by Kat | Apr 14, 2023 | All in the Family, General, Museum of Me
Welcome, welcome!
This month’s prompt asked about what old, worn out thing can we not part with… I have thought long and hard about this post… and I am twisting it about a bit. Rather than worn out, I have found the well-worn… as in well-worn memories. (and it is especially relevant this month!)
Most exhibits in the Museum of Me all exist in the deep pools of my memories… well-worn and much loved memories, but not memories that I reminisce over regularly. But then something triggers those memories and they float to the top of the pool when they shimmer on the surface, lingering in the most wonderful way.
This month is one of those Memory Triggers for me…always in April my thoughts turn to my maternal grandfather… who loved poetry. He did not just love poetry, he memorized poetry and recited it often. He loved to talk about poetry, he loved you to ask questions about the poems he read and recited.
When I was a little girl, I can remember him reverently reciting Joyce Kilmer’s Trees and wondering if he was praying. My grandpa especially loved two poets… yes, Joyce Kilmer but also Carl Sandburg. He read other poets, but he memorized the poems of Kilmer and Sandburg.
My grandpa frequently quoted Sandburg poems, Fog and When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d. I did not realize until I looked up Lilacs how long it was and I am not sure if my grandpa knew the whole thing, but I remember hearing many of the verses.
Like Kilmer, my grandpa was a man of profound faith and later in life when MS ravaged his body, his recall of Kilmer’s Prayer of a Soldier in France had new meaning for him. I remember many discussions with him about how MS might defeat his body, but it would not defeat his attitude… and it would never take his faith.
Now my days start with poetry… and I can hear my grandpa asking “what took you so long?” Reading poetry is something that I have come to love and it is something that connects me to my memories of him… and occasionally, those memories rise to the surface and I feel that connection even more.
My grandpa… in the back… the only one looking at the camera!
Thank you for stopping and reliving some of the memories of my grandfather with me!
See you all back here on Monday!
by Kat | May 31, 2019 | All in the Family, General, Looking Back
May has felt unbelievably long to me – at times it has felt like it has been on pause with the days running into one another. While I know and am trying to remind myself that there have been plenty of very good May days they seem to have been drowned out by the very challenging days of unexpected expenses, arguments, and upsets.
As this month closes, it feels like it has been ages since I was in Michigan – so, I am sending May out the door with a pictorial reminder of just how wonderfully it started:
Have a great weekend and I will see you back here on Monday!
P.S. A dear reader shared the most wonderful link with me this week which is perfectly timed to help us start PRIDE month. I did not know that 73% of the LGBTQ community have been harassed online due to their sexual orientation/gender identity. If you want to share this link with friends, please feel free to do so! No one should feel at risk or harassed ever.
by Kat | Dec 18, 2018 | All in the Family, General, In This Moment
Sometimes, last minute and entirely unexpected Christmas knitting are the best moments of the day.
A phone call with my son last night sparked this knitting and it warms my heart!
I think can get these done today so they can go in the mail tomorrow…at least that’s the plan!
by Kat | Feb 6, 2018 | All in the Family, General
…this amazing baby was born! It was cold and a blizzard was raging as we headed off to the hospital. But, Rachel was a bright ray of sunshine as she entered our lives!
I am bursting with pride at what the incredible woman she has become and at what she is accomplishing now. She started her own business last month and is knocking out of the park.
She is so smart! And, she is fierce and mighty! She truly can do anything. How do I know this? Just look at her!! (She is in front in the hot pink leggings…go Rachel!)
Happy Birthday, Rachel! I love you so much!
by Kat | Feb 6, 2017 | All in the Family, General, In This Moment
Do you think the weekend just flew by, or Is it just me?
Friday happy hour started early (as it has been since Hair Hitler has taken office). Steve also hooked up a new PC for me – so there was all that “transfer” stuff that goes on with all of that. There are still things not on the new PC yet.
Saturday was “Outlet Mall Retail Therapy” Day. I will say one thing, dieting is definitely not good for the clothing budget.
Sunday I cast on MKAL Sock #2, but I did not get it completed, however the cuff is done! We watched the Super Bowl (Steve watched until the end of regular play – I did not make it that long.) I was thrilled to wake up at 2am-ish and discover the Pat’s had pulled it out!
And, today is the birthday of one very special woman – my Rachel is 28 today! This is one of my favorite photos of her with her siblings – Rachel is in the middle. Happiest of Birthday’s dearest Rachel!
Have a happy Monday all!
by Kat | Sep 15, 2016 | All in the Family, General, Words
I had been so filled with joy in emptying out boxes and sorting through things from my move to Pittsburgh.
Really.
Overflowing with joy!
There were things that were easy to either move on to a new home or get rid of because if you have not used something in 3 years, you probably don’t need it right?
However, I moved here with LOTS of things from/for my kids. Things they made. Things I made for them. Things I loved dearly and that sparked such amazing joy.
If something sparks joy, Marie says it’s a keeper and this stuff sparks joy and then some! However, would they spark more joy in my children’s homes now?
Two Year Old Hands carefully stitched.
I had to take a step back and reassess my Konmari process. There are things that Marie Kondo had left out of her amazing little book. She forgot about the Saudade items – those things that bring deep, nostalgic, and melancholic longing for a time that will never return.
So, I have begun a box or two that will go with us when we visit my kids at the end of the month. The sorting process has gone rather slowly as I have worked through the challenging task, and it has been filled with bittersweet memories and a wistful longing for days gone by.
I am going to need more Kleenex™ to get through this.
Save
Page 1 of 612345...»Last »
