sweet poignant memories …

 

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Thinking about Mama: On this date, fifteen years ago, she died. Loss of a loved one, especially a parent, is always with one… but with each passing day, grief and pain yield to comfort, remembering  the little things, that over the years, become treasured memories…

Giving thanks for our lives and the guidance she and my dad gave to both my sister and me, the grands and their children – some who only know her through photos, our stories, our memories…

Inspired and comforted  being in my sewing studio, which was once her bedroom, especially with the sunlight streaming in. Remembering that my first blog – on blogger – was started as a way to remember and honor Mama and to document my stories …

Feeling warm, buoyed, honored and strengthened. Mama ( and Daddy) always treated us with respect, encouraging us to appreciate and be the very best version of ourselves – to learn … Ancora Imparo. I am still learning ~ Michelangelo

About the picture:

  • The grapevine angel holds dried flowers sent to me by my dear friend Kathy when my mother died. I set them on the angel, never expecting the wreath to live this long. I treasure seeing it every day, many times a day…
  • The statue of a weaver was made by my friend Pat’s mother and given to me by Pat – who knew my mother and that she also wove. The postcard photo of the Sandia Mountains in New Mexico overlooks the area where my mother’s cremains are buried…
  • The quilted fleur de lis I made in honor of my mother two years ago; I shibori dyed  the fabric and hand stitched the iris.

by the light…

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November’s Full  Moon – Beaver or Full Frost Moon, as it’s sometimes called – was the perfect ending to a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and my friend Margaret:

  • Food was delicious – and there was so much of it …
  • Conversations delightful  and  …
  • Birthday greetings for Elias who will celebrate his first birthday Tuesday, 27 November!

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Chris; Dolly lighting the candles; Auntie Kayla; Mimi (Elias’ grandmother), Elias and Norman…

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Big Brother Chris … Elias’ hero!

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Elias!

We are all eternally grateful that our Thanksgiving 2018 includes Dolly and Elias. Here’s to many more celebrations!

Cheers~

PS.  Today has been a quiet, PJ day for me!

thanksgiving morn…

 

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the clock ticks … the sun shines – tho’ the thermometer vacillates between 32°-33° … sitting on the counters, makin’s for corn pudding and sour cream gelatin … the turkey’s in the oven  – it’s aroma begins to fill the air …

quiet … peaceful … looking forward to this gathering with family and friends…

grateful for this day of thanksgiving …

may your Thanksgiving Day also be filled with family, friends and festivity.

Cheers~

PS. Joining Carole for 3 on thursday here and the photo is an edited screen capture of my phone’s desktop photo; the original is provided by Kelly of Minding My Nest. 

on playing the piano…

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I’ve always enjoyed piano music, especially classic. For sure, Mozart is my favorite composer. Any/Every time I hear his work, I am stopped in my tracks, transformed somewhere else. As a child, I aspired to play an instrument and in 4th-5th grades, chose to learn the piano.  Well, that was short-lived: I never did. Why? Because a) I didn’t practice and b) never bothered to learn the bass cleft. Kinda necessary to play the piano or any instrument, I imagine. You think?

On Friday, during my Journal Club session, I was introduced to a new pianist :  Ludivoco Einaudi and his piece: Walk. I am listening to it now, as I write this post …and I invite you to click on this link. It is hauntingly beautiful and a visual as well as an auditory experience. There is quite the library of videos of his performances.

I am so grateful that I have a new companion to accompany me on my walks, when I journal  and during other mindful moments.

Peace~

simply a moment: I remembered…

 

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9:03 am – The sun is bright and warm this morning, in direct contrast to yesterday’s pre-winter preview and surprise! What a difference a day makes! Sunny today and not a trace of snow or ice – except on the back deck.

I stood at the window, in front of the radiator, feeling the warmth rising up from it as well as that from the sunlight streaming in…and I remembered

I remembered the many, many times over the 32 and counting years I’ve lived in this house – from the beginning to now. When I first moved in, the walls were chartreuse -ooooh, not! And the carpet: orange. Yuck! Quick, paint the walls beige …at least that toned the carpet down a bit. Needless to say, the carpet’s life was short-lived…

I remembered that my mom would sit in the chair – not the one pictured – ’cause it’ was warmer in the winter… and in the same chair, I sat, very early in the morning: reading and writing. It was in that spot that morning solitude and quiet time (MSQT) began for me, twenty plus years ago.

I remembered the ice box: one of my first purchases when I moved to MD/DC in 1974. I don’t know why but there was something about it that I just liked …

I remembered the little angel sitting on top of the icebox; my mom bought it for me for my 27th (I think) birthday…

I remembered the several years it took me to stitch the wall hanging, finished about 5 years ago. I leave it up year round despite the Christmas holiday/winter theme …

I remembered the ceramic elephant, sitting next to the chair, from Vietnam right before the war ended…

I remembered the small pillow on the chair – my first foray into needlepoint…

I remembered the Japanese Maple, planted the second or third year I moved here…

I remembered all the thirty-two Christmases in this house, starting with Dolly who spent her first one, age 9 months, and then Christian and then Kayla and then…

I thought:

Oh what fun Christmas will be with two little boys! Let the fun begin!

I am so grateful for these memories…and the ones yet to be made.

3 on thursday|11.15.18 …

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We went to bed last night, fully expecting today’s “snow forecast” to be a flake or two and then, life as usual. As an old margerine/butter ad touted: “it’s not nice to fool Mother Nature.”  Yep, we have snow…and cold…and rain…and there are still 36 days til the Winter Solstice arrives!

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Today’s weather has been fit for neither man nor beast but out we went ~ for Norman had several medical appointments.  We arrived home,  grateful for warmth , being dry and not having to go out again!

Photo on 11-15-18 at 3.12 PM

…and I get a chance to play with my birthday* present: an Amazon Echo! Thanks Norman!

Hope the weather in your corner of the world is warmer and drier.

Cheers~

  • Yep – today is my birthday

sometimes mondays …

 

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… are  for getting ready to go to quilt meeting and errand running… I’m looking forward to the meeting  – it’s been a while since I last attended – and grateful for the chance to reconnect with quilting friends and cross a few things off my list!

What’s on your Monday agenda?

Cheers~

capturing me…

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(Me multi-tasking: participating in one of today’s sessions on my iPad, taking a photo with my iPhone and drafting this post!)

One of my creative pursuits involves capturing my life “memories and moments, my stories on this planet via words+photos:

  • I capture stories  in my journals, on this blog..
  • I participate in online classes, forums and groups … all which are designed to both encourage and instruct…
  • I use ( tho’ rarely) social media, primarily Instagram…
  • I make scrapbook layouts, such as those I shared in my  Collecting October 2018 post
  • I belong to two scrapbooking membership groups. Both sponsor group activities that engage and inspire their membership, provide for instruction and most importantly, incentive, inspiration and opportunity  for members to meet online via their sites, chat, and thanks to today’s technology: gatherings online.  These platforms, such as Zoom, enable us to see, talk, create, share, offer one another assistance, in real time! 

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This weekend, one group is celebrating its 10th Anniversary. We’re having a three day, almost round-the-clock live (and being recorded) event. I am grateful that I am a member of this group, have the time and the resources – WiFi, computer; iPad; – to join the festivities with the community. So far, it’s been not only fun and instructive but also inspirational – made possible by today’s Internet technology. Around the world in less than a half second!

We’re on a break.. enough time for me to take a brisk walk on this very sunny, windy autumn day. TBC…

Cheers~

 

on gratitude and writing…

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This morning, during MSQT – morning solitude and quiet time – I thought a lot about gratitude and writing. In a way, they are synonymous to me. I can’t seem to think about /express one without the other.

MSQT begins when I go downstairs and set up my space/place at the table: I pull my Raskog book cart close to the table, take the lamp off  and set it on the table. Next, set placemats out: one is for my journal, the other, my tea  mug and water glass; both sit on a small tray. Finally, I arrange other paraphernalia: pens; my journal; my iPad and iPhone, plugging which ever one might need a charge into the outlet on the lamp; and the book/s I’m currently reading. I then boil water (in the microwave) for tea and fix myself a glass of ice-cold water. When the water is boiled, I take the mug to the table, sit, plop in my tea bag and breathe for 4-5 minutes. Once that’s done, I am ready to write.

My daily journal entry always begins with the date, time, a “brief weather report” in the form of a graphic: a cloud or sun or snowflake. Next I write a bit about the day before, today’s upcoming agenda, my thoughts, feelings, plans, ideas, surroundings, memories, and gratitudes.

I find that I enjoy the physical act of writing, of making letters, forming sentences, expressing thoughts, ideas, feelings, describing my surroundings, anticipating and/or relishing my experiences. I also read – generally a book that helps me explore a current or long-time interest, poetry, or an essay. Most often, books by writers on the practice of writing. Hard work.

I write, not because I want to publish – anything beyond a blog post – but because it fills my soul …and for that, I am grateful.

What fills your soul?

Cheers~