Tuesday, September 9, 2008

September 11th - For My Mother

It was February 27th of this year when I received word that my Mother had passed away quite suddenly. My first reaction was to scream, to collapse in a puddle in the floor, and to wonder what I would do without her.

It took a few hours to reach my distraut father and together we faced the terrible truth. She was gone and now the world seemed to be a far more frightening place to be.

It has been several months now and the raw pain has subsided, with her funeral and spreading of her ashes in Oklahoma. My father has managed to pick up the pieces and has found a way to continue living a good and productive life. Even managing to survive Hurricane Dolly a month ago, and now possibly facing the ravages of Ike. But when I asked him if he would leave, he because quite adament about being 90 years old, surviving 4 hurricanes, and even the monster Ike won't make him leave his and mother's home.

Now the date of my mother's birth is fast approaching. September 11th, which was ruined for her after the World Trade Center.... she always said it would never be the same again. I am dealing with a new flood of memories and yes, even a new sensation of loss and pain. This will be the first birthday I can't call to wish her a great day, I can't tell her how much i love her, and I can't tell her how much I miss her... All I can do is hope she hears my prayers at night, and that she knows how proud I was of her, and how much I wish I could of done more.

I am trying now to be much closer to my own dear daughters. After losing my Mom - nothing else seems quite as important as letting my own children know how deeply I cherish and love them. I want to NEVER LEAVE ANYTHING UNSAID and should any of us depart as suddenly as my dear mother, the others will be left with the knowledge that I loved them all the best.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Wow - My First Post on my first Blog... Thanks to my daughter I am finally taking the *BLOG DIP* and hope I don't sink to the bottom.

From the admittedly few blogs that i have read so far, I have learned that a blog is like a internet diary, a way to advertise, geez, the only eccential problem is finding others who will take the time to read what you write. My daughter has told me that i have to read other people's blogs so that they might come to mine, but my dilema seems to be just exactly what to write about that would be entertaining to the masses. Hence the name *Take the Time*.

Due to reasons I'll discuss at a later time, I find myself unemployed and for the first time in my life I have the TIME to look at things that we normally don't have time for in our daily drugery of life itself. SOOOOO... today i will talk about the MIRACLES of my garden, the quirks of nature, and the wildlife that i have the pleasure of seeing from time to time. Perhaps my words might take you on a short journey into a nice quiet place that you haven't had the time to experience in a while.

One of the amazing things about the area where I live is the massive amount of Humming Birds. This area of Tennessee is famous for the red banded humming bird, but i am here to tell you that red may be prodominate but i have seen many males with brilliant emerald green and cobalt blue bands around their necks... they are amazing birds. They aerodynamics are incredible and now after two years of feeding them, they have become quite brazen in how close they will come to me. I spend quite a lot of time outside (still struggling to quit smoking) and they are used to me and will come close enough that we stare at one another eye to eye... their long black sharp beak inches away, but if i even breathe they flirt away to sit upon a leaf of my weaping willow. The bright red feeder sits close to my front porch and the birds feed there all day, as well as flit around my flower garden searching out just the right flower to feed upon. I have a photo that I will share as soon as I figure out how to do it.