Poetry

Okay, like I said yesterday, I've been sorting through "stuff"....and I came across a file folder with some of my poetry that I wrote YEARS ago! I bet some of you didn't know I dabbled in writing poetry. I'm not sure about my son Dan, but I do know that my two daughters do not like the cold north weather. In fact, my oldest, Andrea, and I were talking about how depressing winters in the north can be. I struggled with the winter doldrums as well, which provoked (or should I say "inspired") me to write the following poem (as well as inspired me to move south!!). I never gave the poem a name!!

Lord, the summer has gone

and now Fall has left

all the leaves on the lawn ...

to be raked.

The mornings are becoming a bit cold

but the afternoons are warm,

and I'm getting too old ...

for all this work.

The trees are now all bare

of its leaves and the sky grays

but I don't care ...

I try to convince myself.

Lord, all Your beauty around begins to die

yes, to die, and You know me --

I get depressed and want to cry ...

and wish it were summer again!

And colder now the days do grow

the air so crisp

then comes the snow ...

Bring back the warmth!

Then, as I sit and contemplate,

and complain to the Lord

He says -- "WAIT ...

Focus on Me instead!

As you see the leaves

falling from the trees

Think of the tears that fell

as I was praying on my knees ...

in Gethesame.

As the days turn cold and the dew

turns to frost,

Remember My love for You

Will never grow cold ...

You are My child.

And as you look at the trees, now bare

remember the tree I bore

because of my care ...

for every one of you.

And, yes, it seems so painful to see

the beauty around you die.

But new life comes from Me ...

for I had victory over death.

Let the snowflakes that fall and blow

serve as reminder

that I have washed you white as snow ...

forever."

My friend, look all around you

and thank the Lord

for winter, fall, spring, summer too

for in each season

you can find a reason

to praise Him for all He's done ...

for you.

"Love Deeply"

I've been unpacking stored boxes, de-cluttering, reorganizing, sorting through, etc. etc. and have come across some interesting things I had forgotten about. I took the time to read through some of the papers that had been packed away and wanted to share this one. There have been times when I've questioned just what "love" is...in the human sense of the word. I know what God's love is, and nothing we can do or feel can match the love of God ... the "abba Father" love ... but, at times, I question the "eros" and other "loves". When you have loved and that love isn't returned, when you have loved and lost that love, when you love your children and they do not love in return...do you stop loving? Do you shut yourself down to human emotion? I'm being human in saying this...I'm sure there are times in your life when you have questioned the same thing...so do not judge...leaving the judging to God. In any case, I had kept this excerpt from a book as a reminder to never stop loving. The words are powerful as well as the concept behind them.

"Love Deeply"

"Do not hesitate to love and to love deeply. You might be afraid of the pain that deep love can cause. When those you love deeply reject you, leave you, or die, your heart will be broken. But that should not hold you back from loving deeply. The pain that comes from deep love makes your love ever more fruitful. It is like a plow that breaks the ground to allow the seed to take root and grow into a strong plant. Every time you experience the bitter pain of rejection, absence, or death, you are faced with a choice. You can become bitter and decide not to love again, or you can stand straight in your pain and let the soil on which you stand become richer and more able to give life to new seeds. The more you have loved and have allowed yourself to suffer because of your love, the more you will be able to let your heart grow wider and deeper. When your love is truly giving and receiving, those whom you love will not leave your heart even when they depart from you. They will become part of your self and thus gradually build a community within you. Those you have loved deeply become a part of you. The longer you live, there will always be more people to be loved by you and to become part of your inner community. The wider your inner community becomes, the more easily you will recognize your own brothers and sisters in the strangers around you. The wider the community of your heart, the wider the community around you. Thus the pain of rejection, absence, and death can become fruitful. Yes, as you love deeply the ground of your heart will be broken more and more, but you will rejoice in the abundance of the fruit it will bear."

(By Henri J. M. Nouwen, From The Inner Voice of Love, published by Doubleday)

Stuck in a Truck

Today I decided would be a great time to get my boxes upon boxes of "stuff" cleared out of the storage unit I had been renting. When the townhouse was put on the market, I was told that the townhouse should be "de-cluttered" as much as possible, including my personal stuff...pictures, excess dust collectors, etc. So, having no garage or basement, I found a self-storage place not far from the townhouse to rent short-term. Upon arriving at the storage unit, I had a decision to make. Either make MANY trips back and forth, loading and unloading my compact car, or rent this handy-dandy small box truck that was on the lot. Hmmmm.....I decided to ask about the price for using it just for the day. It made sense to me to make ONE trip and pay the $45.00. Gas prices are still well over $3.00/gallon here, not to mention the wear and tear on the Versa. So, okay, it's a deal. I loaded up the box truck, drove it home, and unloaded it. Cool!! Maestro was begging to go for a ride (he LOVES to take rides, head hanging out the vehicle window, wind blowing through his hair!!!) so I loaded him into the front seat of the box truck, rolled down his window a bit, and locked his door! When we got to the self-storage facility, I got out, locked my door and proceeded to put the truck key in the drop box. OH NO!!!!! Immediately after I let the keys drop into the box, my heart sank. Maestro was still in the truck...with his door locked. I couldn't get the key out of the drop box. I started to panic. The self-storage facility had closed for the day. I didn't even know who to call because the paperwork had to be deposited into the drop box too!! Maestro was barking at me because I hadn't let him out of the truck yet! What in the world was I going to do??? Everything in the box truck was manual. No automatic door locks, and the manual lock was about 3/4 of the way down the inside of the door. There were no runner boards on the outside of the truck for me to stand on. Okay, take a deep breath and think this through. Since Maestro's window was rolled down about 6 inches, maybe I could reach in to get to the lock. No, I'm too short and no runner boards. Maybe I could drive my car next to it and stand on my car....no, the other truck was parked too close. Maestro is getting frustrated with me because I hadn't let him out yet!!! I go back to my car and look to see if I had anything that I could stick in the window to try to reach the door lock. Golf clubs....no, they were too long to manipulate. Finally, I found a support from a wire shelf that had been removed from the kitchen closet. I'm not sure what in the world that support was doing in the back of my car, but I was glad it was there because I was able to reach it into the window and pull up the lock button!!! Thank goodness!!! Maestro was happy to get out of the truck!! My panic attack was over!! After that episode, on the way home, I treated him to a hot dog at Nathan's! He deserved it!!!!

Technology Challenged

It should be simple...We ARE in the age of technology!! It IS a time when we can purchase a computer, laptop, printer, etc. over-the-counter. Don't you think we should be able to just "plug and play"?? Well, that is what I assumed yesterday when I suggested to Mary that I hook up her wireless printer for her. Who knows how long ago she bought it and it was still in the box. It was just begging to be united with her laptop!!! How could I say no??!!!
So, the unpacking began...instructions, disc, cables and cords. After all, I've hooked up my own computer and wireless router...this should be a piece of cake! Things were going very smoothly ... UNTIL the install program asked for some information that neither Mary nor I had any clue what it was. I tried to cop out at this time by suggesting that Mary wait for her son-in-law to do it, since he was the one who set up her wireless router. Mary had a different plan...hey, girl, you started this and we ARE going to finish it!! :-)))) So, it was suggested we make a call to Linksys. I am NOT a phone person, so this was not high on my priority list. Mary IS a phone person and so we found the phone number and the fun began!! First a call to Linksys to see if they could provide us with the missing information needed to connect to the wireless printer. The young man tried desperately to help us, exerting so much patience up to a point....then he suggested we pay $9.99 so he could take control of the laptop and do it himself. Of course, we declined. Then we were transferred to a young lady from Philippines...who also tried to help us. She was at the end of her shift, so with compassion for the sleep-less, we decided to pay the $9.99 and let her do it!!! Okay, so we got to the point where we had the information needed, the computer was hooked to the printer with the USB cord, and we finally got the printer to print. Yay!!!! She was done with her task and wanted to go home to sleep! Now, she says, unplug the USB and print wirelessly. Should be easy enough....but it did not work. Exasperated, she declared it was now HP's fault and we needed to call them. Mary dialed the number, and we again gave control of the laptop to a young lady from India. Ohhhh, steps 3 & 4 were not completed with the printer set up....easy enough....and VOILA!!!! we were able to print WIRELESSLY. What should have been sooooo easy, took up approximately 4 + hours to complete!!! What happened to easy, do-it-yourself technology? Maybe that comes with the next purchase!!! Enjoy your Monday!