Deep

I can't believe it's been a week since I've posted...

When I asked myself the question, "Where have I been for a whole week?"  The answer that popped into my head was, Deep.

I have been running deep. Deep in thought. Deep into the book I'm reading (Eat, Pray Love). Deep into cleaning (ugh!). And, deep in the basement of our barn, a couple of times this past week.

I have my backpack packed and ready to go by the door, with snacks, water, a flashlight, and a battery operated game for Griffin, in case the emergency sirens start going off again tonight. These tornado warnings are starting to scare me a little.

I'm usually pretty good in a crisis, but last night Macy was at Donato's with one of my neighbors and his kids. I was completely out of sorts until they were all safely in the basement with us. We were a sight though; wet-haired, straight out of the shower, and barefoot (Madison did manage to put one sock on her foot before I rushed her out the door). But, we were safe, and that's really all that matters.

(Macy just asked me, over my shoulder, why I have pictures of toads while I'm taking about this stuff...I said, "because toads are good omens"...then I looked it up on google...and, in fact, they are! They are meant to bring enchantment, luck, longevity, and blessings.)

I am thinking about, and praying for, the people of Joplin and elsewhere, where they've been hit hard by natural disasters.

Do you think it's true...do you think all of these things really could mean "the end of days"? I'd rather not think about it. I'd rather think about hope, and healing, and grace, and moving forward...and so I will...deeply.

I watched Oprah's farewell show yesterday. I don't watch much television, but I thought it would be an important thing to catch...kind of historical even...(Do you remember where you were when Oprah's last show aired?).

I don't know why, but I didn't expect to be so moved by it. I took notes (and cried) throughout the entire show. As ridiculous as it may sound, I'm glad I took notes. I keep reading her message over and over again.

It seems like there's some sort of "shift" going on. I'm not sure if it's just within me, or if it's happening everywhere to everyone, but it seems like we are starting to open our eyes, and our hearts, to ourselves and to each other. We are starting to notice our connectedness and our purpose.

It might be the end of Oprah, and "the end of days" (I know, I said I wasn't going to think about it...), but it feels to me more like a beginning. Anybody else feeling this way? Just curious...

"As the light changed from red to green to yellow and back to red again, I sat there thinking about life. Was it nothing more than a bunch of honking and yelling? Sometimes it seemed that way." - Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy

Comment allez-vous?

"The sun shines and warms and lights us and we have no curiosity to know why this is so; but we ask the reason of all evil, of pain, and hunger, and mosquitoes and silly people." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

I've done very little today that could be considered productive, and I'm trying not to think about it.  Wasted time is never really wasted though, right? ...I think that's right...I think that's how the song goes anyway. Please, tell me that's right.

The girls have thirteen more days of school left, but Griffin only has eight more days!  I'm not much of a planner, but I feel like I should start thinking about how I want to spend my last few kid-free-ish days.

Go to the beach, and search for beach glass? Clean out the closets? Finish reading my book? What would you do?

Are you a "go with the flow" kind of person, or are you a planner?

The sun decided to shine here, finally,...for about five minutes! How has your weather been?

I have only one thing to say about this last photo...Doesn't this squirrel look like he's about to belt out some romantic french poetry?

Smoothies at the Cemetery

A week ago last Sunday, my family and I took a trip to Lake View Cemetery to visit my grandparents and a bunch of other family members. It's a glorious place chock-full of history and natural beauty. If you ever find yourself in Cleveland, Ohio, I would definitely recommend putting Lake View on your "things to do" list.

I used to love going there, as a child, with my grandma. She was big on storytelling, so while we visited the grave sites of the many friends and family members, she would give me the scoop on the life of each person...kind of fun for an overly curious kid like me.  The cemetery never did scare me or creep me out.  Mostly, it made me feel rooted, and helped me to realize that I was part of something bigger.

As we drove down the winding roads and tree-filled grounds; either on our way in or out, my grandma would point out the resting places of other interesting and famous people, like Rockefeller, President Garfield, and Elliot Ness.

We took a wrong turn, and got a little lost on our recent trip there (which isn't hard to do), but I started to recognize certain landmarks, and finally I yelled, "This is it!", and jumped out of the car to go and find my grandparents.

I ran up the hill, and when I spotted them, I said, "Hi, Grandma and Grandpa!" I jumped up on to their headstone (I do a lot of jumping), threw my hands in the air, and yelled, "I found them!" I didn't know it at the time, but later, Macy said that that (my little scene) was her favorite part of the day. I think because right then, in watching my silly jubilance, I made it all okay for her.

My kids had never been to Lake View before.  As I was unbuckling them and getting them out of the car; excited for them to meet my grandparents, I realized that we were there with my parents...their grandparents.

Everyone has their own, very special, way of dealing with this sort of topic, but I thought it was important in that moment to give my kiddos my take on the subject of mortality.

I said, "These are my grandparents, like Bubba and Pappy are your grandparents, and I was really close with my Grandma and Grandpa, like you are with Bubba and Pappy. I loved them very much, and even though I was really sad when they were gone, and I missed them very much...I'm happy, and I feel really lucky to have had them in my life, so when I come here to visit them, I feel happy."

I would much rather honor the life of the people who I've known, who have passed away, by remembering the good stuff and the joy that they brought, rather than mourn their loss. (Unfortunately, I don't have as positive an attitude for those who have left my life by choice...but that's a story for another day.)

My sister-in-law had brought along a pitcher of strawberry smoothies. So, we walked around sipping cold strawberry goodness, while we enjoyed the beauty, and enjoyed each other. I'm not sure that my grandma would have thought the smoothies were appropriate or proper, but she would have been really glad that we were there, and that we brought her flowers, and most importantly that we paid a visit to the other members of the family. My grandpa would have just gotten a big kick out of the whole thing. :)

All in all, it was a pretty wonderful day spent with the people who mean/and meant the most to me. It was fun to wander around and show my kids the things that I remembered seeing as a kid, and we discovered some new things as well.

This is the grave site of Raymond "Chappie" Chapman, the only modern major league baseball player to have died as a direct result of being hit by a pitch during a game. (If you click the link...I think he looks a little bit like Kevin Costner, don't you?)

I love how people have brought memorabilia to show their respect, and no one vandalizes it.

Anyway, I'm going to have to go back again sometime soon, just me and my trusty camera, and spend a day (or a year). There is just so much beauty there.

I think, whether I had family to visit there or not, just standing back and taking it all in...the beauty, the humanity, the history...makes me feel rooted, and part of something much, much bigger. It makes me smile (and smiling's my favorite.)

Oh, to be a turkey vulture...

That is all.

The Bird

Well, hello Mr. Bird. How are you today?

Do you mind if I just take a couple of pictures of you while you wander around the yard?

Wait, that's not a very good shot of you. Let me just zoom in a little on your pretty face.

...er...nevermind.

(Sometimes it's better not to try and fix things.  Sometimes it's better just to leave them alone.)