😉
Thanks, Gwynn. It’s often hard to know whether or not I am lost in the forest. There are so many trees …. And, often I stumble on the treasure, not recognizing it as such, and fall flat on my face. Yes, I like Orhan’s refrigerator, too. I’ll have to locate the title of that piece.
Hi,
I enjoyed reading this journal posting and also reading about the people you cherish. It is good to have a journal that can be used to talk out what is going on within oneself. I have such a journal also, and the insight gained from keeping such a journal is amazing.
Ciao,
Patricia
And, there is my friend Patricia, such a beautiful person inside and out, who lives Germany, who has survived recent flooding and loss, who thinks deeply and writes beautiful, flowing, good, kind, enlightening thoughts and words. I encourage you, my readers, to visit Patricia’s sites. You will get hooked.
Thank you, Patricia. Yes, journals are amazingly insightful. I have been keeping a journal for about 40 years. When I die and leave my journals behind, somebody’s going to have some interesting reading, if they are so inclined. 🙂
Hi,
I enjoyed reading your thoughts. Being a fan of classical music also, I enjoy listening to it when I am reading, but I have to admit I am a fan of almost all music.
And I love scones. I have been to England, Scotland, and Ireland and have eaten the best scones there for tea-time. I love the British Tea-Time.
Really learned a little bit more about you by reading this article.
Thanks for sharing.
Ciao,
Patricia
Scones, classical music and tea-time sound good to me. I think we should institute tea-time here in America. I stopped by your “The Foreigner” site, but couldn’t find a place to comment. I signed up, though, to receive further posts. So beautifully thought and written. Thank you for coming by and commenting. I love comments (and visits — well, and scones).
Also glad I got to read it – much enjoyed – and hope RObert, that you’re over the flu. Thanks for reminder of ELO!!!
My friend Jackie has the flu now, too. I’ll stay away from physical contact with my friends for a while. I am fighting it, myself. I feel OK, but slept 9 hours last night. I may use the impending flu as an excuse to slack off. I am so glad I remembered ELO, too, Susan. I have always loved their music. After not having listened to them in so many years, I was amazed at how much Jeff Lynne’s music sounds like George Harrison’s.
Thank you for stopping by and commenting, as always, Susan.
Thank you Susan – I’m recovering minute by minute.
I’m glad I got to read this…
Good night,
R.
I’m glad you did, too. It sounds like you wrote your note with a stubby dose and a froggy throat. Am I right? Feel better.
Lovely post Samantha and I wish you a wonderful New Year. During my blogging hiatus I’ve been working on My Manhattan Project, something I will unveil hopefully before next spring. Milton the Optimist thinks that it will lead to major change in my life. I would welcome that, if the change is positive, but the pessimist in me is not as convinced. Oh well, 2013 is fast approaching so soon, time will tell which way the soot blows — in my face or at my back.
Thank you V., and thank you for the update on your activities. Always glad to have you stop by. Here’s to the soot blowing at your back!
Samantha, you planted seeds, you cared for them, watered and encouraged them and they bore fruit. I mean this in relation to everything you have done! This was a beautiful post thank you and a joy to read!
And to all the commentators thus far, Robert, TJ. Gwynn and you dear Carol:may 2013 be blessed and joyful, healthy and prosperous
Thank you, Susan. My mental secret garden. Wishing you, too, a blessed, joyful, healthy and prosperous New Year. You are a special friend and such a joy to know. Now, I’m looking forward to going over to your blog and reading your last post of the year, “Dreaming and Awakening”.
Thank you Susan and thank you for taking me up and down Kilimanjaro!
Your book is thoroughly enjoyable.
Thank you for making it available.
Cheers,
Robert
As I lay reading, my thoughts traversed to a plane where I found myself asking, “Will Samantha Mozart publish a blog soon?”, with determined effort and difficulty, raising my aching carcass away from the pillows, comforters and leather coach, setting my kindle app aside I hobbled across the tree house to tap the space bar to awaken my Mac; another sale, a question about a potential sale and a notice of a new blog post…
This is my favorite new year essay; sanguine, teeming with peace, full of light and symphonic.
Thank you for sharing this moving composition.
All my love and may peace ensconce your hearth and home this season and all throughout the new year and forever…
R.
Let us hope, R. Thank you.
Lovely, just lovely. Thank you — and wishing you lots of iris energy and blue deer — there’s another book in the making here.
Yes, hoping there’s another book in the making. Thank you for your kind compliments, T.J. You know, you inspired the iris thought. And the blue deer, I suspect, was napping in the sun somewhere down by the stream, beneath a bare branch. Thank you for the iris energy wishes.
Tomorrow dawns New Year’s Eve for me and many of our friends will already be headed into a New Year. What you neglected to add is that YOU are responsible for starting this magnificent group of women. We all support one another and we appreciate you for bringing us together. May your New Year bring you many wonderful New Blessings!
And YOU, you all chose to stay, Gwynn. That’s what blows me away. With life this good in 2012, how much better can they be in the new year with the strong seed already planted and sprouting. May your new year bring you wonderful blessings, too. You deserve it; each of these friends here mentioned deserves it. That’s how you got to be characters in my story.
A very lovely christmas story. Merry Christmas to you and wishing you a healthy and prosperous new year.
Thank you, Connie. Wishing you the same. Wishing you added blessings for all you do to help others.
quite lovely Samantha thank you! The angels were surely with you all, all the way!
Thank you, Susan. Yes, they were and they are.
Carol. It’s gorgeous!
I am so glad that Thumper and Jean were able to rescue Maggie.
Have a wonderful Christmas.
Love,
Val
Thank you, Val. So kind and thoughtful. Thumper and Jean are glad, too. I think you and Brian and Thumper and Jean would have much in common. They, too, go around playing guitar and singing at nursing homes and the similar places. I wish you and Brian a wonder Christmas, too. When all we Roos convene, I will have to invite Thumper and Jean, too. We would have a fabulous concert and joyous camaraderie. Cheers!
Yes, yes… love is why we are here.
A very nice Christmas story.
Full of love.
All my love,
R.
:-). Thank you, R. All my love to you, too. Happy Christmas! –from my “Dickensian”, as you say, self.
A powerful post — you do a wonderful job of using Seton’s novel as a jumping-off point . You remind us that while the quest is never as straightforward as we’d like it to be, we do eventtually get to where we’re supposed to be. And when you think about it, that’s the pattern in most fairy tales: the hero/heroine always gets sidetracked but eventually makes good.
And while we’re at it, sometimes a good metaphor/symbol/ritual helps — gives us a positive way to channel our spiritual/creative energy.
You’re so right about the metaphor and the positive channel, T.J. And, you know, I have always loved fairy tales. Thank you for your kind comment/compliment, and noting points I made that I hadn’t considered. Excellent. This means a lot to me.
Vivid reminiscences. I hope you do get a chance to read your father’s novel. My family is the type that prefers to forget the past. In my mother’s case, it was because she had a very rough life growing up in the depression. She suffered a debilitating stroke back in 1990 that eventually led to her buying her rainbow. My siblings and I were all left with far more questions than answers about her. At this point, almost everyone from my parent’s generation has taken the big dirt nap. There are a few things I’d like to know about my father’s boyhood in Chicago, but he’s now 85 and he’s forgotten a lot about his early youth. In many respects, I’m the same way. The further I grow away from my own past, the more I forget about it, too.
Welcome back, Virginia! I suppose I am a bit attached to my past. My father and uncle were great storytellers, so that fixed the attachment and the memories. Thanks for telling some of your family story here. My great grandparents died pretty young, so I think that’s why the humorous made-up stories about someone being chased out of England. It WAS made up — I think; although, hmmm….. Comforting about “the big dirt nap” is 70-year-old Garrison Keillor’s saying on Charlie Rose, 70, the other night, “Seventy’s a great age. All those you were afraid of are gone — your parents, your teachers. It’s freeing. On the other hand, you don’t know as much, because you can’t ask them about things in their lifetime.” Obviously, I’m not quoting exactly, but pretty close. Great to have you visit!
Citrine. Changes color with energy surrounding it. I learned this from a gift of a customer. Gloria Canada. I would be Citrine-Roo. I love your connection to a stone from the earth. “The turquoise ring I wear was given me by my spiritual friend”.
Interesting, Jackie. I love it when people/friends can add to the little I know. Well, please, join our group of extraordinary women like you — you can be the 13th Roo, Citrine Roo. We are the most supportive, unconditionally loving women in the world. You belong in our group. Let me know, and I will send you the link to our group. I am trying to get K in but she is having trouble logging in. It does blow me away, that turquoise/friend connection.
Little Johnny Wannamaker…..
write everything down, because when the 3 K’s realize that they are from a wonderful history- you and I will be pushing the daisies up in the heat of the summer….
Thought you’d like this one, Jackie. Glad you saw it. This is why I write these stories down. Who knows how accurate some of the stories are by this telling, but the essence is there. The tree in the fireplace on Washington’s b’day was told numerous times, though. They didn’t tell a story just once; I guess that’s where I get it from.
that was so lovely Samantha thank you. The spiritual path is demanding in its way, yet it is worth the effort to bring our own integrity into the world if we believe in the inter-connectivity of it all. All of life deepens us, the good and the not so good, the easier and the difficult times. Your post brings this home very vividly to me, thank you.
Susan, thank you. Your kind comment/compliment neatly ties together the idea of this blog post with T.J.’s Sketch People post abut her dad and that connectivity between ourselves and those we love, of finding each other no matter where each of us is. Indeed, each of those spiritual demands along the way deepens us. Had that not worked for me, I would not now be having this conversation with you.
Very sweet and acutely timely.
In these current times some parents and grandparents force a child to take medication and sit back a shut up. Would that our propensities be nourished rather than suffocated this world and some parents and grandparents would be far richer.
Thank you for sharing your lovely storytelling of these events from seasons past.
You had me at genius.
R.
I thank my family for the storytelling and the humor. Thank you, R., for your kind compliment and comment.
Beautifully written. Try letting go of your attachment to Turquoise., although just a metaphor, it to is impermanent and empty.
Glenn — You read my post and commented. Thank you, and thank you for your kind compliment. I don’t know how attached I am to Turquoise. I seem to have grown beyond it in some sense, or many. Nevertheless, it is always there — the ring on my finger, a reminder. I am where I am now, which is in a different place from where I was 30 or 40 years ago, plus I am way older chronologically. You are right, of course; I will let go of the attachment to Turquoise. I think I am about there. I believe my writing this piece was a means of letting go. But the ring won’t come off my finger; it won’t fit over my knuckle.
Dear Heart,
You have made beautiful art this day.
R.
:-)) And your comment makes me very happy, R. Thank you.
You write a poignant message. I pray that your turquoise protects you. Thank you for your caring.
It is a poignant life and a poignant time, Gwynn, as you well have experienced. Thank you. And thank you for being my caring friend, always here to lend an ear — yes, an ear, two very good ears.
Yes, yes … a very special time.
R.
Indeed. Thanks for being there and being my friend, R.
Oh, btw, next time you’re at the store and wonder if I need anything, could you pick up a box of tissues for Moriarty? He’s out.
Hi Carol
Congratulations on your presentation yesterday. Even though not too many folks came to the actual presentation you know they heard in their travels through the store and were curious.
Have a great Thanksgiving!
Love and Hugs,
Val
the Little Blue Roo
Hello, Little Blue Roo,
Yes, the presentation went better than expected, I think; that is, it went as it should. It turned out to be about friendship and love for one’s friends. We stayed beyond the time allotted, and all said what a special time it was. Amazing how those synchronicities work. Thanksgiving was great, too, another special event with a very special friend. Am I fortunate or what? 🙂
Hi Carol
Wonderful as always. I just love your book and can’t wait for the second volume. Have a great Thankgsgiving!
Love and Hugs,
Val (aka Little Blue Roo)
Hello Val,
I am at work putting together Volume II. Also, my next presentations will be at senior centers, so hopefully I will have a captive audience. 🙂 Love and hugs to you, too, Little Blue Roo.
Lovely post thank you Samantha. You express the sense of Thankksgiving so well, where there is simple gratitude for what one has, friends who help each other out.
Thank you, Susan. In the end these are the things that count the most, I am finding.
Very nicely written, as always.
Have a lovely Thanksgiving, my friend.
Oh, thank you, Bettielou. What a special event yesterday. Thank you for being there and counted among my very special friends. Happy Thanksgiving to you, too.
Yes, yes … The Phantom and The R in Samantha’s Living Room; less chimera than one might misapprehend.
Creative conjuring.
R.
R — The Phantom’s not telling. Even if he did it would be a phantom story. Don’t trip over that chair.
Congratulations on becoming World Renown!! I knew you could do it! Plus, after reading this post is Kellie sitting at home saying “Oh Mother, how could you tell the world about my secrets?” 😉
You are a gracious author.
Gwynn — I told Kellie I was going to blog the story after she told me. She laughed and said that was a good idea. 🙂 Now here she says she’s got another one. Another blog post, perhaps?
After reading your book which I am re-reading for the absolute pleasure of not missing one single aspect of your spiritual love that, without a doubt deserves the credit its beginning to receive. All I can say is I was a care giver to many people for, so many years. I did have a fraction of your blessed energy. You are a gift to the human race, The thread you began on LinkedIn is a testament to the lovely person , both inside and out. Thank you for bringing me into your life at the perfect Thank you for being in life. You are so loved by many people.
I cannot wait for your next book!!
,
Ah, Marsha, beautiful thoughts and words. Thank you. I am so glad to have you in my life and so glad you have stayed in my life as my friend. You, too, are a gift to the human race.
Thank you for reading my book again. I am about to start on Vol. II. It is time. I think the subject matter in Volume II is richer, deeper. I hope I am right.
That Linkedin thread blows me away. I never dreamed — and the connection with Linda’s … amazing. There is good out there.
It is good advice R. However I’m so tired when I get home it’s another job to keep on them to get their Chores done. Oh BTW mom. I have another story for you. 😉
Can’t wait for the next story, Kellie. Do call. 🙂
Kellie Tom Sawyer should brush up on her old technique and use her former modus operandi on the girls to spread the wealth of home chores among the able; as well as to make it more interesting.
Brilliant: that your book will traverse its way into the halls of the House of Lords and into the hands of the whole global carers’ movement.
Please keep me posted.
Cheers,
R.
Indeed I will keep you posted, R. And, yes, good Tom Sawyer advice to Kellie.
I am so sorry our candling was interrupted by this storm. I will now have to create a tool box full of camphor, candles and lotions to keep in my rover to be ready and on demand. Maybe this will become my calling. Dear Friend, Feel Better.
Don’t be sorry, Jackie. It’s not like you huffed and puffed and blew this storm in. We’ll get it done. Look — the good news is I can’t hear the wind blowing so hard. 😉 Yes, this should be your calling. You are expert at it, such a healing experience beyond just being able to hear. Thank you, my dear friend. Be safe.
An open minded swinger cruising the halls of this human experience. Thank you for being here.
R.
And I must say, R, it does make it a lot more interesting being here and passing you in the halls between and in the midst of experiences. Thank you.
WOW – morning pages… that read for me as if they had been painted in cursive; all the while imaging the Phantom of your Blog watching you tacitly from a sub rosa distance.
Thank you: you know how I take great pleasure in your descriptive prose.
This chapter is invigoratingly blooming, crisp and glowing.
R.
Hopefully Moriarty, The Phantom of My Blog, was doing his chores. You will be hearing from him soon, though; he’s been given an assignment. Thank you, R, for sharing this space with me.
Yes, mistakes from the past get us to where we are now, but repeating those mistakes might not be appropriate for the path we are on now. Since I taught swimming… don’t go in the water unless you know how to swim OR wear a life vest.
Thank you, Gwynn. Mistakes are merely an opportunity for a Take 2. I don’t have a life vest and I’m not a strong swimmer, so as you can see, I am sitting here at my keyboard having opted not to go into the water.
This is beautiful, Samantha. I especially love the last 2 paragraphs — they ring so powerfully, achingly true. And the image of the iris leaves turning yellow “like elderly hands” is very, very good.
Any compliment coming from you, T.J., means a lot to me. I thought of you as I wrote this, probably drew a little from your experiences as well as from my own. It is hard to let go of our secure nest of a past — I find it very hard — and to realize the impermanence of life.
Loved the story, Gwynn — your characteristic self-deprecating humor is all over it, and I love that.
Thank you for posting my story about Lulu. She is loved — only inactive and quiet these days.
You are welcome, Gwynn. Thanks for writing such a delightful story. And I thanked Moriarty, as you requested. He was getting irritable; I think in part because he was hungry. I made him some dinner.
Oh Sam,
You did write another chapter; you and V: your exchange could be LXXXVIIII.
The quote is not from Michael Ondaatje, it is from Margo Channing the fictional aging actress in All About Eve played by Bette Davis.
Thanks again for the great read.
Arguably,
R.
Yes, R., with a lot of help from my wingwoman we did well. I hope we got a lot of readers. Thanks for commenting again and for citing the quote source.
Dear Samantha,
I am sick the past 2 days and you have been my sole companion…. My mother died 4 years ago after a long stay in a nursing home. I was 48. She had dementia. Didn’t know who I was the last 2 years. I can’t imagine dealing with her at home at 70 plus years old. I thought I had a struggle then. I picked up your book at Quentin Schlieder’s annual wine tasting and auction in Smyrna. Where you there? You published this book yourself. How difficult was that?
Well, I am near the end of your story, but my cold continues.
thanks for sharing your story
Janet — Thank you for visiting my site and for your most kind compliment. Thank you for buying my book and for supporting the Smyrna Downtown Renaissance Association. Yes, of course I was there. Would I miss a wine tasting?! I am so touched that my book touches you. That was my purpose in writing it — to reach others in similar circumstances and to raise awareness of the condition of caregiving. My story continues. I will soon set to work preparing Volume II for publication. I will email you.
I feel your pain. You are not alone. It’s very tough to make ends meet. I often feel like a member of the working poor. My employer reduced my wages by 20% in January 2009 in response to the economy tanking. My salary has yet to be increased in almost four years now and making rent is proving to be more of a struggle. As the cost of living rises, I have seen my standard of living decline. I’d quit my job in a heartbeat if I could find a better paying gig, but there are few good jobs available for the likes of middle aged me, so I suppose I’m grateful for the job I have. These are tough times and I also fear that if Mittens succeeds at buying his way into the White House, they will indeed be even tougher. I am hoping that his 47% gaffe will come back to haunt him as much as his father claiming that he was brainwashed by military officials to support the war in Vietnam. Keep hope alive that this privileged son’s goal is toast.
V., I so, so agree with you on this. I tried to soften my antipathy to Mittens here, and, yes, all along I have hoped that he will go the way of his father. I have been where you are job-wise at middle age, and the only change in that situation is that it has worsened. Now, at my young old age, the one job available to me, as a Walmart greeter, isn’t gonna get it. The low pay for my time would obstruct my ability to continue seeking means of generating survival income. The neat thing about having food stamps, though, is that I can buy all the groceries I want that have quadrupled in price since salaries went stagnant. Besides, it’s a discreet debit card now with a pretty picture on it.
So many I talk to are in dire straits; we are all struggling, especially my circle of highly accomplished artist friends. It is hard for me to splash my personal finance struggles across my blog pages, but I do it so that others will know they are not alone, and so that voters and those in a position to change things will wake up and realize that putting Mittens behind the wheel would steer us down an icy slope, smack into and “I’ve got mine and now I’m gonna take what’s left of yours” placard.
The upside of this, I suppose, is that it spurs me to continue to look for the best ways to generate income for myself and my friends so that together we can raise the awareness and consciousness of the masses, if that’s possible.
Oh, look — I’ve written another essay. I’m off to ride my bike and escape all this for a few minutes.
Thank you so much for your poignant, pertinent comment. Let’s raise our glasses in a toast to toast.
Dearest Sam,
More than twice as I read this chapter the mixed metaphor, “dropping petals and folding my tent.” popped recalcitrantly into my mind. Your descriptive prose brings me great pleasure and the last paragraph sweetens the bitter smack of the ones before it; an emotional flavor that will stay with me for days and for years to come.
Thank you for writing this and for sharing courageously.
Peace and prosperity,
R.
Thank you, dear R. That “dropping petals and folding my tent” is a good metaphor for my situation: After the War. (I assume that is Michael Ondaatje you quote here.)
This is one of the excellent post.Your blog information is very classic and good.I like this post.
Thank you.
Great post. Love the pics. I don’t remember the blizzard you had.
Glad you enjoyed it, Kellie. That blizzard occurred when you were in N.C. Didn’t you have that blizzard there? Thank you for visiting and commenting. 🙂
V.,
Way to get her going!
Great post!
R.
R. — V. does good. –S. I love that she asks questions. If I had a flying staircase in my house, I wouldn’t have a closet underneath it in which to keep my soapbox, or even my flying suitcase.
Of course, when I was reading your response to my response, after you mention the entirety of the town’s trash landing in your flower bed, I mis-read flying staircase as flying “suitcase” and I thought you were still lamenting all the junk that heads you way. Then, I realized that we were still very much on topic bout flying staircases. I did the Google serch and yes, now I do know what they are — fourth image down on this site:
http://www.archithings.net/contemporary-tolo-house-designed-by-alvaro-leite-siza
Considering that they look best without banisters I would think that people best suited living in homes with these novelties should be those short in the tooth.
Wow. That staircase is really something. That would make me nervous, since I tend nearly always to have a collection of things to carry up and down the stairs — food, drinks (not McDonald’s cups), mail, books, shoes, iPods, whatever. Even without, I, long of tooth, prefer a good, sturdy banister.
I like the blue staircase on that site. That’s really nice.
If that had been a flying suitcase headed towards my flower bed, the contents would hopefully have been more pleasant (unless it’s body parts) than what appears to be the contents of somebody’s trash can that they didn’t put a lid on.
Glad you added the images! Your house is exactly what I imagined — or maybe I just saw it in my mind’s eye based on how you’ve described it in your posts. What’s a flying staircase?
Thanks for the shout out pal!
Interesting that my house is as you imagined. I should take a photo of it in late November when every leaf and every plastic bag, church bulletin, McDonald’s cup, straw, lid and beer can in our town has blown into my flower bed.
I was afraid I was going to have to explain a flying staircase. I was somewhat disappointed when I saw my first one here in town; I thought they would be some kind of magic-carpety flying thing; but they’re not — they simply appear to have no support thereby giving a dramatic appearance. Google “flying staircase” and you’ll see some photos. I tried to paste one here in this reply but it didn’t work.
My pleasure to give the shout out. It added humor to my post. Besides, your writing is so good I think you deserve more readers, V.
What a bucolic place … but I would have liked to see a few pictures.
You know, you’re right, V., and I do have some; in fact, I made a calender from my photos of historic sites around town a few years ago, printed copies and then had a wine and cheese calender signing at my friend Jackie’s store, The Gathering Place. Yes, I should add a couple of pictures to that; I will. Thanks!
Oh, you bring back the warm memories of why I moved here. Luv ya-
Our wine tasting last evening was delightful and a pleasant reminder of why I moved here, Jackie. Met Howard Johnson and he gave us a tour. He is a caregiver and is excited about my presenting my book there when he opens. Thank you!
HaPpY HoLiDAyS !!!
Thank you, R., and I imagine you’ll hear from me before Christmas.
Thank you, Samantha, for the publicity on your blog. This is great work.
As is your work, Steve. Thank you for your gracious kindness.
I find myself using words like “powerful” and important” over and over again in regard to your posts, Samantha. Thing is, they’re always true. This one really hit me, though, because what you say about dementia is absolutely true…and if God is kind, we’ll be able to keep that in mind and not become one of the 50%.
Thank you, T.J. Your words mean a lot to me, because I know that you know of what you speak — from your experience, your wisdom and from your expert writing capabilities. Let’s hope God is kind. It’s scary. Let’s hope they find something through research that saves us from this humiliating condition.
Wow, wow and wow… after a long and arduous weekend warrior’s marathon of work, what a pleasant entry to come home to read and hear; as well as delightfully positive tidings.
Thank you for sharing,
R.
Wow. And thank you, R., for promoting me thus enabling my giving a book presentation at a most significant book store, Browseabout Books, in Rehoboth Beach, Del.
How can I tell you the power I feel reading you with such magnificent dessert. What wonderful talents, found on the same page!! I am so blessed to know Ms Mozart and to meet her friend Steve. Thank you both!!!
And thank you, Marsha and Steve. I just say what’s there. Without your support, few would hear it.
It has been so difficult to address this post. You see, I know this strong woman who cannot allow this negativity in her life. We have exchanged messages and ides of what to do and I will always be here in prayer and positive energy for you. I want to say, “Sam, do not allow the shallowness of some, destroy your loving self. They are not bad people, they are simply attached to the material world, a place I never want to be again. I was, in younger years, but something in my soul snatched me back into reality. Arrogance was not meant for us. Humiliation is not meant for us. Humility is. They are searchers looking for joy in the ego and there is no joy in Easing-God-Out or ego.”
You and I both know that God never turns His/Her back to us. Soon you will be the influence people rave about and your amazing creativity will more than support you. There is not a cruel, ugly, negative, characteristic about you and you WILL over come. You have plenty of friends who will keep all options open.
Me, too, Marsha. I regard much of the material world arrogance confronting me now as fallout from the past as it melts away, like the Wicked Witch of the West — not that it’s any less scary when I come face to face with it.
Thank you for your kind words and good thoughts, my dear friend.
Fervent and sanguine; an inspirational post. Thank you for sharing it. You have brought a smile to my face here in my tree house as a new day dawns.
I read Begins the Night Music in one sitting exhausting my collection of Mozart, (it looped around about four times), smiling and laughing out loud in remembrance of Emma.
Cheers to your book and here’s to the next volume.
Most sincerely,
R.
Thank you so much, R. On to the next step, the next volume.
This sounds very encouraging! I’ll keep my fingers, legs and eyes crossed for you (in New York City one can get away with freakish behavior; it’s part of blending in).
It is encouraging, LA. Thank you for your support. But, really, no need for you to keep your eyes crossed — because then if I came to the City I wouldn’t recognize you among all the others. 🙂 That’s one thing I miss about living in the big city — the freedom to “blend in.”
Sorry to heat that things are going rough. I hope the book finds an audience. Have you considered reading passages of it at local gatherings to get the word out and to spur interest?
Yes, this is an excellent idea, LA. I need to buy copies of my book from CreateSpace (at a reduced price), make some bookmarks (to be used as business cards) and read excerpts and market the books at senior centers, for starters, and then maybe libraries and I don’t know where else yet. Another writer friend suggested I make 8 1/2 x 11 photocopies of the book cover and place them on little stands at senior centers and such, and wherever I speak, with info where readers can buy copies.
One of my friends on my Linkedin writers caregivers discussion group is a retired social worker and a writer living in New Zealand. She is going to write reviews for Alzheimer’s-related magazines in New Zealand and Australia. How cool is that?
When I began taking care of my mother, I knew I’d encounter dire straits, as it were, but I had hoped to somehow stay ahead of it. Everybody loves my book, fortunately — all 4 readers ;-). I just need to get the word out. Thanks for your support and ideas. I greatly appreciate them. Just the moral support helps hugely.
Your grass roots style marketing strategy sounds very encouraging. You’ve got a presence on the web and I think that hitting senior centers with the book’s cover and, if possible, a modest excerpt that could generate good word-of-mouth. You might also want to look into Tweeting about it (suggested the world’s worst Tweeter). Twitter is big with millions of people and, of course, there’s FaceBook (I loathe FB). I think it would behoove you to hit up everyplace and you seem to be doing that. That’s also great news about your writer-friend in New Zealand reviewing it. I hope your book will start paying a dividend for you soon.
These are all great ideas, LA. I thought about Twitter earlier today and then forgot about it again. But, I’m working on it. I welcome any suggestion, and yours are great ones. (I’m not a big FB/Twitter fan either, but, you know, we have to bite the bullet sometimes — and StumbleUpon, too). Word of mouth seems to be my best advertisement so far — grass roots, love the concept.
Things are looking up — see the post I just made. I am truly heartened. Too bad the bank isn’t. I just hope these serendipities catch up with my mortgage. Thanks!
Like that!!! Great plan!!!
Thank you for writing this. Here’s to you; and to Begins the Night Music becoming a best seller earning you more than sufficient funds to pay off the red-eyed belching bank buzzards, take a train trip and proceed with your third act as you are meant to do.
Very Sincerely,
R.
Oh, please. Yes. Thank you for the good wishes, R.
Dear Sam,
Your book arrived last week, after carefully navigating through previous addresses that defaulted through no fault of mine own. It is soon to be a best seller!
I do often picture you in the eye of my mind swirling a dark, rich velvety nectar in tall stemware; languorously perhaps, but never idly.
Anyway… the tale you tell is very kind to your publishers and an absolute pleasure and amusing to read – leaving me wanting more.
Never stop twirling your goblet.
Seriously,
R.
Thank you, R. Volume II coming soon.
Your book arrived today – it looks like a best seller to me!
R.
Thank you, R. Let’s hope you are right!
I must say here that I just reread all of your beautiful responses while listening to Puccini’s “Nessun Dorma.” Quite an interesting phenomenon.
S.,
I’ve read LXXXI three times now – do you think I like it?
The last time I read it the music crescendoed at the part about ” Your brother telling you…”
Oh and … ” I salute the insincerity of others,”. How about it !!!
It is excellent on many levels…
R.
The music crescendos for me at the same scenes. Nothing that I could have planned, just a synchronicity, of which I find many in my life these days. Thank you again, R.
Kellie read it and like it, too — read it twice, although she is one of several phantoms padding around in my blog.
I cannot put into words my feelings. R is on the other end of my phone.. He was wonderful reading this insightful chapter of our lives. The music flowed and his words danced upon my heart , I admire your writing ability . Way to go girl// you go girl !!
Gosh, Pam — and R — thank you very much! It’s so good to know that my thoughts, as put into words, touch someone besides myself. I just love the idea of writing to a soundtrack! Music is my first love.
What an artist you are!!! This is a favorite for me. I love being an observer and that is what I am when I read your beautiful lyrics. So much sensitivity, love, compassion, even when it seems the your evolution, to a higher plane is being challenged. And, for dessert, the vision of the blue deer.
Oh, thank you, Marsha. You are so kind. I am encouraged and inspired by your thoughts and words. I had actually thought of dessert, but that would have added another paragraph and put the timing off. I’ll have to write another one — “Dessert with Moriarty.”
As I was careening southward on 495, parallel to the river, at 75–80 miles per hour with 3 tons of wrought iron garden furniture strapped to the roof racks of the vehicle my phone pinged and this blog appeared. Anxious to read it I turned the screen to the side to get a larger view. Mesmerized, excited and expectant I read to the, ” read more”, prompt, hesitated, and looked up at the Delaware Memorial Bridge and the enormous bright white shaggy clouds over Wilmington and decided if I ever wanted to finish this chapter, let alone enjoy this vista ever again I’d better hang up and drive; just then I hit a rough patch of highway and the dodge ram bucked like a bronco, so I slowed as is often necessary to sooth the aching suspension.
Home now and cooled by a bath and the constant hum of central air and and ceiling fans I continue to read – I knew it was going to be good, but if I had known it was this fantastic I would have pulled over to the shoulder back there on the highway and read on.
Way to put it out there – I love it!
Write another one.
R.
Well put, yourself, R. I was wondering what you were doing driving so fast in that van on that stretch of highway. Glad you slowed down. And so glad you enjoyed my story. Let’s hope my book, with some of these stories from my blog in it and more, is a best seller. Thank! Your little story here was a real cliff-hanger at first.
Once again you have very eloquently told a very tragic but so often true side of the caregivers story. You will and already have I’m sure been rewarded in ways others will never know for all of the time and patience and most importantly love that you showed as caregiver. Thank you again for sharing.
Thank you, Connie. You are very kind. But, you’ve been a caregiver every day, all your career, to many. Thank you for that. And, yes, I am hearing that this money issue is yet another chapter in the caregiver’s story.
Powerful stuff, Samantha. Glad to see the Blue Deer making another guest appearance. And the music makes for an equally powerful accompaniment. Do I detect the voices of Nick Drake and Melanie?
Thank you, T.J. They are back by popular request. 🙂 Glad you like the music. I wrote the entire piece to that one adagio movement. Nick Drake and Melanie? Hadn’t thought of them. Will have to follow up and learn more.
What a wonderful story. Val is a great writer and I’ll tell her so. I love this blog!
I love your mother’s artwork.
Aren’t you wonderful, Marsha. Thank you! My mother would thank you, too.
Val’s positive attitude is encouraging. Having no other to care for than myself and finding it more and more difficult to make time for those moments to call mine own, it blows my mind that full time care givers manage to do so.
Thank you for posting this inspiring example.
Cheers,
R.
Indeed. You are welcome, R. Cheers.
Aren’t there patient advocates out there? You certainly have the qualifications to be a caregiver advocate. As the Nike ad urges, “Just do it.”
Yes, LA Woman 🙂 , I AM just doing it — to the best of my ability. As an advocate I have a discussion board on Linkedin Women Writing for (a) Change: “Caregivers, what are your experiences …” and I have been blown away by the support. I started this in early April, before my mother died, and we have a core group of great friends now — about 7 of us, all very supportive, caring, positive women who are writers and are or have been caregivers. It has proven to be a forum where those who don’t know whom to tell can pour out their experiences and their feelings. We are here to support them. We listen but don’t judge, only offer support and wisdom. There are so many people — caregivers and those cared for who desperately need help, all around the world. There are caregiver advocate groups worldwide, and Hospice has advocates (lobbyists) in D.C.
Meanwhile, our Linkedin women writers caregivers group is putting together an anthology of stores and sage advice from those of us who have been there, because we believe nobody had filled this niche of need.
Thank you for your caring and thoughtful comment and interest. This is in the beginning stages, and I am just blown away by it. (I wish my blog attracted as much interest — but, you know, the magnificent 3 or 4 and the phantom of my blog. 🙂
Beautiful Job you two. Great story, Great pictures and Great friends.
Ah, yes. As always, Connie. It was a magical evening, thanks to Jean and Thumper. Robert’s photos are beautiful and so beautifully document our event. Thanks.
Thank you Connie…
R.
Mo,
I believe this chapter connotes abundant life and spirit.
And perhaps the one thing I disagree with, with Mr. Wilde, as well as the writings of our Count Laszlo Eduard de Almasy, the fictional and non-fictional; is that your prose, or another’s, for that matter, could ever contain too many adjectives.
A very important piece indeed.
Thank you for having the wherewithal and courage to write it.
Cheers,
R.
Thank you, R. But, yes, never use an adjective when a verb describes your meaning. F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, to name just two, exemplify this.
–Mo
I loved this post! You and Robert did a terrific collaboration about your fascinating 4th. Thanks! What a cool story about such a cool schooner that’s living history. That’s wonderful that Jean and Thumper rescued Maggie and that she’s never been out of commission for 119 years! Great holiday story Samantha!
Hey, thank you LAWoman. Interestingly, Robert and I barely spoke all evening. He was at one end of the boat and I at the other, mostly, and I had no idea what he was up to. The next day he emailed me his photos, and they are gorgeous; they really document our evening. I was wondering what to write about our evening, and his photos set me on the path. Yes, Jean & Thumper really love the Maggie; when they saw her in 1998, it was love at first sight.
Glad you loved the post. Thank you for commenting. A number of people have told me they love it, but have not commented here — the phantoms of my blog.
Thank you La…
R.
Great piece — a lovely blending together of word-pictures and picture-pictures. It all flowed.
Thank you, T.J. Robert’s pictures truly tell the story.
beautiful, just beautiful
Beatrice, you’re wonderful. Thank you so much. I know Robert thanks you, too.
Thank you Beatrice…
R.
Great historical documentation!
Cheers,
R.
You did it. I mostly provided the captions.
Thank you C.
R.
You’re welcome. Gorgeous photos. An important documentation.
I too mourn Nora Ephron’s passing. It seems she has been silenced too soon, but left us with so much of herself.
Happy 4th of July!
Yes, Nora Ephron has been silenced too soon; but thankfully she has left us with much to treasure and consider and smile about. Happy 4th to you, too!
Oh, and you can trust me to tell all; you are one of the sanest I have ever met!
R.
Cool. Thanks. The Phantom of My Blog thanks you, too.
I’m sort of new to your site and fishing back for good dinenr recipes, fyi. 2 things:1. I can’t see the pictures on many of your pages right now, when I normally can. Maybe just the campus internet that I’m using? I can see some of them, though.2. I HATE CENTIPEDES. I didn’t know the horror of the House Centipede until we moved into our house in May, and oh good lord I can’t handle them. This story scares the bejeezus out of me, as this is currently one in a rotation of my worst nightmares. Those damn things are everywhere.
No dinner recipes involving centipedes here. Maybe your house is full of centipedes because there were waterbugs and the centipedes came and ate them all. Yum.
Yes, yes, as I have said before, I’ve always denied the legend that you were starring in Our American Cousin the night Lincoln was shot.
Absolutely great writing – thank you.
R.
Thank you, my dear.
I’m counting on reading a post next year with you telling us what the blessing of the horseshoe crabs is really like up close and personal!
Truly. Me, too. Sweet thought. Thanks. And thanks for visiting!
Lovely and colorful reminiscences Samantha. Of course when you mentioned that the dog’s were named Tippy and Butch, today they would be called Alan and George — and the kids Madison and Kingston.
LOL. True on the names — but I do like the dog name Thurber.
Thank you for your compliment, LA Woman. Nice to see your face here among my small family of readers.
Glad to be one of numerous visitors on this awing website : D. 27261
Thank you.
Thanks for this; significant: more than I can tell you…
R.
You’re welcome. I’m glad, R.
Thank you for taking me back to the good old days…
R.
Thank you, R. My pleasure.
I agree with Robert. Thank you for the visit back when. And thank you for sharing the men in you life. I had visuals of the cars, the buildings, the fashions, everything. You involved the reader. What an art!!
Thank you, Marsha!
Adorably written, minus all the dramas queens that assisted in your decision, me being Ms spiritual mass murderer of insects that will possibly bite or sting. I had a black widow…yeeek… in a plant pot one time. Had no bug spray. My neighbor yelled from a distance,”Do you have hairspray?’. Oh of course, do I look dowdy to you? I froze it for all eternity, put it in multiple garbage bags, using Bar-b-Que forceps, took the forceps and all to the dumpster for the townhouse complex.
And as I pointed out, dear Carol, your centipede was Florida size rather than Hawaii size of a cigar of a centipede.
Great story!!
LOL. Funny story, Marsha. Thanks. And, no, you do not look dowdy.
I was wondering if you were going to own up to the two story drop. Perhaps more like 70 stories in the centipede kingdom. Anyway, clever and entertaining. Thanks.
R.
Thanks, R. Suspense in the Centipede Kingdom.
Listening to the Philip Glass link you embedded while reading this post was very inspired. I could suddenly smell nutmeg! Also, great ending!
Thanks. I wish I could write all my pieces with a soundtrack. That would be cool. I don’t know why he smells of nutmeg; that just came to me and it somehow seemed fitting. I had just watched actor Andrew Scott as Moriarty in the new PBS contemporary version of Sherlock. Andrew Scott is an extraordinary actor — plays a split-personality person so facilely, and so inspired me. Anyway, my Phantom has a Moriarty nature. You never know what he’s going to be up to.
Thank you for the enchanting visions.
You are welcome, Marsha. My pleasure, of course.
Don’t you know, your care giving has extended to the lady, writers who have become your soul sisters? And we are you car givers as well. I am not finished reading and will rush, to return here, like the osprey, to renew your lovely, spiritual story. My leaving is unavoidable and there are no coincidences.
Interesting, Marsha. I will look forward to seeing you soon. 🙂 No coincidences, yes. I kept returning and returning to this story.
Carol, this is incredible. It is the spirit of a dream and more. I hope that you’re going to pursue this particular dream — that we’re going to see more of both the Blue Deer and Moriarty in your blog. Thanks for the mention in the Acknowledgements, but this is all you.
I’m blown away.
T.J., All I can say is my humble thanks. Yes, the phantom Moriarty has been featured in my blog in the past — Chapters L-LIII “The Backstage Quartet,” and I suspect he will return. And this is only Part I of the Blue Deer. There is more, definitely. Well, it IS all what I do with it, and what the chimneys of my mind pump out; but you and my spiritual friend Glenn, and Philip Glass figured prominently in fashioning my thoughts for this one — and my friend R on subtle background. I surely will pursue this dream.
Stunning…
R.
Thank you, R.
Love this one! I agree that dressing rooms are designed to make you look your worst. I don’t understand that. I think that candlelight and wine would be much better for business. As to the leaking wine problem, I think the company should have us test the bottles for defects. They would have to full for us to do this of course.
B.
Ah, testing, yes, Bettielou. I think we should apply to them for quality control positions.
LOVE the RATS vs STAR image! Regarding your leaking wine dilemma, I think it would behoove you to quaff faster. I’m not called a bad influence for nuthin’.
A GREAT idea! Thanks! I shall pursue that.
Your friend is very generous with her stash – I knoooow…
I’m thirsty…
R.
Come on by …
Although, since I will be following Lame Adventures advice, you’d better hurry.
Congratulations Carol! I was the first to make a review on Amazon. Thank you for your dedication in continuing this wonderful experience. You are an artist with words.
Jackie
Jackie, Thank you for making the review! And thank you for continuing to support and encourage me here. Painting with words, you wrote in the review — I like that.
Could not have said it better. It was so nice to be able to understand one another when calling customer service, but best of all, Americans were working. How wonderful was that. I was in a Customer Service business. We were evaluated on how well we handled our customers and could be fired on the spot for a rude tone, let alone treating someone as you were treated. That stinks!! And back in the day a writer was a highly respected profession. And like you say we are treated with lack of respect by those who do not likely have much education.
So true, Marsha. Thank you!
How beautiful the story is. What a blessing Daphne is. And the butterfly painting…oh how wonderful. Eva too loved butterflies and painted them. A late friend wrote a poem about me as a Monarch making my metamorphosis when healing from agoraphobia, the house being my cocoon. My mother loved the analogy he used and the fact that he used my name the begin each line. Because they are all in spirit now, your Emma, my Emma, my Eva, my Bruce, this story give me such a huge happy aura of love from all of them. Bet our moms are painting together at times, and surely laughing together at us. Carol you are so gifted!!!
That is very sweet and thoughtful, Marsha. I am joyful that you are out of your cocoon.
What a loving tribute
Connie, thank you. Weren’t we fortunate to find Daphne to be my mother’s companion and caregiver in her last days? I know how very much my mother appreciated that. It meant a lot to her.
Your imagination serves you well.
🙂 🙂
I love this — the image, the word choices (“glommed” is such a good word), the synchronicity of it all….Today, Zeke and I spent some time with a dear friend on what happened to be the 1st anniversary of her mom’s death. She has a jewelryand -collectibles shop called Forget-Me-Nots: well, somebody came in to sell her some scrap jewelry, and among the items was a ring with forget-me-nots on it. It was the sign from her mom that she’d been waiting for. And this story has much the same feel to it.
It is just so amazing, T.J., all these signs. I think we are receptive to them. Some people wouldn’t notice. And, your compliment on my post — coming from you means a lot. Though I must say that the word “glommed” came from Daphne. I thought it was pretty good, too.
T.J., your story too is so poignant. With your comment and Carol’s story, I found myself gazing into, what, a clear and lovely, netherworld or some space of brightness? I found part of my own story in the messages left by our spirit loved ones. They send in such marvelous ways, connecting both the souls of the earthly and spirit world. I am other wise wordless. As you know that won’t last long.
Very sweet…
R.
Why, thank you R. That is Daphne. She is very thoughtful. Mother was lucky to have her help. I think that’s why she flitted in to see her.
Beautiful. I hope you experienced love on Mother’s Day.
I certainly did experience love on Mother’s Day. And you and Celeste, too, I hope — actually, I would imagine. 🙂
Finally opened this and love it. I have a 50 yr old cousin, by marriage, who collects Barbies, belongs to the clubs, attends the conventions..blah, blah, blah. Love her dearly and I am so tempted to send her this. Cannot do because she is a very religious lady. Her mother left us a few days after yours. Rose would have been hysterical, the wild mama that she was. She was assigned the Barbie room when visiting her daughter’s home. How appropriate this story, picture and timing are. What’s up with all these coincidences? And me, who does not believe in coincidence. I am a laughing fool right now. Thank you for the fun, Marsha
It was fun, Marsha, looking at these photos and laughing. Why not use Barbies to lampoon Miley Cyrus, eh? As for coincidences, connections — everything happens at the right time, say the wise. I think the religious should know that God laughs a lot.
I think LXIX. Pole Barbies | Salmon Salad and Mozart is a solid blog post and you do a well written job of writing with good details. Thomas – http://www.ep2p4u.com
Thank you, Thomas.
I have always denied the legend that you were starring in Our American Cousin the night Lincoln was shot.
Brilliantly stylish essay; a very good read.
R.
And you were the star of my brilliantly stylish essay. Me and my LameAdventures blog cohort — we both starred in Our American Cousin that night. We’ve both had a sufficient number of birthdays, apparently.
Thanks for the shout out pal! That’s pretty tragic story about the Asbury Park merry-go-round. What a pity that it could not continue but instead the highest bidders now have the animals in their homes or maybe they’re gathering dust in their storage rooms. So you were at Ford’s Theatre on April 14, 1865, too? What a coincidence! Let us know if Keats returns.
Indeed, a coincidence. And, yes, according to the little bit that I’ve read, that’s exactly where the horses are– gathering dust in people’s attics or crud in their backyards. That is tragic. You’d think — well, never mind, they haven’t put me in charge yet.
Cirque du Barbie…
Definitely.
Oh, Barbie is so versatile. Thanks for sharing the image!
🙂 🙂
Thanks for visiting, as always.
Love your new banner…
R.
White Tulips, taken by Mary Beth.
James is referring to your writing – I concur. ;–)
R.
I know he’s referring to my writing –but wait! Now you can see the actual Pole Barbies photo right here in my blog post.
Masterpiece.
I assume you are speaking of the Pole Barbies choreography? 🙂 I think I’ll get Kellie to send me a photo so I can add it to my post (as it were).
This entire blog has been quite intimate and I saw it as a tribute to your mother. I admire you for writing it and possibly it was cathartic for you to share with your readers what you were going through with her. Although I knew this post would one day come, in a perverse way it took me by surprise. I’ve never been much of a fan of final farewells to those nearest and dearest, even though logically I can usually see thm coming, not because I’m psychic, but I like to think I have about a thimbleful of common sense. I hope Emma is in a happy place.
Thank you for your kind words and understanding. You thoughts pretty well sum up what I have been thinking and feeling. I think Emma is in a happy place. Some of us nearest family members actually saw her visit us, in one form or another, and then she went on. She loved to travel, so she is out there somewhere having a marvelous adventure, no doubt. (Who knows, maybe she is reading your blog.) 🙂
A fittingly loving tribute. Love to you all.
Thank you, James, for your kind, loving thoughts. As I have told you, you have been with me on this journey, in my mind.
Your posting is very touching and brings tears to my eyes. I know your mother is happier where she resides now. I’m sad that my mother’s send off couldn’t have been so warm and touching. Gwynn
Thank you, Gwynn. I believe that somewhere in her mind, my mother made that choice, just as your mother did. Me, I think I’ll want to have a huge gathering; I don’t think I’ll want to be alone.
Beautifully written, as always. It was a lovely service.
Thank you, Bettielou. I think Emma would have liked it.
I will always smile, remembering her.
R.
Yes, R. I’m sure she would smile remembering you, too. –You and your spizzle jitneys. 🙂
Beautiful, mom.
Oh, thank you, little dancer.
Very, very beautifully written…
R.
I am calling you now, do you know?
Thank you, R. Very insightful and poignant line you have included here.
I like your fantastic web site. Just what I was searching for!
Best regards
Thank you.
So eloquently written. I am so sorry for all of the losses you have had to experience as this disease has progressed. Really , there is nothing to expect. Each person dies in their own way on their own time. Perhaps she is waiting for something such as someone letting her go or to just hear your music one more time. Peace and Blessings to you and your mother. You are a wonderful daughter and caregiver.
Thank you, Connie, for your kind, thoughtful and supportive words. I think she is waiting for my brother — she called for him when she was agitated; but now I doubt he will show up, because he is down in North Carolina caring for his daughter who is unwell and will have surgery in two weeks. Your thoughts mean a lot, Connie. I know you see this all the time.
Carol, I just listened to your “Angel and the Foghorn”. I have tears rolling down my cheeks. What a lovely gift for your mother!
So sweet, Gwynn. Thank you. It may not be her favorite song, but Mother always loved music and until a little over a year ago played her electronic organ — all the old standards — regularly.
Two thumbs up!!!
R.
Clever. Thank you, R.
I agree with R. Your gift is the talent of being able to portray your story in words and sharing it in a enlightened way with others on the same path. Thank You!!
You are welcome, Jackie. And thank you for your kind words. Now, whenever I have a chance, I am writing, making use of this gift. I’d much rather wield a pen for enlightenment than a sword for killing.
Thank you for your gift of words…
R.
R., Thank you for your thoughtful response. Good to hear from you!
I meant to credit Charles Hart for the lyrics quoted in my previous comment.
R.
He will thank you.
Past the point of no return, no backward glances
The games we played ’till now are at an end
Past all thought of “If ” or “When”, no use resisting
Abandon thought and let the dream descend
–Andrew Lloyd webber
It’s where we are.
R.
That and “turn around, there’s another mask behind you.” 🙂
A tonic… engrossing, conscience ridden and significant.
Thank you for sharing this story.
R.
Yes, it wasn’t easy to reread or to share. But I’m glad I found it, and think it important to share. It’s the stuff we’re made of. Thx, R.
Thanks for introducing me to your site, it’s really interesting and well written! And I’ve particularly enjoyed reading this post, as I am also a musician (cellist) who doesn’t play as often as I should given how therapeutic it can be!
Thank you so much, Kate. Wow, a cellist! Wish I could hear you play sometime. Next to the piano, the cello is my favorite instrument (that and the viola). Do keep playing. Yes, playing one’s musical instrument is most therapeutic; it gives respite. I am glad to meet you and so glad you stopped by. Please come again.
Glad to read your writing and to know you are playing music.
Cheers,
R.
Thank you, R. Music always, in one form or another. Glad I am playing it, too.
So glad Violet worked out. She is not only nice but professional.
Love hearing about Keats. Cats are angels with fur.
B
Yes, Bettielou. Violet is great. She is helping next door now with the house painting. Apparently my little angel with fur awakened the man next door with his meowing all night. I went out to look for him at 3 a.m. Couldn’t find him. He sauntered up the street to me this morning.
Clawing aides and hollerin’ cats – Tennessee Williams-esque.
Glad you found time to write…
R.
Thanks, R. I make time to write. That pen, you know, mighty.
I am so glad Keats found you. He is quite handsome and charming. Cats are so seductive.
Bettielou
Cats ARE seductive, Bettielou. I have been told they work hard at it — it is among their bag of tricks, I believe. I wonder what happened to his people. He has been definitely much loved. (And he still is.)
So nice that Keats found you!
Jackie
Oh, yes, Jackie. He’s my little buddy. Some nights he stays out till 1 a.m., though. Don’t know who he’s with or what he is doing. At least he doesn’t drive (I don’t think).
Tender in the night he flew to me, out of the blowing snow ….
Tender is the night for Emma; tender is the night for Nicole and Dick Diver, for Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald.
But thee to comfort a poor lonely maid;
Her playmate, and her wooer in the shade.
– John Keats, Song of the Indian Maid
Hmmm … this indeed is not a sad occasion. This is happy, and I am happy that he is happy.
Though he should dance from eve till peep of day–
Wherever he may sport himself and play.
– John Keats, Song of the Indian Maid
Away! away! for I will fly to thee,
Not charioted by Bacchus and his pards,
But on the viewless wings of Poesy,
Though the dull brain perplexes and retards:
Already with thee! tender is the night, …
(John Keats, “Ode to a Nightingale”)
When I was a kid I always assumed I’d be dead by age 50, but somehow I’ve missed that expiration date. Hm, after reading this, maybe that idea wasn’t so bad.
Seriously. I just want to edit and publish all the writing in my bulky files while I am still able. Maybe I will have more than two or three readers, therefore be rich and able to afford quality healthcare despite the unsavory quality of life. Anthony Shadid may have been one of the lucky ones.
I love the name Keats…..as I sit here with Elizabeth….as in Queen, at least that is her opinion.
I too feel the loss of Anthony Shadid. He was honest and brave. I have his family in my prayers.
Take care.
Cats do take these odd opinions, Bettielou. Keats likes his name — I think because it is a fusion of the words “Cat” and “eats”. I’m glad you, too, feel the loss of Anthony Shadid. Yes, he was honest and brave. Hopefully, the memoir he has written will be published soon. Now to see if my brave new cat is done napping.
I like his name. Can’t wait to meet Keats.
He’ll love meeting you. He is very sociable. Whenever we have company, he comes into the room and joins us. When the company leaves, he leaves and takes a nap somewhere.
Dearest Writer,
Thank you for this evocative and excellent ode to all who nurture my sanity. Reading the living and dead brings me peace, love and soul. I found great pleasure in LVII Keats and you have eased my sojourn on a gorgeously romantic February day.
Seeker of truth,
R.
Nice ode to my blog and to one John Keats and his Nightingale. Thank you, R., for your kind words.
We owe a great debt to all writers, storytellers and journalists; they are our messengers, our road to the truth; here in the United States, our fourth estate. The untimely death of New York Times reporter Anthony Shadid is a great and sad loss to us all. He risked his life almost daily to bring us the truth. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends and to his coworkers.
I have left a comment on today’s New York Times story about Mr. Shadid.
We recently visited Odessa on a short vacation. Before going I contacted http://www.privatetoursinistanbul.com in the Ukraine and was pleasantly surprised by the standard and quality of the guide and the tour. Our guide had sooo much knowledge that it was almost overwhelming. The car that was hired was clean and the driver was extremely professional. The company had worked with me getting the tour and price together before we arrived so all was done when we arrived. It gave us a really good feel about Odessa, understanding of the history, and wanting to return in the near future. Thank you for this service.
That is Odessa, Delaware. But I wouldn’t mind going to Odessa, Ukraine, on the Black Sea, and touring Istanbul on the Bosphorus.
Startling, literary and affecting.
Lonely and lyrical…
R.
Observant. Thank you.
Your furry valentine
Sweet orange valentine
He warms yout feet with his heat
His virtue doth parade
This writing you have made
Stay little Valentino stay
Each day is valentines day
Happy Valentine’s Day
R.
Thank you for the Valentine’s poem, R. He IS a yellow Valentine, though — whatever color, he is warm and loving, and best of all comes pre-formatted with gentlemanly manners.
Yes, yes… Jean and I would construct more than a few proclamations that would much more than raise a few eyebrows…
Peace and love,
R.
:-))))))))))))
Please, keep up the greet work and cnintoue to post topics like this. I am old fan of your blog.
Beautifully written as always. Family relations are so complex.
Dr. Abel is wonderful. All doctors should be like him, honest and caring.
I think of you often, and I keep you and your mother in my prayers.
Bettielou
Thank you, as always, Bettielou. Yes, Dr. Abel is wonderful. Doctors like him are few and far between.
Well… primed by Anthony Minghella’s commentary for Breaking And Entering and his voluminous insight to our so-called civilized ways of life I came to your epilogue, also overflowing with sympathetic perspicacity, to shed another one thousand and one tears as thick as maple syrup.
R.
Thank you, R. Thoughtful and sweet.
You and your mother are in my thoughts and prayers.
Bettielou
Thank you, Bettielou. You are very kind and thoughtful. It has not been an easy week; yet I know it could be worse.
Hey, thanks for the shout out to my feat of fearlessness or utter stupidity. Frankly, I think this journal naked in its honesty about life with Emma.
Hey, thanks! There’s some stuff that goes on behind backstage that I don’t write about, yet I try to make it as naked in its honesty as I can. And this is why I appreciate your fearless metaphor: somebody’s got to put the naked truth out there and hope that others actually comprehend it.
Hey, way to hang in there.
Talk to you soon …
R.
Yes, thank you, R., I am hanging in there; but the rope burn has got me kind of burned out.
While I wish I could say something touching or poignant or comforting, or quote words of wisdom from a generation gone by, I am capable only of telling you my heart hurts for you…and for Emma. I love you.
My mother has done me some very great favors through her suffering, Kathy. They are not always evident in the heat of the moment, but when I take time to reflect or meditate, I see them. This is an especially poignant time for me. As difficult as it is for us both, in the long run peace will abide — and then I’m on to the next chapter, for which I hope I will be more strongly prepared. One favor evident at this moment is hearing from you. I am thrilled! I finished your novel, Chasing Rainbows, last night and loved it — hated to put it down, as with all your novels. I love you, too.
As I recall, I’ve always denied the legend that you were prancing the cat walk alongside the disfigured violinist portrayed by Claude Rains in 1943; let alone starring in Our American Cousin the night Lincoln was assassinated.
Your clever succinct coherent oeuvre is greatly appreciated.
Thank you for the great read.
R.
Thank you, R. Please stay and see this play through to the epilogue. 🙂
Tonight I watched the DVD Hanging Up with Walter Matthau, Meg Ryan, Daine Keaton and Lisa Kudrow. Novel is by Delia Ephron. Sad movie- but I can relate. If you want to borrow it call me.
Hi Jackie — I have watched that movie — poignant. In fact, I have mentioned it a couple times here on my blog. I highly recommend it. It is entertaining, well-written, well-directed by Nora Ephron, and pertinent. Thanks!
As always, spot on! I enjoyed reading this story, which is “Oh, so true.” I wonder who will take care of us?????
Thanks,
Bettielou
Thank you, Bettielou. It’s scarey. Just when I get Mother all settled, I’ll be that age.
Superb …
R.
Thank you, R. Oscar adds polish and wit.
As I sit here, I think of how fortunate Emma is to have you to be her protector at this time of her life. I pray for you and your mother that you both will have comfort. You are in my thoughts often.
Bettielou
So very kind and thoughtful of you, Bettielou. It’s been a wild ride the past few weeks. I was hoping our healthcare professionals would say about Emma’s last agitation spree, “Oh, give her the whole bottle, and you take some, too.” But not the case. They did give her a stronger drug which calms her and gives us both comfort.
Beautifully written as always. I enjoy reading your stories. It was cool being in one. I was a Girl Scout, so always prepared……thus the cork screw.
Thank you,
Bettielou
HAAA-ha-ha-ha-ha-haaa. I enjoy your always being prepared, Bettielou, and it was my great pleasure to include you as a character in this story. Thanks for your wonderful compliments, as always.
I really felt like I was involved in this chapter. Thanks for sharing. Wish we were closer
Well, you WERE involved in this chapter, Kellie. Glad you enjoyed revisiting. I, too, wish we were closer.
As usual, reliably witty and reliably poignant. Thanks for the shout out.
You are so welcome, Virginia — any time I can, I’ll give a shout out. Thanks for the inspiration, the pingback and the compliment!
Finding this chapter as I was finishing viewing another Anthony Minghella film I got to read it with the lovely Gabriel Yared score in the background as the credits continued to play. The wine had been put away before the film, but the soundtrack continues, even now, to accompany all that your lovely writing evokes; leading and setting me down gently at this place; anticipating where the new chapter will preside. Thank you again for sharing these stories.
R.
Ah, so sweet. Thank you, R., my friend.
Interesting…
Love the blog
Oh Sammy Girl… Look him UP!
Believe me, I have tried, Jackie. Can’t find him. Occasionally I try again. Hopefully, one day.
I remember that magic candle. 😉
I thought you would, Kellie. A flame got too close to the neck of the bottle and split it. So I can’t use it to burn candles anymore. But, even just thinking about it is magical.
A beautiful and poignant chapter filled generously with generous wine red and sapphire blue stories – thank you.
R.
I thought of you when I saw the colors and wrote about them, R. Knew you’d like them. What would I do without my friends, the Roberts?
Very touching. I wish I was close by to be supportive and to help you out. Hope your getting some rest now.
Thank you, Kellie. I wish we lived closer, too. The past few days have been restful.
Thank you for sharing; and … way to hang in there; glad you did not have to entertain any bullies over the weekend. I hope you are both resting peacefully.
Cheers,
R.
Thank you, R. I didn’t sleep so well last night — lying in bed listening to the sounds of the night, yet tender have been the past night and day. (cf. F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Keats)
I would love to see the movie trailer. Let me inside of her head. I just want to know if it hurts. I would ease the pain too. It’s ok.
I imagine that inside her head would be like an empty old house with a few pictures left hanging askew on the walls. I think it important to document these events, because if enough of us caregivers do, then the documentation will amount to a kind of case study and we can learn more about that movie trailer.
Of course, the other thing is — and you’ll love this, Jackie — a caregiver of an agitated dementia patient might say, “Oh, was I supposed to give the Atavan to HER?” 🙂
My prayers are with you and your mother at this difficult time.
Your friend,
Bettielou
Ahh, yes. Thank you, Bettielou.
Awesome writing style!
Le vins français, le must.. non ?
California wines by all means.
Beautifully written, with love. So sorry for your loss.
Bettielou
Aww, thank you, Bettielou. I am looking forward to seeing you in a few days. 🙂
I’m so very sorry for your loss. Thinking of you. Jackie
Yes, Jackie. Thank you. She was a sweet little girl. I hope to see you this Saturday!
Lovely!
🙂 Thanks, Bettielou. Thought of you at certain junctures.
I was delighted to tour with you through this lovely peregrination. Thank you for driving; I’m ready to tumble into your next outing!!! First I may go on this one again, now…
Cheers,
RPPP
And I have enjoyed traveling with you, Robert. 🙂
wonderful points altogether, you simply gained a new reader. What would you suggest in regards to your publish that you simply made some days in the past? Any positive?
You have showed great perseverance behind the blog. It’s been enriched since the beginning. I love to share to with my friends. Carry on.
Despite the cacophony you have written a symphony striking chords that resound circumstances, moods and relationships; a concerto.
Indeed. Thank you, Robert.
Don’t you think that things happen for a reason? The stories that you write often correspond to my every day events in life. I often am intrigued by the colors that you write with. Now I want to go up to the guest bedroom and find my copy of The Great Gatsby and re=read or re-live it. I have not read that book since the early 80’s. I know that life is just wizzing by- but you my dear friend are just around the corner- just worlds away. I hope that you had a great Thanksgiving- looking forward to seeing you next month. take care- miss you and love you. Jackie
With certain pieces I write, I always think of you, Jackie, that we both experience the same or similar, and think on them the same way. I miss you and love you, too, Jackie. I often think, “If I could just tell Jackie this or discuss this with Jackie…”. Thanksgiving was great. I am so looking forward to seeing you next month!
I feel like we are friends and even after the inevitable losses come to fruition, I would like to still be your friend and supporter.
I was just thinking the same thing, Lynn. Thank you very much. This means a lot to me. 🙂
It’s rare for me to find something on the internet that is as entertaining and intriguing as what you have got here. Your page is sweet, your graphics are great, and what’s more, you use reference that are relevant to what you are talking about. You’re certainly one in a million, good job!
Thank you for having written this. I fully agree with your thoughts.
Hey how are you doing? I just wanted to stop by and say that it’s been a pleasure reading your blog. I have bookmarked your website so that I can come back & read more in the future as well. plz do keep up the quality writing
I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this post. I am hoping the same best work from you in the future as well. In fact your creative writing abilities has inspired me to start my own BlogEngine blog now.
Thank you for permitting me to taste of your experience and imbibe of your intellectual capital; this, you have most beautifully knitted.
R.
Thanks, R. As for the knitting, this one took so long I thought it was going to turn into an blanket to comfort an elephant.
The flailing of the lemmings hasn’t imploded yet…
All need to exercise some self interest for their own self preservation; it is sad though when those intent on manufacturing distorted notions impose them so freely and moralizingly as if they never saw you in the first place. Too often it is exclusively about them and the money.
Thank you for another thoughtful and great read filled with unusual chords and colors!
Cheers,
R.
Thank you, Robert. As an addendum: I just know it’s all my fault, and as you know and I know, they will tell me: No one at our Hospice organization gave us the respect to call us and let us know that our regular nurse wasn’t coming today, but that a substitute nurse would show up. The substitute nurse, on my request, unwrapped the gauze and checked the wound on Emma’s arm — a raw laceration. She re-wrapped the dressing so loosely that when the aide got here three hours later, the bandage had slid down Emma’s arm leaving the wound bare. A nurse — get this — a nurse. Let me know how it works out for you next time you go to the hospital. (Wear shoes when you walk in alleys.) –Love, Samantha
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The seasons change and
Swiftly fly the years…
Thank you for the walk
Down Mustard Lane…
You are welcome, Robert.
Oh, but when one door closes another shall open and a new chapter will begin!
I am hoping, Jackie. Thank you. Hope we get to talk soon!
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Interesting, Jackie. I thought of you when I wrote this. Somehow I thought we might have shared similar experiences. And I thought how I miss coming into your store and sharing our stories in person. Yes, The Journey. Thanks! 🙂 And, of course, you are an important one among those notes that comprise my symphony of life. How fortunate am I to know you.
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Thank you and I thank your friend. I am not an expert in this field of caregiver for a dementia patient. I am simply blundering along as the situation develops. This is the whole point of my blog, to tell others in a similar situation of my experiences, to provide support and raise awareness and to develop a network of caregivers who can share their experiences, thereby helping us to learn together.
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“I took my love down to Violet Hill.There we sat in snow.All the time she was silent still. If you love me, won’t you let me know.” Coldplay
I love this connection. Beautiful. I posted the song on this essay.
Do check out the Easy Cheesy Zucchini Bake recipe at Kalyn’s Kitchen. Easy and a tummy pleaser. Get the kids to eat their vegetables. http://www.kalynskitchen.com/2011/07/recipe-for-easy-cheesy-zucchini-bake.html
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I am helping to take care of my friend’s 83 year old Mother with Alzheimer’s. My favorite saying this week to her after she continuously let my dog out in the 109 degree heated back yard (*name has been changed) “*Margaret, I know you forgot what I said but you have to listen!” After I said it I know I confused myself. Ugh. Give me strength.
Jackie,
I so agree. Somehow I always ask “Give me Strength” after I’ve reacted, after I’ve said something like, “What’s wrong with you?” Great to hear from you, Jackie. Stay in touch.
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Thanks, Madelyn. Cheers.
–Samantha
You got a very wonderful website, Gladiolus I discovered it through yahoo.
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Charlotte,
Thank you for your compliments. Thank your friend for recommending my site. I appreciate it. But, if you are German, why are you commenting in French on a blog written in English?
–Samantha
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Yes, thank you, Kellie. Nice to hear from you. Glad you came by to visit.
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Many thanks!!
–Samantha
It went quite well, indeed. Thank you. Not quite sure if it’s paid for by Medicaid — I don’t know how else, though. But it’s solely out of state funds allocated to keep the invalid and aging out of nursing homes, thus saving taxpayers money. The program is administered by an outside, nonprofit agency.
This is book. I wish I really could examine each submit, however i have to go back to function now… But I’ll go back.
Hoping your meeting goes well…!!!
R.
Thanks, R. Must listen to the John Coltrane piece. I sense I might like it.
–Samantha
Excellent, excellent, excellent.
You have been on a wonderful trip through your reading.
As I read your piece John Coltrane’s “Pursuance” from ” A Love Supreme” rattled from my computer, probably to discordant for your taste but somehow suitable for me as I followed you on your literary journey. I was nearly there with you…
Thank you,
R.
I’m right there with you…!!! Every doorway and every mile down the highway!!!
Thanks for sharing.
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I know. Thought you’d appreciate it. Thanks!
Thank you, Bettielou. I am delighted to sign you up!
Samantha
Thank you reading writer…!!!
Hi Carol,
Please include me on your list.
You write beautifully, I always enjoy reading your writings.
Bettielou
You’re right, food is all about memories, Paula. Many of my fondest memories are about food and the circle of friends and family involved that warm my heart and make me smile.
Food is all about memories isn’t it? When my daughter was little, I would give her pie dough or cookie dough scraps to roll out. After we baked them we’d hold a tea pary for her dolls. Refrigerated pie dough just doesn’t give you those opportunities.
Hello. And Bye.
R.,
Glad you enjoyed. Your photo dramatizes the reality of life with Maggie. It is a stunning photo. Thanks for eveything ….
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Thank you for posting my photograph.
R.
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Hi Bettielou. Thanks!
I enjoyed getting in touch with you this morning after many moons Carol. I forgot to mention my step-father Bill passed away from Alshiemers in January after a very brief stay in a rest home for a few months. These conditions are quite stressful and I wish you the best in dealing with you mon and her condition. Let’s stay in touch and meet up someday back in good old California when the time is right.
I am very sorry to hear about your stepfather, Frank. At least he is at peace. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for the sufferer — and I hope I never have to personally find out. I’m so glad you called. It was great talking to you this morning. Yes, by all means, let’s do meet up in California one day in the not too distant future.
–Samantha
She would smile and say thank you, Kevin. She painted many and gave them to her friends. There are more — some too big for my scanner to scan into my computer. You should see the walls of our house, a fabulous art gallery. Thanks.
My favorite
Samantha Mozart,
I too, am a caregiver. I watch over a young man who is soon to be 70. I’m 42. I’ve known him for 23 years and he’s a good friend. I moved him into my house a few years ago. I know the strains and stresses of caring for someone, but not to the degree you experience.
When i refer to him as young, it’s because his body is still vital and healthy, his mental acuity is sharp, and he has a young personality. Problem is, it was unknown he was diabetic. When I urged him to see a doctor due to a foot wound that would not heal, it was then discovered he was (is) diabetic, but the damage had already set. He’s now near blind, and has lost nearly all sensation in his lower extremities. This depresses him as you can imagine. I don’t view him as an old, run down, aged person, rather, I view him as injured during a young time in his life.
In summary, I provide much assistance to my friend Ron. And it’s an hour by hour task, coupled with the delicate effort to keep his spirit up. I care for him dearly, and I’m glad I am able to be useful to him. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Samantha, our roles in life are admirable. We are both doing the right thing, and we’re both better people because of it.
Hang in there 🙂
Kevin
Wow, Kevin. Yes, you are admirable. Your task is daunting, I am sure. Ron is most fortunate to have a friend like you, especially one so wise as you at your young age (younger than Ron’s and my young age) to see the need, to fulfill it and to be such a caring friend. Those of us who have such caring friends in life are very fortunate indeed. I count you among those friends. Hang in there, too.
–Samantha
A Great Read !!!
Oh, thank you, thank you.
Beautiful photo.
From the heart of a true, authentic, loving caregiver.
Thank you for sharing, Samantha.
You are a gift to Emma, and to others,
Thank you, MBB. 🙂
I agree! We can only hope to be able to render the support these angels of caregiving require. Prayers for strength, peace and wisdom in the days to come.
Thank you, Debra. 🙂
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Beautifully written Carol.
My grandmother, Sophie, had dementia. She lived in a wall of silence for the last 4 of her 104 years. She had outlive all 9 of her children, with the exception of my mother, who passed away less than a year after my grandmother’s death.
I would go visit my grandmother (not often enough) in that home in Jersey City, run by kind nuns. I’d hold her hand with it’s crepe like skin and wonder if there would be anyone there for me when I get old.
Sophie could be funny. In her early stages, she liked to sit by a window and watch to world pass back and forth down below. I guess as a form of physical therapy, the nuns would toss a beach ball around. Whenever they threw it to Sophie, she would catch it and then toss it out the window. Her wordless protest.
Apparently they had an endless supply of beach balls, because rather than put a screen in the window, they kept tossing them to her.
The children below were delighted.
Thank you, Paula. This is a delightful and touching story about Sophie. Poignant as these stories are, there’s always some humor. I am hoping to evoke more of these memories from readers that we can all share.
Yes, I wonder, too, who will be here in my old age.
–Samantha