Here’s an example of how my life is, and how everything is always working out for me.
As some of my friends know I find things during my walks all the time, tools, money, etc. In the money category I find small change, mostly pennies. Well, after a while they build up, and I take them to my bank, and put them in the coin machine for processing. After they are processed, it spits out a slip, you take the to a teller and she gives you something other than pennies.
Today my bag of pennies came to nighty-nine cents, not a dollar, just nighty-nine cents. So, today it’s a long line, and I’m talking to this guy about why we are standing in line, and I mention my nighty-nine cents. He offers me a penny to make it a dollar, and I say, “That’s ok, I’ll be on my walk later and most likely I’ll find another penny, and that will make a dollar.” I go to the teller, get my nighty-nine cents, and head out to the car. I’m walking along the sidewalk outside the bank, and just before I get to my car I see not one penny, but three! Yup, my life is great!
Hopefully my friends will get this story, it’s about the “little things.” These are the small, almost unnoticeable blessings of life that come your way that we pay no attention to, that we have no gratitude for, but we should because it is part banquet of life that has been placed before us.
How rich your life is depends on how you count.
Life is a blessing, be grateful for it all, enjoy!
It is my Birthday today, I had planned to go riding on my new motorcycle all day as is my tradition. But, that’s not the way it turned out. I woke up this morning at 2:00 AM. I am not sure why, but I did, and I could not for the life of me go back to sleep. After three hours of not sleeping, I decided to get up and start my day. I followed my normal routine of eating, exercise, bathing, and getting set for my day. The only problem was, I was groggy, tired, just plain shot.
I had purchased a new Victory the day before, and because the process was so drawn out, I returned too late, and too tired to clean and prepare for the next day. So, new plan, clean now, ride later. It didn’t happen, I was just too tired. The best I could manage was lunch with a dear friend. After a late afternoon nap, I did manage to wash my new prize, and hopefully detailing will follow tomorrow.
If there is anything that could be called a sin, I have committed it today. Hopefully, this post will correct my error, my sin. What was my sin? This entire day, I have yet to express my gratitude for all the wonderful things I have in my life. You would think that I would be thrilled at the fact I have a beautiful new bike, no, I am complaining about how I am too tired to wash it. I have had friends wishing me well from five different counties, Face Book wall posts, private messages, voice mails, phone calls. But, did I stop and take a moment to feel grateful for their friendship, and love? No, I didn’t, apparently I’m an ass.
In the past year, my friends have been there for me, supported me when my Mom passed, kept me going, and even assisted in my new enterprises. Then there are the new friends I have made lately, wonderful, everyone. One in particular, has had such a profound effect, I am amazed at my luck to have met her, and have her in my life.
So now I must attempt to correct my error, my sin. Thank you for all the wonderful things I have in my life, my friends, family, every good thing that has ever come my way. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
When I went into the kitchen this morning a flash of color caught my eye, a bud on my Hibiscus had opened. I have had this plant for years, if memory serves, since 2005, it didn’t cost much, maybe $25 USD, you can find them for a similar price at any home center. This is the same one featured in “On My Back Deck,” a post I had made some time back. It’s not had an easy life, neglected, not watered, battered by the storms, frost bitten, etc. In other words, it’s had the typical treatment a single man would give it. I am amazed at how it’s “hung in there,” managed to survive, and bloom year after year.
I think we could all take a lesson from this simple plant, no matter how rough things get, how beaten up we are by life, we should stay resilient and keep in mind that someday soon, the sun will shine, and we will bloom once again.
Today is my Mother’s birthday, she would have been Eighty years old today had she not passed on November 14, 2011.
Mom
Mom used to say, “I’m just a dumb old country girl.” This is something I had also heard said by my Grandmother, I ‘m assuming she learned it from her and repeated it as a truth like so many children do growing up. I never agreed with that remark, and it would pain me to no end to hear it, but, I would never dare contradict her about it. No matter what she said about herself, to those who knew her, she was much, much more.
She was a devoted wife to my Stepfather for well over fifty years, and a caring Mother who raised four good sons who went on to be come successful engineers and artists. It’s not easy to raise four boys, especially us, but she did it, making sure we were well fed, educated, protected, and given a good start in life. We were always her first consideration, putting herself second, if not third or fourth in priority. She suffered the loss of one of my brothers to an HIV infection, when he became sick, it was my Mother who selflessly cared for him. She later became a Grandmother, and my brother Benjie’s kids gave her much joy and amusement as they grew into the bright children they are today.
Mom was a Depression baby who grew up in rural West Virginia during WWII. Life back then was not easy, she worked on her family’s farm just as soon as she was old enough, and her early education consisted of a one room schoolhouse. Despite the rough conditions of her childhood, she graduated High School and even had a year of college before marrying my Father and having me. Before that, her choice of a career and life path was to be an artist, and art teacher. My Father didn’t provide much in the way of financial support, so it was all up to her to keep things going. She finally decided to take a drastic step and divorce him, not a big deal these days, but in the Fifties, it was almost scandalous! As daring as divorce was, my Mother was willing to take the steps necessary to protect me, and improve our living conditions, something she could not do by staying married to my Father.
To be honest, I don’t remember my Father all that much, at best I can only recollect a few things, he was gone by the time I was three. But, I do remember my Mom carrying me to my Grandmother’s in the mornings before she went to work. It would still be dark outside when we left those mornings, and grandma’s house was at least a mile further up the dirt road we lived on, she carried me every step of the way. I remember one morning in particular, it was bitter cold, I was bundled up, and in her arms, I could see over her shoulder the snow-covered road behind us, and hear the frozen mud crunching under her feet. Back then I was too young to understand the sacrifices my Mother made to care for me. As far as the distance was up the road to my Grandmother’s house, it was three or four times as long back down to the “hard road,” for her to catch the bus in to town to work. We lived in a two room shack that she had purchased with her own money, there was no running water, and, the “bathroom” was an outhouse out back. I guess you could say things were “minimal” as far as creature comforts go, but, she had made a home out of it, she was determined to have a better life for the two of us. My Mom worked hard all her life to make sure I was ok, and these are only two examples, there are many, many, more, for all she has done I am truly grateful.
Sometime later she remarried, and we moved away from the two room shack and lived with my Stepfather, it was the beginning of a new chapter in her life. Soon I had one new brother, Benjie, then a little later, Chris, and then the last, Jeff. My Mother gave them all the same attention, made sacrifices, same as she had for me, her children were the heart of her life. She was a full-time Mom, when we were young there was no such thing as working outside the home, we were the job!
When we were older and all in school, she did go back to work, first as a part-time cook at our local elementary school, then later, working as a teacher’s aide. She even resumed her painting and art, something she had not done since the Fifties. That didn’t mean she had given up her role as our Mother, she still fussed over us, worried, gave advice, and did whatever she could, whenever she could to help us be successful.
My Mother grew up in a time when there was little expression of love, or joy, it was there, just not expressed. Openly saying, or expressing love was just not done, and this was her way. For years I never heard her say she loved me, toward the end of her life, she had an easier time saying it, and our weekly phone calls always ended in an “I love you.” Looking back, I have come to realize that with every act, every sacrifice, she was saying “I love you,” I was just too deaf to hear it.
The single drop of morning dew on a flower’s petal.
Mattie’s eyes see.
The glowing colors of a rainbow under cloudy skies.
Mattie’s eyes see.
Jewels on the beach cast up by a generous sea.
Mattie’s eyes see.
The full Moon set against a starry night’s sky.
Mattie’s eyes see.
The the fiery colors of the evening sunset.
Mattie’s eyes see.
The field of freshly mown hay, the mountain, the waterfall, the babbling brook.
Mattie’s eyes see.
All the beautiful and wondrous gifts of nature.
Mattie’s eyes are of the deepest brown, they see, her finger moves, the shutter and aperture obey her command. Frame by frame, we see the world as seen through Mattie’s eyes.
We have all had this happen, we’re out for a drive in the car, next thing you know, a squirrel runs out into our path! We’re surprised, the squirrel was definitely not expecting it, so the dance begins. You know these moves, you swerve to the right, the squirrel dodges right, turn to the left, there he is again! It’s like the squirrel is reading your mind! And in the brief moments as this is happening, you are thinking, “don’t hit the squirrel! don’t hit the squirrel!”
Thanksgiving is here, the kickoff of the holiday season and shopping madness. I wonder how many of us stop and take a moment to be truly grateful for the wonderful things we have in our lives on this “special” day.
Monday I posted “It’s My Birthday Today” a celebration of all the wonderful “gifts” in my life. Little did I know on that day I would receive a fantastic gift from people whom I had just met!
The Emerald City Post 