Another Fourth of July holiday is over and it’s been over a week since the sound of firecrackers started. Every year they start slowly, an occasional boom here and there, but crescendo into a mortar barrage by the actual holiday. Continue reading “Another Fourth”
Cars I Have Loved
We bought a new car. I really didn’t want one. Our old one was fine with me, but it had over 260,000 miles on it and was beginning to show its age. The problem with age, whether it is humans, animals, or cars, is that aging is costly. Our aging dogs are keeping the vet in business and the same was true of our mechanic. It seemed that every week I was taking the car in and saying, “we’ve got to stop meeting like this.” But, just like any elderly person there was always another part that had to be replaced in our elderly car. We decided there were some things we could live with, like the driver’s side door that no longer opened, but when we received the prognosis that the brakes required another $900 procedure, we decided to release it to automobile heaven. Continue reading “Cars I Have Loved”
The World at our Door
Well, another Dirty Kanza is over and everything is slowly getting back to normal around our house. This year, as usual, we hosted several riders and, as usual they were a delight to be around. I admit that I find the DK riders easier to host than those who come to town for the Glass Blown Open. A lot of that may have to do with the age of the participants and the difference in the physical stamina necessary for the two events as they require different abilities and mindsets. But in spite of the differences, each event enriches our lives and that of the community in a profound way. Continue reading “The World at our Door”
Without Love
It’s was a beautiful morning. I was sitting in my garden having a rest after putting in some more plants and then the day was shattered, like so many have been recently, by the news of another school shooting. “When is it going to end?” I asked myself. Everything has changed once again. What I was going to write about no longer seems relevant. The only things that matter now are all the families who have to go through the pain of losing their love ones in such a senseless way. Continue reading “Without Love”
It’s the Simple Things
This week we celebrated the birthday of my brother, James, and I am once again reminded of a how in our quest for knowledge, for the latest gadget, for the biggest house on the block, or for the most exotic vacation, we have lost an appreciation for the simple things in life that make our lives the most meaningful.
Our celebration with James was very simple. James is a simple person. Many would look at him and think that because of his lack of mental acuity or linguistic skills he is missing something, but the simple truth is more times than not we are the ones that are missing out.
We took cupcakes to Hetlinger, the sheltered workshop where he works, for James to share with all the kids there. I call them kids although I think the correct term these days is “consumers’. I call them kids because that’s how they appear to me with their simple childlike faith and joyful appreciation of the most elementary of things.
In addition to the cupcakes, we took his favorite things, two helium filled balloons to the party. He smiled and blushed and it was worth all the money in the world to see him so happy. He was the big honcho for a few minutes, grinning, while everyone sang happy birthday to him, and commenting over and over again on the surprise. Continue reading “It’s the Simple Things”
Beautiful Words
There are very few beautiful words being created on the internet today. In fact, technology has resulted in very little prose or poetry of worth from a literary standpoint. Words are created in the mind’s eye, those haunting phrases that whirl around in your mind may make their appearance on paper, coming from the tip of your pen, but they seldom come from two thumbs on a phone. When you pick up an electronic device, something short-circuits and all that comes out is garbage…tweets, posts that somehow end up being more vulgar than you think of yourself as being, or sarcastic comments that you would hesitate to make in person. Continue reading “Beautiful Words”
It Has to End
This February, my brother would have been sixty-eight. Would have been, is the operative phrase since it has been thirty years since he was killed. Killed is the nice word, murdered is the truth. The other truth is that one never gets over losing someone unexpectedly, graphically and tragically. Even now, while the pain has lessened, the memories have not. The slightest thing will remind me of him. Continue reading “It Has to End”