Gratitude

This has been a quiet Thanksgiving Day—just the two of us again.  My day revolved around cooking.  My girls are on the other side of the country and spent the day together.  Last night I got calls from both of them about recipes.  We cook a lot of the same dishes because they have wanted to continue making some of the food that has become a tradition in our family.  Somehow this is comforting to me.  We are connected across the miles through food.

It is easy to get so caught up in food preparation that we forget what Thanksgiving is all about.  It is good for us to reflect at least one day a year on what we are thankful for.  Gratitude puts our lives into perspective.  Recently I was talking to my older daughter who was in a negative frame of mind.  She had gone through a rough couple of weeks which included a night in the hospital.  She complained that everything had been going wrong for her.  I had to remind her that she had found a new job this year.  Oh yeah.  We often dwell on the negative in our lives and take the rest for granted.  For this reason it is a good idea to ponder all the things in our lives for which we are (or should be) grateful.

I am grateful for my family.  Tonight I talked to my daughters, my mother, and my mother-in-law.  I wish I could see them in person more often but I am so grateful that we can communicate by phone, e-mail, and social media.  I am glad for the technology that allows me to do this.  I appreciate the times we can spend with extended family; they are precious.

I am thankful for my good health.  I do have more problems as I get older but I can still get out and live my life.  I need cataract surgery and I appreciate how common this procedure has become.  Not only is it quick and painless, but they can implant a new lens designed just for you with your prescription built in.  It’s amazing.  Recently I had an MRI on my hand and I got to see the results.  The doctor could confirm the source of my pain and have a better idea what he is facing when he goes into surgery.  I am certainly grateful for that.  I am glad that I have health insurance that helps my pay for my medical bills and prescriptions.  I am thankful for good, caring doctors, nurses, and other health professionals.

I am thankful for my church—the people there are my family.  My husband and I have no relatives in this state but we know if we need help, there is a congregation full of loving people who will be there for us.  I appreciate the faith and wisdom of these people.  They constantly inspire me.  I have learned so much from both the congregation and the pastors who have served us.

I have never been truly hungry in my life.  I have a warm house and clothes to wear.  I have a husband who loves me and stands by me.  He is my friend and partner in life.  My life has been full of cats and dogs that are part of the family.  I know a lot of amazing, interesting people—I have been blessed by them in so many different ways.  Some are friends and some merely acquaintances but they have all touched me.

I could go on and on.  So could most people.  Even in difficult times, there is always something good to be found.  God created a wonderful world for us to experience.  I am grateful for the love that surrounds me.  I am thankful for my life.

Thoughts on Ferguson

Our news has been flooded with reactions to the announcement that the grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri had failed to indict Darren Wilson, the police officer who shot an unarmed 18-year-old black teenager named Michael Brown.  I feel sorry for his parents.  I am angry at the people who rioted and destroyed property.  I don’t really know what happened that day.  I haven’t read the transcripts.  I know there was conflicting testimony.  I wonder why this officer isn’t being brought to trial.

But mostly I wonder what it must be like for a mother to watch her son leave the house and worry that he won't return, to worry that he will be shot by police--for being black, for being young, for wearing the wrong clothes, for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. . . As a mother I just can't imagine what it's like to be that mother.  A report by ProPublica indicates that young black males in recent years were at a far greater risk of being shot dead by police than young white men—a 21 times greater risk.  As a white mother, I don’t have to face such worry and heartbreak.

Racism is alive and well in this country.  We have to acknowledge this and do something about it.  How do we change hearts full of fear and hate?  I pray for peace and justice in Ferguson and in all the other cities in this country that fail to offer equality for all.

Ice and More Ice

Icicles hang in front of my kitchen window.  Our entire yard is covered with a blanket of snow.  Late falling leaves are scattered across the white landscape.  More leaves lie beneath the snow waiting to be raked.

Nobody was prepared for this storm, especially our highway district.  What was predicted to be a few inches turned out to be 7 ½ inches, a November record for us.  The thermometer has not been above freezing in over a week.  Our nightly lows have been in the single digits.  I know that many places in this country get much harsher weather.  But this is Boise, the “banana belt” of Idaho.  This is unusual for us.  Our highway district didn’t get their plows out on the main roads soon enough and they quickly became rutted and icy.  The unplowed side roads are like skating rinks.  I drive down the road to our house with my feet off both gas and brakes using just the steering wheel to try to keep my sliding van on the road.  I hope that nobody is coming in the opposite direction.

We now have an inversion.  Cold, dirty air is trapped in the valley while nearby mountains enjoy warmer temperatures and sunshine.  I venture out for appointments and scheduled meetings or events.  Otherwise I stay home.  I feel a bit trapped.  I look outside and see my little Honda buried in snow.  The landscape is gray and white, totally colorless.  I am catching up on computer and paperwork but I am restless.  The dog is bored.  I would like to say that I am tired of winter but unfortunately it’s not even here yet.  Winter isn't supposed to begin for a month!  Spring is a very, very long time away.

11/20/2014

 





 

Rachel’s Knoll

In our quest to acquire a bit of beauty for ourselves we have a tendency to destroy it.  I am sitting on Rachel’s Knoll in Sedona, Arizona.  A friend told me about it but it is not like she once knew it.  There is such beauty in the ancient red rocks that surround the knoll.  This has been a sacred place for people for a very long time.

Now there is a golf course below and homes all around.  There in even a home on the knoll.  A development company bought up the surrounding land.  For a while they blocked access to the knoll even though they had agreed to keep it open.  It is open again after a successful lawsuit by Rachel’s children.  We had to go through a gate where there is a guard who questioned us about whether we had been to Rachel’s knoll before.  No.  How did we know about it?  This is private property.  We didn't let him discourage us and he let us in.

Two small tours have been up here since we arrived.  The guide now sitting near me appears to be Native American (maybe Hopi from what he said).  According to him the area in front of us is known as Seven Sacred Canyons.  For some reason, he says, the developers chopped off the “sacred” part of the name and call it Seven Canyons.  To me it is obvious.  This area is not sacred to them—they only see money.  The guide is saying that all human life has a link to this place according to the people who have the longest history here.  This means that we are all connected.  When he first walked up he commented that he doesn’t see the golf course anymore.  It will be gone one day when the water dries up.  It will all go back to the way it was.

I hope he is right.  The buildings, the manicured grass, and the noise of the weed whackers are so out of place.  Rachel’s knoll transcends time and it belongs to us all, a sacred spot.

Written on 10/29/2014

Sedona Ramblings

Red rock formations line the horizon

Carved long ago by wind and water

Their names changing over time

Sacred places for ancient people

The air grows still for a moment

Did someone sit here a thousand years ago?

Was she in awe like me?

A woman whose life was tied to the earth

So different from me sitting here

But perhaps more like me than I know

Someone who had a family to feed

Who had people she loved

Did she feel a presence sitting here?

A spirit that moves through all

Connecting earth and all living things

Did she feel it too?

There is a strong link to ancient times

I feel it watching sun on red rocks

A bond with those who walked here before

Perhaps some part of them lingers still

Watching over this sacred piece of earth

That connects past and present

Bringing us closer to God

Written on 10/28/2014