A Day In The Life

People, Places, Nature, LIFE!

09/11/2014
DailyMusings

10 comments

A Photo a Week Challenge: In Memoriam

Remember, I will still be here
As long as you hold me in your memory

I am the one star that keeps burning, so brightly,
It is the last light to fade into the rising sun

I’m with you
Whenever you tell my story
For I am all I’ve done

I am the one voice in the cold wind, that whispers
And if you listen, you’ll hear me call across the sky

As long as I still can reach out, and touch you
Then I will never die

Remember, I’ll never leave you
If you will only
Remember me

from the song Remember Me by Josh Groban

Memoriam

 nancy merrill photography challenge-In Memoriam

09/11/2014
DailyMusings

17 comments

Let Freedom Ring

twintowers

September 11th holds unforgettable meaning for those of us living in the United States. I live 10 minutes from New York City, making the World Trade Center- the Twin Towers, not a tourist attraction, but a part of the skyline I was able to see from a local highway, the towering size of the towers looming over us as we drove down the West Side Highway, a place where people I knew went to work everyday. My memory of that morning is still vivid in my mind these 13 years later. I was watching the news before going to work that morning and suddenly the broadcast changed to a live bulletin of the film footage of a plane crashing into the first tower. It was surreal, as if in reality this must have been some kind of movie stunt. I left for work and upon arrival the boys in the school where I worked were all buzzing about whether this could be true or not. We turned on the TV in the office and watched in disbelief as the second tower was hit and then some 20 minutes later crumbled to the ground. It was too much for the mind to absorb. Those buildings were filled with people. How could this possibly have happened?

I can remember getting on the computer when I got home and seeing endless frantic messages on message boards set up for the many businesses that occupied the World Trade Center, people posting names, trying to find loved ones. One of the men who lives in my town had chosen that morning to take a later bus to work, saving him from the fate others met. Another young woman was not as fortunate, leaving her parents with unbearable grief that took many years for them to begin to come to terms with, but eventually leading them to start a memorial fund to help people. You can read about her life here

September 11, 2001 forever changed how we think about what evil is possible in the world, changed how we think about trust and security and how what was once unthinkable can in reality happen.

The Freedom Tower now stands tall close to where the Twin Towers stood, reminding us that that from the horror of what happened we could rebuild. Though our sense of innocence is gone, we now live without naivety about the possibility of what can happen, and are stronger for it.007Today I think of the families who suffered the loss of their loved ones that horrible day. May their memory be for a blessing.

nancy_helmet

09/10/2014
DailyMusings

15 comments

Hand Me Ups

The Daily Prompt: Hand-Me-Downs-Clothes and toys, recipes and jokes, advice and prejudice: we all have to handle all sorts of hand-me-downs every day. Tell us about some of the meaningful hand-me-downs in your life.

My BFF and I often give each other clothes we no longer wear. We call them Hand Me Ups- not hand me downs. Hand me downs has such a negative ring to it. Handing down tradition, handing down a family heirloom sounds okay. But handing down clothes just sounds wrong.

The clothes we exchange are sometimes barely worn, bought on a whim, bought when one of us was a few pounds heavier or lighter. Maybe we are just sick of wearing a certain skirt, or blouse, but they are still in style and in good condition. Those shoes that seemed to fit perfectly in the store are now crushing front toes. (Much to my delight and my BFF’s chagrin.) When the seasons change I go through my closet and drawers and whatever has not been worn I put into a pile to give her. She does the same. New clothes at no cost. A second life for that fabulous suit that I no longer wear because my job has changed, a great cashmere sweater she bought in a petite without realizing it. The seasons go round and round and our clothes go up not down.

 

09/04/2014
DailyMusings

10 comments

Cee’s Black & White Challenge: Seating

I found this chair

0161

while on vacation in Pennsylvania’s Amish Country. I saw it in a shop but wasn’t sure I really needed to buy another chair, I seem to have a “thing” for collecting chairs. I decided not to buy it, but that night woke up to the sound of rain on the roof of the place we were staying, and my first thought was “Did we close the sun roof in the car, because the chair will be getting wet”- only then to realize I had not bought the chair. We went back first thing in the morning and bought it. It is solid wood, and most likely came from a church. My mother in law always loved to sit on it, she was a large woman and loved the width and strength of the seat.

This chair

0181

belonged to my grandfather. It sat in front of the picture window in his home that overlooked the bay. He could be found sitting in it watching the birds and ducks, or reading his newspaper. When he passed away it was given to me. I sit in it often to read and look out my window and think of him.

1994grandpa

ceesblack white

09/03/2014
DailyMusings

14 comments

What In The World?

The Daily Prompt: Digging Up Your Digs
500 years from now, an archaeologist accidentally stumbles on the ruins of your home, long buried underground. What will she learn about early-21st-century humans by going through (what remains of) your stuff?

The archaeologist was confused. Here it was, the year 2514 and she had stumbled across items she could not identify. What were these pieces of paper found in a box with images on them? Smiling faces, people standing together arms around one another, or seated at a table. What was all this colorful glass with patterns she had never before seen? What a find! These items did not seem to be from 500 years ago, but even before then! There were also books with pages that contained ideas about food- with measurements and pictures and directions of how to stir and something called sifting. There was a triangular shaped object, heavy, made of metal. Perhaps used in battle as a shield, holes in the bottom, maybe to spray poison.

The world must have been a very different place. From the looks of the faces on the pieces of paper, the world must have been a happy place for this person.

09/02/2014
DailyMusings

11 comments

Not Going Back

Daily Prompt: In a reversal of Big, the Tom Hanks classic from the 80s, your adult self is suddenly locked in the body of a 12-year-old kid. How do you survive your first day back in school?

My Class Photo Age 12

Oh these buck teeth of mine will look fine once my 4 molars are pulled and I wear braces for three years. Good to know Crest White strips will be available too, to keep them white and shiny.

I am definitely staying away from Marity the class bully from last year, everyone will turn on her this year anyway. Sadly she will meet death at a young age, only in her 40’s. Lizzie is going to spend months with her broken leg in a full cast, and will die of a brain tumor when she is only 49. Sixth grade friends, all doing whatever we were doing that year, but fate having different plans for all of us. Sad to have that crystal ball and know what the future has held for some of us.

I am glad my self confidence has grown and I don’t need to follow the crowd now that I am 12 again. It would have saved me a lot of angst had I known then what I know now. I’ll steer clear of JoAnn and her tough friends that I made the mistake of thinking were so cool. Poor choices, we learn from our mistakes.

I am 5′ 2″ at the age of 12, one of the tallest in class, but have remained that height my entire life, so rank among the shortest now.

I wouldn’t want to go back- even with all that I know now. It was a hard year, peer pressure, feeling the need to fit in. Glad to say good bye and grow up.

09/01/2014
DailyMusings

11 comments

Oh, Deer!

What to do on a National Holiday when the stores are packed with shoppers grabbing for Labor Day sales, parents and children swarming around the school supplies, and congested roads? Head for a local park and take a walk! There is a lovely park in our area that crosses through four towns from end to end, but you can enter at different points and walk the paths as far as you’d like. Once we did hike 12 miles round trip, but today opted to walk about 4 miles round trip.

I spotted a fawn hidden among the foliage who actually allowed me to stand on the other side of the bush she was munching on to take photos. What a beauty. There is nothing like nature at its best. Sure beats the crowds.

2 5 6 7 002 ls skyup

09/01/2014
DailyMusings

9 comments

Pausing for Paws

We stopped by the local Animal Shelter today. We have been “dogless” for almost 2 years now, and are still enjoying the freedom and “carefree” lifestyle after taking care of our two dogs who lived to ages 19 and 17. Though we are not quite ready to make the commitment again just yet, we thought we would say hello. There weren’t too many dogs, but an over abundance of cats. One cat whose name tag said Olivia stuck her paws out as I walked by. I hung around for a while and played through the bars.

Hey you...

Hey you…

yeah, you

yeah, you

come on over

come on over

aren't I cute?

aren’t I cute?

look how I can wrap my hind paw around the bar

look how I can wrap my hind paw around the bar

reach out and touch someone, you know?

reach out and touch someone, you know?

WP_002502

08/27/2014
DailyMusings

12 comments

Sun, Sea and Sand

This summer has not been a hot one. The temps stayed below average for the most part, and some nights were downright chilly in my opinion. I like it hot. I don’t use air conditioning, and I don’t mind the warmth.

Now finally, this last week of August, it feels like summer. My husband and I on the spur of the moment drove down to the shore for the day, to literally “get our feet wet.” We walked for two miles along the beach, from one town into the next, taking in the sights along the water. It was a glorious day. Warm and beautiful.

08/21/2014
DailyMusings

4 comments

Work, Retire, Volunteer, Work

The Daily Prompt: Work? Optional! If money were out of the equation, would you still work? If yes, why, and how much? If not, what would you do with your free time?

Been there, done that. Nine years ago I stopped working for the first time in my life. I started working when I was 18, and continued to do so for the next 29 years. My dream had been to do all volunteer work when someday I would be able stop working. In 2005 I was able to fulfill that dream.

I am a person who likes routine, who likes to feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day. Free time is great, but too much is no good for me. I wanted to be busy everyday, have a schedule. I took my volunteering as seriously as a job, but the beauty of it was that if I did need to take a day off I could. I would always call to let them know, but when you are not being paid the rules change. It is responsibility without really having to answer to anybody. Perfect combination.

I immediately signed up at two local hospitals to volunteer with Pastoral Care. I visited patients a few days a week. It was life changing. Meeting people who were struggling with illness, dying from illness, young and old alike. I no longer had patience for friends complaining about trivial things, people out there had bigger problems than the cleaning lady quit. I realized how blessed I was to be able to leave the hospital and go about my life while so many were tethered to IVs for months on end. I developed close relationships with the people who came in monthly for treatments. It changed my perspective.

I also volunteered in a group home for adults with developmental disabilities. I helped a man learn to read, I did craft projects or cooking projects with the residents. I made new friends where I would not have expected to. It opened my eyes to what people are capable of when given the opportunity.

One night a week I was a mentor to a “troubled teen”- spending an hour with her over dinner, or shopping. Giving her some “special time” away from the dysfunction of her family.

Fast forward nine years, and I was getting burned out. So much death and sickness at the hospital, endless crafts projects, I was running out of ideas. My teen had graduated and moved on with her life. It was time to go back to work. I had volunteered as an assistant in a 1st grade classroom for 2 years and loved it. It was fun and exhilarating and rewarding. It was only 3 hours in the afternoon. I asked if they had any openings for a paid position for an assistant, which they did. Last year was my first year and it was great. The hours still allowed me to volunteer at a center for people with Aphasia, where I have volunteered for 9 years.

Who knew that my volunteering while retired would lead me to going back to work doing something I had never done before? One door closes and another opens.

One of my favorite patients-may she rest in peace

08/21/2014
DailyMusings

11 comments

Dust In The Wind

Today marks two years since my friend died. I have written about him before. We met when I was 16, spent close to 10 years together, parted ways only to come back into each other’s lives 30 years later when he was dying from lung cancer. I spent every day with him for the last 18 months of his life. I stood next to his bed as he took his last breath- a sound I will never forget, that took me a long time to get out of my head. It made me jump it was so loud. I had witnessed death before in my role as a volunteer for a program called No One Dies Alone. If a patient in the hospital had no family I was called to sit with them until they died.This was different. My friend was 56, we had a long history. It seemed surreal. The real emotions didn’t kick in until the funeral when that first shovel of dirt hit the top of the casket. That finished me off. It was final. That sound signaled the real end.

It is true that time does help us remember less, seals away the pain from the loss. The open wound heals, becomes a scar. Still there, you can still feel it, but it hurts less. I am able to once again picture him in his youth, not riddled with disease and confusion the brain metastasis brought. I no longer think of him daily, time has put that space between past and present. I am changed in a way having experienced what it is to help care for someone at the end of their life. He often said to me “I can never repay you for all you have done.” But that was so not the point, it was about being there for someone when they needed a friend.

 

08/20/2014
DailyMusings

4 comments

Your Charity of Choice

The Daily Prompt: The internet has recently been swept up by the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Is there a cause — social, political, cultural, or other — you passionately believe in? Tell us how you got involved — or why you don’t get involved.

I have certain charities or “causes” I “believe” in, that I feel strongly about. I like the work these organizations do, the people they help. I volunteer my time at a center for people with Aphasia (a language disorder). I wrap gifts during the holiday season to raise money for a shelter for battered women. I donate money to an organization that helps children with cancer and their families. These are organizations that mean something to me, but I do not impose on my friends to jump on the bandwagon along with me and donate to them. They are aware of my involvement and if they are interested can always ask me where to send a check, or if the center needs more volunteers.

I have received emails from friends asking me to sponsor them in a bike ride for some charity, or send money to the American Heart Association, or walk a mile and write a check for some other charity of their choice. I delete them every time. This morning a friend on Facebook was being “bullied” by other friends when he was debating whether or not he really wanted to dump a bucket of ice over his head for ALS. His friends telling him to “man up.” Are they kidding?

I tend to support organizations that I feel are really making a difference in the lives of people. That difference may be made through research that that leads to new treatments and medications for people who are fighting an illness. For an organization that provides meals and rides to families with ill children. For a summer camp for children with developmental disabilities. Before I make a donation I check CharityNavigator.org or Guidestar.org to see how much money is actually being used for research or with actual people, and stick with ones that limit their overhead expenses to less than 20% of their budget.

The bottom line is it is a personal choice. It is a natural inclination to be interested or involved with things that touch our lives, a specific illness, a relative with a developmental disability, a love for dogs, a friend with Autism. I am happy to learn about something I may not have been aware of, but please don’t impose on me by asking me to donate. Leave it up to me to decide whether or not I want to get involved.

This video is from Camp Simcha-(Simcha means Happiness in Hebrew) a summer camp for children with cancer. It is an amazing place that provides 2 weeks of sleep away camp, allowing children to participate in camp activities despite their illness.

08/20/2014
DailyMusings

14 comments

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Black and White Photos

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge

Black and White Photos

These are two of my favorite black & white photos. The background on the first photo is washed out- water and reeds- but I like that it allows you focus on the foreground.

My sister stands in between my brother on the left and a close friend on the right. Taken one summer in the early 1980’s. Perhaps that is why I like it – a time before we knew what the future would hold for them. I like the way my brother is looking down and smiling- I wonder what he was thinking. My sister’s left leg stepping back, her friend striking a pose.

louandy

Then assembling into a traditional pose for a photo

lousuzyandy2

 cees-fun-foto

08/17/2014
DailyMusings

13 comments

Once Is Enough

Daily Prompt: Off the Shelf Take a look at your bookcase. If you had enough free time, which book would be the first one you’d like to reread? Why?

I usually do not reread books. Why reread something when you already know the ending? I may have enjoyed reading something 20 years ago that held meaning at that time in my life, which today I might not feel the same way about. It can be like that with movies too. My husband loves to watch old movies from the 1940’s. We decided to watch the movie Gaslight starring Ingrid Bergman,Charles Boyer,Joseph Cotten and Angela Landsbury. I had seen it as a teenager and loved it. Watching it now 40 years later I was bored and thought the story silly and obvious and contrived. I was sorry I had ruined my happy memory of it.

If I were to reread a book I would probably choose one by Amy Tan. The Hundred Secret Senses, The Bonesetter’s Daughter, or The Kitchen God’s Wife. I loved them all and loved getting lost in the characters and their lives. But I probably never will. I’ll just stick with knowing I enjoyed them when I read them, and leave it at that.

Gaslight 2

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