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Sunday, May 27, 2012

Not to be forgotten ......




The sacrifice of many ....................

a bouquet of tulips in memory of ...........


Sacred ground ..........
 
In Remembrance of .............................
Memorial Day 2012
Thank you.

Friday, May 25, 2012

SNOW IN SUMMER AIN'T JUST A PLANT AND PRETTY GROUND COVER!


"Here's your coffee, Snickers. And you ain't gonna believe what I just saw outside my bedroom window."
 
"Don't bug me ..... I haven't even had a sip of coffee yet."
 
"No really, Snickers, it's not what you expect to see on Memorial Day weekend," I said glancing out the window again.
 
"Merrrarwwww ... coffee smells good. Still too hot ...... has to cool a bit."
"SNICKERS! Are you listening to me? You gotta come see out the window! You won't believe your eyes!"
 
 "I wish she would quit her yapping ... a cat can't move until that first sip .....Still too hot."
 "I'm not really a 'morning cat' ... I like to sleep in until at least 8 a.m.,
then I can get on with my day. Uh oh ... here she comes again with her telling me about something outside."

"You have to trust me here, Snickers. You aren't going to believe your eyes!"

"I've seen deer, mice, quail, dogs, humans, chipmunks, lightning, tractors ....horses .... what's left to see?"
 
 lap lap lap lap lap..."Now that's what I call a good cup of coffee.
Okay ... pushy one, what ya got for me outside the window?"

"What'd I tell 'ya? May 25, 2012 and it's SNOWING! Hope the goldfish don't turn into golden popsicles again .... they just thawed out!"
 
 "The trees are covered ....
the bridge and rocks .... 
even the 'boy and his dog' statue on the other side of the pond is covered ....Snickers, did I tell you I found that statue at the dumps broken in two places and I glued him back together? And just look at the tulips ......."
" .... all droopy and sad looking!"

"The horses came to the carport .....Dee Dee, the girls new horse, and Teaser......
to ask me what's going on .... snow in summer! While I opened the gate to let them in the front yard to eat the tall grass in the flower beds, Perro told Dee Dee he wouldn't chase her this morning until after she had breakfast."





 












"Dee Dee pushed away the snow and found some good clover under the tree ....
 and Teaser ate around the tulips

I looked around and noticed I was talking to myself ..... Snickers had left the coffee at the bathroom sink and ..... hmm ... I wonder where he went ......
.........................................
"Does Monica really think I give a hoot about the weather? I'm an inside cat now in my old age."
 "Git outa here, Perro, it's time for my after coffee, pre-breakfast
nap. And tell her not to wake me unless it's something more unusual than snow in summer .... wait! 
It's not summer yet .... it's just late spring!"

Happy Memorial Day from Snickers, Perro, Dee Dee, Teaser, the 'golden popsicles' and Monica.
And remember and appreciate your loved ones 
and those whose
memories you have tucked away in your hearts.


 

Sunday, May 20, 2012

What's More Boring Than A Blank Bulletin Board?

WHAT'S MORE BORING THAN A BLANK BULLETIN BOARD?

Watching grass grow would top my list.

A close second ...... watching paint dry,
third .......waiting for snow to melt

 so that outdoor garden spring cleaning can begin.
Weeding, digging, shovel and rake.
Wheelbarrels and new electric trimmer......
the right tools to get the job done,
and be ready to plant and mulch,
fertilize and water.
Haul garden debris to compost pile out back
and when finished
hang gardening hat on hook in mudroom

next to Eldon's jacket and baseball cap .......


I traded the shovel and rake  -outdoor spring cleaning tools -
 for a broom and dustpan,
giant size trash bags,
and a strong resolve to spring-clean-out my closet!
Success ! Two trash bags bursting at the seams.
Out with the old, in with the new!

Looking around the washroom
I realized it was the smallest space in my house
in need of
spring cleaning.
Don't want to rush into  ...... say
 kitchen spring cleaning.

Washer and dryer .... check, they're clean.
Chest freeze ....... check, cleaned it out a month ago.
Jacket closet .... check, sorted and stored winter coats.
Pantry ..... no check. I'll do that next week.
Dog and cat food bin .... check.
And
the bulletin board.
No brainer decision. Easiest cleaning chore in the house.
Strip every photo, card, notes from the bulletin board and
replace them with new family photos,
special cards and mementos of 2012.

There now .... a clean slate  .............new start ........... fresh beginning.

And these are the "out with the old" items I removed from the bulletin board:

a valentine card from 1995



four note cards from friends given to us prior to our cruising adventures ... prayerfully quoting scriptures about sailing on wind whipped seas, troubled waters, and peace that comes from  knowing that Jesus "walked on the water", and perfect conditions to pull up anchor and sail close to shore with light breezes,




two gift cards:
one promising
the second, unlimited hand-holding.

A card given to Eldon after we had a difficult time in 2002....
 A breathtaking mountain top view of our world!
and inside the card I had written:
 My sweetheart .... yeah, you with the moustache!
There are two people climbing the mountain on the left. They've been in the valleys below amongst the trees - so many trees that they couldn't see anything else.  Once they get to the top - by carefully picking their way up the mountain - their view will be spectacular ... more beautiful than anything they've ever seen. They'll be closer to God in the heavens.
There was fog in the valleys ... and dark, dense foliage blocking their way.
But see how far they've climbed - holding each other, paving a trail and handholds for each other, and resting occassionally so the height wouldn't wear them out for lack of oxygen.
Next time they go down to the valley, they'll follow the new path they laid out to get back to where they started ....
probably at the botttom of the waterfall.
The water is crystal clear, sparkling and unfathomable depth.
They'll swim after their hot, difficult trek, then find a cool spot in the shade of a tree to dry off and rest in each other's arms.
And if either one gets lost from the other, all they need to do is call out and keep calling until they are found.
Thank you , my love, for walking this trail with me.
See you soon at the top!  (smiley face)
I love you,
Monica
.........................................................

Working in the garden he loved so much
and a
"song" he left for his children and loved ones.
I asked my son Dean what he thought Dad meant when he wrote that.
Dean said, "We are his song."


This picture was taken at Don and Kay's house near Klamath Falls - our Sea of Cortez cruising buddies - on our way from the cancer center,
finding out how gravely ill Eldon was.
and tacked onto the bulletin board right below our photo .....
(by author A.S. Byatt, Possession)
I had cut this out of a magazine:

and then he died ................


The beginning of the
"Year of the Firsts"
First Valentines Day,
February 14,  2009
I bought this a week before Eldon died, Feb. 3, 2009, 
in anticipation that he would still be with me.
and I wrote on the inside of the card:

You may need to squint ... look closely at my words ...
but I can't type them again ............

The "Year of the Firsts"
came to a close with Christmas, 2009.
Jill and Gary sent this card and I've had it on the bulletin board ....
as a reminder that
there is beauty and joy all around me...
it's a "singing" Christmas card ....
Silent Night
Holy Night
All is calm
All is bright .....
ending with
Sleep in heavenly peace,
sleep in heavenly peace.
Hmm .... that is my prayer.
...................
These images will all go back onto the bulletin board.
And perhaps I'll overlay onto them new pictures,
postcards,
greetings, blessings and up to date images of those
that are the nearest and dearest to my heart ...
family and friends who have strengthened and guided
me on this
journey through the shadow of death,
but I fear no evil,
for I am not alone.
..............................
A bulletin board is like a diary ....
you don't tear out the old pages when you write
a new chapter.
I look forward to pinning up something from you onto my bulletin board ....something from your heart.

but for now it's empty ....


Thursday, May 17, 2012

THE GARDENS AND THE SEASONS OF OUR LIVES


THE GARDENS AND SEASONS OF OUR LIVES

Spring 2012 is finally here
and my driveway had to be plowed only twice
during the winter of 2011-2012.

It's May 2012 but we could still get snow!
I've heard "old geezers" say,
"Why ... I've been here all my life and
it's snowed on the 4th of July and ruined the parade!"

Spring cleaning!
I start outside by organizing my tools:
Wheelbarrel (or is that wheelbarrow ?) check.
Rake ... check.
Shovel ... check.
Clippers and pitchfork.... check.
Digger tool and
gloves....check.
Don't forget the straw hat and straw
for the strawberry bed....check.
A couple of days with Jill and Gary here
repairing and restoring and tearing out
has gotten my garden Spring cleaning off to a good start.
And God is doing His part ....
 blue skies, rainbows after a refreshing downpour, and billowy clouds.

I made a diagram of the gardens - one of my famous LISTS - to
help me keep track of what I've done and need to do, buy, dig out, remove or plant.
Aunt Irene's Garden
 (her ashes are scattered where the
tulips and daffodils are politely giving
way for peonys and snow-in-summer to arise. 


Front yard grass (which has become almost totally clover ... which I love as do the honeybees and my neighbors horses who are invited  to "mow" the lawn)


Veggie garden where daffodils still stand guard, 
will soon hold
a small array of fruit and veggies:
tomatoes, strawberries, rasberries, chard ....
not the former glorious abundance
the garden once produced.


But there's only so much a
little old widder woman can do ....

 Last but not least
the pond.
I don't have to do anything for the pond plants- the water lilies are starting to inch their way up to the surface and soon there will be beautiful flowers floating in the pond to enchance the lives of the  goldfish. (Gasp ... I counted 8 new baby goldfish! Bringing the total to 40!)
 The ducks?
they're decoys! No mess, no fuss, no bother!



 Slowly, like the
inch worm
I've made progress battling the crabgrass and weeds growing
where real grass and flowers are meant to grow.

The only thing I have to be concerned about now is
.................
will it snow on our 4th of July Parade?!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think I'll hold off to plant the tomatoes until AFTER the 4th of July!

 Spring cleaning indoors will start a little late this year ....
I still have soooooo much to do in my gardens so they will look like this:

Great Grandson Tyler strolling through my garden a few years ago.

 Happy Spring cleaning in your 2012 gardens!
And may they be abundant, fragrant and fruitful!