In my mind at least, the perfect lilacs this year were over on Mortenson Road, not far from the intersection with University Boulevard. Lilacs always make me think of my mom. I was born when mom was 40, so unfortunately, I will always think of my mom as old (I know, 40 is NOT that old!). Most lilac bushes are old too, standing the test of time, you don’t fully understand where they came from or what they’ve been through, but you love their beautiful profusion, the intoxicating fragrance, their simplicity. My mom came from a simply background, she and her sister and her mom making it on their own by housekeeping and living with relatives. They enjoyed simple things, creamed vegetables on toast for supper, sprucing up a little black dress with a variety of collars and cuffs, going swimming in the rock quarry and singing duets. I don’t know where all the lilacs in Ames have come from, but I love their reminders that the best things in life don’t have to be complicated and expensive and that my mom was able to create a beautiful life in the same spirit.
Archive for Family
The perfect lilac
Young Artists
Sometimes, the best gifts for children can be letting them create their own stuff and just spending time with them, letting them try something rather adult, showing them you trust them to try something new! Here is my great niece with pastels my sister had in her closet. During the Thanksgiving rush, we slipped off into a quiet bedroom, covered her with a towel to protect her clothes from the pastel smudges, and voila, she showed that she is quite the artist!
Thanksgiving 2011
Hmmm, from my last post, it looks like I am behind a holiday here. Thanksgiving 2011 was delicious and the light bulb pilgrims from my childhood stood watch over the table as we feasted and were thankful!
Labor Day Breakfast
As the cold weather pushes us increasingly indoors, I was just enjoying the remembrance of Labor Day breakfast outdoors at my sister’s cottage!
Memorial Day Boating
I’m not going to be able to make it to my sister’s cottage for Memorial Day this year, but I am certainly thinking of everyone! This photo is from 2008. Looks like it was a tad chilly, but the beginning of summer, none the less.
Jacquie Lawson electronic advent calendar – WOW!
Jacquie Lawson electronic advent calendar
I like paper, stamps, licking, stickers, the whole nine yards…..and I have a little fear that someday it will all be replaced with electronic stuff…..but after my sister sent me this electronic advent calendar, I have to say, “e” versions of stuff can really rock! I have always enjoyed the e-cards she sends me, but the advent calendar….wow! Every day, I look forward to opening a little window and seeing some animated holiday sweetness. AND….the calendar shrinks down to a beautiful snow globe on my desktop to make the rest of my day just as cute.
This day’s window led to a little animated present wrapping.
Another day showed a flurry of activity in the village book store!
Poland’s Sorrow
Old Town Warsaw at night
My heart is in shock and sorrow with the people of Poland tonight.
Moje serce jest w szoku i smutku z narodem dzisiaj Polska.
Fluffy friend
This little fluffy lady belongs to my brother and his wife. Her name is Daisy and she is an adorable Bichon Friche (but then all Bichons are adorable, right, because they all look alike!) and often when I visit my brother she sleeps on the sofa with me. Daisy and I love a sofa, but reading the morning paper makes us soooo sleepy!
By the way, I hear Daisy’s owners are headed to Australia and New Zealand for a cruise to get away from this intense winter of 2010!
Christmas and the Creche
I have very mixed feelings about Christmas. I know that the holiday hype, the excessive shopping just to check someone off a list, the non-stop marketing that starts right after Halloween, and even the “reason for the season” have nothing to do with God. They say Jesus was really born sometime in the summer, but people who did not want to be persecuted for their beliefs decided to sneak Jesus into the pagen festival of lights associated with the winter solstice. Some Europeans seem a little more sane about it all, separating St. Nicholas Day, presents and a Santa figure, from religious observance.
When I was a child, we always had a big Christmas, a lot of effort was expended, it was a family time, but there always seemed to be a let down too…like we were doing what we were “supposed” to do, but we never quite attained what it was we really craved. I’m glad God has put this spot in us, this craving, that won’t be filled with celebration, decorations, even with human family love…the craving for what is true. As long as I can remember, the creche or manger was part of the holiday decorating. My father built the manger and I must have played with the nativity figurines a lot, because I still feel something when I handle them at my sister’s house now. I loved the story of angels talking to shepherds, wise men following a star and a mother and father being content to let their baby sleep with the animals, but I am glad that I’m an adult now, and that all of this is not just a story, or a holiday or some toys that I hold in my hands.
