SIEINNA AND CODY

"May all good and grace attend her and him!"

~ A. Bronson Alcott ~

May 2nd was supposed to be our daughter's wedding. 

We planned it all fall.

But instead of the tent going up today,

We are living in this strange world of limited social contact

and face masks.

Still, the date is branded in my mind,

And I send all love and blessings to 

Sienna and Cody for this coming weekend

That was supposed to be theirs.

Life is rarely what we expect it to be.

I remain open and flexible.

PARENTING OUR PUP

"The commands of democracy are as imperative as its privileges and opportunities are wide and generous. Its compulsion is upon us."

~ Woodrow Wilson ~

Our pup is defiant, and I prefer that to him being fearful, or cowering, but it does make for a fair bit of frustration as we seek to get along. He bites at my legs, I tell him "No!" sharply, he backs up and barks at me (what's he trying to say?) and then proceeds to do it again, upping the ante, which ups my ante as well, and I don't like it. I just want us to be peaceful and get along. And yet, he needs discipline, for both of our sake, and it's my responsibility to teach him right and wrong and boundaries... but doing so is exhausting, and some days, I'd just rather not.

    

I want others to know what I want them to know without my having to say anything to them, but it doesn't work like that. It's my responsibilty to set boundaries and speak up. 

BEING OPEN TO ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS

"There's more than one way to skin a cat."

~ American Saying ~

If 20 different people were to tell us how to get somewhere, they might tell us 20 different ways,

And they might 

all

be

right. 

My way is not the only way.

THE WAY WE SEE IT

"Chaos is a name for any order that produces confusion in our minds."

~ George Santayana ~

We hear words and see the world filtered though our own personal perspective, 

meaning, 

that for each of us, 

the experience is distinct. 

Think of the implication of that inescapable fact!

And the beauty of the broadness of life,

And the difficulty of trying to relate to each other,

And have compassion,

And be kind.

I both know and cannot know what it's like to be somebody else.

THE CHALLENGE AND THE FUN

"That's the way that it goes."

~ Gillian Welsh ~

The difference between being with people in real life and on a zoom call is striking.

I miss the subtleties of light and facial expression.

The consistency of flowing movement and sound.

The 3 dimensional plane of existence.

And being in the presence of living, heart-beating energy.

What's fun is being with others while also being at home,

And playing with the camera,

And that we have the technology to visit with each other in this way at all.

I am grateful for video contact and also frustrated by it.

NOTICING

"Gratitude is the memory of the heart."

~ Jean Baptiste Massieu ~

I love buttercups.

And wildflowers.

And spiritual inquiry.

And gentle soaking rain.

I love people-

Particular people, 

And people in general.

And animals.

Same thing.

I love spring and summer and winter and fall.

Hearth fires.

Bonfires.

Fireflies.

And the sun.

Life is good when I feel the love. 

FEATHERS IN THE WIND

"How did I get here?"

~ Pete Towmsend ~

Life has turned out for all of us the way it has turned out.

We may have had big ideas about being famous, being rich beyond our wildest dreams, 

being a different kind of parent than we turned out to be,

being happy and comfortable and healthy and secure.

Whatever our aspirations, chances are, for most of us,

things haven't exactly turned out as we anticipated they would,

and there's a loss in that.

In little fluttering bunches, our goals and visions and daily expectations fly away from us

like feathers in the wind,

or balloons that get smaller and smaller when we lose our grasp on them

until they are utterly out of sight.

I acknowledge that certain things I have believed would happen in my life may never actually happen, and that's ok.