"If you were the person God designed you to be.....you would be walking around naked and not know it."-Donald Miller during his "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years" book tour

NEW QUOTE

A woman who writes her own stories has no fear of demons.--Laurel Thatcher Ulrich in Well-behaved Women Seldom Make History.

WHERE IS MY NAN NESS?

My maternal grandmother has Alzheimer's disease. Her physical residence is Manor-Care in D-town. However, I still wonder where she is. What happened to the oh-so-clever woman who so tenderly cared for me as I grew into a woman? Where is the lady who made fishing rods out of bamboo and took us to use them at rivers, ponds, lakes and creeks? What has become of the mind that so patiently taught us all sorts of card and board games? She did crossword puzzles, loved to watch all sports and game shows, whistled like a bird to the songs on the radio. She encouraged our education and imaginations. She helped us to grow gardens. She taught us to cook and can and freeze fresh vegetables. We spent weeks on the porch cutting, preparing, packing and "putting up" food for the next year. We even made ketchup! Where is the lady who taught us that not all snakes or bugs are "bad?" How do I learn lessons at her knee? She does not know my name sometimes now. She cries to be taken home, but can't tell us where home is. She asks for her husband, who she divorced when my mom was but a girl. She cries when we tell her of a death, then asks how that person is doing when we visit her next. Where is my Nan Ness? How do I tell her what she means to me? Her living death is a worry to me. I wonder when it will happen to me, as it happened to her at a young age, and her mother before her. Oh, where is my Nan Ness? I am glad she still exists as before in my memories.

LETTER TO CREATIVE ME!

Hello Creative Me! I have neglected you lately. How rusty and dusty you look! Let's have a walk, outside, in the rain. Let's walk in the woods, fields, lake, river, ocean. Ah, the ocean! Look at the water. Close my eyes and breathe deeply. Smell the salty air. Walk in the sand. Grit between toes, sun on skin. Water everywhere. Maybe next month, I'll experience these things for you, just to refresh your senses.

QUOTABLES:

-If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun. -Katherine Hepburn -I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck. -Emma Goldman -Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your heart or burn down your house, you can never tell. -Joan Crawford -The hardest years in life are those between 10 and 70. -Helen Hayes -It's sad to grow old, but nice to ripen. -Brigitte Bardot -Please don't retouch my wrinkles. It took me so long to earn them. -Anna Mangini -We grow neither better nor worse as we get old, but more like ourselves. -Mary Lamberton Becker -One is not born a woman, one becomes one. -Simone de Beauvoir -Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls. -Mother Teresa -Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself in order to get anything done in this world. -Lucille Ball -Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage. from Villette by Charlotte Bronte

A Letter To My Udda Mudda

Thank you for allowing God to move you into my life. Thank you for following His lead. Thank you for opening your heart and life to me like I came from you. Thank you for loving my Dad. Thank you for being saved through Christ. Thank you for helping me out when I come up short on money. Thank you for giving me the little sister who loves me back. Thank you for pizza night. Thank you for teaching me how to give with an open heart. Thank you for bringing me back to church. Thank you for forgiving me when I hurt your feelings. Thank you for sharing your experiences. Thank you for pumpkin pie. Thank you for "kid's Christmas." Thank you for introducing me to the Sunday Breakfast Group. Thank you... Thank you... Thank you... Love, Rosa

RELAXATION 101

Bubbles, bubbles in a bath. Aroma therapy candles in a dark bathroom. A book in hand, unread, as stress is eased away in the hot water. Eyes are closed, mind is open. Imagined dialog from a long day. Relief in the sounds of near silence or water dripping back into the tub. Silky decadence in scented soap scrubbing away the filth of the world; feels like baptism taken to a higher level. Separated even from the rest of my apartment. The door is closed. No external sounds. No lights, harsh, electric. Only soft candles soothing to sun scorched eyes. NO phone. Only water sounds. Ripples as I stretch to relax or wash. Calm, slow. Long enough to feel blood pressure drop as the water cools. Bubbles are luxurious texture added to smooth water. They're disappearing, evaporating with the worries of the day. Wake up! Sit straight up, look around. Try to grasp the difference between where I was and where I am. Shiver as my body (wet) is exposed to the air. Need to get out of the tub. Give hands and feet special pampering. How can water make us look wrinkled and dehydrated? Lotion rubbed on all of the body, kneading the muscles in a deeper level. Then powder to all creases to remove excess moisture and remind me of childhood baths just before bedtime.

COLLECTING

Collections have a significance in our lives in defining many things about ourselves. I've collected penguins since about 12 years old. I have movies, books, stationary, pens, erasers, nick-knacks, even a mini vacuum cleaner. My family is constantly trying to find unique penguin items. For a long time all my Christmas and birthday items were themed around this collection. I had to ask my family not to buy every penguin they saw because most of them are boxed up except in winter. Now I've started frogs in the yard. Wind chimes are another of my favorites. As you can see, I like to decorate in themes. Deviation from the theme is a big no-no. My family is becoming better able to refrain from abundance and see my creativity. Now there is a greater variety at gift times. But, those penguins still sneak their way in at times. Native American spirituality speaks of animal and spirit guides. I guess mine would be penguins and frogs. I'll have to research them.

DEFINITIONS:

-Denotation- the exact meaning of a word. -Connotation- the emotional overtones of a word.

PROFOUND THOUGHT!?!

I am still looking for my Prince Charming, but some days I think I would settle for a kiss from a Frog!