During my marriage to my Beloved---me for the second time
and him for the first---he’d mention he’d found out how educational marriage
was. He told me, “With both of us being
teachers, it seems I’m finding out how educational this reunion can be. You’ve taught me: toilet paper is best replaced when the roll
is empty; grocery shopping is to be done on Sunday through Thursday with a list
and full stomach; and even there is a right way to put a carton of milk in the
fridge!” Well, bless his heart.
Aint Daisy was on her porch rocking and humming. “Good afternoon, Aint Daisy. It’s good to see you and hear you humming,” I
said as I stepped up on the porch. “Do
you mind if I sit a while and enjoy your company?” I asked. “Oh chile, you jes come on up here and set
down next to me. I like havin’ you here,
too.” We chatted for a while, rocked,
listened to the “critters” run about, and birds sing. I noticed a plate of home made cookies on the
little table. She saw me look at
them. “Well, are ye a-wantin’ one or
two, or are ye jes gonna look at ‘em, Chile?”
She asked with a chuckle. I told
her I was a little hungry and would like to have two. She looked at her watch and saw it was going
on 4:00. “Oh my lands!! It’s a-goin’ on supper time. You come on in and have a bite with me. I’ll bring the cookies, too,” she said as she
started opening the screen door. I
followed her and asked if I could help her in the kitchen. She gave me some things to do and told me to
“set down right cheer in this chair”.
I’d set the table with all the necessary things and sat down. She had macaroni and cheese, stewed tomatoes,
green beans fixed the best way---her way, and some home made cinnamon apple
sauce. “Oh Aint Daisy, this is one of my
favorite meals. Thank you for going to
the trouble of fixing this delicious food and for sharing with me. You are so kind,” I said to her. She smiled and told me, “Ain’t no trouble at
all, sweet girl. I like yer company. There are two old sayin’s---Share and it
comes back to you ten-fold; and friends who plant kindness gather love.” “I couldn’t agree more, Aint Daisy,” I told
her. Ahh, more wisdom from The Lady of
the Holler.
I went over to Brenduhh’s house to borrow a hammer I needed
quickly. She came to the door after I’d
rung the bell about 4 times. “Hey girl,
I need to borrow a hammer real fast. I
hope you can find it,” I said in a hurry.
“Yes, come on out in the garage.
I know right where it is,” she assured me. Well, we got out there in what I call “the
den of inequity” due to all the stuff she has out there. Lordy, I think a mouse would get lost trying
to find some bait. She pulled out things---talked
about them; lifted others---talked about them, too; moved something about 6
times after explaining its history, then finally found it. It took about 10 minutes. Remember I said I needed it quickly? Brenduhh doesn’t know what “quickly” means. I think if she’d gone any slower a sloth
would beat her in a race or she operates in reverse. Maybe it’s both.
I’m not a gad-about----someone who goes out a lot. I enjoy staying home; after all, we/I worked
hard to pay for it, and it costs to live/be there whether I’m there or
not. I enjoy the “fruits of our/my labor”. My “gypsy” daughter thinks I need to get out
more and go more places. At 78 years
old, I need to have restrooms close by and able to use one sooner than someone
who is 50. I told her I DO leave the
house at least 5 times a week to take her niece/sister to work about 2 miles
away. Her measured retort was,
“Wow!! Soon you’ll have to resole your
shoes!” She’s such a smarty pants.
Last winter on a cold, rainy week-end, a 40-something friend
asked me what I was doing during the week-end. I told them,
"Sweetie, I'm 77 years old; arthritis is taking residence in my
joints. I wrapped myself in fleece and heating pad while I nibbled on
dark chocolate M&M pieces."
Mr. and Mrs. Zippah had twin
daughters Teeh Doodaah and Teeh Dayh.
They always were together, even in the same classes in school. Finally, the principal had to intervene. They were placed in separate classes. It seems the original teacher had a lot of
difficulty calling roll, not laughing, and then maintaining discipline
afterwards. She always called the
students’ names last to first. It seems
the students, after the girls’ names were called, would burst into song. She said, “Zippah, Tee Dodaah; Zippah, Teeh Dayh.” The students would sing out, “My, oh my, what
a wonderful day. Plenty of sunshine
heading my way….”, get up, clap and dance.
Brenduhh came over all bandaged, bruised, and walking slowly
due to pain. “What in the world happened
to you?” I inquired. “Well, I was crossing the road and stopped to
admire some clouds. There was a tiny,
tiny truck coming toward the intersection I was standing in.” “Why didn’t you get out of the way?” I asked
incredulously. In the typical Brenduhh
thinking she said, “Well, when I saw it, it wasn’t all that big, but when it
got to where I was, it grew so big I didn’t have time to move out of the
way!” “Hmm, imagine that!” I said.
I admire those who spoke another language first and then had
to learn English. The English language is moderately difficult with
Chinese being the most difficult. With that said, imagine what it would
be like to try to learn English by just reading it. I look at the
"ough" words. That sound has "uff (as in tough)",
"Oh" (as in dough), "aw" (as in thought),
"ow" (as in bough), "oo" (as in through),
"off" (as in cough), "up" (as in hiccough).
Then there is YACHT. Looking at the way it's spelled, it should be
pronounced "YAH-CH-T"; but, it is pronounced "YAH-T".
Another is CWM, pronounced "COOM". I think I'd give up about
then.
I saw a message on the Department of Illinois Transportation
sign. It said, “Texting and driving is
never wreck amended.” What a great play
on words.
A friend was having a difficult time adjusting to a sad happening in their life. The showed me this: What’s done is done, What’s gone is gone. One of the best life’s lessons is learning how to let go and move on. It’s okay to look back at your memory but never let the past stop you from moving forward.
I told them this was true; however, one
needs to stop and rest when moving forward. Thus, reflection on fond memories
revitalizes and comforts, which promotes more forward action.
I was walking in the woods surrounding my
house. I saw a tree which had
encapsulated a small, brick chimney. I
knew trees would do this to anything in the growth area. I thought maybe it was an abandoned Keebler
factory. I walked around the tree
looking for cookies. There were none to
be found. I guess the elves ate them
all.
I had a phone call from a fella who, with
a very pronounced East Indian accent tell me his name was Tom. He asked me how I was and told me he wanted
to talk to me about my medical coverage.
I told him, “I’m very angry. First,
your name is NOT Tom. It’s a name with 17
or more letters in it. Second, I have
asked that my name be removed from the call list, and obviously it hasn’t. Third, I promise if you call me again I will
talk to you about your car warranty!!”
He hung up. Imagine that.
If Bobby Flay of the Food Network had a daughter, I think he
should name her Sue.
When one of my five children was young, they had
misbehaved. They needed to be redirected
in a positive way so their self-esteem wouldn’t be compromised. Well, that’s what a well-known psychologist
wrote in their book. I call it
“disciplined”. The child argued as I
told them, “Kindly put your buttocks on the third step of the stairs.” The kid looked at me and said, “What??” At that point, I became irritated and
snarled, “Go put your butt on the step and stay there before I smack it!!” They understood that statement for some
reason.
“Some cause happiness wherever they go; some whenever they
go.” Oscar Wilde
Peace and smiles to you for another month. Trudy 😃
