Grammy's Last Gift

   I ran down the flight of creaky cellar steps behind my grandmother and  followed her to a stack of white totes. Six or eight in all, they held all of my great-grandparents' earthly possessions.  The lid to the first tote was pulled off--documents and papers filled it. The lid of another tote was opened--on top lay a purse. Grammy's purse. Once unzipped, fragments  of a life were unearthed--a tissue holder. A hairbrush, with strands of hair still in it. I kept the purse; that black purse with white daisies, which had been given to Grammy by a friend. Later, when I unzipped the outside pocket, I found some coffee sweetener, and beside it, a bag of hardened sugar.

  Another tote was opened--and inside of it, Grandma found a shopping bag. "Oh, Grammy wanted you to have this," she said. It was filled with various balls of yarn, some crocheting hooks, and a couple of unfinished projects. "I had forgotten all about it."

  Other things Grammy had made were in this tote--doilies and dresser scarves. I picked out a few for my sister and me to keep and treasure. One of those dresser scarves now graces the top of my own dresser.

There's not a doily that I use in my room right now that wasn't made by Grammy; how many hours of work she must've put into them! How her fingers, now so still, must have flown!

 

   I wish I had gotten to know the young Grammy--the cooking and crocheting Grammy. The Grammy who could drive instead of being driven. The Grammy who could walk unaided instead of using a walker or a wheelchair. The Grammy who bought us gifts instead of having to give what she had or what was bought for her to give to us.

  But I'm also thankful I got to know the older Grammy--the Grammy who gave me money, but not until I let her give me a kiss. The Grammy  who always said on the phone, "When are you coming to visit? I miss you!" The Grammy who always had a smile for me, who pronounced my name with three syllables instead of its usual two, the Grammy who loved me even when we moved hundreds of miles away.

  And as I finger that yarn, or that intricately-crafted doily, or carry her purse, I smile and remember.

Septober

   So, what have I been doing the past two months, besides pondering printing a magazine?

   I went to Massachusetts for a week to visit my grandparents; we had fun together.

   We went on hikes...

the Gertrude M. Boyden Wildlife Refuge

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Massasoit State Park

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We also had my cousin over for supper, and visited my great-great aunt and uncle.

Grandma & Grandpa's table, set for company

We went shopping, including Target; Grandma was looking for a Boggle game here.

me with Target's mascot

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I took two different buses home--this is one of them.

 

  My great-grandparents both died in May, so I wasn't able to see them like we usually do when we go down there...but my great-grandmother was still able to give me one last gift during my visit. Stay tuned!😀

What About a Magazine?

   Hello, after a long silence! I have updates to make, including about what I've been up to the past couple months, but until then...what do you think of me starting a magazine? It would be for single women, about topics pertinent to single women. Do you have any name suggestions? Topics you would like covered? Should it be a paper magazine or an e-zine? Don't be afraid to let me know in the comments!

  Stay tuned for more new posts! Thanks for reading!

Sour Times at the Sweet Shop

   The Quiet Photographer (one of my many nicknames) was quietly strolling through a local candy shop when she decided to take some pictures. All the colors blended together were too tantalizing to resist, so she paused at the Lindor chocolates.

                All the colors of the taffy blended together well, and could also be used for backgrounds...

  All this camera clicking was making the owner of this dazzling array quite nervous. She asked me if I needed help, or "why was I taking pictures of the stuff she has for sale"? This, of course, hurt The Quiet Photographer's tender heart (if she may say so) and caused tears. Why was she asked such a question when she was so innocent?

  So, to compensate, she purchased a bag of Sour Rings, which were expensive, but good. And she left, wiser and better.

July Jaunts

  This month, I've taken several excursions--both not far away. The first one was on my bike, beside the high-voltage power lines. Here's a picture of the male osprey I saw, landing on the nest:

  Yesterday, I took a walk at a nearby park; it was about a 3-mile jaunt. Here's the bridge I walked across to get there:

 

   I saw a female mallard duck swimming in the river:

    I noticed a brown creature hopping across the trail. Upon looking closer, I discovered this tiny frog:

  Later, I found a few more. I thought this would make an interesting picture...let me know what you think.😏

 

  
I also walked along the edge of a potato field--here are a few potato blossoms among the million others:

  What kinds of jaunts have you taken this month? Let me know in the comments; don't just read--respond!😊

Fifty Shades of Brown

  I've been pondering this issue for weeks, even before the George Floyd incident. I know people are unhappy with what they think was racism; maybe it was. However, how will looting and toppling down statues solve anything?
  People would do well, when considering issues of skin color, to realize three things:

1. There is only one race.

  Since we all come from Adam and Eve, there is only one race of people. There wasn't a Hispanic Adam and Eve, a Caucasian Adam and Eve, or an Indian Adam and Eve...they were just how God made them to be! People moved to different parts of the world, but we all come from the same two people.

2. We're all related.

  You may be from Switzerland, England, or Australia; but since we all come from the same two people, we're all related. Even if we're sixteenth cousins four times removed, we're still kin.

3. Nobody is black or white.

  If you don't believe me, then take a black piece of paper and hold it up to your "black" skin. Is your skin the same color? No, it's brown. And if I were to hold a piece of white paper next to my skin, I wouldn't be white either--I'd be brown, too. I'm just a lighter shade of brown than Martin Luther King Jr. and the Ethiopian eunuch.

  So, shall we change the song to "Shades of brown from dark to light/They are precious in His sight"?😊

                                P.S. Hope, our cat, is both black, white, AND brown!!

The Creativity of God

I'm sure you've all seen tulips...

                                           ...BUT HAVE YOU EVER LOOKED INSIDE?

Or the inside of a jack-in-the-pulpit?

                                             Ever knelt to see ground ivy growing in the grass?

Or seen a lady's slipper blooming as you pass?

And if you don't like flowers, how about birds?

From the "blue" indigo bunting...(did you know they're really black?)

...to the pileated woodpecker, for whom wood will be no lack...

The evasive spotted wood thrush, who sings the sweetest song...

...to the black-throated blue warbler, that hides the whole day long...

Okay, you're still not satisfied? You can't see God's creativity because you aren't a bird-watcher or looking for flowers?

Well, here are some animals, then!

From the pesky little groundhog, (or a woodchuck, if from the South,)

...to the jumpy little frogs, with their frowny little mouth (which one do you like better?)

Maybe you'd rather see a chipmunk, who's just peeking from the sod?

Now have I proven to you

THE CREATIVITY OF GOD?!