How can it be that we are on Wednesday already and that this is almost the middle of the month and pretty close to being the middle of the year? (one more month) Somebody please tell time to slow down. It's going far too quickly!
On a side note, ever notice how often ginger cats are used to illustrate something? I think that's because they are loaded with personality. I am a bit biased however, so you cannot use that as a fact. It's just because I have two orange cats that are loaded with personality and charm. Cannot forget the charm. Eileen is enjoying them so much, and they are quite used to having her here now.
It is hard to believe that Eileen has been living here since January. The time has gone by so quickly. She is going to look at an apartment at noon today and I am happy for her. I don't think she should be moving anywhere, even if she takes the apartment, until after her operation, etc. and she has recovered. She agrees with me. It is best for her to be here so I can take care of her until then. That would give us time to get everything organized for her to move in though, so no worries. I might be getting ahead of myself here though, as she may not even like the place. She says she wants to spend Christmas with me. That's a good sign I would say! She likes spending time with me.
Mom used to have a carved wooden box that sat on top of our television. Handmade, someone had carved into it a memorial of the Old Oregon Trail. The box held photographs. I always loved that box and often brushed my fingers over the carvings, thinking about the brave pioneer people who had taken wagons or hand carts and walked that old trail into what they hoped was a bright new future, forging pathways to the West for all to follow. What a brave bunch of people they must have been.
I loved that box so much, and I am pretty sure I am not alone in that. It had disappeared one time when I came home to visit. Mom had sold it. I remember being really disappointed as I would have liked to have it and would have bought it from her had I known she was selling it.
We moved around a fair bit in our younger years and didn't live close to our extended family until I was 11 years old. Things like this old wooden box were our family and it was like a piece of our family had been sold off and had disappeared. I don't know if that makes sense to you or not. I am the only one of my siblings that remembers my maternal grandparents. They had both passed by the time we moved back East to live and my brother had only been a baby when he was last near them and my sister only a young toddler. None of us remember our Grandpapa, who passed in 1963, coincidentally on the same day as President Kennedy. Our Grandmama died when I was in my 20's but we had only ever seen her a few times in our lives and there was a great language barrier in that she didn't speak English and we didn't speak French. So things like carved wooden boxes became important memories to us, or to me anyways. The familiarities of childhood. Childhood constants.
I guess I am sentimental.
Now linnet, finch and willow-wren,
Their quilted nests must fill again,
And buds must tie their new green bows
On thin twigs where the sharp thorn grows,
And in it's cradle sleeps the rose.
Now young winds spiral down the shell
Of distance where the hills of Mourne
Beyond the reaches of the Lough
Have pursed their lips into a horn.
Now cuckoo's egg in strange nest lies,
Small leaves sprout wings, and little flies
Float by on rainbow petals. Skies
Grow tender as they hear the lark
Strip one by one the scales of dark.
~Freda Laughton (1907-1955)
Although it is quite chilly in here this morning, and the electric heat has come on, the sky is a brilliant blue with nary a cloud that I can see from my front window at any rate. Spring has firmly taken hold. Each day when I look out the front window I can see that the trees that grow behind the houses across the way are filling out more and more in leaf. Maple trees they are and what was once just a rosy flush of leaf is unrolling into an almost plum color, interspersed with green. You can still spot glimpses of blue between the branches, but soon enough it will be impossible to see between, they will have all filled out in a blanket of leaf that covers all of my vision.
The yellow petals of Glenna's forsythia have fallen onto the ground now. And the lilac across the way are in bud. It is a shame that the lady who used to live across from me had the lilac bush in her front garden chopped down last year. I suppose it had been blocking her view of the street.
Much has changed in the five years I have lived here. All of the men that lived across the way from me have passed on, along with the couple that lived to the right of me. I suppose that is the nature of a small community such as the one I live in, which is dedicated to Senior's living. Gone too is our mother's friend Will, who used to walk her walker up and down the street in good weather. She lived just three doors down from me. Her son has been living there but rumor has it (and rumor is rife in such a small community) that he will be moving out soon to live with his girlfriend.
Change is inevitable, even on such a small street such as this.
Eileen received a small gift a few days ago. I won't say who from so as not to embarrass them. It is a lovely diamond art kit which has hummingbirds on it. She was super thrilled and surprised to receive it and is still basking in the glow of generosity. She has written a thank you note to send. I just have to get some stamps so we can mail it. She is finishing off the set of coasters I bought for her a few weeks back and can't wait to get started on this new piece.
I got her some little zip lock baggies to hold the diamond crystals in. Once she gets into her own place, I will get her a rolling card to hold her diamond art things. She really loves doing it. Right now she is sorting her crystals that had gotten all jumbled into a mass into separate colors and putting them into the small bags. I call her Glitter Eileen. Sparkles follow her wherever she goes.
And that is true even in the most real sense of the word. Her pleasant demeanor and sweet spirit both sparkle. To know her is to love her.
You would not know anything is wrong, except she is very tired. She has had naps every afternoon this week. We have not heard from the Specialists yet, but it's only been a week. The Doctor said if we had not heard within two weeks to give him a call.
There is nothing worse than knowing you have something sinister going on and feeling helpless to do anything about it . . . to simply have to wait. This Diamond Art is helping to keep her distracted and busy, which is a very good thing.
I have a small Maud Lewis Calendar hanging on the side of my desk. For those of you who are not familiar Maud Lewis was a Nova Scotia Artist known for her very primitive and charming folk art portrayals of rural life in Nova Scotia, cats, oxen, etc. There was a highly romanticized film made about her life in 2016, but the reality of it was quite different than that portrayed in the film. In reality her life was a life of poverty and abuse. She was a child born out of wedlock, with a physical disability, tied to an abusive and controlling marriage, with familial ties to the local poorhouse. Despite all that, her artwork brought joy to many and I love having her calendar here next to me.
This month's painting is called Schooner at Wharf and depicts what I presume is the Digby Inlet with the ends of a wharf, a boat, fishing shack, sea gulls, etc. It is quite wonderful how she managed to evoke the feeling and the heart of rural Nova Scotia in her simple paintings. She was quite brilliantly talented.
It makes me think of a small Bay of Fundy town not too far from where I live called Margaretsville. I am hoping that at some point this summer I can get an overnight stay at a cottage in Margaretsville for Eileen and I. If not this summer, then maybe in the early autumn. I think it would be nice for us to just go up there and stay, even if only for one day and night. We can sit outside and watch the sun set. I don't even know if there is such a thing, but it would be nice. I know we could just drive up there and watch the sun set, but this would feel like a little vacation for us both, and with the cats, overnight is about all I can manage, or afford, to be honest. Its just a thought.
I don't have a lot planned for today. Just the same old, same old. Eileen will go look at the apartment at noon. I think she also plans to meet her dad at Tim Hortons after. We will go out for supper with dad and Cindy later on. I have plans to vacuum through and put out my ant bait to nip them in the bud. It won't be long before they arrive. People have already seen June Bugs.
There is a great peace and comfort to be found in the familiarity and sameness of ordinary days.
A thought to carry with you . . .
☾ ° ★° * 。
• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★*Things that break your heart
are the same things that open your eyes.
~unknown
In The English Kitchen today . . .
Cheesy California Veggie Casserole. Eileen gave this a hundred out of ten. I just kind of made it up using things I had in the house/freezer/refrigerator and was very pleased with the results. You can eat it as a side, or as a main. We enjoyed it with rice as a main and there was none left at the end. I had some and Eileen polished it off.
Once again, many thanks for your happy thoughts and prayers. I hope you have a great day today. I hope your day is filled with light and with love. Along the way of it, don't forget!
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And I do too!
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