RHYTHM AND BLUES

It's not really the “blues”, not sadness nor depression. It's like a body rhythm as well as a rolling of emotions. Does that make sense? So much of the time my “body rhythm” seems higher and faster, then out of the blue (hmmm) it seems to slow down all at once. As though energy has burned up and I need to get down and reenergize – physically and emotionally. At those times, I like to listen to music that slows me down as well. Changing moods.. listening to other people's sorrow or longing. We are all in this together, and it's good to empathize with even truly bad times some folks go through. I can say, “Oh, yeah. Been there.” or “Thank God, that hasn't happened to me.” (Lots of “been theres”, I'm afraid.) I can turn the music off and the mood with it.

Sometimes there's a real good reason to want to wallow in the blues. It can be an anniversary of some kind. Like the anniversary of my sister Jean's death that is coming up shortly. Looking back and remembering can be a happy, healthy experience, but it can also cause a longing in the soul for someone to fill that empty space that losing a loved one can create. In the past three years I have lost not only my mother and sister, but also two dear friends I had known for many years. I think that is the hardest part of growing older. Not fear of your own death drawing near, but the loss of loved ones.

There are the things in our past that we wish we hadn't done. Or the things we neglected to do. (Thus, my blog title “Some regrets, but still time.”) Is there still time? I ask myself that. Even though my sister and I had reconciled over a misunderstanding that had caused us to be apart for a couple of years, I wish we had done it sooner. Nothing can give back those years. I search my heart daily for events in my life that have caused pain to someone. And I ask myself if asking forgiveness from some of the people in my past will hurt them more than it will help me. So, as some experts tell us to do, I say to myself, and I say to any who read this who may have suffered at my hands, “Please forgive me.” And for my own well-being, I say, “I forgive everyone everything that was hurtful to me.” That should do it until I can be more personal and apologize face-to-face with some of you.

Back to the “blues”.. When I was younger and these times came over me, I used to relate it to some kind of hormonal thing. Then, unfortunately, there were some good reasons to believe so. I was one of those witchy women (know someone like that?) that everyone wants to move completely away from once a month. I would not just have the blues, but be an angry, spiteful person (they called it PMS). As at this stage of life I don't have the hormones to agitate me, I don't get mean when this rolls around. I now think it has something to do with the earth's magnetic field or the tides or some other such pull on the human body. I just know that my rhythm has changed for now. So I listen to some good old blues, and even get up and dance to some of the songs. They remind me of high school slow dancing or the dark, smoky, bluesy clubs and bars of Dallas in the 70s.

Dance with me?

Marilyn

IN CASE YOU NOTICED...

Those of you who regularly follow my blog may have noticed that I like to change things from time to time. The current blog design is a new template from Blogger. Only one person mentioned the change. Let me know if it's more difficult to read. I kind of like the look.

While I have been working on a new blog post, I decided I was tired of listening to the same upbeat music. In fact, I wanted to hear some down and dirty blues... Well, not really dirty, but really down! The current playlist won't be permanent. Just 'til I get out of this "bluesy" mood. In the meantime, if you are reading this, send me a favorite song or two in the "happy" genre.

See you soon...
Love,
Marilyn

SUMMERTIME FUN

ARRIVING AT GRANDMOMMY'S HOUSE

(Travis and Sophie)

Want to stay youthful and fit? Try keeping up with young grandchildren! I don't know if it's the exercise of tending to two small children, ages 8 and 4 (Kelly reminds me she's "almost five" - at least she will be in November!), or if it's just the "busyness" of keeping up with them and their needs that occupies the mind and leaves you no time to think about your aches and pains, but the last four days I felt like I was in a time warp. I remember so well the years of having young ones at home in the summertime. But we didn't have the Disney Channel or a computer to play games on. Those two things made it easier for this grandmother.

At one time I would have lifted four-year-old Kelly and placed her in the grocery shopping cart. This time I had to admit to her that Grandmommy couldn't pick her up! "That's okay" she said, "I can walk". She and big brother Travis helped me pick out groceries. I taught Travis how to smell the cantaloupes to pick a ripe one, and he learned quickly. Our only snag was at the checkout counter. If I were a young mother today, I think I would give the store managers so much grief that they would be forced to remove all the candy and junk that every little kid begs for while moms or grandmothers are trying to check out! I would even go so far as to get up a petition. Of course, my grandchildren were little angels and took "no" for an answer without any argument! Of my own three children, I had one who, at the word "no", would hold her breath and fall in the floor -- even in the grocery store. Back then a pop on the butt would not land a mother in jail!

We had fun at the park, where we fed the ducks and Travis told me the names of the turtles we saw. The snapping turtles as well as the "painted" turtles. That reminded me of the baby turtles that were sold in the Five and Dime stores when I was a kid (not the same kind that we saw in the park). Those were captured and designs actually painted on their little shells. (Animal rights activists put a stop to that, as the paint somehow killed the little turtles -- maybe smothered them? They also discovered salmonella was carried by these cute little pets.) Only once did I spend some of my allowance and bring one home. It mysteriously got out of the bowl we put it in and disappeared. My mother was not one to cater to pets, although she did allow us to have a Cocker Spaniel. We would also manage to coax some stray cat to hang around. I remember one we had when I was in high school that sensed my mother's dislike. Therefore, every time she would be in the back yard hanging out the laundry, this cat would wind its way in and out around her legs. Rubbing and purring the whole time. When Mother had enough or would nearly trip, she would kick at the cat who would promptly grab hold of her leg with all four paws and dig its claws in. It's a wonder my mother didn't kill that cat. But maybe she did...

A picnic lunch, lots of climbing around at the playground, more looking at the ducks, turtles, and fish, then everyone was tired and ready to go home. Another day we went to the airport and saw the vintage World War II airplanes pictured in the slideshow at the top of the page. For $125 a person, they will take you for a twenty minute ride. Needless to say, we stayed grounded.

It was a fun, busy few days. Sophie, seventeen years old and nearly deaf and blind, did not let that deter her. She managed to topple the trash over one day and Travis had to retrieve the remains of a corn dog that Kelly couldn't finish. Sophie dragged it under the table, hoping no one would notice that she was chowing down. And then... and then... besides waking me up at 6:30 one morning to be let outdoors, Sophie's sense of smell led her to her great adventure:
My mother would be turning over in her grave (if she had one) over this picture. I used a lot of disinfectant this past week!!

Recently, Travis and his dad, Matthew celebrated birthdays. Travis got the ultimate little boy gift, and we all enjoyed his Daddy's birthday cake when he and mom, Amy came to take Travis and Kelly home to Austin.



I was pleasantly tired last night after everyone was gone. Then the house became too quiet -- and I missed those little ones!

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There’s a commercial on television that brings me such delight that I wish I had a way of saving it! The dad is going to drive the family SUV, which has a third seat all the way in the back. His little girl is getting into the car and going to the rear seat, which is obviously hers. Since they appear to be the only ones going on this trip, Dad tells her to move up towards the front and sit in her brother's seat. She does so, and the moment when she looks around from this forward view, with the sun roof open above her, her eyes widen and she gets this ecstatic look on her face. “Ohhhh, wowww…” she says. You can feel her joy and amazement. (What a great little actress.)

This is how we might react if we allow ourselves to view the world through someone else’s eyes. Sit in their car seat for a change… walk in their moccasins for a while. Our own viewpoint can become pretty narrow at times, and we truly need to see through fresh eyes... Maybe through the eyes of our own children or grandchildren? Ohhhhh, wowwwww...

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Thanks for all the good things happening in the Gulf.. It appears they have finally stopped the oil leak. Those of us praying for the end of this disaster and the restoration of the lives of those affected will continue until it is over. There will be good that comes from this. Changes in the way the oil companies operate will have to be made. The damage done will last for years.

A little note from The Christian Science Monitor July 9th of some more good being done to save the wildlife :

(Denise Rowell, USFWS.)

"Researchers and biologists place sand around sea turtle eggs they placed in a cooler after harvesting them from the sand in Cape San Blas, Fla., on Friday. US Fish and Wildlife and other authorities are relocating thousands of sea turtle eggs to a warehouse on the East coast of Florida in an effort to save them from the oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill."

Peace and love,

Marilyn

HODGEPODGE & GIVING UP THE GHOST

I always think of Alaska as being cold and snowy year 'round. This pristine scene looks as if it could be in Northern California or Washington State. Daughter Carajean and family decided to enjoy the cooler weather of Alaska while on vacation this year.

Yep! That's ice in the water! You don't see anyone swimming in this lake, or is it the ocean? Somewhere in Alaska.

Back home, they will be remembering this when the Panhandle temperature rises to 100 degrees this summer.

Branch, Audrey, Tanner, Carajean, and Ashlyn

This is probably the safest way to get around in the Alaskan wilderness to be certain you don't run into any bears! That's Ashlyn, looking good and ready for an adventure.

A reminder that they all dared to do this same thing, skimming through the treetops of the rainforest in Costa Rica! This makes the rides at Six Flags look tame by comparison!

By the way, I heard that Tanner kept the folks onboard ship entertained while answering questions that supposedly "could not be answered" from a book his Papaw was reading. He enthralled a Professor of Physics, who asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up. His reply was "an astrophysicist". There goes my environmentalist... Must be all the Carl Sagan he's been reading!

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Grandson Travis recently completed a week at motorcycle camp. At nearly eight years of age he was the youngest one there. In the first picture he is receiving instructions. It rained a lot the week he was there, but the mud didn't deter them, as you can see in the next photo.









By the end of the week, he was "poppin' a wheelie" for his Uncle Craig! It was a mighty proud little boy at "graduation", and I heard he just might be getting one of these bikes for his birthday.

His Dad Matthew took the pictures, sending them with the caption "mini me". Not only does he look like his dad did at that age, now he's following in his footst... uhhh, motorcycle tracks! He's #1 in my book!

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Early this year I watched a popular movie star being interviewed. Not only is he an award winning actor who has starred in many action movies, but his personal life has always been one to be admired. He and his wife have four children, one of which is an NFL football player, and they are involved in many worthwhile charities as a family. I was a little taken aback when he told the interviewer that this year he is reading the Bible cover to cover for the second time in his life. As many years as I have spent attending churches of different kinds, this is something that never occurred to me to attempt. The most popular, all-time best seller in the world and I, an avid reader, spiritually curious seeker, have never read the whole book! Thus I began the monumental task, using two different versions of the Bible...the King James version, and the New International Version, which I use to clarify some of the language. I wrote my former pastor recently to get a metaphysical meaning of one of the terms.

I found myself enthralled with the stories that I thought I had heard growing up. However, I realize I was always being told a "sanitized" version! I am a great fan of mysteries and psychological thrillers, but never have I read of such mayhem as is contained in the Bible. I am nearly finished with the second book of Kings, and I swear I've read of more polygamy, adultery, incest, wars, cannibalism, and executions/murders of various horrendous kinds -- in particular, beheadings, that were committed by the "righteous" and "God's chosen people" than anything our children supposedly are exposed to in movies, video games or television in today's world. It is no wonder that some fundamental, religious extremists who view the Bible literally are driven to commit similar horrendous acts "in the name of God". (Or Allah, if the Koran is nearly as violent as the Bible.)

However, I have been learning new terms that cause me to laugh out loud at times. These terms I had to look up in the NIV version for interpretation. "Those who pisseth against the wall" was one that caused me to giggle. What an apt description of males! A couple of terms I had heard before, but did not know their origin. "He slept with his fathers" and "He gave up the ghost". How much more colorful than "he passed away" or plain old "he died" or as in my church, "she made her transition". MY KIDS: LISTEN UP! When my body wears out and you are ready to spread my ashes, I want the obituary to read, "She gave up the ghost"!

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Recently a nonprofit organization in Burnet, the Global Art Initiative, joined with International Medical Outreach and Feed the Children, to send over 200 painted crutches, walkers, canes, and wheelchairs to the Haitian people who were disabled in the January earthquake. Not bad for a small town of less than 5,000 people. The Church of the Epicenter has joined with a group that is helping to bring fresh water to the people there as well.

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I know we all (at least we women) have looked in the mirror and were shocked to see "our mother" looking back at us. That was tough, but I recently was horrified when I thought I saw my grandmother looking back at me! That ever happen to you?

Ah, aging. It is happening to all of us all of the time. But when a musical icon from our youth like Ringo Starr turns 70, as he did recently, it really brings it on home. As he was celebrating with his fans on the streets, he gave the familiar "peace sign" and all together they shouted

Peace and Love!
Marilyn