REVERSE VISION

A good night's rest has me refreshed from the previous all-nighter. 

This morning we watched the women's Olympic triathlon.  First, they swam two laps in the Seine River (1-mile course), got out of the water and ran up a set of stairs to jump on their bikes to ride 25 miles, ending with a 6.2-mile run.  

Can't help but wonder about the constant wear and tear on their joints.  If the rest of us suffer with joint inflammation and pain, doesn't it only make sense that their risk of cartilage erosion and joint damage would be magnified in proportion? 

After living through 7-1/2 decades, we have the earned ability to see life in reverse. We can identify clearly the things that have helped us and the things that have hurt us.  It's not within me to envy these athletes, because they have reached these almost insurmountable fetes only by giving up other parts of their lives.  One almost feels sorry for what they put themselves through.  And, for what?  There will come a day when their children will wonder what to do with the gold, the silver or bronze medal that they're left with.  Oh, this sounds cynical, but it's simply reverse vision talking.  In my younger years, I only wanted to be an achiever and worked my a__ off to achieve what was within my grasp.  I remember going to work and having to take time off one afternoon to go to the doctor.  I had walking pneumonia.  Despite the coughing and the tiredness, I worked and pushed myself to the point of total exhaustion.  Now, I ask myself why I didn't take advantage of the sick-time hours that just kept building up somewhere in a computer.  Kids today aren't that focused on achieving, and in many ways I'm able to understand why.  They've watched the older generations and learned from us, too.  

It saddens me to watch the Olympian athletes performing that one and final fete, only to have a mishap and not achieve that perfect performance.  The defeat they suffer, the pain and suffering of not being the best they can be after years and years of hard work, well, I wouldn't ever want to endure that kind of personal disappointment.    

Don't know where today's thoughts are going, they're simply bouncing from my brain to the screen.  Bottom line for any of us is to be okay with where we are, who we are, and how we choose to spend the brief time allotted to us.  Personal failure, in some form, is part of every life.

NIGHT WATCH

Bless me Father.......guess what I did!  I pulled an all-nighter, having watched a 10+ hour police interrogation of a female subject.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfhkcfCJn70&t=18s  For sure, this was the most intriguing and long-lasting questioning this couch detective ever watched.  At 5:15 this morning, I was awake when a pink hue replaced the darkness of night. 

More than the behavior of the female subject being questioned in the YT video, the law enforcement's questioning strategy had my brain trapped.  They kept ratcheting up the pressure, until the big boy was brought in.  When the 10-hour interrogation ended, viewers learned that the female was eventually charged with Conspiracy to Commit Murder.  She pled guilty to reduced charges and was sentenced to eight years in prison. 

Another horror story comes to us from a seaside town in northwest England.  The third little girl died after a stabbing attack at a dance school.  Eight other children were injured and are in critical condition.  Two adults, trying to protect the children, suffered injuries. The person arrested at the scene is a 17-year-old minor who was armed with a knife.  Hollywood doesn't need to make horror movies.....horrific things are happening in real life across the globe.  It is beyond comprehension that a 17-year-old boy could stab little children to death with a knife.  It's abominable and nauseating.  

Prayer is the only shield for the human soul.

KYAWTHUITE

If you're like me, you probably have never heard of KYAWTHUITE, the rarest mineral on planet Earth.  It's so rare that only one known crystal (1.61-karat) has been found and is on display at the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles County.  The deep orange gemstone was discovered in 2010 in Myanmar, located in Southeast Asia bordering  China on the north-east, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west and India on the northwest.  Myanmar is an area famous for its variety of gemstone minerals.

Kyawthuite

Kyawthuite (KI-awth-weet) was officially recognized by the International Mineralogical Association in 2015.  The discovery holds significant geological importance.  Its formation occurs within a "pegmatite" deposit, an igneous rock known to host rare and valuable minerals.  A January 2024 article in Mechdaily calls Kyawthuite the rarest thing in the world.

While learning about this rarity, it occurs to me that each of us could wear the label 'rarest in the world' cuz each of us is one-of-a-kind.  Why can't the human population recognize each other as rarities, rather than battering boards for preconceived criticisms.  This gem can be a powerful teaching tool for us to realize our significance on the planet.  If the gem is the only one of its kind, well, each of us is, as well.  

How dare one person think they are more significant than another?  Nature is Scripture....affording us tangible teaching tools from which to learn and understand that which is otherwise unknown to us.  If we don't study Nature, we cheat ourselves out of so much during our lifetime.  Our Creator must've thought and thought how He could make such scripture available to humans.......that's when He decided to surround us with answers.  Then He empowered us with natural curiosity....the one thing that urges us to open our eyes and look for the answers.

On those days when sadness envelops our spirit, we must think of ourselves as the rarest gem on the planet.  There's not one single other person like us anywhere and never will be.  The parts of us that others criticize are the things that prove we are each tailor-made.  

SAFFRON

 

The ancient spice SAFFRON is the most expensive spice in the world,  with a wholesale price as high as $10,000 per pound.

Saffron comes from the stigmas of the crocus sativus, a flowering plant that only blooms for two or three weeks out of the year.  Each flower produces only three thin red stigmas or threads, which are hand-picked and then dried.

• Iran is today's leading producer of saffron, but is also cultivated in Afghanistan, Greece, Morocco, India and other countries. 
• Because of its high price, there are fake versions of saffron sold by corrupt producers.  Fake saffron has a metallic or tobacco-like smell over time.  Authentic saffron has a beautiful floral aroma, with a hint of sweetness.  Saffron threads are dark red with sometimes a bit of yellow, so be careful if you see too much yellow or white.  
  
• Elderly women are usually given the job of removing the saffron threads from the crocus flowers.  No machines are used to separate them. 
  
• Saffron is used as a medicine, fabric dye and perfume. 
• In India, saffron represents courage and sacrifice.  The color deep saffron (kesari) was chosen for one of the three bands of the National Flag of India, along with white (peace and truth) and what is now called India green (faith and chivalry).
• The ancient Greeks and Romans used saffron as a deodorizer, scattering it in public places like royal halls, courts and amphitheaters.  When Nero entered Rome, saffron was spread along the streets.  Wealthy Romans took daily saffron baths.
• Saffron is mentioned in the Song of Solomon 4:13-14 and Psalm 35:1. 

"Saffron requires 4,000 blossoms to produce one ounce of spice.  It is easy to see how patience is required to gather 4,000 blossoms.  The next time we are enduring a trial, let us remember the 4,000 single flowers that are required to gather an ounce of saffron and hope that it takes fewer than 4,000 trials to develop an ounce of patience in us."  ~Reflections

2024 SUMMER OLYMPICS

Anyone watch yesterday's opening ceremony of the 2024 Summer Olympics?  This is the first time it was held outside a stadium. 

Photo I took of USA in Boat Parade

The thought of our world nations gathering together, put me in research mode for today's blog.  Here are some tid-bits about the Olympic Games.

• 
  The Olympic Flag has 5 intertwined rings on a white background.  The 5-linked rings symbolize the unity and solidarity of the continents of Africa, America (North and South), Asia, Oceania and Europe.  (In most non-English-speaking countries, Oceania is treated as a continent in the sense that it is one of the parts of the world, and Australia is seen as an island nation.)  The ring colors on the white background represent the nations of the world.  Every country in the world has at least one of these colors on their flag (might be a different shade).  The colors are from left to right:  blue, yellow, black, green and red.
  
• In the opening ceremony, the athlete procession is always led by the Greeks and ended by the host team.  The others go in alphabetical order as labeled by the host country's language.
• The Paris Olympic Opening Ceremony took place along the Seine River, with more than 6000 athletes on the water, 3000 dancers and comedians along the river banks and bridges, with famous Paris monuments as a backdrop.  A parade of 85 boats transported the athletes.  
• Games Wide Open is the motto of the 2024 Summer Olympics.  It relates to delivering Games that are more responsible, more inclusive, more equal and more spectacular than ever before.  The opening parade was in keeping with this theme.

• 

  Phrygian Caps

  The Phrygian Cap (pronounced FRIH-jee-un) is the mascot for Paris 2024.  The Phrygian Cap is a symbol of freedom and has been part of French history since ancient times.
• The games were originally held to honor the god Zeus.  The gods played a great part in ancient Greek society, and the Olympics came from a festival that was originally organized to honor Zeus.
• The last time gold medals were made entirely of gold was in 1904.  Now they're made of silver and finished with gold.  In ancient times, the winning athletes were awarded with an olive wreath.  The leaves and olives in the wreath were taken from a sacred tree by the temple of Zeus at Olympia.  This made the prize all the more important and precious to the Greeks.  
• The games were held every four years, or Olympiad, which became a unit of time in historical chronologies.  The originating Olympic Games are dated back to 776 BC in Ancient Greece.  The Games were named for their location at Olympia, a sacred site in southern Greece.
• 
  Every 2 years the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia before going to the host nation.  The host nation then displays the flame around the country before it is used to light the Olympic Cauldron at the opening ceremony. 
  
• There were no team sports at the ancient Olympics.  The games initially started as short foot races to keep men fit for war.  Greek men actually ran these races naked.  

Think I'll stop here to allow that last image to soak in.  

CAUTIOUS CAT AM I

Today begins the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.  Sadly, this morning's news tells of a massive sabotage attack against France's high-speed railway network.  This tells me that today we can add FEAR to our human likenesses.  

There's a saying.......If you wish to succeed in life, make perseverance your bosom friend, experience your wise counselor, caution your elder brother, and hope your guardian genius.  I live by those words.  Especially when it comes to caution.  One of my personality traits is most definitely cautious, because I approach all situations with careful consideration.  My brain is accustomed to weighing the risks and benefits of all situations. 

Some may say that caution keeps us from doing life-enriching things.  And, that's reasonable.  I'm seeing us living in troubled times, and it makes perfect sense to be vigilant. 

An example would be the Summer Olympics.  Sure, it would be a fantastic experience to fly to Paris and watch the sporting events.  My cautious brain kicks into gear and thinks about the possible terrorist attacks, like the train sabotage that's already taken place on day one.  Why on earth would I put myself through the commotion of travel and join thousands of others while we're hearing the levels of possible terrorist attacks on the rise.  People are braver than me.  Actually, I'm not sure if it's having courage or being careless.  I'm content as the proverbial bug to watch the Olympics on the telly and watch the thousands who feast on human congestion.  I prefer my space to mitigate the risk of  unforeseen situations.  They say that caution is the parent of safety.  I'm happiest when I'm safe and sound.

UNITED BY REALITY

This morning's FB feed alerted me to the realization that I've lived in 7 different decades, 2 centuries and 2 millennia.   Sometimes my brain gets twisted in the briars and brambles of self-pity, sobbing the sorrows of one day being yanked from existence.  One must rather keep praying appreciative prayers for the time granted, recognizing the millions who aren't as lucky.

 Spent yesterday watching the Black Swan murder trial on FB Court TV.  One of my personal interests is critiquing both the prosecuting attorney(s) and defense attorney(s).  In this case, after two days, I'm not particularly impressed with either.  But, I've learned to wait until the trial is completely over before passing judgments.  Strategy sometimes surprises a person like the mystery book that reveals the killer on the last page.   

Looking back across the span of my years, I feel that I was born in an extremely interesting era.  Starting out in a home with no running water and now living at Venny in a unit with two bathrooms, I might easily think of myself as a person blessed beyond merit.  All the amenities offered at Venny constitute a simple transition into the years that are supposed to be gilded in gold.  Oh, there are aspects of aging that are gilded in gold, like having the time to do as one pleases.  But, having to watch one's physical abilities decline is gilded in black, not gold.  No one feels sorry for us, but instead frown down upon us and the maladies we must endure.  Our culture simply doesn't recognize the aging process as part of each and every life.  One thing I remember my parents teaching me is respect for elders.  From little on, I was able to realize that older people have what young people don't have.......insightful experience.  They themselves have faced life experiences and know how to get through them.  It's as though the elderly person faced a jungle of twisted trees, branches, briars and brambles....and successfully made it through to the other side.  The young person faces that same forest, with nary a clue how to make it through.  That's insightful experience.

I know I rattle on about gratitude, and maybe I write about it so I keep reassuring myself and encouraging myself to appreciate every single minute of every single day.  We're living in a time when we need to appreciate one another.  If one person has a wealth of academic education and the next guy has a wealth of life experience, each one needs to focus on the lessons and accumulated strengths.  I've been personally looked down on from the heights of academic arrogance, yet I have in my back pocket the experience of surviving family tragedies and other heartbreaks that no institution of learning could have prepared me to endure.  

Without getting political, because I'm a fence-sitter, we, as a free nation must find some way to get along and recognize that we're all in this together and not a single one of us is going to leave this world on a higher plane than any other person.  Dying will be the same for the rich as it is for the poor, the educated and the non-educated.  Only humans create categories and labels, elevating some and downgrading others.  Every life is a struggle, despite how hard people try to hide their private mountains.  I've never been impressed with Hollywood, the world of the rich and famous.  They're simply a bunch of actors.....acting in ways that can make the normal person feel inadequate.  The face on a beauty magazine is as fake as a $6 bill.  The Barbie Doll figure is a man-made creation, certainly not a divine creation.  

I spend considerable time on YT traveling the world, places like the remote villages of Nepal, the Iranian nomadic lifestyle, and the African tribes that live in the jungles hidden from the mainstream.  Their survival skills would put any of the rest of us to shame.  Because of their insightful experience.  Why can't we blessed Americans realize and respect our differences.  The current rhetoric, of media and of each other, can be called barbaric.  We were taught not to hurt one another, yet as advanced as our civilization is, we're to the point of killing each other.  Killing total strangers for no reason at all, or for reasons that only a deranged mind can deem to be acceptable.  

Living through the decades has gifted me with the insight and fortitude that age alone can provide.  In my own estimation, I've received double-dips and triple-dips.  There's not one scintilla of reason for me to complain about anything.  Oh, I do complain from time to time, but my complaints have no real substance.  When compared to those living in oppressed cultures, my heart breaks.  We who live in freedom are becoming complacent, and I fear this complacency is what will be the death of our freedoms.  

There's one aspect of life that I have zero tolerance for.  And, that's the business of one person feeling superior to another.  This may sound pretty brash, but if we took a billionaire, a homeless person, a person with a doctorate degree and a person with a GED, a high achiever and a low achiever.....asked each of them to remove all of their clothing, their make-up, and fancy hairstyles..... asked them to line up against a wall.....how would it be possible to distinguish one person from another?  The bodies of the rich are created the same as the bodies of the poor.  There are overweight billionaires and gorgeously handsome low-achievers.   Why does one person have the right to elevate themselves and claim to have all the right answers and condemn those with opposing opinions?  That's a recipe for disaster, if you ask me.     

Today's rant reinforces my value system, and I pray every day for our nation.  The richest country on earth has homeless people.  How is that possible?  America's grain belt has huge grain bins stored with excess corn, while there are people on the planet starving to their death.  It makes no sense.  

Before closing, let me share an instance that happened at Venny yesterday.  The boyfriend bought groceries two days ago, came home and couldn't find a package of hot dog buns that he bought.  The next day he went down to the car to see if they might have fallen out of the grocery sack.  When he got to the garage door, sitting on a stool was the package of hot dog buns.  Where else does such honesty exist in 2024?  One day there was a $1 bill pinned to the common bulletin board.  Someone had found it laying somewhere at Venny.  That's the kind of world I want to live in, and I'm blessed to be living here.  

C'mon, Americans, let's be kinder to one another.  If each one of us made the effort to do one small kindness to another human being each day, just think of the massive waves of goodness that could sweep our beautiful planet Earth?

A couple things to remember:  (1) The same blood runs through every person on the planet.  And, (2) there's a universal language among all people on the planet, and that is laughter.  A laugh is a laugh in every culture on the planet.  Gosh, all 8 billion of us DO have 2 things in common.....blood and laughter.  That's a start. 

OUT OF BALANCE

My life is Buffy blessed.  She arrived yesterday and will stay with us til late Friday evening.  Her parents are in the air now to D.C.  The boyfriend took Buffy outside for her morning walk, and she's eaten breakfast.  She's cuddled up next to me now chewing on one of her chew bones.  

Yesterday we had our accent color trim in our unit painted from a burgundy to a soothing shade of green.  We second guessed our decision, until the guy started applying the paint.  Thank heavens we took the risk, cuz the color is relaxing and adds a hint of nature along with our oak cupboards.  The more in sync with nature, the more we are in our element.  

Noticed on Court TV on YT that the Black Swan Trial has started.  A Florida ballerina is accused of killing her husband.  Opening statements yesterday.  Think I'll spend my day in the courtroom to see what the trial is all about.  

One cannot help thinking about all the tribulations people across the globe are enduring every day.  When life gives us a chance to savor serenity, it's up to us to sink our souls into that space of calmness.  The state of our world right now is so very upsetting for so many reasons, I literally close my eyes and submit to the sustaining Force that will always be beyond our fragile reach.  Like the lotus flower, I rise above the murky waters and open my heart to the blessings that come to me in small doses every day.  Recognizing one's blessings is paramount to contentment and peace of heart.  

Like it or not, each of us is living out our life with a bubbling volcano beneath us.  There's a steady roar of thunder all around us.  Fighting seems to be the national pastime.  No one is satisfied, and no one wants to take responsibility.  Some days it feels like I was abducted from what I considered normalcy and shipped off to some unknown planet where right is now wrong, up is now down, and inside is now outside.  Nothing feels right, and everything feels wrong.  Out of balance.  

When Buffy visits, she reminds me that the creatures that share our world know more than we do.  Buffy isn't worrying about anything.  All she wants to do is make others happy.  She's filled with kisses and she's more than happy to share them with her human companions.  Not one little bone in her body wants anything more than to be loved.  She gives love and appreciates being loved.  Why on this green earth can we not get off our high horses and understand that life does not have to be so frickin' complex.  It is we who complicate, who stir and rile the waters.  I just wish there was a pair of glasses that every person on earth was forced to wear.....these glasses would correct our visions so we could all see the same things from the same perspective.  

Let the stillness and poise

of the lotus flower

inspire strength in your soul.

FAWNS

 "I don't have to take a trip around the world

or be on a yacht in the Mediterranean

to have happiness.

I can find it in little things,

like looking out into my back yard

and seeing deer in the fields"

~Queen Latifah

{Thank you, Debbie, for the photo!}

THE BABYSITTER

The Babysitter

Thanks, Debbie, for this adorable photo of your spring babies and their babysitter.  This really makes me feel sorry for all the 'corporate cattle' that will never know what it's like to lay on a grassy pasture and feel the warmth of the sun or the shade of a tree.  Growing up on a farm instilled in me a sense of compassion for the creatures that are under human dominion.  These bovine babies are definitely among the lucky ones!     

GUARDING THE MAILBOX

This morning I received a text from my sis-in-law, Debbie, with a picture of this little guy she found guarding their mailbox.

This little frog is a Cope's Gray Treefrog, named after Edward D. Cope (1840-1897) who described it as a separate species in 1880.

Seems to me that this sweet little soul simply wants to be left alone by himself.  Where better to spend the afternoon safe and sound snuggled beside a mailbox.

Thanks, Debbie.    
 

KINKAJOU

The last word in the USA Codeword Puzzle had me stumped.  It was a word I'd not seen before.  KINKAJOU.  I googled the definition.

The Kinkajou (pronounced KINK ah joo) lives in the tropical rainforests of Central and South America, where it spends most of its time in trees.  Seldom seen by humans because it's nocturnal. 

This cute little guy is sometimes called a honey bear, because he likes to raid bees' nests.  His dense fur protects him from bee stings.  He is also a pollinator.  As he travels from flower to flower to drink the nectar, the flower's pollen sticks to his face and then smears off onto the next flower.

THUNDERSTORMS

For some fifty years, we lived in what they today call a "starter home."  For us back in the 1960s, there was no such thing as a starter home.  When we bought our 1-1/2 story Cape Cod built in 1945, we were thrilled to have  our lifetime home.

And, we did.  Up until the time we decided to let go of all the work, the maintenance, the needed updates.  The memories most dear are the ones that took place outside on our screened-in patio.  We sat out there during thunderstorms, watching it pour down rain.  We sipped and supped out there, and most likely said, "we needed this rain."  

Fast forward to today, where I sit looking out at our covered deck, where we now sit when it rains, we sip and nibble out there, and are still saying, "we needed this rain."  During heavy rains, we open the sliding door and it feels as though we're outside.  This may sound silly, but non-damaging thunderstorms with rainfall have always been special times for us.  

Most people complain about rainy days, but no one will ever hear me complain when water blesses us from above like Catholic holy water.  Cloudy, overcast days, to the two of us, are cozy-in days.  My memories of rainy days take me back to my first years when my parents and brother and I lived in a large 3-story old stone house.  Rainy days meant that daddy would be in the house with us, not out working on the farm.  Us kids made tents by putting blankets over chairs and then crawling inside.  The lightning strikes and thunder were so loud, they penetrated the thick limestone walls.

For the fun of it, I share a quotation from Charles Dickens' Bleak House, 1852-1853.....

"Upon the Saturday we sat here, until we heard thunder muttering in the distance, and felt the large rain-drops rattle through the leaves.  The weather had been all the week extremely sultry; but, the storm broke so suddenly.  We ran out of the wood and to the keeper's lodge.  We sat watching the storm.  It was grand to see how the wind awoke, and bent the trees, and drove the rain before it like a cloud of smoke; and to hear the solemn thunder, and to see the lightning; and, while thinking with awe of the tremendous powers by which our little lives are encompassed, to consider how beneficent they are, and how upon the smallest flower and leaf there was already a freshness poured from all this seeming rage, which seemed to make creation new again."

It gives me giggles to think that I'm now an old lady who still likes to sit under my covered porch, with coffee, mumbling "we needed this rain."  But, this isn't anything new for me.  I've done this all my life. 

RESPONSIBILITY

A single raindrop

never feels responsible

for the flood.

~Douglas Adam

RUMI'S "HOUSE GUEST"

13th century Persian poet and scholar Rumi describes life as A Guest House..... 

This being human is a Guest House.

Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness, some monetary awareness comes,

as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!

Even if they're a crowd of sorrows,

who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture,

still treat each guest honorably.

He may be clearing you out for some new delight.

Be grateful for whoever comes,

because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.

Rumi paints an image of the human mind as a house for guests, which are our emotions.  We never know which guest will unexpectedly arrive at our door. Rumi explains that each guest, pleasant or unsettling, brings a broom to sweep through the rooms of our mind, clearing and making room for new.  Rumi's words encourage us to welcome and entertain all guests.

Looking back over the years, I can easily understand Rumi's message.  The tragedies in my life left me with flashes of a Great Force Beyond My Understanding.  Without those "unfavorable house guests," there's no way I could have otherwise gotten a glimpse of that Force that sustained me. I'm not saying that I had some 'born again' revelation, but something other than myself kept me going. 

For sure there have been times that I would've rather slammed the door on a "house guest," but it was by my eventual acceptance that bolstered my inner armor.  Once we are strengthened, that strength never leaves us.  Just this past year In our home, in plain view, we have the words carved in wood, IT IS WHAT IT IS.  Both of us have learned to comfort our hearts by accepting the unacceptable.  

SWEET CORN SEASON

Yesterday's evening meal was an annual celebration at our house......the first meal of freshly picked sweet corn on the cob.  When truckloads of sweet corn, still in the husks, are parked in convenience store parking lots, the word spreads like a wild fire through the community.  "They're selling sweet corn!"  

We forget what a perk this is for us city folks.  Buying sweet corn from these vendors is a big part of summertime in the Midwest.  It's one place where random acts of kindness are doled out one ear at a time.  If one orders a dozen ears, one will get what's known as a baker's dozen, or 13 ears.  

Medieval Bakery

The term dozen goes back to the Latin word duodecim, which means 12.  The phrase baker's dozen originated in medieval England where bakers gave their customers 13 instead of the standard 12 loaves of bread to avoid being penalized for not meeting the weight requirements. That extra loaf was called the vantage loaf.

When there was a good harvest, a baker might have made more bread than could be sold from his bakery.  The extra bread was sold to middlemen  called 'hucksters,' who would resell the bread on the streets.  This was a win-win arrangement.  The baker would get rid of his bread to the huckster, and the huckster made a profit by selling the vantage loaf, the 13th loaf he had gotten free from the baker.

Pillory

13th-century English law imposed severe punishment for selling in short measure.  This could be a fine, destruction of the baker's oven, or even the pillory (a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands).  The purpose of the pillory was public humiliation.  

Sweet and tender!

CANDY CANE SNAILS

The photo to the left shows the tree-living Candy Cane Snail that's native to the Caribbean Island of Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic.)  

The background of the shell is a creamy white, with typically 3 to 6 spiraling stripes of various colors, including brown, black, pink, green, purple or yellow in seven or eight whorls.  The shell looks like painted porcelain.  Yup, these snails live in trees, but they descend from the trees to lay their eggs in moist soil. 

These shells have been found in heaps in the Dominican Republic, indicating that it was a food source for indigenous peoples.  Early European explorers brought them back to Europe. 

When I find shells, they make their way to my treasure jar.  The day I strolled the Vatican grounds, I noticed a snail shell on the ground.  It came back home with me and its story means the world to me.  I remember the oyster shells on the beaches of South Padre Island.  If I could've picked up every single part of nature that brought joy to my heart, we would need a warehouse.  

This world is truly a fascinating place.  Just imagine all things in existence that we'll never see or know about.  That's why I enjoy hunting for phenomena and learning a morsel of information about them.  Only I know my personal history with every treasure in the jar, and I'm the only one who cares.  There will come a day when I'm no longer here and someone will pick up the jar and empty its contents into a dumpster.  That's the painful part of thinking about the future.  The things we hold dearest will lose that significance upon our departure.  

The spiral in a snail's shell is the same mathematically as the spiral in the Milky Way Galaxy, and it's also the same mathematically as the spirals in our DNA.  It's the same ratio that you'll find in very basic music that transcends cultures all over the world.  ~Joseph Gordon-Levitt

ORCHIDS -- NATURE'S MASTERPIECES

We humans think we are smart, but an orchid, for example, knows how to produce noble, symmetrical flowers, and a snail knows how to make a beautiful, well-proportioned shell.  Compared with their knowledge, ours is not worth much at all.  We should bow deeply before the orchid and the snail and join our palms reverently before the monarch butterfly and the magnolia tree.  The feeling of respect for all species will help us recognize the noblest nature in ourselves.  ~Nhat Hanh

Connection with gardens, even small ones, even potted plants, can become windows to the inner life.  The simple act of stopping and looking at the beauty around us can be a prayer.  ~Patricia R. Barrett

 

 

EASY AND NUTRITIOUS CHICKPEA SALAD

2-1/4 c. diced cucumbers 

1 c. diced tomatoes

1/4 c. diced red onion

2 T fresh lemon juice

1/2 T minced fresh parsley

1T extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

15 oz. can chickpeas (rinsed and drained)

Combine all ingredients together and toss well.

I like to add ripe and/or green olives, feta cheese and sweet corn.  If there are fresh radish available, those will be added, as well.  It's fun to kick the salads up a notch with whatever's available.  

Growing up, we had what my mother called the "acre garden."  Daddy insisted that a large portion of the farm crop field be devoted to our vegetable garden.  His mother (my grandmother) taught him to provide for his family wisely.  Grow your own, preserve and eat what Mother Nature provides.  After all, growing one's own food is like printing one's own money.  Even though I watched Daddy's wisdom in action, my lifetime goal was much different.  Fast forward to today, and I totally understand the glory of gardening.  Never was there a time of my life that I didn't value the home-grown vegetables and fruits grown in the private gardens and orchards.  In fact, we had an apple orchard on our farm.  Even today, vegetable salads and fruit reign supreme on my food priority list.  The older I get, the more I'm eliminating foods with sugar.  Oh, I have a feisty sweet tooth, but I don't give in to her whining.  

Food is a critical part of our older years.  We realize what we put into our bodies will react favorably or unfavorably.  Fast foods are filled with fats and calories, designed to entice and then destroy us.  How is it fair that the human population is bombasted with television commercials that not only rouse our appetites, but have us licking on our computer screens.  The ones that get me are the pizza commercials with the ooey, gooey mozzarella cheese.  Who among us doesn't watch and need to swallow our drool over these enticements.  

I always say that the powers that be first entice us to eat, then we take the bait and eat, in time we gain weight, in time our health suffers, and then the powers that be come up with expensive drugs to help us lose weight.  If this doesn't qualify for a "vicious circle," then I'd like to know what does.  Recently I went along with my family to a cardiologist appointment at Mayo.  The cardiologist's words were, "eat what you can recognize."  He explained if you see a banana, you know it's a banana, so eat it.  If you see a bag of salty crunchy snacks, you don't know what ingredients are in that bag of snacks.  To stay healthy, don't eat the bag of snacks.  Opt for a food you recognize.

Summer is the season of freshly picked sweet corn, watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, followed by all varieties of squash.  If we enjoy foods with tomatoes, well, this is the time of year for us to freeze or preserve them for winter consumption.  I lean toward simplicity.  If there's an abundance of tomatoes, I put them in the blender and freeze them for winter chili and hot dishes.  I'm not one to do the traditional canning.  Not only don't I know how, but I don't take the time.  

We've been enjoying the fresh watermelon sold at our local grocery stores.  We usually have evening snacks of watermelon.  It's refreshing, filling, and nutritious.  Just bought sweet pea pods and hummus made with garlic, onion, olive oil and poppy seeds.  It's called 'everything hummus.'  I could make my own with a can of chickpeas, but, again, that's not me.

I've watered the plants already this morning.  It's gonna be a hot day here, so we'll be staying put where it's cool.  Last evening a regal-looking buck walked across the lawn in front of our unit.  What a treat that was.  We see momma does, but rarely bucks.  He had quite a rack of antlers already.

Stay cool and safe.  Ta-ta.  

HOTTEST JULY ON RECORD

Do not mean to expound on my personal blessings, but, yes, I am very blessed with a personal doctor who I trust with my entire heart, mind and soul.  This confession is not to make anyone else feel bad, but to praise the gift of a wonderful man who is dedicated to taking care of the patients entrusted to him.  In my lifetime, I have three doctors who live within my heart and will live there until my expiration date.

My appointment went very well.  Having said that, I walk forward through the next three months until I see him again.  It was my choice.....three months or six months.  I chose the three-month interval.  

Went grocery shopping for a few incidentals following the appointment.  I rejected the boyfriend's offer of a Micky D's Deluxe Chicken Samich.  Instead, we came back home for happy hour and supper.  We stopped at one of the grocery stores and picked up a small watermelon, a bag of sweet pea pods, hummus, and a few other items.  Bumped into an old acquaintance from years back, which was nice.  At our age, one never knows how many more such 'bump-ins' we'll have.  As they say, one life touches another.

The National Weather Service issued this heat warning for today....

Predictions are for America's hottest month on record.  First thing this morning, I watered the plants inside and outside.  Also pulled the shade over the Christmas Cactus that's currently residing in the main bedroom.  Saw the sweetest thing yesterday as we parked our car in the grocery store parking lot.  Inside the car ahead of us was a little white puppy's head.  My first thought was, oh my God, are the windows open?  Well, the owner of this little white fuzzy one was a grand protector and left the car running with the air conditioner on for the precious soul. With what I call the 'stupid epidemic,' I try to magnify every act of compassion I find.  Sometimes our hope in mankind gets derailed, but there are genuinely good people in this world.  

I picked four golden cherry-size tomatoes from the tomato plant growing on our deck.  I'll admit to owning the grubbiest, flimsiest tomato plant on the planet.  I'm taking the opportunity to boast about four tomatoes, cuz I'll be lucky if it produces ten.  The boyfriend thinks it was a sickly thing when I put it in the ground.  I thank him for those kind, but unconvincing, words.

Till the morrow, ta-ta.

I VS. ME

ME WILL BE at the local hospital lab at 2 this afternoon for routine blood work, followed by a routine appointment with my dear doctor.  Me has no major complaints.    There's always the fear that something will show up in the blood test results, but me will not be worried until need be.

Me often talks about how our cranial cavities create our perspectives, our reactions, our opinions, and everything we frit and fret about.  The funny thing about learning new things and expanding our minds, is that the mind cannot shrink itself back and simply unlearn those new things.  Unless, of course, an illness savagely robs us of our thinking processes.  

Why, at me's age, does me wrangle with the thought of going to the doctor?  Me's personal physician caretaker is young, handsome, kind, caring, and has a relatable sense of humor that could comfort a mannequin.  Perfect example of how my overly zealous mind forms fears and clings to them like a ring around the collar.  Silly me.

Have you noticed me using the word me today?  Me feels like spitting in the face of correctness for a change.  It's a way for me to step off the literary sidewalk and do whatever me feels like doing.  Maybe me should lower the bar and wear two different shoes to my doctor's appointment.  Only problem me sees with that idea......he may want to put me in a facility with rubber walls.  Will contain my frivolity in my blog arena.  Me knows me is safe here.  None of my readers will cast stones, and one or two might even leave me a beloved comment.  Some of my readers may wonder if me has only two followers, but such is not the case.  People don't care to leave their fingerprints on the internet, and that's totally understandable.  (Heaven bless those who do!  Blogging is the loneliest hobby on the planet.)  For me, blogging is like hanging my underpants out to dry in front of the world.  

The A1C blood draw is the one that me fears the most.  Diabetes is one of the maladies me will work hard to prevent.  Coming up in August, me has a pre-op on August 2 and the forehead reduction surgery on the 6th of August.  That will later be followed by an eyelid reduction.  Hopefully by Christmas me will regain peripheral vision and no longer feel like I'm looking through a narrow rectangle all the time.  

Aging is like a magic act.  We have no idea what the magician will pull out of the hat next.  Who on earth would've ever guessed me would need a forehead reduction?  Never even heard of such a crazy thing.  To maintain my humor intake, me simply sees it as adding two more scars to my already scarred vehicle.  Me likes to think of my body as a vehicle that's all dented up, but the engine keeps on a chuggin'.  

Blood tests mean me can't eat until after the appointments.  The boyfriend wants to treat me to one of my favorite samiches at Micky D's......the Deluxe Crispy Chicken Samich.  Don't know if we'll do that or something else.  All will depend on how the appointment goes.  If something goes haywire, me might prefer my turtle mode....where me crawls inside her shell and stays there.  

Me thinks the heat wave across the nation is scary.  When me hears 130 degrees, me thinks of a human oven.  Me only wants to be inside in the a.c., and that's when me gets on my knees and thanks heaven for a.c. and the electricity that generates it.  Me worries about the wildlife and the pets that may not be properly cared for.  And, of course, the elderly and the babies, as well.  We all need to pay close attention that our friends and neighbors are home safe and sound.  After all, we are in this together, like it or not.

The boyfriend and me are contemplating some painting in our Venny unit.  A burgundy paint trim will be replaced with a shade of green.  The burgundy is beautiful, but after nearly eight years, we think it'd be fun to kick things up a notch and make changes.  This will also open up a chance for me to create new pieces.  A couple ideas are flopping around inside my cranial cavity.  When that starts, well, then me is doomed to undertake some new design.  It's that business of keeping the creative juices flowing.

Temperatures are predicted to reach 90 degrees here today and hotter for the weekend.  

Me is off to join the circus!   

UNOLINGO and BRAIN

Bless me Father.....I confess to spending an allotted amount of my time every day working online word games and puzzles.  The latest one that I'm hooked on is called Unolingo found on USA Today.  Here's the link if you're interested:

https://games.usatoday.com/games/uclick-unolingo 

Here's a screen shot of today's puzzle.....

Each letter of the alphabet is used only once to solve the puzzle.  Some days it is a challenge, and I confess to asking for hints to help me.  The audit button will identify errors.  

The letters q, z and x are probably the ones to start with.  Anyway, that's how I approach the game.  USA Today Games offers a new game every day, so it's something to look forward to if you enjoy words.  

Our human brain is complex.  Each of us is described to be either right-brained or left-brained.

People who are left-brain thinkers are described as logical, analytical and orderly.  They have strong math and logic skills.  

People who are right-brain thinkers are expressive, imaginative and creative.   Described as free-thinking.

The brain contains two hemispheres.  The two sides communicate with each other.  The left hemisphere controls the muscles on the right side of the body, and the right hemisphere controls those on the left.  Science writer Carl Zimmer wrote, "No matter how lateralized the brain can get, though, the two sides still work together."

Like all scientific and non-scientific theories, there are those who debunk this idea.  The one and only reason I dare touch on a subject this far from my cranial capabilities is because I fit the right-brain theory to a T.  How well I remember my Daddy helping me with "story problems" in grade school.  I was as dumb as the proverbial stump when it came to figuring them out.  Daddy must've been a left-brainer, cuz it was a piece of cake for him.  I remember in high school him helping me with algebra.  That was another dread for me, but at his age he was able to work out the problem on paper and get the answer.  To this day, me and math are like water and oil, we simply don't mix well.  I believe in the right-left theory because it gives me an excuse for my mathematically deficient noggin.

Yes, every day I work word puzzles.  Unolingo is probably the most challenging one, and that's why I share it here.  It's maybe a couple of months ago when I discovered the game, and now every morning I look forward to solving the daily puzzle. 

If the left brain is a scientist and the right brain is an artist, I'm certain that I'm not a rocket scientist.  Sure wish Daddy would have known about this brain theory.  I can still hear him say to me, "Why can't you understand this?"

LITTLE THINGS

I'm sitting here wondering what in the world to write about today.  Then a thought flew through my brain........little things.  I have nary a clue where these thoughts originate, but, my brain is oftentimes the vessel they land in.  Maybe each of us is wired to a Universal Think Tank somewhere.  

Without water drops, there can be no oceans; without steps, there can be no stairs; without little things, there can be no big things.

Don't disregard the little things in life.  They are a big part of your time on this earth.

Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs.

Always remember that the future comes one day at a time.

Sometimes the little opportunities that fly at us each day can have the biggest impact.

We humans are a minority of giants stumbling around in a world of little things.

Never underestimate the significance of the little things done out of a large heart of love.

Learn to appreciate small quiet moments, the ocean, a walk on the beach, time alone, your health, your smile, your life.

Those who cannot feel the littleness of great things in themselves are apt to overlook the greatness of little things in others.

I hope you find, as I did, that happiness comes from noticing and enjoying the little things in life.

Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places where other people see nothing. ~Camille Pissarro

Gratitude magnifies the pleasures you get from life.  ~Robert Emmons

Life is a series of thousands of tiny little miracles.  Notice them.  

While it may seem small, the ripple effects of small things is extraordinary.  ~Matt Bevin

Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving.  What you have caught on film is captured forever....it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything."  ~Aaron Siskind

 A mighty flame followeth a tiny spark.  ~Dante Alighieri

All those small actions you take stringed together can, in the end, make an immense contribution to you reaching your goal and dream.

SCUD DAY

 TODAY, July 8th, is National SCUD Day!  If you're like me, you are wondering what on earth the acronym stands for~~Savor the Comic, Unplug the Drama.

Imagine our world reaching a point where a national holiday is needed to take the time for a giggle and unplug ourselves from drama.  My generation understood the word 'drama' as a serious literary genre.  Fast forward to today, and drama is no longer a fictional thing, but refers to our every day life.  

The business of daily drama in our lives refers mostly to our relationships with other people.  During the Covid incarceration, that's one thing we all noticed.  There was far less human interaction, and our heartbeats slowed down.  Families spent time together, some of that togetherness was positive, others not so much.  Human behaviors govern what transpires between us. 

Drama can be mentally draining.  When an annoying situation arises, it can take over our thinking to where we feel emotionally exhausted.  Then we aren't able to sleep, our blood pressure goes up, and we feel like we're gonna fly apart.      

We are living in a time of uncertainty.  Our national human family is divided.  Our global human family continues to lock antlers.    

The best advice I give myself about life's drama is......do not engage.  Not everything requires a reaction.  I think we all know at least one 'drama queen.'  These individuals are compelled to create unnecessary situations by expanding little things into big things.  They're skilled at violating boundaries.    

There's a thing called the 'toxic triangle.'  That's when a person hears something about another person through a third party, a/k/a gossip.  This is the birth place of much of today's divisiveness.  Every one of us feels our way of thinking is the right way of thinking.  Times that by 8 billion, and is it any wonder we aren't able to see eye-to-eye?     I remember years ago being told about countries that fed their citizens untruths, and we called that propaganda.  Well, lah-dee-dah.  Here we have it in our own country, but we choose to call it fake news.  If we look at society straight in the eye, the landscape of our moral foundation is crumbling beneath us.  I'm fairly certain that all of us are aware that global drama may end up in structural damage.  Negative moral values are seeping in and weakening the foundation of our human family.  

SO, today we set aside our individual nuisances and take time to kick back and savor a laugh, a chuckle, a giggle, whatever you care to call it.  If we can do this for one day a year, why can't we do this every day of the year?  It's healthier to laugh at life than it is to cry with life.  We take everything too seriously.  The more our private thoughts churn, the thicker and more complex they get.  I've learned sometimes it's necessary to spit at life, shove it in a drawer and slam the drawer shut.  We do what we have to do to find our way through the maze. It sometimes feels like we're feeling our way down a network of passages in total darkness.  We've all been there, and at those times we must light our SCUD candle.  It's easy to recall a funny experience from our past or a compassionate moment.  Whatever brings relief to the heart and the head.  It's that business of self-kindness.  We gotta remember that there are no medals handed out at the end of this gig and no martyr banners will fly over our final resting places.  Let's pin the medals on ourselves and fly our own free-to-be-me banners high for the world to see.  

P.S.  We should all be so lucky as to have someone in our life who shares a daily giggle!

Till the morrow, ta-ta. 

WHAT WE WATER GROWS

Sometimes it takes a quotation to jog one's mind off its pedestal.  Am I watering the flowers in my life? or the weeds?  

Psychology has always been interesting to me.....our behaviors.....why we act and react as we do.  Why are we like we are?  And, what are we doing to be the best we can be?  

Let's take a look at the four plants above.  Self-love, Worry, Guilt and Anxiety.  Don't think there's a living soul who hasn't or doesn't personally know all four.  I know I sure have.  

Isn't it ironic that the "heroine" of the meme is Self-Love, the flower we tend to water the least.  Why is that?  Each of us will most likely have our own defining answer.  For myself, I'd say that my birth religion pounded into my undeveloped brain the idea that I must put myself last and everyone else before me.  I felt like a sacrificial lamb.  Teach a child that over and over and over and over and over again, and that fertilizer will nourish Worry, Guilt and Anxiety.  Today's post isn't intended to put down any belief system on the planet, but rather, this is how I feel from my own childhood experience.

So, how do we nourish Self-Love?  Well, I'd say by not nourishing Worry, Guilt and Anxiety.  If we don't give them sustenance, Nature will see to it that they droop, dry up and disappear.    

How can we love ourselves without becoming narcissists?

• Stop second-guessing.  Self-doubt is a lack of confidence in oneself and one's abilities.  We baby boomers weren't raised in environments conducive to the development of self-confidence.  We were taught to internalize our curiosities and our feelings.
• Do the things one enjoys doing.  We were raised to "always be doing something productive."  Well, after seven decades of "doing something," I'm frickin' ready to sit back and do nothing.  Again, early brain-washing piled onto our little shoulders the heavy bricks of personal responsibility......to a fault.  And, what happens to us when we sit down to relax?  Yup, we feel guilty, like the devil has us in his back pocket.  How absolutely ridiculous is that?  
•  Stop self-criticism.  This only leads to more anxiety.  We have to realize our needs and foster them.  When I look back at my Type A behavior and how hard I worked and pushed myself, I wonder now....what the hell for?  One of these days I'm gonna keel over, they'll put me in the incinerator, then my ashes in a box and that'll be the end of me. 
• Treat oneself with kindness.  This builds inner strength, and lord knows, we need that as much as we need oxygen.
• Take inventory of the things one is passionate about.  Write them down and make use of them.  There is an avenue, a niche, for every single one of our capabilities.  A perfect example is my passion for writing.  For thirty years, I hand-wrote my personal journals in WM spiral notebooks.  Writing down my thoughts was the only way I could empty my personal emotions from inside of me.  I used to call it "puking on paper."  About fifteen years ago I first learned about blogging.  That opened the world for me.  I knew I'd never get a book published, so my blogging has gotten to be my life.  It's the first thing I tend to in the morning, and I never know what I'll write about until I get going.  I also write an article for Venny's monthly newsletter.  I found ways to foster my passion, and without them, I'd feel totally unfulfilled.  We simply have to look for what feels right with us, and then make it happen.  I've learned this is called self-love.
• We can't let our worries control us.  Boy, this is a kicker.  I'm first one to stand on a fence post and shout out my frailty in this department.  I worry about those I love, I worry about the future, I worry about needing a new tooth brush.  The only way I can conquer the beast is by doing things I enjoy......reading, crocheting, coloring, writing, creating, playing word games online, traveling the world via internet, learning........and I can do all these things while sitting in my retirement recliner.  I don't apologize for it, I boast about it.  That's self-love.  I've learned that I cannot allow my worries to rule me.  
• The laws of nature apply to our thoughts, and we must be diligent in what we allow ourselves to think about.  For me, if I watch the evening news, I get upset to the point where it's not good for my physical and mental health.  I must shield myself best I can from that which is detrimental to me.  If the news is on the telly, I put my ear phones in and watch YT videos.  This is self-love. 

Well, I could jabber on until the cows come home, but this must be getting to sound like a mental health class.  Maybe this is a reflection of how hard I've worked my whole life on being okay with what life has flung my way.  It's taken a lot of intestinal fortitude and perseverance on my part.  One time I was told that I must have a horseshoe up my >>>>.  I took that as a lop-sided compliment.  Only I know how hard I worked to keep my personal heartaches to myself.  

Speaking of watering plants.......my herb garden is flourishing from the rain that watered them.  They're proof positive that the picture I posted above is spot on.  If we want our lives to be the best they can be, well, then we'd best get out the personal sprinkling can and drench ourselves with kindness. 

Ta-ta till the morrow.

ROADSIDE TIGER LILIES

The roadsides are decorated with orange tiger lilies.  Yesterday we went with our friends for a day drive some 40 miles away.  Us girls are always on the ready for photo ops, and this was one.  Notice the three layers.....the bottom green grass, the orange flowers in the center, and the green bushes in the background.....

Tiger Lilies 
Along the Roadside

Even though orange is my least favorite color, every year I wait for the Tiger Lilies to appear.  At home, they came and grew uninvited in our back yard.  I always felt that was sweet of them.  

 

The Tiger Lily is native to Asia....China, Japan, Korea.  They have bright orange flowers with black spots that resemble a tiger's skin.   

In Asia, the flower is often gifted to women on their birthdays or wedding day, because the flower represents 'a bringer of sons.'  It's been the Eastern custom to favor boys in the family--although this value is changing with every new generation.  Thank Heaven.

Although the birth flower of May is the Lily of the Valley, lilies in various forms (whether Tiger, Calla or Orientals), are also associated with the month of May.  People born in May are known to be kind-hearted, compassionate, emotional and strong-willed. 

My personal all-time favorite flowers are the ones that grow in the wild.  From the tiny Trillium that first arrives in spring to the Tiger Lily in July, flowers of all colors are Nature's gifts that help bring joy to our lives.  We tend to forget that color is a phenomenon.  Imagine if we lived in a black and white world.  Yesterday on our day drive, we commented about the sky's shade of blue.  Honestly, I'd be hard-pressed to come up with a word that could adequately describe it.  That's how out-of-this-world amazing it was.  Oh, there were other dark clouds, too, but we chose to feast our eyes on the blue. 

The recent heavy rains left puddles of water in some of the corn fields.  The usual canoeing and kayaking of the rivers is out of the question this Fourth of July weekend.  Some rivers have banned water sports.  One kayaker on a local river lost his life earlier in the season.  

Our memory album is filled with memories of time spent boating, water skiing, fishing, tubing, canoeing, sandbar camping.  We couldn't wait for Friday afternoon.  We'd have our stuff packed so we could leave right after work and not return until late Sunday afternoon.  One of my memories is sitting around the campfire at night and having a barge go by.  We'd wave and the workers in the tug boat would blow a horn and shine a bright search light back on us.  Nothing in the world was better than sitting around a campfire with friends and spending a miserable night trying to sleep in a tent.  As crazy as it was, that's how much we enjoyed it!  

Summertime is a parade of wild perennials.  The word 'wild' is a word that's not used as much as it used to be.  To me it suggests being 'untamed' and free to be themselves.  There are no boundaries to where they can grow and sustain a peaceful season.  The untamed ones must feel so happy when someone stops the car and takes a picture of them.  Life is filled with little circles, isn't it?  The flowers bring us joy, we take pictures of them and pass the pictures on so others can enjoy them.  They say that Nature loves circles.