In the beginning

In the conservatory.

so this is the sound of you
here and now whether or not
anyone hears it this is
where we have come with our age
our knowledge such as it is
and our hopes such as they are
invisible before us
untouched and still possible

~ W. S. Merwin, To the New Year

Happy New Year!  Doesn’t it feel a little strange to have reached the year 2015?  It does to me.  Spending time with my granddaughters, I got to thinking about life when I was nine-years-old-going-on-ten, and the year 2000 seemed so far, far away.  A future in which cars would fly and we’d be living up in the clouds like the Jetsons.  I guess we’d better get on it if that’s going to happen.  We don’t have too much time left to catch up with our cartoon dreams of the future which take place in the year 2062.

I feel as though it’s been a long time since my last blog post, but it’s only been five days.  A lot has happened, and I suspect that is what creates the illusion that much time has passed.  M and I have been on a whirlwind trip with our granddaughters and their parents.  We spent a few days in our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., where we crammed in as much as we could.  We walked over 10 miles the first full day we were there, and over 8 miles the second day.  I have lots of pictures and lots of stories although I’m not sure how much I’ll manage to share since life keeps rolling right along while I’m trying to get caught up.

We all (M, our granddaughters and their parents) left D.C. on the morning of New Year’s Eve and arrived at Breezy Acres in the Bogs (northeast Ohio) in time for a Christmas dinner and celebration with M the Younger and his wife.  We had thoughts of attending a First Night celebration, but it was bitterly cold and none of us who had traveled that day felt like getting back in a car to ride over to Akron.  Staying in was a great decision.  There was a lot of joy, laughter, and plenty of celebration going on at Breezy Acres.  We had noisemakers and party hats (or tiaras, for those who prefer them) and New Year’s crackers (you might know them as Christmas crackers).

Today we played games, did some sewing, something you’ll rarely find me doing but since my granddaughters are interested in it, I’m willing to take up needle and thread for their sake and somehow they make it much more pleasurable and fun than it ever was when I did it as a chore.  I helped with some hand sewing as the sewing machines are well beyond my current skills.  I haven’t used one since I was in the 8th grade and they forced us to learn how to sew in Home Economics class.  I wasn’t much interested in sewing at that time in my life, but sure wouldn’t mind having those skills now.  What sewing skills I do have were enough for today, and enough is a pretty good thing to have.

I took a walk around the pond.  It’s frozen over.  Not quite frozen enough for ice skating or walking across, although the guys (M the Elder and M the Younger) were testing the edges, gingerly walking along them and listening as the ice made this strange, almost alien, musical sound while cracks appeared.

You might be wondering about the lack of images.  The image at the beginning of the post was taken at the National Botanical Gardens by my oldest granddaughter.  I gave her Lulu (my little point-and-shoot everything-proof camera) and told her to take whatever pictures she felt like taking.  Since she didn’t take a ton of photos like I did, it was quick and easy work to upload them so I could use one now.  All the rest, including my photos, will wait until I get home.

We’re here for another full day and then it’s back to the Wabi-Sabi Ranch.  After we get settled in there, I’ll be back with some pictures and stories while I get myself ready for surgery on the 14th.

Thank you for visiting today.  Wishing you love, laughter, magic, and plenty of playfulness throughout 2015!

Be good, be kind, be loving.  Just Be.  🙂