For the first 50 years of my life, my perfectionist self mistakenly believed it was all about knowing more, getting it right, planning, attempting to prevent bad things from happening, and keeping all of my chicks in a row. It took me this long to discover that the JOURNEY is all that matters. This quote from Gilda Radner sums it all up:

"I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next.
"


Monday, July 29, 2013

The Color Purple

I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it.... People think pleasing God is all God care about.  But any fool living in the world can see it always trying to please us back. 

 ~Alice Walker, The Color Purple, 1982




 Some people find God in the beauty of the world around them.  
It brings peace to their souls.


Adam found the perfect spot on top of the boathouse this morning with his Bible and his journal.


He wasn't alone.   


There are way too few times like these in our days!

Friday, July 19, 2013

Endless Summer

I haven't written in a while.

It's summer.

You probably think I'm having so much fun and doing all kinds of summer activities that I don't have time to blog.

The truth is, I hate summer.  It's my least favorite season.

I truly detest hot, humid weather.  And this summer has been nothing but hot and humid.  And wet. And mosquitoey. Trapped inside the house without being able to open the windows.  A beautiful garden in my yard that I can only enjoy through my kitchen window.

I think I was actually getting into a funk for a while until I had a talk with myself and snapped myself out of it.

I didn't always feel this way. I used to love summer.  There were endless days of laying in the sun by the lake,  camping with my cousins, swimming, drive-in movies, tennis, naps in the afternoon after staying up until the wee hours of the morning engrossed in a good book, daydreaming, riding my bike everywhere...I remember one summer day when I sat and sketched a picture of my foot for hours and enjoyed every minute of it!

Yesterday I went to the beach with my daughter, Annie.  As I floated in the cool water of the ocean on a day that reached 100 degrees inland, I watched the little ones playing in the sand.  I watched the teens frolicking in the water. I watched the lovers kissing.

I was wearing a bikini I bought about ten years ago - the first time I have worn it in public since then.  My stomach's not flat anymore, but I didn't care.  It felt good.  I wasn't able to read my iPad in the sun, so I just lay there listening to other people's conversations, listening to the water rush against the shore, feeling the intense heat of the sun on my skin, feeling the cool breeze come along to cool it off.

When we left the beach later in the afternoon, I felt renewed.  Somehow it had brought me back in time to the summer days that I loved.  I left the beach with a burn on my back, a tan on my stomach and a much better attitude!

The heat wave will pass. I have vacation to look forward to.  Fall clothes are out already in the stores.  I'll get through it.

Because the best thing about summer is it brings in the fall!





Monday, July 8, 2013

Look Who's Twenty-One!

It's hard to believe.

My daughter, Kerry, turned 21 yesterday!

We went to Burlington to celebrate with her.  (Annie had to work so she couldn't be with us.)

Kerry chose to go to a restaurant in Winooski called "Our House".

When the waitress came to take our drink orders,   we told her it was Kerry's 21st birthday.  She carded Kerry when she ordered a raspberry margherita.


I think the waitress felt honored to deliver her first legal drink.



 When I saw Adam and Kerry toasting with alcoholic beverages, I couldn't help remember when they were both so excited to drink out of the "Chip" cups after going to see Beauty and the Beast on ice!







Then we got our amazing dinners!


Kerry got lobster mac...


Adam got lamb meatloaf with mashed potatoes...


I got chicken pot pie...


 and Vance got lobster risotto.


Kerry opened up the card we got for her - a cat that sings happy birthday.


And a gift with a similar theme!




When the waitress packed up the leftovers to take home, she wrote a very nice note on the box!

                    
A picture with mom and dad,


and with her big brother!





On our way out,  there was a sign that made us think of loved ones who aren't with us anymore...


Then we headed back to Kerry's apartment for a scrumptious chocolate mousse cake...


a birthday wish on her bathroom mirror from Kerry's friend, Sam...


and a kiss from her special man...


I'm sure she'll be celebrating again without mom and dad, but I'm happy
we could spend time with Kerry on her 21st birthday.  We love her so much 
and are so proud of the caring, compassionate person she is.

We love you, Berra!