seriouslyscorpio

thoughts of the moment and of my life

Tag Archives: nature


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MORNING TEA


Every morning, without fail, the ladies show up for tea. They wear frocks that are kind of drab. Tea has been going on for awhile, so they don’t feel the need to dress up. I also think they’ve been together for most of their lives, so impressing each other is just passe. I think that because I have wonderful friends who don’t feel the need to wear fancy colors, big hats, or uncomfortable shoes just to sit for tea.

Anyhow, each day one can almost set their clock by it, the gals congregate. They nod, they talk quietly, and abruptly leave, only to return in a few minutes, something I cannot understand. Of course, I’m on the outside looking in, not having ever been invited. They also like to be relatively alone….and move in unison when something or someone comes into view. I’m thinking they discuss things that are strictly intimate because their actions dictate complete privacy.

And then…as quickly as they’ve assembled, the tea is over. It’s like someone is calling. One thinks maybe the kids have come home from school, but the ladies must have teens by now. Oh, well, it doesn’t matter. They speak their own slang, their own language, and even tho it is beautiful, it something I can’t seem to grasp.

Only later in the day do I see each of them again, returning for a simple bath, a quiet time, maybe before starting supper for their brood. They nod to one another, and get a little flustered if the area gets crowded, however all irritations seem to dissolve in the fluttering bath of my tea ladies, the finches who share my yard til they vacation south of the border.


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AND LIFE IS GOOD….,


Sleeping til 9….hubby and kitty both purring…..
Opening the blinds to an ocean blue sky with cotton clouds…
Ten cups and 3 measures offer up a delightful aroma to begin the day…
Outside the news waits patiently….some good, some not…
And life is good…

Clothes peak out of the hamper, ready for a wash…
Plants lean toward the sun and wait for their faucet drink…
Kitty paws me for his morning treat and then heads to the front porch…
Soaking beans soften up to a ham hock for tonights supper…
And life is good….

A wodpecker looks for his meal in the Florida oak…
Squirrels scamper thru palm and frond, falling in love one moment, and digging up acorns the next…
Herons and gulls correspond as the sun rises further….looking for the baitfish to fattent their bellies…
And life is good…

Neighbors await their grandchildren, coming from the frozen north….
Wagons, sand pails, and cribs come out of storage, as the family comes together…
Snowbirds come and go, feeling lucky they are here to bask in the sun where coconut palms flourish…
And life is good…..

Blessings are acknowledged and health is never taken for granted….
Our 70 years have come so quickly, we sometimes lose count, until we look into the mirror…
Friendships are stronger, deeper, and longer than ever imagined….
A 50th high school reunion puzzles us to this very day…..
And life is good…

We carry on with our day, and smile that we no longer rise to be in the office at 7…
Our kind…..retirees, sift thru life’s memories and rejoice that children are grown and have jobs….
Their paths, beginning to march to the chorus of promises, dreams, sometimes stumbling as they find their way ……
And soon, one morning, they will find themselves, waking at 9, hubby and kitty purring, and the news of the day….. right outside…..
And life is good…..


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THE SOUNDS OF BEAUTY IN MY YARD


Mother Nature teaches us all kinds of lessons. Some are very quiet and peaceful, such as the sun touching our face, or wind conducting a symphony with my outdoor chimes.  I love the fog clouds as they climb come over the mountains. They seem so strong and determined and then the sun touches their fingertips and they go way to who knows where. 

The sounds of nature used to be distant, as I was too busy to stop and listen to the branches sway, the finches bathe, and the maple leaves land on the lawn grass.

  Now, I take the time….as time is drawing nigh in my life.  I watch the sun rise on some mornings, knowing that my grandchildren are up and already in school and my brother is loading is truck for the day.   I take comfort in knowing these quiet moments, before the day begins.

As I make coffee, finches, by some magical design, come from nowhere and everywhere to breakfast on sunflower and thistle in my back yard.  We evidently have a friendship because when I put my kitty out on his leash and discard  the morning paper, they continue ‘talking over the fence’ as though I didn’t exist.

The iris have faded for the season and I am trimming their tired leaves, as new ones reach to the sky for added enrichment before winter.  Each day, when my inside work is done, I take my little seat, my gloves, an my clippers and work my way around the yard, just to freshen everyone’s looks for those who walk by.    I hope it makes them feel better, cause it makes me feel better.

I’ve given up on the gopher and the two ground squirrels.  I think the gopher knows he is okay as long as he stays on the slope, but woe to him, if he ventures onto my yard.  The squirrels, however, come and eat the dropped seeds with their feathery friends. 

Mr. and Mrs. Crow, however, even tho they come almost every day, have not been welcomed by the aforementioned.  I don’t know what  was said, but it sure rubbed everyone the wrong way.  The couple come in late morning to miss the breakfast crowd and they waddle  their way thru the dropped seeds, not minding if the picking is thin.  If, by mistake, the squirrels are still there, they  might nip at their tails now and then, to gain the prime seed spot.

And so it goes, Mother Nature, tapping us on the shoulder, every moment of our lives….if only we would take time to feel her touch.

 


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SUNSHINE MEDICINE


“You may have a medical problem”……runs shivers up and down your spine.  Even in the movies, those words make us tremble.  We are all act brave, showing that ‘devil may care’ attitude, but deep inside our gut is churning and the sunny day goes to turbulent winds with the threat of rain.

It is checkup time…..an ultrasound for me and a colonoscopy for him.  Been there more than once and yet it still creeps into our daily living, like the fog from the Pacific.  Warm winds of serenity touching the cool winds of change…..cause us to become solitary, even though there is no prediction of doom.

So the bootstraps are pulled up…..as we become nonchalant in the face of  our inner fearfulness. 

We then begin to rationalize, and examine…..what are the odds…I take good care of myself….it doesn’t run in my family, and on and on.  We do begin to feel better, and our sleep goes undisturbed.

The day comes for our tests…..and the phone rings for each of us…..”sure, we’ve done everything, we’ll be there, no problem”.  The medical facility is warm, and friendly, and we are ushered to our rooms.  We look into the eyes of the staff, watching as they take pictures, in hopes of finding reassuring glances that all is well.  The procedures are over almost as quickly as they begin and we welcome the lifting of the haze of  marking time.

The phones ring the next afternoon….and with certitude, we answer.  “Just calling to say your test was negative and all is well”…..”We’ll see you next year”.    The phone rings again.  “The results of your procedure are negative”. We’ll see you in 5 years”.     And the sun shines once more.


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SUM-SUM-SUMMERTIME…… WHEN I WAS A KID


I remember……(and that’s saying a lot sometime), how it was to be a kid on Outer Drive South in the summertime……It was outstanding……but, I’m sure, not by today’s kid rating.   We played….I mean really played.  We played outdoors…..in the yard, under the magnificent shade of maple trees. We day dreamed with the clouds..as they displayed magical formations, that, in turn, gave us magical ideas. We played in sandboxes, using spatulas, sifters, rocks, wood, and whenever, Tonka.  We had peanut butter sandwiches, a banana, and milk for lunch before heading for the summer afternoon…..or the ever favorite, grilled cheese and an apple..

There was always the sprinkler to keep us cool, and then we would all lay in the grass, looking for a 4 leaf clover, as the sun cooked the landscape. We played hopscotch, using rocks for chalk, and when it got to be close to suppertime, we’d sit on the front step and wait for our daddy to come home

We didn’t know about air conditioning…..well, we did, but it was called….a fan.  Our grandparents had ‘summer kitchens’ to keep the house cool, and we had summer porches, screened in rooms where we slept when going for a visit.

There was always the ice cream man and we could set our watches by him…..money was not in abundance, so it was truly a treat when we got change from the house to get something.

There was a field in the back of our house, even tho we lived in town.  One year it was corn, and the next beans, then maybe it was weeds for a year or two…..It was our ‘extended’ playground….close to home for safety and yet a place to run races, and hide between the stalks.

There were girls and boys, but not girlfriends and boyfriends…..C’mon, this was in the 50’s when kids actually acted like kids.  TV’s were what the ‘rich people’ had…..and Mickey Mouse was just beginning his club of followers.

When the sun went down, it was time for ‘kick the can’….only to be played at night…..and did we play. We had at least 3 houses each way, plus the ‘field’.  The ‘gas thing’ out in the front yard next door was ‘home’ and 10 kids disappeared and reappeared, running in for ‘free’, as the lightning bugs covered the fields of hazy central Indiana. 

When mother range the bell, it was the close of the day……we would scamper from wherever and whatever we were doing…..cause the bell always ment ‘come and come NOW’.

Oh, summer days are still beautious, and the lightning bugs still hover the cornfields, but the memories of being a kid in the 50’s, can hardly be duplicated…..It was so, so very special.

 


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I SAW YOU TODAY


You were so busy, running up and down the towing limbs of the oak outside my door. There was chirping and squeaking and even some ‘dirty words’ coming out of your little mouth. It seems my kitty was sunning on the porch and you were saying it was ‘yours’. Keep up the squawking…hide the acorns for the cold Florida winter….you bushy little squirrel!


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I SAW YOU TODAY


You were so so comfortable. Your little almond eyes were closed and your breathing was peaceful. Your little triangular head was turned almost upside down, waiting for a chin rub, I’m sure. When I touched your back lightly, you began purring, but your eyes never opened. Wish I vould turn my ears around turn hear the sounds of the afternoon…..love you my kitty