The Silver Platter

Isn't it funny?  Life doesn't always bring us what exactly what we want, exactly how we want it, or when we want it.  Life does have a way though of bringing us what we need, when we need it, and in the best possible way we need it.  Seeing this  just takes a little perspective.

Think about it.  How many times has it seemed that the sky was falling, only to discover the solution lay at the intersection of Perspective and Understanding?  It’s not a matter of getting everything served to us on that gleaming, silver platter.  It’s about taking those side dishes life offers, mixing them with a little bit of Faith, and adding a dash of Hope to come to a solution that was better than what we thought we needed off that silver platter in the first place.

The option doesn't have to be 'There is No Solution’ if we'll only see the possibilities of things from a different perspective.  Then, the solution comes to us in forms we may have never realized could occur.  That’s when we’re truly blessed!  Blessed with the things we were intended to have, but couldn’t see past our own selfish desires to create.

Serve it up!  Enjoy it!  Think about everything in a whole new light…the results will be spectacular!

Nothing Very Bad Could Happen to You There...

In the movie, "Breakfast at Tiffany's," Audrey Hepburn's character, Holly Golightly, says that Tiffany's, "Calms me down right away. The quietness and the proud look of it; nothing very bad could happen to you there."  Sounds like my kind of place!  But, my 'Tiffany's' isn't a store...it's the simple act of laying my head on my Mother's shoulder that does the trick for me.

A couple of Sundays ago, as I was listening to the sermon in church, I quietly laid my head on my Mother's shoulder.  The feeling of peace that washed over me was overwhelming!  I felt like a little girl again.  All I wanted was to curl up in her lap in the blue rocking chair in the living room and just 'be' for a bit.  Nothing bad can happen to you in your Mother's lap, you know.

When I reluctantly raised my head from my Mother's shoulder, I thought about all the times my boys have asked me to 'come sit down and watch this show' or 'hug me, Mom!'  It's at those times that I truly hope I'm providing that same sense of refuge from the everyday world for them, just as (even at the age of 'almost 40') my Mother still provides for me.  Because Holly Golightly made a good point about Tiffany's: "If I could find a real-life place that'd make me feel like Tiffany's, then - then I'd buy some furniture and give the cat a name!"

Our Glorious Little Creatures

"Parenting boys is a reminder that no matter how hard we try to civilize these glorious little creatures, there will always be that day when we realize...they've been using our chapstick on the cat's butt."

What a great commentary on life raising boys!  I found this gem from an email joke being sent around and completely identified with it as life with my boys is never a dull moment!  But, that's the point, isn't it?  A constant reminder of what a blessing that's been loaned to us - for such a short time, it seems.  Yes, I said 'loaned'.  Because if you think about it, we are blessed with these creatures.  God has asked us to be good stewards of his greatest creation - a child.

That's what I try to remember on the days when I'm 'deprogramming' my boys from loud, mouthy, smelly creatures into the sweet guys I know are hiding in there somewhere.  The days when I feel as if I'm just the referee in sibling rivalry that rivals something akin to the Civil War (except there's nothing civil when these two get into it with each other).  The days when I yell out of the bathroom (as I'm cleaning up for the umpteenth time), "Watch it, guys!  Let's make it IN the bowl next time, OK?!"

I relish the mornings when they run upstairs to hug me before school and tell me, "I love you, Mom!  Have a FUN-tastic day at work!"  I savor the evenings when they cuddle up next to me as we read chapters out of their books before bedtime.  And I laugh as I think about their funny antics that keep me laughing.  Because sooner than I'd like, these two are going to be grown and my memories of little boys will be just that - sweet memories.

Look at your kids, really look at them; hug your kids and hold on tight; and above all else, tell your children that you love them multiple times a day.  They're never too old to hear those three precious words, nor are they ever too grown up for hugs and kisses!  One day, they'll no longer be like the little boy in the email I quoted above.  They'll be grown men with jobs, a family, and hopefully memories of what a great time they had with their Mom; all so they can experience their own children mooning the dog, hitting homeruns at the ballpark, or more importantly, providing the love to their children that we all thrive on so our 'loans' are made good in life.

Sweet Rememberance...

"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles." 

~Audrey Hepburn

Pink...the favorite color of my Aunt El, who passed away Monday, January 24, 2011.  Who knew?  I didn't.  But now that my Mom talks about it, she says one of her older sisters remembers my Aunt El at one time having pink appliances in her kitchen as a newlywed.  Can't say as I've ever thought of pink in quite that tone of decorating style, but who am I to judge?  My kitchen walls are pink and my kitchen valances are pink/green plaid.  Maybe there is a little of my Aunt El in me...hopefully so...

You see, my Aunt was a wonderful lady.  Eldest of seven kids to my grandparents.  Seven.  Count em' - six sisters (a set of twins in the mix) and one brother.  Wow.  Seven kids.  And I wonder now why my parents stopped with just me...ha!

My Aunt was many things to many people.  She was first and foremost the lady I sent pictures to of my children for all occasions.  Albeit, the pictures had to be sent to my grandmother's home for my Aunt to receive them, but she enjoyed keeping up with my children.  My Aunt always asked about my kids.  She was always interested.

My Aunt was an events director at a local nursing home in her town.  She was quite the person to know, as the residents all loved her.  And, I think she loved each of them, too.  She derived pleasure out of her job (from what my Mom said), and she was doing something for others, which is the type of person we all should strive to be throughout our lives.

My Aunt made the best coconut cakes known to man.  Those cakes were wonderful additions to the holiday gatherings at my grandparents' home.  I remember going out to my grandparents' back porch (where the casket freezer stored everything extra that wouldn't fit in the kitchen freezer), surveying the goodies all the family members had prepared, and being drawn to those coconut cakes.  I have no idea why as I'm not a huge fan of coconut.  But, let me tell you, my Aunt's cakes would turn you onto coconut in a heartbeat!

Lastly, my Aunt was a survivor.  She survived an abusive spouse.  She survived breast cancer.  She survived many years with Parkinson's.  However, the look on my Mom's face the last trip to visit told me that my Aunt was not surviving Parkinson's and dementia in the nursing home facility where she lived out the remainder of her days.  Funny how she could battle and win against an asshole that beat her and "the big C", but a couple of other diseases pile on and at age 79, she passes on to heaven.  But, you know, after the life she endured here on earth, she was welcomed into heaven with open arms. 

So, I will not remember my Aunt sadly.  Nor, will I give her 'louse of a spouse' the satisfaction of remembering her based upon his atrocities.  I will remember my Aunt based on the words of Audrey Hepburn:

Aunt El loved the color pink.  Aunt El had a funny laugh (almost a cackle, but when she smiled, you could tell whose sister she was - she and my Mom look alike somewhat).  Aunt El was strong; even when everything seemed to be going wrong in her life.  Aunt El was a 'pretty girl' because she had that smile, that laugh, and that kindness about her that made the folks she worked with at the nursing home love her.

And me?  Well, I believe that tomorrow IS another day.  And I believe in miracles.  The miracle of a strong, resilient, loving woman making it through life against odds to be welcomed as the newest angel in heaven.

I Love You, Aunt El.  May you be remembered for the wonderful aunt, sister, and human being you were; and may the negatives of your life be small blips 'between the dashes'.