05/13/2021

Today is a long awaited day . . .

My bestie is coming and I 

haven't seen her in ever so long!

This got me to thinking about all

the good things I've overlooked 

due to immersing myself so deeply 

in Winter Weather Hate! My bad!

Two sunny days in a row . . . 

me thinks a celebration is in order.

And, when my friend arrives, that's

exactly what we'll have! Still, this

has me thinking . . .

Yesterday, we got to eat out when

we went grocery shopping. An

added treat, our fave restaurant 

makes the best margs ever! Add

to that . . . fab, fab, fab Mexican

food!

Got to see a fun flick once we got

settled in. And it occurs to me, 

these little every day treats are

what life is all about. One doesn't

have to travel abroad in order to

enjoy life . . . and we get to see

the kids this weekend.

so long sir winter

got my positive going

need to drink to that

05/12/2021

Me thinks my guy gets me! 

He's taking me out today . . . 

Pray, Universe bless him!

Seems ever since the plague,

we've been home bound. Our

own get-aways have been to 

go to SAMS once every two 

or three months. They have 

a 7:00 a.m. senior morning, 

so we've figured it's a tad 

less risky.

Speaking of risks, we're

actually going to eat out

today. We haven't seen the

owner in so long that we're

taking her flowers. Depending

on the time, we may even 

have a margarita.

I imagine this plague, as I am

deemed to call it, affects we

oldsters less than it does you

youngsters. I would have to 

say though, it has brought a

renewed joy in the little things.

Someone dropping by, a special

card in the mail, a package on

the doorstep, an unexpected call,

a fab movie . . . It doesn't have

to be big nor expensive to be a

gift . . . 

good things to recall

gifts in all shapes and sizes

wrapping not required

05/11/2021 - SADS

"I wish I could tell you how hard it 

is to live in a world where everyone 

thinks so highly of you, yet all you 

know is what falling apart really looks 

like." ~Stevie Flood

Holding myself tightly, I made it thru

Winter, all the while praying for Spring.

Sobbing in despair, I found Winter had

highjacked Spring and this season I'd

longed for was nowhere to be found.

A reprieve for Mother's Day, and then,

Mr. Winter is back at it. It snowed all

day and everywhere I look, 'tis white.

I walk to the mailbox to pay my bills

and am baptized with its heavy falling.

Alas, there are only six weeks left of

this imposter calling himself Spring.

I pray I live long enough to see a day

in which I can sit outside and maybe

even sip slowly on a margarita!

Here's sending love, peace and hope

to my fellow sufferers of SADS. We

have to make it, one way or another.

so longing for spring

green bits peeking through the snow

will this never end

Diez de Mayo del Año 2021 - Día de las Madres

Tan bellos son mis recuerdos del

Día de las Madres en México. Pues,

ahí nacieron mis hijos, amores de mi

vida.

Recuerdo estando recién embarazada

con mi hijo Luis, mi esposo me celebró 

el 9 de Mayo, el día de las pre-madrecitas,

según él.  Qué lindo!

Mis años en México, de los 17 a 37 años 

de edad, son bellos más allá del más allá!

Bien recuerdo a mis amigas y vecinas con

sus hijos, siendo madres como yo jamás

había visto. 

Abrazos, besos, las acurrucadas cuando 

lastimados y un buen chanclazo cuando 

mal portados. Me acuerdo de las historias

contadas, las sonrisas, el orgullo de las mamás. 

Premios grandes y castigos pequeños, pero

las doña madres amaban como Dios mismo.

Obviamente, las madres en todo el mundo

adoran a sus hijos y darían sus vidas por

ellos. Muy sin embargo, me parece que es 

la pasión de la mujer Mexicana que las 

hace madres tan fenomenales.

Cómo extraño a dichas madres, sus maneras

de ser, las lecciones que me enseñaron, el

cariño manifestado ante el mundo entero.

Rezo para que un día sea yo tan grande de

corazón como ellas . . . las venero!!!

amor de madres

el cariño sin igual

don de los dioses

*Dedicated to Linda Ferreira, she

who healed me in times of sorrow . . .

05/09/2021 - Mother's Day

As I love being a mother, today brings

to mind other mothers that we have

known, loved and must honor.

Mother Mary Teresa Bolaxhiu, honored 

in the Catholic Church as Saint Teresa of 

Calcutta, was an Albanian-Indian Roman

Catolic nun and missionary. She was born

in Skopje. 1910 - 1997. Wikipedia

Mother Frances Cabrini, Italian-American

nun who founded the Missionary Sisters of

the Sacred Heart of Jesus to support fellow

Italian immigrants to the United States. She

was the first U.S. citizen to be canonized as

a saint by the Roman Catholic Church.

1850 - 1917. Wikipedia

Marie Curie, first woman to win a Nobel Prize

and mother of Irene Joliot-Curie who co-won

the Nobel Prize in Chemistry with her husband

for their own work with radio activity.

1887 - 1934. ~Suzanne Raga

Sojourner Truth and her baby daughter escaped

slavery, rescued her illegally sold son and went

on to become a Christian preacher in New York

City speaking about the Bible, abolition and

women's suffrage. 1797 - 1883. ~Suzanne Raga

Abigail Adams, First Lady, single-handedly ran

their farm, wrote letters supporting equal rights

for woman and abolition of slavery, and educated

their five children including future president John

Quincy Adams. 1744 - 1818 ~Suzanne Raga

Irena Sendler, smuggled out almost 2500 Jewish

children during the Holocaust, giving them false

documents, placed them in convents, orphanages,

and Christian homes. Arrested, tortured, sentenced 

to execution, never gave any information about the 

children or her smuggling operation. 1910 - 2008. 

~Suzanne Raga

Esther Veatch Jennings, amazing woman and mom,

dedicated her life to her blind and special needs son

as well as serving her local community in Special

Education Services. Worked for the Atomic Energy

Commission for 30 years, garnering many awards

and much recognition. 1928 - 2016  ~ld Jennings

May we ever honor them, our mothers . . .

loves me being mom

mother mom mum ma mamá

the greatest honor

04/08/2021

Love that my dad named me Linda-Dale.

I tend to see this as Linda, right brain and 

Dale, left brain. And at this point, me thinks 

Linda and Dale are fighting a duel. Added 

to that, I was born a Libra. Fear I may be 

the most unbalanced Libra I've ever known. 

Just found this most comforting piece. Enjoy!

"Balance is key. In everything you do. Dance

all night long and practice yoga the next day.

Drink wine, but don't forget your green juice.

Eat chocolate when your heart wants it and

kale salad when your body needs it. Wear

high heels on Saturday and walk barefoot 

on Sunday. Go shopping at the mall and then

sit down and meditate in your bedroom. Live

high and low. Move and stay still. Embrace

all sides of who you are and live your authentic

truth! Be brave and bold and spontaneous and

loud and let that complement your abilities to

find silence and patience and modesty and 

peace. Aim for balance. Make your own rules

and don't let anybody tell you how to live

according to theirs." ~Rachel Brathen

Sooooo love this. I may end up reading 

it every morning before I begin my days. 

It's brilliant in is conception as well as 

comforting to the soul! Balance! Just

think about it!

pondering balance

succor for body and soul

learning every day

05/07/2021

As I've said before, I truly do make

an effort to live in the now. I would

even confess to doing a pretty good

job of it. But as long as I'm confessing,

I may as well admit to getting quite

wrapped up in anticipation.

A friend of mine is coming in from 

out of town this evening. I pray I

enjoy the day whilst awaiting her

arrival. Silly things enter my mind . . . 

Will it be warm enough to sit outside?

Will it be too warm to build a fire?

I want to make Mexican food, per

usual, but I seem to recall that there

are some things she can't eat. 

I hark back to a somewhat distant

past, wondering if I've always been

like this. Maybe I was; maybe I took

things more in stride. Who knows?!

I find myself wondering if age brings

us to a place where even the smallest

things are enjoyed and treasured?! I

like this. What's the point of life if

we don't enjoy all its nuances?!

Me thinks 'tis about paying attention!

Perhaps, that business in our lives

blinds us a tad and I want to SEE!

ever loving life

take notice its important

stay awhile longer

05/06/2021

'Tis the morning of the day after . . .

 It's sunny out there; let's go out 

and play!

I can just feel a spring day saunter

coming on. That rock shop near my

fave restaurant is calling my name.

And speaking of my fave restaurant,

I'm certain that I must eat there today.

It's been such a long, long winter. It

started whilst we were still in autumn

and has lasted well into spring. Me

thinks we've been taken advantage of

this time around!

So, it's out and about that I need to 

be. I have a list, a list of all that I've

missed out on since our non-existent

spring began. I may even take a few

shekels out of my paltry savings to

celebrate properly.

Me thinks I'll dress up a tad and get

my ass out there. Best part is, my

lover is on the same page with me.

Bet we're going to have one hell of

a day!

I'm so excited I feel a dance coming 

on . . . a jig perhaps!

a day on the town

getting drunk on mister sun

fab weather awaits

05/05/2021 - Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo, an annual celebration

held on May 5. The date is observed 

to commemorate the Mexican Army's 

victory over the French Empire at the

Battle of Puebla, May 5, 1862, under

leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza. 

Wikipedia

I've written about this in years past. 

I have so many things to celebrate;

sooooo love me my celebrations! 

I get as excited as a school kid! 

Obviously, there's the historical 

significance alluded to above.

But for me, Cinco de Mayo is far

more personally sacred than any

political holiday. I honor May 5th 

lo these 40 plus years and so do 

NOT wish to change nary a thing 

in this personal history.

My daughter, my namesake, my

mother's namesake, mother of 

my grandsons . . . ever a queen 

in my very existence.  So, what 

does she bring to the door of my 

heart?

I believe the word I'm looking 

for is connection . . . that etherial

connection within our heritage.

That tie that binds from the great

grands, to the grands, to the parents

to the children, to the grandchildren.

The embodiment of strength, passion,

honesty, pride in her work, a friend,

ever upholding her belief system . . .

my shero. Happy birthday, sweetheart!

Pray she live long upon the land . . .

Deuteronomy 5:16

05/04/2021

Being somewhat of a Nervous Nellie,

I find myself asking the question,

"What does it take to bring a sense

of peace, calm, relief to oneself?"

I went to the bank early this a.m. and

got my affairs in order. I came home,

took care of the mail, dishes, trash,

and then sat by the fire. That's when

it occurred to me . . . I had somehow

settled down in my soul and didn't

feel anxious any longer.

It was telling! Suss out what you can,

what you're able. . . run your errands,

do a few chores. Then, treat yourself 

to something you find relaxing. 

I'm not certain it will always be this

simple, but me thinks it's high time

I try a few ideas on for size! One

thing I find comforting, I'm about 

a hundred years old, and I'm still

learning every single day!

I'll confess though, I do wonder

when the hell this wisdom of the

ages is supposed to kick in?!

loathe anxiety

where oh where to find relief

pray bestow answers

05/03/2021

"March winds and April showers

bring forth May flowers."

~George Latimer Apperson,

Dictionary of Proverbs, 1886

Here was me thinking it was May!

So, I took myself out at o' dark thirty

yesterday and washed down the 

summer chairs outside.

My bad! So, I just might be the one

responsible for bringing down the 

May showers, much needed that they

are.

Having confessed to that, someone

else needs to own up to bringing in

the snow. I want nothing to do with

that!

Here's hoping you are all enjoying

Springtime in the Rockies!

"Rain, rain go away,

Come again another day!"

*Dates back to the reign 

of Queen Elizabeth, 1588

raining or snowing

loving me some weather NOT

will spring never come

~ld jennings

05/02/2021

May has always been a whirlwind 

month to me. 'Tis filled with those

special holidays . . . May Day, 

Mother's Day, Día del Maestro, Día 

del Estudiante and birthdays ahoy . . . 

most important being my mom's and 

my daughter's on Cinco de Mayo . . . 

sooooo fun!

When I was teaching in Mexico,

the teachers used to say, "What's

the point of teaching in May?!" I

get it! We just went from one 

celebration to the next. The kids

loved it!

I find myself pondering, what is

it I want out of May? I have come

to this gut wrenching revelation 

that we've only been existing thru

the past 20 or so months! It's high

time to rise and shine as my gram

used to say.

I want to be reborn with the warmth

of May. I want, nay need, to get out

and about. I look forward to seeing

people, eating together, reminiscing!

What's Mama Nature up to these

days. Me thinks a few long drives

will tell me.

Winter's finally over; Spring never

happened! And, I'm sooooo ready

for Summer. The plague may not

be done with us yet, but we're

finding ways of coping.

Let's get the hell out of Dodge!!!

may day holidays

dancing in moonlight awaits

celebrate live joy

05/01/2021 - May Day

I thought May would never come!

I waited and waited and the time

simply did NOT fly! I so welcome 

May. What are the names? May Day, 

Walpurgisnaht, Beltane! 

I must confess, I'm all about Beltane!

I love the historical background, the

tales out of school, the internationality, 

the celebrations, the spirituality involved!

So, what makes May Day, Beltane? In

reality, Beltane came hundreds of years

before May Day. In Pagan lore, Beltane

is a wondrous occasion commemorated

with total joy!

Circles of women, families and children

celebrate Beltane with music, dancing, 

festivities of every kind. It is the most 

glorious of all Pagan celebrations of 

antiquity.

I find myself wowed by the familial

connections, the likes and the loves 

shared on the occasion. Picnics, special 

foods, decor collected over the year prior. 

May poles of yesteryear, each one out

doing the previous.

Bottom line, we're talking joy, joy of the

ages, joy shared with the now! I like that!

'Tis a rare thing in this day and age, when

we share joy rather than the sorrows of

yesteryear!

Pray, celebrate the joys of Beltane; your

soul will be the better for it . . .

gift felicity

joy is what its all about

celebrate with me