Celebrate This Week: Delightful Doings

Join us each weekend for Celebrate This Week with Ruth Ayres.

When we pause to celebrate, we find the joy.

 

   A week filled with moments to celebrate and remember.

Discovering my summer mantra at Jama's Poetry Friday post:

“All in all, it was a never to be forgotten summer — one of those summers which come seldom into any life, but leave a rich heritage of beautiful memories in their going — one of those summers which, in a fortunate combination of delightful weather, delightful friends and delightful doing, come as near to perfection as anything can come in this world.”

—L.M. Montgomery, Anne’s House of Dreams

While I can't control the weather, I can orchestrate delightful doing with delightful friends and family to make beautiful memories this summer. 

A lovely mid-week getaway to 
a friend's cabin on Hartstene Island

Every trip to the woods needs at 
least one deer sighting. We saw 
twins, but only caught one on camera.

Teddy turned two on Friday!

Warm weather in the NW let Jack try out
his pool and summer wear.

 It took me awhile before I could disassemble 
this tower created by Jack as he carefully stacked
bowls one by one from Grandma's cupboard on Friday.

Poetry Friday: "...never again be so green..."

Michelle Kogan is rolling out the green carpet

with this week's round-up of poetic goodness and 

welcoming Margaret Simon's latest book, Bayou Song.

Be sure to stop by for this delightful interview with 

Margaret and to read several poems and

see the illustrations from the book.

After the first day of summer and the longest day of the year, it seems like we should honor summer with a poem. The poem I'm sharing today is new to me, but these lines resonated with me and seemed made to match the photo I took this past week of a luscious shade of green I noticed while hiking with friends.

" . . . The green will never 

again be so green, . . . "

You can read the entire poem, "More Than Enough" by Marge Piercy at the Poetry Foundation along with other summer poems.

SOL 2018: A Tale of Books Lost and Found!

I join my fellow bloggers in "serving up a slice"

to the Tuesday Slice of Life (SOL) community.

Thanks to Stacey, Betsy, Beth, Kathleen,
Deb, Melanie, Lanny, and Kelsey

 for hosting this meeting place each Tuesday
and nurturing our writing lives.

Please do not judge me harshly, dear reader! I promise that I am usually much more reliable with my books.

My tale begins on Saturday afternoon. After a busy morning, I'm finally ready to spend some time reading. Except, I can't find my book. I clearly remember taking it out of my bag before heading off to run errands (knowing I wouldn't have any time to read then). I thought I had laid it on the kitchen table. It's not there. I search low, I search high, I search downstairs and upstairs, but my current "fun" read is nowhere to be found. It's not like I don't have other books I can turn to, but I really wanted to read this book. 

Fast forward to Saturday evening. I'm preparing a talk about fathers for church on Sunday. I recently checked out and read Enduring Ties: Poems of Family Relationships, but I want to pull another title of family poems off the shelf for reference. When I go to my poetry shelves, right there on top of the shelf is the book I was looking for most of the day. I must have come to this shelf to look for the poetry book (with aforementioned fun title in hand) before I headed off to run errands. First lost book located! And I have time to read a bit before bed.

What's not to love about a book that has the word library in the title, is set in Ireland, and has a main character who drives a mobile library van?

It's Monday evening and I'm rounding up books that are due on Tuesday. One of the titles I can't find is Enduring Ties which I used on Sunday morning when I was pulling together all my thoughts for the talk I would give in Sunday services. I look high, I look low, I look upstairs, I look downstairs. It is nowhere to be found! How is it possible that I've misplaced another book so soon? Finally as I'm heading to bed, I start putting away some clothes and underneath a skirt (that I rejected on Sunday), lo and behold, I find both books of poetry - the one that is due tomorrow (second book located) and the one that I own. 

I head downstairs to put the library book in my book bag and to return the other book to the poetry bookshelf. As I juggle titles around to fit it into a stack of books that is placed horizontally (spines not facing out) on the shelf, I am astounded to discover a lost library book that I paid for a couple of years ago (third book found). So my current dilemma is - do I return the book? (they won't refund the cost after a year) or do I just keep it in my own collection? I'm thinking I'll keep it. It's a good one!

Now if I could just locate the anthology of stories, Between Mothers and Sons, that I've misplaced I would truly be jubilant! 

Celebrate This Week: Boys, Fathers, Grandpas and Books!

Join us each weekend for Celebrate This Week with Ruth Ayres.

When we pause to celebrate, we find the joy.

 

   A week filled with moments to celebrate and remember.

Even though I'm late to the celebration, I'm happy
to pop in with a photo story to celebrate
grandsons, fathers, and one very special grandfather.

Story time at Island Books when
Teddy visited last month 

Playing the xylophone with Dad
at KidsQuest Children's Museum

 Teddy's visit to the zoo last week 

 Jack helping Grandpa open his presents - 
a hiking with kids book, a potholder (with handprints),
 and a board book of The Odyssey 
(one of Grandpa's favorite stories)

 Checking out the whipped cream!

Strawberry shortcake

Summer reading - 
recent holds picked up from the library

My current adult read -
The Library at Edge of the World 
by Felicity Hayes-McCoy
"Told with heart, wry, wit, and charm,...
an empowering story about the meaning 
of home and the importance of finding 
a place where you truly belong."

Poetry Friday: Fathers and Shoulders

Karen who blogs at Karen Edmisten*

 has this week's round-up of poetic goodness. 

Stop by to be filled with "Sustenance" by two poems:
one from Barbara Crooker and one by Karen.

It's that time of year when our thoughts turn to fathers. I love the tender love exhibited by the father in "Shoulders" by Naomi Shihab Nye, as well as the challenge to each of us for what we need to do "to live in this world" and "to do what he's doing with one another".

"A man crosses the street in rain, stepping gently,

looking two times north and south,

because his son is asleep on his shoulder..."

This poem was selected by the Academy of American Poets as a selection for Teach This Poem on Monday of this week. You can access the rest of the poem and the lesson plan here.

Slice of Life: Acquiring a New Habit!

Today I join my fellow bloggers in "serving up a slice"

to the Tuesday Slice of Life (SOL) community.

Thanks to Stacey, Betsy, Beth, Kathleen,
Deb, Melanie, Lanny, and Kelsey

 for hosting this meeting place each Tuesday
and nurturing our writing lives.

It all started with a book! And I don't remember which one, but after finishing it, we went in search of a hat because someone in the book was wearing a hat. Jack has never really liked hats, but I want this to change because he's quite fair and needs protection from the sun. 

We rummaged around in the front closet until we found his winter hat. We put it on and he wore it for a bit.  Then we tried on his summer hat. It immediately came off. (It's one of those fabric bucket hats, defintely uncool.) I decided that he needed a baseball cap. 

So when my daughter and I went to the outlet mall for some pre-birthday fun (my birthday, not Jack's), a baseball cap was on the list. I purchased the last cap on the rack at Carter's. When we got home, I had Grandpa put on his baseball cap. And then we went to the mirror so we could admire Jack and Grandpa in their caps. And to everyone's surprise, Jack left his cap on while he played. 

We wore it to story hour last week. And here's a pic of Jack playing with Uncle John last week, sporting his baseball cap. 

I think, at least for now, Mister Jack has acquired a new habit. 

Celebrate This Week: Nine Things!

1. Technology win! I lost/misplaced my phone. Find my iPhone wasn't working. I googled "find my iPhone not working" and when I found my phone, I checked the settings in iCloud to discover that Find my iPhone had been turned off.  I have no idea how that happened (I think there are gremlins at work here), but I turned this very necessary feature back ON. 

2. Another technology win! I was headed to a movie, I was on the bus (trying to meet up with my husband downtown), and my phone battery was low. Ryan has shown me several times how to use the Low Power Mode feature. I opened up settings, felt overwhelmed, but continued to scroll down, found Battery, and then clicked on that Low Power Mode button. Score! And I did it all by myself.

3. Movie share! We saw Champions (Campeones) as part of the Seattle International Film Festival. If feel-good and family friendly are movie adjectives that appeal to you, watch for this Spanish movie when it comes to a theater near you. It's currently Spain's biggest box office hit of 2018. The real champions are the ten disabled people who make up the basketball team. The director attended our showing and hosted a Q&A after the showing.

4. Assigned reading pages! In order to finish the two books I'm reading for my upcoming book clubs next week, I've assigned myself daily reading goals. So far I've met the goal except for yesterday when I got so absorbed by The Leavers that I kept reading past the 26 page assigned reading and failed to fulfill my 20 assigned pages in The Handmaid's Tale. Both books are tough reads, so I'm looking forward to something lighter soon. 

5. Secret of the Ron Mor Skerry! I'm on page 41 of 90 pages. This is my dessert book when I fulfill assigned reading pages. Kathleen shared this book with me the last time I stopped by the middle school library. It's one of her childhood favorites which she recently located after not knowing the title for years. The novel is the basis for John Sayles's classic film The Secret of Roan Inish (a family favorite).  I'm delighted that Kathleen shared this book with me. I need to finish it this weekend since next week is the last week of school. Who knows what evil may befall me if I don't get it returned?

6. About fifty books off my shelves! Our ladies group at church is having a Books and Brunch gathering this morning. Everyone was invited to bring a book or two to share. I find it difficult to purge books, but when I know that they are going to a good home, it's a bit easier. Downsizing is part of our ten year plan, so I will have to continue this effort. Good to know that I can do it in stages.

7. Grandmas and grands at story time!  Jack and I enjoyed a play date with Natalie and Coleen at Island Books on Wednesday. Good friend Coleen, who now lives in Canada, was in town while Natalie's parents are traveling.

8. Friday fun! I love watching these two have fun together on Friday mornings. 

They made a movie for Teddy at the playground and received a movie back from him.

9.  904th post! Last Saturday's Celebrate post was my 900th post, but it slipped by me. So today I'm celebrating 900+ posts and all the good friends I've made on this journey that began when I timidly joined the Slice of Life challenge with my students in 2012.

Poetry Friday: "From a Country Overlooked"

Kiesha at Whispers from the Ridge

 has this week's round-up of poetic goodness. 

Inspired by all things summer-esque,

she gifted us with a wonderful "Summer Song."

I almost included this poem in my Spiritual Journey First Thursday summer post yesterday. However, by the time I included my musings and pics, the post was long enough. So I saved the poem for today. And I was delighted to find it in the Writer's Almanac archives. Here's a taste of "From a Country Overlooked" by Tom Hennen. Click on the poem's title to read the entire poem.

"There are no creatures you cannot love.

A frog calling at God 

From the moon-filled ditch

As you stand on the country road in the June night.

The sound is enough to make the stars weep

With happiness."

SJFT: Summer!

Welcome to Spiritual Journey First Thursday, a group of friends

who blog monthly about our spiritual journeys. 

Margaret Simon, our host at Reflections on the Teche, 

 has chosen summer as our theme for the month.

Selected lines from your summer posts that resonated with me:

"slowed-down sun-kissed feeling"

"lost in a good book"

"juicy-sweet June days"

"a time of quiet and rest"

"everything . . . awake . . . and flourishing"

"fill my summer to the brim"

Summer is celebrations - my birthday, Father's Day, Fourth of July, Summer Celebration, Mostly Music in the Park, our anniversary, and Shakespeare in the Park
(King Lear & The Merry Wives of Windsor).

Summer is slow time for reading on the deck and making homemade ice cream, for outings with friends and family
and trips to farmer's markets for luscious summer produce, 

for long walks in the woods and

a family camping trip.

How can something so filled with activity also be a slow time?

It's the focus of the activities with time to talk and listen to each other and time to be outside that slows us down and makes us appreciate the long days filled to the brim. Summer gifts us
with possibilities and time to be present for each other.  

"This is the day (or season) which the Lord
hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."
- Psalms 118:24

Even though my life is no longer governed by the school year, I feel a sense of joy as summer approaches and a desire to savor the slow days filled with goodness that make each day a treasure. I'm grateful for the constancy of the seasons and the joy that summer brings. 

Taking walks reminds me to rejoice in our world:

Slice of Life: A Delightful Birthday!

Today I join my fellow bloggers in "serving up a slice"

to the Tuesday Slice of Life (SOL) community.

Thanks to Stacey, Betsy, Beth, Kathleen,
Deb, Melanie, Lanny, and Kelsey

for hosting this meeting place each Tuesday

and nurturing our writing lives.

My birthday celebration started with family on Saturday and three slices of cake from Deru, a local restaurant that makes delicious cakes. Chocolate, coconut, and carrot cake (you have to love that alliteration!). And the three candles? They represent the ones place of this birthday year. You figure out how many birthday decades I've celebrated.

Sunday found me gifted with plenty of chocolate from friends at church and yesterday the fun continued with flowers, cards, texts, FB greetings, gifts, and two meals of the day spent with friends and family - breakfast and dinner. That sums up my very delightful birthday! 

Except that I left out the walk at the park with a friend. We planned that for after breakfast, but it was raining. So we decided to watch a movie instead. We planned to watch "The Man Who Invented Christmas" (something I missed seeing in theaters last winter) which was recently added to Amazon Prime.

However, while looking for the movie about Charles Dickens, we stumbled across "Greenfingers." We were immediately drawn in by leads Clive Owen, Helen Mirren, and David Kelly. And the unusual mixture of gardening and prisoners. I liked this review from Mick LaSalle of the San Franciso Chronicle:  "Succeeds in capturing the movement of a soul from hopelessness to humanity." And at the end, you learn it's loosely based on a true story.

After the movie, the sun had come out and we took that walk in the park. I managed to read a bit in the afternoon, and then it was out to dinner with friends. All in all, a totally indulgent, perfect birthday celebration!

Celebrate This Week: Summer Gifts, Podcasts, & Pics

Join us each weekend for Celebrate This Week with Ruth Ayres.

When we pause to celebrate, we find the joy.

 

   A week filled with moments to celebrate and remember.

I tend to think of Memorial Day as the unofficial beginning of summer. And those thoughts make me think of the unique gifts that summer sends our way. More daylight, more sunshine, meals on the deck, fresh fruits and vegetables, farmer’s markets, Music in the Park, Summer Celebration, and Shakespeare in the Park to name a few. Just thinking of these gifts makes me grateful for this time of year. 

But the gift of summer that I love the most has to be reading! When summer begins, I feel drawn to reading (even more than the rest of the year). I want to sit on the deck with a book and a tall glass of lemonade. PBS has just started a new series, The Great American Read with 100 of America’s best-loved books. You can access the introductory launch episode here. It's a two hour celebration of reading hosted by Meredith Vieira.

I started listening to a podcast this morning at On Being with Krista Trippet - The Power of Words to Save Us, an interview with Marie Howe. I don't know Marie Howe or her poetry. I downloaded the podcast (from May 2017) because I was intrigued by the title. I'm only twenty minutes in, but oh, it's filled with words I love. It's clear from the little bit of this podcast that I've listened to that I need to know Marie Howe and her poetry.  Podcasts like this one are not meant for the car because I need to listen with my notebook in hand. I was headed for a meeting this morning and found myself chanting these words until I was able to jot them down - condensed, economical packets of beauty and grace. After the meeting, I rewound and listened so I could give you the actual quote. "It strikes me that these rituals of ordinary time themselves are a little bit like poetry, these condensed, kind of economical little packets of beauty and grace that carry so much more forward than is obvious." I think that stopping to celebrate each week is one of my rituals of ordinary time. Thanks, Ruth, for creating this ritual for me through our weekly celebrations.

And now it's on to my celebratory pics for the week:

Teddy celebrating his new home

(Friday was moving day.)

Jack and Grandpa at the park

Beautiful sky at Mercerdale Park!

This pic from daughter Sara -

"Enjoying a night of baseball with 

two of my favorite guys!" 

(Grandson Jack's early bedtime
gave me plenty of time to read & nap.)