My Kinda Fun

We live on a gravel pit. There are rocks of all shapes and sizes everywhere! There are the no-good, crumbly kind but the ones that call to me are the firm, polished ones of various colors that lie hidden all over the property. They lie in every direction, hidden like Easter eggs, waiting for me to find them. I can't resist looking for them each time I'm outside. In spite of finding bucket after bucket, each time I look it is as if I had collected none; they are still everywhere. I have a purpose in collecting them. We have an extended dry creek bed that winds from the front of the house, along the south side and into the back yard. Lots of rocks are required. So each weekday morning, before the heat of the day arrives, I go hunting. It is addictive. My goal is to fill a bucket each day. But after one bucket I am usually seduced into filling another. I am the only one in the family who seems to enjoy this. It is so much fun!

I've been slow to get an exercise program going here. It is a sad commentary on my character to admit that, without a motivated companion, I cannot seem to make myself do any kind of physical exercise consistently. I dabble but don't settle. But, when I do exercise, I often just dance. I filled a CD with dance music which offers me a steady stream of rhythmical opportunities. I put on my dancing shoes, turn up the music and dance my way through the morning, often dusting or cleaning the kitchen as I go. A little multi-tasking makes the most of my high-energy moments. I can't seem to convince anyone else in our household that dancing is so much fun!

I did manage to get Layne to watch part of the movie, Emma, with me last night. It has a very romantic ending, which Layne shared with me. He is quite a romantic, you know. He was softened by the sweetness of the moment and it blessed us the rest of our evening together.
The peace of this place offers so many blessings!

Home Ground

I've been working on Mom's life story, with her. It strikes me, as I read her story and look at pictures from her childhood, how brief our stay on earth is. I look at my mom, now unable to be physically active, and see such a beautiful woman. She will soon be 92. Yet, such a short time ago, she was a girl, running through the desert land that was her home. I see my life that way too. We girls are all girls inside; that doesn't seem to change. It is the eternal part of us. I enjoy my time with Mom. Being with her and Layne in Colorado is a disruption of our regular life, but it is nurturing, in its way. Our month there passed quickly. Mom is gaining strength but I believe it is now clear to all of us that she will not be independent again. She hasn't acknowledged that, but I believe she feels it. If only she could feel comfortable with it and redirect her thoughts. She may be starting to.

Above is a picture of Mom in 1943 and again with me and my sister, Maryanne, in 2001.

We came home last Monday. I love my home. It embraced us as we entered Monday evening. Our trip home was, again, via Phoenix. It was the only way to get to San Francisco from Denver, believe it or not, because there are seats in and out of Phoenix. We happened to meet an artist from Montrose, CO, who had our exact travel schedule: Grand Junction to Denver to Phoenix to San Francisco. And she was a paying passenger! The fun thing was that she knew all about using pastels and gave me oodles of ideas.

So, I am passionate about using pastels now. Every day, so far, I have found an hour or so to work on them in my little art studio. I bought a nice set of pastels and am hard at work trying to figure out how to make beautiful pictures. The trouble with passions is that they can eat up your life. I could easily spend all day making pictures and forget all about food and sleep and....all else! I must control myself. There are, of course, many other things to do and most of them are more important than art.

Ah! It is great to be home.

On the Town

Cedaredge is a small country town. So there isn't much shopping to be had here. Our outings have mostly been to the local grocery store and Walmart. Most of my days here I just stay home. There is lots to do at Mom's place and there seems to be no need for more. This past week I did take the time to run a couple of errands. Among them was a trip to the Apple Shed, a collection of shops under one roof (an old apple shed, hence the name). It is an artsy place filled with all sorts of art done by local artists, of which there are many, and also furniture. It is owned by a lovely lady named Connie Williams, a great artist herself. Connie and her husband have an orchard in addition to the Apple Shed and sell their fruit there. I checked on their peaches and wound up buying two big boxes of them! Peaches are our favorite fruit, fresh or bottled. Layne promised to help me bottle them, using canning bottles from Mom's barn. We bottled 12 quarts so far. We'll take them home when we bring Mom home with us in the fall.

On the way home from this outing I drove by an art gallery run by Barbara Torke, one of my favorite local artists. I've passed her place before but this time I felt a strong urge to stop. So I did. In Cedaredge a shop can be anywhere. There is no zoning. So the house down the street can sell anything from donuts to tires. Hence quite a number of homes double as some kind of shop. Most common are antique and art shops. Barbara's place is just a little house turned into a gallery and art shop. I went inside. She was alone so we had a chance to talk. She told me that she teaches art every Thursday and Friday for $15 a lesson. I decided to attend! I've gone to two classes so far, trying to learn how to use pastels. I feel so awkward at it but relish the chance to learn more about it. I love doing it even if I don't like the outcome, which I usually don't. But I lose all track of time when I draw; it absolutely absorbs me. I think that is a good thing, if kept in balance with the rest of my life. I'm so excited! When I am here, from now on, I'm going to take lessons. Who knows where it will take me!

The photos here are samples of my efforts. They need lots of work. But perhaps I'll improve with practice. One more week here and we head for home. It has passed quickly.

The Pleasure of Words

I think just about every situation presents possibilities and opportunities. Mom's lifestyle has been cut off; she now must concentrate on making her body do the simple things she took for granted all of her life. "Not fair", it is easy to think. While it is hard to see her struggle, I have a feeling that she is simply being redirected for a time. I have been pondering what that redirection might be. After all, she is still blessed with a perfectly good mind and the ability to express herself. I am beginning to feel that this time is an opportunity to get her thoughts recorded. The more I think about it, the stronger I feel. So we are working every day on finishing her life story. Then I want her to help write Daddy's story. There is a posterity to bless. I would hate to lose her without something written of her for future generations. She is a noble soul who has lived benevolently. Her experiences should be shared. I'm finding great joy in recording her story.

I have been worrying that Mom is beginning to give up trying to get stronger. But yesterday she walked twice as far as before! She seemed so spirited! She did everything much better than usual. We have been working hard on her biography; perhaps that fills her with more enthusiasm and motivation for the physical effort now required of her. Maybe she needs a stronger sense of purpose behind her efforts.

This place immerses me in it. I don't often think beyond here. I miss home but not as much as I thought I would. We have two more weeks with Mom and I find that I'm looking forward to it. There is time everyday to relax and do something or nothing. Layne works on the computer every day, organizing his missionary work at home. He also does endless crossword puzzles. I've read more than I ever do at home, in addition to getting more rest. Mom needs lots of rest so it supplies us with this gift of time. I'm grateful for the blessings this place and time with Mom are giving to me.

Pictures: Mom in High School, Mom is a special hairdo done by bather Donna, Layne doing another crossword puzzle.