Winter Blessings

 The sky often gives us a peek at the coming weather a few hours or a day before it arrives.  Clouds roll in off the ocean and the sun struggles as the day progresses, peeking out for short periods and waning like an old moon by days-end. 

This was the case yesterday as we set off for a walk in the unseasonably warm temperatures. 

The Mallard Ducks and the Canadian Geese practice posing for still-life photos, their images reflected in the slate zen-like lake.

Occasionally, the sun pokes out for a moment or two, lending a sepia tone to a photographer's palette.

The wild wetland grasses manage to capture a bit of golden light before the sun fades into the clouds for good.

 This is why I go for a walk - to see this light, if only for a moment, caught in the feathery embrace of last summer's "weeds."

Today the 'weather' arrived.  The rain has poured down for hours and hours and as the moody sky gives us a winter storm.  We don't complain though, knowing it could have been snow.

Instead, we curl up with the Sunday papers, a steaming cup of tea and spend the afternoon watching our newest grandson sleep peacefully as the rain taps out a lullaby on the roof.

We count the ducks and geese......the lovely grasses..... even the gray rain - filled sky and, especially .....our new grandson..... among our winter blessings this year!
                                     

   ****

Christmas Past Mingles With Christmas Present

My mother-in-law loved Christmas.  She shopped all year for presents and if one looked, one could find wrapped gifts stashed in the corner of every closet in her house, even in July. 

 All during the month of December, she baked the best cookies I have ever tasted.  Her house was decorated with an entire winter wonderland village.  And she relished  fixing Christmas dinner for the whole family. 

 I think she enjoyed Christmas almost as much as her grandchildren did. She has been gone for fifteen years and I miss her most at Christmas.

She made this nativity for us in a ceramics class one year early in our marriage. It has been a part of our Christmas every year since. Some years we set it up on a table and some years it is nestled under the tree.

As soon as her first grandchild was born, Mom began making or buying ornaments . Our tree is covered with these handmade gems loaded with memories.

 Now that our girls are starting their own families and Christmas traditions, I plan to pass the ornaments on to them.  Perhaps a bit of 'Nana' and her child-like joy  of celebrating Christmas will get passed along to her great grandsons.

 One year, she gave us a table sized carousel as a Christmas gift.  With the flip of a switch, it turned, lights flashed and it played about 10 different Christmas songs.  My children were teenagers when she gave it to us and so neither I nor they were especially impressed with it at the time.

It wasn't until MY first grandchild stared at it with wondrous eyes, that I began to appreciate it.  And every year since then, I have whispered a thank you to my mother-in-law for this wonderful gift, the gift of seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child.

This Christmas, I have a new grandson, a wide-eyed five month old boy.  My mother-in-law would be delighted to know that he is named after her son, my husband. How she would have loved to watch him stare at the carousel and the lights and then hear him squeal with delight! 

We celebrate Christmas to recall the moment when God came to be with us, indeed, becoming one of us. Perhaps the only way we can ever approach such an extraordinary happening, is with the innocent wide-eyed stare of a child. And once the wonder of it dawns on us, we, too, can squeal with delight!!

Merry Christmas!!!

To the Moon and Back

   Much to our delight, we continue to have a weekly date with our favorite four-year old, Orange Sneakers.  Except for a week or two when he was not feeling up to par, we've been able to enjoy some winter adventures!

 Our little boy is getting bigger and has outgrown his flashy orange sneakers.  Now he wears cool black ones with just a dab of orange.

  He is changing right before our eyes in other ways too.  Physically he's more agile - able to scale the heights  at the playground without a second thought.  He rides a scooter, a tricycle and something called a scoot bike at speeds that test out ability to keep up with him!

 
  He came for a 'sleep-over' recently and spent much of the weekend constructing elaborate structures and inventing  imaginative stories to go with each creation.

Bunny wagon!  Just in time for a tea party.

   We went on an adventure to the local air and space museum where he became enthralled with the moon landing.  He was fascinated by the whole story of  the astronauts,  how the space crafts were built and  other details of space travel.   We saw a display that included  the Lunar Module, a video showing the landing and the suits used by the men who traveled to the moon.   The questions kept coming all afternoon!

Orange Sneakers has been very busy making friends this winter.    Our little man doesn't play by himself on the playground anymore! His new friend is Pink Sneakers!   

 Largely ignoring the adults who accompanied them, they went on an imaginary trip this past week..  They took off on a space trip to the moon (of course)  via the swings which launched them into space (with a bit of help from Pappa and Pink Sneakers' dad)  They brought the following items, all indispensable for a moon landing:  reindeers, hotdog soup, space suits for the reindeers , robots and a space 'vehicle' to drive on the moon.  

  They play all kinds of make-believe and although we are not included in the fantasy world any more, we like to eavesdrop.  Here they were making popcorn
in the sandbox - chocolate popcorn, of course!


LIFE IS GOOD !

Time for a Make-Over and Other Bits and Pieces

  I haven't been posting so much this month but that doesn't mean I haven't been writing.  I did a bit of a make-over on the design of the blog, as you can see. I changed the color scheme , going for a wintery white, clean look.  I couldn't resist putting some veggies in the back round though, just because....I like them!

    The most important change I've made is to the sidebars.  I peruse many blogs on a variety of topics and, to make it easier to do some blog-hopping, I divided them into categories.  So feel free to check out some of my favorites.  I plan to add more, as I find new ones that I enjoy.

    Since I don't do TV,   reading has become my leisure 'vice.'  I read everything........ recipes, book reviews, poetry, prayers, articles about health and wellness, fiction  etc, etc. and  many  blogs offer  nourishment for me.   I am especially fond of poetry sites and you will find many of those on the sidebar.

    Recently, I've been writing poems - lots of them!   This gives me a sense of peace, a feeling of accomplishment, and, if nothing else,  a wonderful hobby to pass the winter months, as I wait for my garden to reawaken.  In a word, writing poetry fills me with joy! Perhaps one day, I will let you into my poetry garden!

<<>>

translating 

one moment at a time

into poetry

<<>>

  Yesterday  I went to visit my almost-bed-bound mother.   I brought her some fruit compote along with  her weekly groceries. She loves sweets and is especially fond of this compote which she says "keeps things moving." Her memory fades with each passing week and  she has stopped trying to keep track of her life.

<<<>>>

old mama

she's forgotten everything

except her children

<<<>>>

     When I got in the car to come home, I spotted the car-seat we installed for my grandson and the irony of that hit me over the head.   I am certainly a member of the 'sandwich generation.'

<<<>>>

a little boy says

'amma, tell me everything

about the universe'

<<<>>>

   I feel  blessed to have my mother still with us and a young grandson to keep me on my toes. He still thinks Pappa and I know 'everything' about the universe!   Very soon, I suspect,  he will know infinitely more than we do.  Right now, we can still answer most of his questions.  He is coming to visit us for a 'sleep-over' this weekend. That means I have to put my running shoes on to keep up with him.  The good news is,  he'll probably love the fruit compote too!!  Here's the recipe.

Fruit Compote

1/2 lb dried apricots

1/2 lb dried prunes

1/2 lb raisins

1 stick of cinnamon

1 piece of ginger chopped

1 apple cut up

water to cover

Cook on a low flame for about 1 hour until all the fruit softens.

Thought for Today:  Every moment can be turned into joy, if not poetry.

Sharing with Rebecca and friends at Recuerda Mi CorazonRecuerda Mi Corazon Haiku My Heart

    

VIEW FROM UNDER THE SLIDE Or Further Adventures with Orange Sneakers

  ^^^^

a young prince

builds a magical palace

in her heart

^^^^

   The long shadows of late autumn followed us to the playground this week.  Orange Sneakers was intrigued with his shadow and asked "Why is my shadow  so much bigger than I am?"  A discussion about the sun's position in the sky at this time of the year ensued. 

    Once his curiosity about shadows is sated, the conversation turns to fossils.  His friend at school showed him a fossil and now he is intent upon digging up the playground in search of his own specimen.

  He finds a sturdy stick and begins his quest through soil packed tighter than cement.  

  

A patient boy, he continues digging until he unearths what, to him, looks like a fossil.  We pack it up in a tissue to bring home.  He wants to show his mom and dad.

When he tires of fossil hunting, he  decides it is time to run around and his next adventure begins.  "I'm looking for sculptures," he exclaims as he runs off to play on the jungle gym.  

Within minutes, I am unable to capture him on my camera, as he darts around looking for new heights to scale, babbling all the while about his intention to build a sculpture garden.(Precipitated by a recent visit to Storm King, no doubt.)

I linger  a moment on a seat under the slide, where I can see him and notice the play of the long shadows and the playground sculptures all around me.

Would I have noticed these lovely angles, these potent views if Orange Sneakers had not heightened my senses?

Finally, he returned to the 'digging place' where fossils and sculptures and shadows live in his glorious four year old imagination.

As I stood there I noticed that my shadow encircled my precious boy and I whispered a silent prayer that he always be surrounded by love, as he is today.

Here's a link to more "Adventures with Orange Sneakers" :What Fun!

Shared with Recuerda Mi Corazon where love and joy is shared every Friday in Haiku My Heart.

What Fun!!

What Fun!

        Now here is a sight to make an old woman's heart sing,

out of tune perhaps,

 but nevertheless......

An almost four-year-old

 with brand new orange sneakers

on a brilliant October day,

What fun!

'Lets go to the park,' says Orange Sneakers

'I want to be a leaf-blower 

and clean up all the leaves!'

 Off they go to the park,

 to hunt for monsters

build a campfire in the  playground,

boil some leaves for tea

and best of all 

 pretend to be really, really, really big leaf-blowers!

How great is that,

to be almost four
 AND be a really, really, really big  leaf-blower
 in October,

in a park full of deciduous trees?

When the shadows grow long, 
the leaf-blower and his grandparents 
head for home,and on the way,

Orange Sneakers  informs his audience  

'I came out of Mommy's belly,'

Hm......

'Whose belly did you come out of?'

he asks,

 'I came out of GG's belly',

his grandmother says.

'Oh.'
  

Then a siren sounds  on the street
and a hook and ladder goes by,

 and little Orange Sneakers

dashes off to put out a fire.

At home,

 sneakers come off with a flourish

       and grandson becomes...........

SUPER PIIIIIIIIIIG

leaping over sofa cushions, er...

tall  apartment buildings,
 driving 'vehicles' to Paris, France

and making up rules for unsuspecting grandparents,

'Everyone HAS to take their shoes off  in the house.'

'I don't HAVE to eat Brussel sprouts'

'I AM allowed to climb up to the top of the sofa'

'I don't NEED a shampoo tonight.'

'Oh really,' says grandmother,

'Is that so,' says grandfather.

When it is time to leave,

 Super Pig morphs into  grandson

and offers  hugs and kisses

to grandmother
 and grandfather too.

'Can we go to the park when you come again?'

'Yes, we can!'

Gone Hikin'

 With my boys

Linked to Saturday Snapshots at :  At Home With Books

Redux

A friend suggested that Friday's post entitled Picking Flowers  was a poem waiting to happen.  I agree. So, always up for a challenge, I began to think about a poem based on a poet's garden walk. Before I had time to write the poem,  my three-year -old grandson arrived for an overnight stay  and  as the weekend unfolded, my poem took shape.  

  Writing poetry gives me great pleasure, if not great poetry. The joy comes from the satisfaction of capturing a fleeting  moment in words.

                                                 Grandmother's Flowers

                                                 Once she gathered dandelions,

                                                 to carry home to mother

                                                 fashioning a tiny bouquet.

                                                 Soon those yellow treasures

                                                 turned to roadside weeds

                                                 and childhood flew away.
                           
                                                Then came her oldest  daughter
                                                with a bunch of  heady lilacs
                                                on a sunny spring day.

                                                Her daughter  grew up
                                                moved to New York City,
                                                another childhood put away.

                                               Today she wanders

                                               through a garden gate

                                               thinking of that dandelion day

                                               while she helps a little boy gather

                                               pink blossoms and rose buds

                                               the colors of  a summer day.

                                              Now the boy named Henry
                                              carries flowers home to mother,
                                              his own handpicked nosegay.

                                              Grandmother savors this moment

                                              soon to be a memory
                                              another childhood hurries away.

 

 Do you ever write poetry?                      

Hangin' With the Boy

   Fridays have become our day to fetch our grandson from nursery school and set off on an adventure before returning him to his mother later in the day.  It gives her some uninterrupted time and it gives us a chance to be young again, if only in spirit.  The body , not so much.

  All worries, aches and pains depart for a few hours when I get into three year old mode.  Henry is all about this instant in time.  With little concern about what happened last week or what might happen later, he is completely engrossed in the NOW.  His questions keep us hopping to stay one step ahead of him and it is especially wonderful to see again with new eyes, fresh to the world.

  He expressed the desire to "go to a museum,"  so we headed over to the Brooklyn Art Museum, a favorite haunt since his mom is an artist.  He was interested in the sculptures and was intrigued  with  how many different materials could be used for sculpting.  He liked the African masks and would have begun making one on the spot if someone had provided the materials.

  He showed us the "piano in a tree" sculpture, but was disappointed that the piano wasn't playing .  The last time he was there "it played by itself,"  he informed us.  Sure enough, the sign reported that the piano wasn't working.

  When we tired of indoor treasure hunting, we headed over to the Botanical Garden for some fresh air and flowers. Henry led us on a nature walk through the woodland garden, delighted that we let him decide which path to take when we came to a fork in the road.  He loves to sing and has recently been making up his own songs so our stroll through the garden was accompanied by his gentle rendition of his latest song.

  My  own children grew up too quickly, it is true.  Much as I wanted to remember each moment, they piled up on each other and then slipped into the misty past.  I waited a long time for a grandchild and now that he is here, I am recapturing some of those dim memories.

Today's Take-Away -  Find a little boy or girl to spend time with, revel in, and relive "childish" moments from the past while staying rooted right here in today.