I’m not sure if I have free time or if I forgot something.
One Liner Wednesday is brought to us each week by Linda Hill. Check out Linda’s blog to see what others have to say with just one line.
One Liner Wednesday- Memory Fails Me
Month: August 2020
A Thank You to My Followers
Fandango posted a prompt which serves as a good reminder to thank the people who follow us on our blogging journey. I am very happy to participate and give a shout out to those who find the things I write about worth reading.
I started blogging long ago and have had ‘journals’ and ‘blogs’ on several different platforms. I was using WordPress a lot in my web design business so this is the platform I settled on. And what an amazing community of people I have found here.
During this pandemic, connection to others has become critical for maintaining our sanity. Your likes, comments and back-and-forth discussions have kept me balanced and sane. To have friends (I hope you are okay with me calling you my friends) from all over the globe has allowed me to expand my horizons during a time I cannot enjoy communion with others in my own community. I have learned a lot from you.
I thank you for the enthusiastic support for my stories about my childhood growing up in the country. It has allowed me to share some very dear memories while connecting with some who shared similar memories and surprising some who have never been exposed to the life I had as a child.
I have shared your grief and you have shared mine. You have been empathetic and kind and those are such comforting qualities.
I thank those with whom I have shared laughter. We all need humor in our lives. I thank you for sharing your thoughts with me on serious subjects, even if we sometimes disagree. To be able to have an intelligent dialogue is such a wonderful gift.
I thank you for listening to the music and movies of my life and sharing yours with me. I thank you for not unfollowing me on days I posted too much in one day! I try not to do that too often!
I love sharing photos of my little place in the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains and I thank you for sharing your corners of the world with me. There are many places I will probably never get to see in person.You have made my days brighter during a very dark time. I appreciate you all more than I can ever say.
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And now a musical clip from one of my favorite Christmas movies “Scrooge” with Albert Finney in the role of Scrooge. He does not realize exactly why the town is filled with such gratitude for him!
Tchotchkes or Treasures?
I have been trying to clear out and organize my art supplies to prepare for a rather large order of jewelry supplies arriving from Rio Grande this week. Ugh.
In our current home, we do not have as much storage space as we once had, so quite a few things are stored in plastic boxes, tool boxes, or cardboard boxes. Over the years, I have accumulated a lot of art and jewelry supplies and sorting through them is a lot of work.
As I unpacked boxes, I have discovered so many ‘treasures’ I have held onto. I fear I am a sentimental old fool. My children chuckle as I still hang their grade school Christmas ornaments on the tree every year. I am at a crossroads in my life – what to keep and what to let go of.
Useful items and knickknacks I purchased myself are easy to let go of. Things given to me, not so much.
The little teacup with roses inside given to my mother when she was in the hospital, a little glass dish that held a small flower arrangement given to me by my mother-in-law, the decorative oriental plates given to me by my friend MaryKay when I lived in Alaska. People I love, gone but not forgotten.
Hubby and I both collected ‘things’ prior to and in the early years of our marriage. He, David Winter cottages, porcelain owls, and duck stamp prints. Me, Cobalt blue glass, poison bottles, and perfume bottles. They are all packed away now. Together we have collected original Pléin air paintings and Dept 56 Village pieces.
I learned from my children the items that hold memories for me (pieces of each of my grandmother’s china, my mother’s goblets given to her on her wedding day) have no significance to them other than knowing where they come from. Their memories lie in the everyday items that we all shared together.
Over the coming months, I will start letting a lot of things go. I will start with the truly whimsical tchotchke-like things that I purchased myself. The sentimental things like collectibles from European trips perhaps I will pack away neatly and designate a grandchild I would like to receive these things.
This is not easy for either hubby or me, It’s time though.
Song Lyric Sunday – Cyndi Lauper and Matthew Shepard
Welcome back to Song Lyric Sunday. Mine will be short and sweet this week!
This week we have some general words that are used to describe object placement, being Above/Below/Between and hopefully everyone will be able to find a song that utilizes one of these prompt words in the title or in the lyrics.
I wish I could tell you the circumstances surrounding the first time I heard this song, but I cannot. I just know it touched me the very first time I heard it.
”Above the Clouds” was written by Cyndia Lauper, Jeff Beck and Jed Leiner as a tribute song for Matthew Shepard. Matthew was an openly gay student at the University of Wyoming who was beaten, tortured, tied to a fence and left to die in 1998. He later succumbed to his wounds. It is a heartbreaking tragedy.
Cyndi Lauper is a long time advocate of the LGBTQ community. As the mother, aunt and friend of many people in this community, I hope we all speak out against this level of hate. No child ever deserved a fate such as this just for being who he was.
Above the Clouds
Lyrics from Songlyrics.com
There’s a place where the sun breaks through
And the wind bites cold and hard
Stings my ears and
Tears my eyes
When the day starts to shout out loud
Stand tall
And glide
When you’re all alone in the crowd
Don’t fall
Don’t hide
When you walk above the clouds
When you walk above the clouds
When the light is against your face
And your smile is soft and sound
That’s when you tell me all your fears
and all your dreams
So proud
Stand tall
And glide
When you’re all alone in the crowd
Don’t fall
Don’t hide
When you walk above the clouds
When you walk above the clouds
I try and tell you
to keep your head upright
Don’t swing your sword and shield against the night
Don’t block your blessings, boy
You don’t have to fight
You don’t have to fight
Stand tall
And glide
When you’re all alone in the crowd
Don’t fall
Don’t hide
When you walk above the clouds
When you walk above the clouds
Why not join in on this Sunday blogging ritual. Head over to Jim Adams’ blog to check out the rules and read some of the great responses to the weekly prompt.
SoCS – Brush it Off
Linda gives us a simple prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday this week:
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “brush.” Use it as a noun, a verb, or an idiom. Have fun!
My paternal grandfather always told me his sister brushed her hair 100 strokes every night to make it shiny. He encouraged me to also brush my hair 100 strokes, too. I tried, but I was a kid and that took forever it seemed!
“Brush your breath with Dentyne.”
Is Dentyne gum even sold anymore? Those little tiny pieces of pink gum wrapped in red and white paper with the little ‘sting’ when chewed. I guess that’s what brushed your breath.
I never imagined a time when simple contact with another human being could mean a possible brush with death. Thank you 2020. Living through a pandemic was nothing I ever imagined.
The Fuller Brush man often came to my grandmother’s house. There were three door-to-door sales people that my grandmother bought from: Fuller Brush, Jewell Tea (where she also bought her ‘Autumn Leaf’ dish-ware), and Watkins which sold spices and Liniment for sore muscles. I was always fascinated by their cases that held their wares. Alfred Fuller’s father had good advice which we can still learn from today”
Alfred Fuller’s father would often look at his hands and say “These are your fortune, boy. Be suspicious of anyone who shows you how to make a living without using them.”
Now here’s a stream of consciousness thought. When was the last time you bought a brush and what kind of brush was it? Mine was a toothbrush – electric. I remember lots of brushes as a child. Not near as many these days. My Dad’s shoeshine kit had several different types and sizes of brushes. Do people polish shoes any more? We had scrub brushes, and bottle brushes, horse brushes, cat and dog brushes, scalp brushes for a baby’s cradle cap, fingernail brushes, scrub brushes, hair brushes, and toilet brushes. I guess all those brushes are still around but not used as frequently these days. Oh, I almost forgot the tiny brushes that came with an electric razor to clean out the whiskers. And I had soft lens brushes to clean my camera lens. Just the other day I used a tiny brush designed specifically to clean out my hummingbird feeder.
It’s time to brush off these thoughts and get moving. I am delivering goodies to my grandchildren today. Socially distanced, no hugging, but at least I will be able to see their faces.
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