lulu
Roughly 11 miles from home down a curvy road leading to the woods where the only sounds are bird songs is a special place.
Arriving at this little cottage slows my heart and calms my spirit.
I love walking beneath the arbor where the sweet smell of roses perfumes the air.
All around is a profusion of colorful blooms that last until leaves fall and there is a hint of frost.
They are tended by the same loving hands that know all the secrets of my body.
Carrying outside images in my head, I enter the cottage, take the stairs to the second level and nestle on the massage table beneath a light cover. I close my eyes and a peacefulness washes over me as I await the touch of those hands.
As they begin their work relieving the tightness and tension of muscle and joints, my mind stills.
I breathe. I sometimes cry softly when I remember my brother or a friend or wonder how to resolve a troubling brokenness that from time to time occurs in the family. The hands stroke my hair with understanding.
Two hours fly by and when they are over I am renewed and so appreciative of those tender loving hands that exist in this very special place.
i so appreciate your visit and the comments you leave behind
A few days ago my very good friend called asking if I’d be home for a while. “I need to talk to you,” she said with such intensity that it scared me a little. Imagining all kinds of things I waited impatiently for her to appear at my door.
When there is as much hype surrounding an event as has happened with the block buster show Hamilton, one can only wonder if it is as good as advertised. The answer is an enthusiastic YES! I held off going during its Houston run because the tickets are pricey, but at the last minute there were some single seats available for a somewhat reasonable price, and I bit ending up with a great seat close to the stage.
As the story goes, the creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda, was inspired by Ron Chernow’s book Hamilton. Now, I read the book and while I learned much about Alexander Hamilton and his contemporaries, I got so bogged down in detail that I couldn’t imagine being creatively inspired. Thankfully, Miranda did not have the same response. As a result, he presents American history with a lesser known founding father, Hamilton, as the central character surrounded by the more familiar Washington, Jefferson, Madison and others.
While some clever person actually published a wonderful book of garage sale photos, I’m probably not that ambitious, so I focus on the presentation as if I were doing a shop.
Clothes are carefully organized by style, size and gender. A simple rack the hubby made for me back in the days when I did shows displaying my woven pieces has been invaluable for garage sales.
The same is true for another of his clever creations which works perfectly for arranging accessories.
Household and kitchen goods are arranged just so making it easy for shoppers to see without having to move things around.
Books are always a challenge, and no matter how orderly I arrange them it doesn’t take long for them to be all askew.
At the end of the day most of the stuff is gone, and I feel good about having gotten rid of some of what the girls don’t want to have to deal with. My only disappointment is that this top didn’t sell. Maybe all the stories that go with it mean that it should stay with me for at least one more Christmas dinner!
When we built our house 26 years ago in a style influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, our sanity was questioned.
Here we were in the midst of very traditional homes, many dating back to the 1930’s, and we were introducing a totally different style.
Well, that was then and this is now.
In the last couple of years, new construction indicates a changing taste in architecture.
Since the 1980’s when redevelopment in this area began, decades have been defined by home styles so these may well be the look for the second decade of the 21st century. 
I am glad that our house no longer stands alone when it comes to architectural style. It is reassuring that it is as relevant today as it would have been had it been built in the 1930’s which was our intent. No matter one’s taste in architecture, an important criteria is that it withstand the test of time.
It’s amazing how a few words can sum up what’s in your heart, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need a gentle reminder. These guidelines for a good life are simple. The hard part is remembering to practice them.
My desire in life is to make a difference somehow, some way. That being said, I’m never quite sure how to make that happen. Today I heard a prayer credited to St. Francis and realized that maybe I’m making the challenge harder than it should be. I share his words with you hoping that you, too, will realize that making a difference is not as hard as we sometimes imagine.