For Certain

Happy Friday everyone! I know it feels like forever and a day I've been at this A-Z Blog challenge, but we're nearing the conclusion so hang in there. Talking to myself now because wow the alphabet has felt especially long this year. 

Today's word comes from one of my lake friends and no we're not related-ha! We do however have many things in common including both of us once upon a time working as speech-language pathologists. We're also members of the same church, have two grandsons very close in age, love to read and talk and play cards and go out for brunch and the list goes on. She reads my blog and encourages me to keep writing, so thank you C for your friendship and the word of the day. 

Day 21-U is for Uncertain

It's a beautiful day here today and I want to think happy thoughts, so I'm going to turn this word on it's head. I can do that ya know.

The word uncertain makes me feel that other 'u' word-uneasy. There are things in our everyday lives that we count on, regardless of whether or not we should, and when the world tilts we aren't quite sure what to do about it. So we freeze.

We wait. We pray. We hope. 

There's a debate in certain communities as to whether or not we can truly know anything for certain, and some will want to argue the point, but I'm a dreamer not a scientist and I say yes. 

Here are a few things I know for certain. Things of which I am absolutely and completely positive. Beyond a shadow of a doubt. No ifs ands or buts. Come hell or high water or quarantine. 

1. My grand babies are sunshine and pure sweetness. 

Please don't even try to dispute it. 

2. I'm going to look older than I feel if the salons don't reopen in the next few weeks. Hopefully I won't have to prove it.

3. We cannot control the actions of others. Only our response to them. 

4. Life can be pared down very quickly to what's most important. 

5. Jesus loves me this I know. For the Bible tells me so.

Happy weekend everyone!

Queen For A Day

Today's word comes from my brother-in-law, and he is something of a joker so I knew to expect the unexpected. When he sent the word he said it was the first thing that came to mind.

Day 20-T is for Tiara

Hmmm...so is he saying when he thinks of me he thinks princess?
Or that I'm a royal pain?

I'm sure it's the first one-ha!

This word will be fun and and since it's Thursday I'm going with the ever popular Thursday Thirteen. Can I come up with a list of thirteen thoughts related in some way to the word tiara but also to me? We're about to find out-

1. We'll start here. This little sign sits on my bathroom vanity and was a Mother's Day gift one year from daughter2. The sentiment is sweet and also true teehee.

2. Next up is the first thing that popped into my head when I read the word. My summer camp friends are nodding, thinking 'no problem' because back when I was young and spent summers as a camp counselor they lovingly (I think?) referred to me as Princess J. Here's the short version of how that came about-

3. Picture summer camp. An idyllic setting nestled into a bluff beside the Chesapeake Bay. Tall trees. An open air chapel in the woods. Dirt. Gravel. Latrines. Troughs to brush your teeth in. You get the idea.

Camp meant shorts and t-shirts and no makeup and your hair pulled back into a pony tail or tucked under a baseball cap, and it definitely meant hiking boots or sturdy tennis shoes on your feet so 'root man' wouldn't get you. I was fine with all of that. I love the outdoors and I love camping and I love spending time in the woods.

The staff were all college students and were given one day off per week, 24 hours to rest and recharge and maybe pop home to see the folks, and on my one day off per week I liked to put on real clothes.

As opposed to camp clothes.

A cute dress. Roll my hair. A little makeup. And my most favorite thing-shoes with heels. I have always loved shoes with heels.

So there I would be, one day a week, in the middle of the woods, wearing a summery dress and heels, walking across the dirt and gravel road to get to my car so I could enjoy my day off. Voila! a nickname was born.

4. The short version was actually not that short so it earned more than a couple of spots on the list.

5.  Moving on...when I mentioned the word of the day to my daughter and asked what in the world I could say about it she said, 'Well you know mom, whenever we play Yahtzee you always write your name as Princess J on the score sheet.' Guilty.

6. If hubs and I ever renew our wedding vows I will be wearing a tiara when I say mine.

7.  I love the cake named in honor of Queen Victoria aka the Victoria Sponge. Strawberry or raspberry jam and cream between two layers of fluffy vanilla sponge dusted with sugar or topped with more whipped cream. What's not to love?

8. I like the music of Queen.

9. I might be slightly obsessed with Princess Kate.

10. When my girls were growing up the favorite board game in our house was Pretty Pretty Princess. They loved it best when Daddy played.

11. The house we rented while living in England was so cozy and was on one of the first housing estates of it's kind outside of London. The house was built in the 1920's and when construction was completed the Queen Mum visited there. Sadly no royals came to stay while we were in residence.

12. I am not a drama queen.

13. Once upon a time I married my Prince Charming.
   
And we lived happily ever after.
The end.

Surviving the Hodgepodge and The Alphabet Too

Welcome to the Wednesday Hodgepodge and the Letter S in the April A-Z blog challenge. Scroll to the end of my post for that last one.

If you've answered today's Hodgepodge questions, add your link at the end of my post then go say howdy to your neighbor. In this season of healthy social distancing it's okay to be social here.

1. What's something you resolved to do this year? Have you done it?

I didn't make any resolutions this year. At least nothing official, nothing in writing. Last year kicked our tails, and I guess if I resolved anything it was to give myself some breathing room, to make space and time for rest and recharge, and to welcome a new year without the pressure of a long list of to-do's. 

We just never know what's waiting around life's corners do we? 

On the bright side, I said to my hubs recently that I feel sincerely rested for the first time in a long while. I have taken time to breathe, nap, daydream, read, write, and create. 

Is anyone talking about what happens when life is back at full throttle and some of us want to stay in low gear?

2. Where do you go to find quietude?

I live on a lake and my porch view is pretty much the definition of the word. As long as nobody sits beside me and reels off their house project to-do list or some such nonsense. Hi hubs! Also, a walk in the woods is good for mind-body-spirit and when I need a time of true quietude I aim my feet there. 

3. A friend asked this question on her Facebook page and said I could borrow it for the Hodgepodge...you're only allowed to buy 5 things at the grocery store, and all must start with the first letter of your first name. Whatcha' buying?

My initial is one of the tougher ones I think-the letter J. 

jellybeans-of course because I've admitted here previously I have a weakness for them

juice-I drink cranberry with a splash of orange most mornings

Jonathan apples-I like all apples and you know what they say about keeping the doctor away.

Jamón-a most delicious dry cured ham from Spain that we all love, plus I need some protein in my grocery cart

Jif peanut butter- because when I don't know what I want I reach for the peanut butter

4. The television show Survivor, the Gloria Gaynor song 'I Will Survive', survival mode, survival of the fittest...pick one and discuss.

I'm going with the Gloria Gaynor song, and will save the discussion for my random thought. Keep reading. 

5. Share a favorite quote or saying about strength.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I'm going to use this space today for my A-Z Blog Challenge word of the day, brought to you by...yup, you guessed it...another sister-in-law.

Day 19-S is for Survive

I know my sister-in-law had something a bit more serious in mind when she chose this word, but I went a little deep in yesterday's post and wanted to lighten things up some here today.  

Does anyone not know all the words to I Will Survive? Can you sing it at anything less than full volume? Do you feel like you could rule the world when you're through singing? 

When I hear this song I flash back to the college years and the angst of young love, broken hearts, and the power of friendship. I was a freshman in college when this song came out and if you watch the music video there is no mistaking the decade. There's someone on roller skates because why not? Hello 1970s! 

Raise your hand if you think the 70's were the absolute best.

Music is a door to time travel and this one opens up to when the world sat waiting at my doorstep. 
To the friends who made me brave when I was young and full of dreams. Friends who were fun and smart and funny, so so funny. Who could be irate on my behalf when irate was what was called for. 

We're back there living in tiny, un-pottery barned dorm rooms sharing electric rollers and too many late night pizzas, playing honest to goodness albums and laughing til we pee as we hold hairbrush microphones to our lips and sing at the top of our lungs.  

One part kid two parts adult, or maybe it was the other way around. 

We lived and loved and grew and changed and we did so much more than just survive. 

We grabbed each other by the hand and ran head long into now. 

Picture Perfect

Happy TuesdaySaturday. This is how we refer to the days of the week in retirement and I think it works for this strange season we're all living in too. If you're looking for the questions to this week's Wednesday Hodgepodge you'll find them in the post before this one, or by clicking here.

Now back to your regularly scheduled A-Z Blog Challenge word of the day. This one comes from my brother-in-law who is a talented musician and a smart guy, so of course he chose a word with many meanings.

Day 18-R is for Resolution

When I hear the word I immediately think of a list of things I want to do to change my life for the better. It's a long list of small things and a short list of large to-dos, but I don't think I'll tackle that today. I liked another definition my brother-in-law reminded me of and that's this one-

'the amount of detail available in a picture or situation.' 

Life currently. 

We are plodding along with our masks and our hand sanitizer and our staying at home and everyone is beginning to feel a bit weary. Some people are more than weary. They're anxious, depressed, angry, and a little bit rebellious. 

We all wonder when life will resume some sense of normality and will that new normal look like our old familiar normal? When will we feel comfortable boarding an airplane, celebrating a wedding in a venue filled to capacity, visiting our parents or grandparents and sharing a meal in person? When will we get a clearer picture of what's happening and what's to come? 

We. don't. know. and we hate that most of all. 

All our lives we're told to 'be present' and 'don't be so busy making plans for tomorrow you miss today'. We're reminded 'to enjoy the moment' and 'savor this season you're in because 'time flies and you'll wish it back someday', even if the day-moment-season you're in is completely exhausting. 

We roll our eyes at cliches thrown our way, all the while knowing there's a kernel of truth in there too. When something feels murky we don't want to examine it too closely or pick it apart and figure out what we might be learning about ourselves and the world around us. We want to put unpleasant circumstances behind us and move on into the future and something better.

We want resolution. 

So often we complain about our lack of time, about the hurried pace of the world in which we live, about too much clutter in our heads. Suddenly we're given what we wished for in the gift of plenty of time, a slower pace, and less 'stuff' taking up space in our brains and now we're not sure if  if that's what we really wanted after all.

We're human and we like making plans. We like looking forward to tomorrow-next week-Christmas. We live with the mostly unspoken assumption that there will be plenty of time for relishing today at some point in the future...when life settles down, when this passes, when things are back to normal...

We are not the boss of time. 

When I thought about the meaning of the word resolution I remembered the black and white television set I grew up watching. It had an antenna and often the screen would be grainy, filled with static and wavy lines that made it hard to see the whole picture. You'd have to move the antenna around to improve the resolution, but it was never perfect. 

 I thought too, about a verse I love in the book of Isaiah...

"Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:" 

God is not restricted by time. His presence and power exist outside of time and He alone knows the end from the beginning. While we like to think we're looking at the big picture, we see only in part.

Our screen is grainy, but God sees with complete clarity time in it's entirety.

In times of stress and uncertainty I rest in the knowledge He is the creator and keeper of the clock, and His picture resolution is beyond compare. 

Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 365

Here are this week's questions for the Wednesday Hodgepodge. Answer on your own blog, then hop back here tomorrow to share answers with the universe. Don't forget to include a link back here so your readers can play along too. Here we go-

1. What's something you resolved to do this year? Have you done it?

2. Where do you go to find quietude?

3. A friend asked this question on her Facebook page and said I could borrow it for the Hodgepodge...you're only allowed to buy 5 things at the grocery store, and all must start with the first letter of your first name. Whatcha' buying?

4. The television show Survivor, the Gloria Gaynor song 'I Will Survive', survival mode, survival of the fittest...pick one and discuss.

5. Share a favorite quote or saying about strength.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Serenity Now

Shhh...

Today's word comes from my sister-in-law (yes, another one), and it's interesting to me how so many of the words I've been given say something about the giver.

Day 17-Q is for Quietude

Maybe not a word I use often, but certainly one I seek. 

To escape the noise in this world and the noise in my head. 

A quiet state. 

                  

Inhale. Exhale. 

                 

Stillness...tranquility...repose. 

We make room in our lives for what matters.

Wishing you moments of quietude in the week ahead.

Positively Grateful

I don't typically blog on Saturdays, but since I'm still rolling through the April A-Z challenge I'll make an exception. Today's word comes from an American friend I met while living in England.

Our daughters went to high school together and we were both involved with Young Life and the American Women's Club so spent a fair amount of time together back in the day. She's a woman of genuine warmth and her faith runs deep. She encourages me to keep looking for that silver lining, and the word she chose suits her-

Day 16-P is for Positive

One thing that helps me stay positive in this topsy turvy world is cultivating a heart of gratitude. Sometimes gratitude comes automatically and sometimes we need to stop what we're doing and take stock. 

During the last A-Z I used Saturdays for making a list of 20 small blessings featuring the letter of the day, and that's what I want to do now. Unfortunately P was one of the letters I made a list for in 2019 so I'm going to have to get creative. 

Can I come up with another 20? I think so, and NO double dipping (aka repeats). You can read last year's list by clicking the link here. 

The letter p and things for which I'm positively grateful-

promises kept

a red ripe plum

poetry

making plans

precious grandbabies

answered prayer

freshly painted walls

purple pansies

possibility 

the perfect shade of polish

peaceful mornings

French pastry

an accident prevented

a field of poppies

my sister P

the letters and wisdom of Paul

a dip in the pool on a warm summer day

crossword puzzles

free parking

a problem solved

What would be on your 'P' list?