Live And Become

I went to a touching movie last night “LIVE AND BECOME”.  This was a story of a nine-yr-old Ethiopian boy escaping to Israel. It is the story of how he survived leaving his mother behind and adapting to the Jewish culture as an adopted imagrant.  His conflict surfaced  for his convictions and pain of loss.  This really instilled in me a desire to look at matters of the heart.  What are my interpretations of my faith?  Who is my G-d?  How can I make my relationships connect with matters of the soul?

This made me realize the struggle we all are going thru to survive.  What will a mother do to save her child?  In this movie she gave him away so that he could LIVE.  He BECAME against all odds a surgeon and eventually went back and saw his birth mother as a field doctor.

 The relationship he had being raised Jewish and not understanding who he was. This became a constant inner conflict.  Who am I?  Why am a different than everyone who is "white"?  He still had human emotions.  He wanted to LOVE .  He was unsure how to LIVE.  He released  his pain by praying every night, by looking at the moon and somehow connecting with the soul of his distant mother.  Tragedy produces all types of defense mechanisms for survival.

We have to stay connected with the warm felt memories from lost love.  We are all looking for a semblance of love.  We all have a desire to know G-d.  We look to Him in our greatest need.

He expressed his pain so beautifully by saying it was as though he had been taken away and lost or stolen and dropped into a large thorn bush.  The stickers could not be removed the harder he tried the worse it got.  The pain was particularly cruel underneath his fingernails.  He could not remove the “STICKERS”.  Is not this the way broken dreams of the heart from lost love and earthly relationships affect us?.  We cannot see the “stickers” that are underneath our skin.  The Hurt is unbearable.

Pain only goes away when we can release and love again.  He had a new baby to encourage and show love.  His heart must be stretched to reach beyond its limits. The family he was forming needed emotional stability.  The future of his family depended on his emotional strength, not merely his surgical skills.

His history remembers pain, the isolation from his mother in Ethiopia, without food and water, seeing death at every turn.  He witnessed  his own siblings dying before his eyes and somehow feeling responsible for their death.

He Lived to become a lover.  He is a champion of triumphing over adversity and conquering pain thru continuing to live and LOVE again.

 As we are remembering the history of the Holocaust today on January 27 it is a good time to look at love and hold dearly those things that are close.   We learn how people  survive tragedy and those who helped become heroes.   

Conflict, like in the movie, produces new bonds where love can become evident.

The pastor at Le Chambon, André Trocmé(pictured left with his family) challenged his small flock with this very issue of who was their neighbour.

We must look for stories that portray how people care and love to rescue the perishing.  We can look for opportunities to help heal “hurts” when we read stories that inspire us to greatness.  This is one such story written below about a town in France.  I particularly loved it because my grandmother came from Marseilles France.  We  connect our heart to others in the hope that we will respond with such great LOVE.

On Holocaust Day: Remembering a French Village "Where the Most Remarkable Expressions of Love" Were Sacrificed in WWII

Teresa Neumann (January 27, 2010)

As Holocaust Day, January 27, is noted, an historian says: "A small community of Protestant Christians, descendants of Huguenots, were faced with a choice that would challenge the very essence of their faith. Would they live what they preached or would they put their own safety first?"

(France)—Somehow, stories of faith and heroism resonating from WWII continue to inspire us. Perhaps it is because we are still connected to the war by parents and grandparents who fought in it. Perhaps it is because in our times of tribulations there are more lessons to be learned from those who encountered similar trials before us. 

Case in point: Le Chambon sur Lignon, a small village in south central France set on a plateau high in the mountains. It is where, according to reporter Russel Bowles, one of the most remarkable expressions of love of the whole war occurred when the Christian inhabitants defied the Nazi occupation and provided a safe haven for thousands of Jewish people—many of them children. No Jew that requested shelter was turned away.

As reported in Inspire Magazine, it was the pastor at Le Chambon, André Trocmé, who challenged his small flock with the question of who their neighbors were in the Biblical context. Soon, the small flock—risking their lives to do so—began taking in Jews.

According to the report, eventually the pastor and his assistant Edouard Théis were arrested. "However, amazingly, they were released before they were due to be deported to the east. The Gestapo also arrested the Pastor's cousin, Daniel Trocmé, and he died in Majdanek extermination camp."

"Bad as these events were," writes Bowles, "it seemed that the Almighty had His hand of protection on the village, for in all about 5,000 Jews were sheltered when the Nazis were leaving no stone unturned elsewhere in their pursuit."

What is your House Built on ?

     This story from NBC news(see article below) really hit home. My occupation as an Interior Designer affects the way people live and how their homes reflect their family “likes and dislikes”. 

      It is so much more than taste. It is about quality of life. What picture do we portray?
We work so hard to get our rooms looking “just right” and a child has a friend over and everything is askew! Family ties and relationships we share with each other are so much more lasting than the “perfect room”.  Do we really care about the people who sit in the linen chairs putting the puzzle together?
     It is so true what it says in the Psalms about how we build a home. It refers to the fact that “unless the LORD build the house we labor in vain”. The “things “ we acquire to take up “space” in the rooms we live in are not nearly as important as the people we TREASURE who occupy and congregate in the ROOMS.
     This dad in the story built family time that will last when all the ROOMS TUMBLE.
Underneath the rubble he had built a lasting foundation with his kids that will last far longer than the “latest home DECORE”.
      May we all take a closer look as situations crumble and fabrics “wear out” and get up close to the “ones we love”. If we were inside your FAMILY ROOM what would we VIEW?



Buried in Haiti rubble, U.S. dad wrote goodbyes
But with iPhone info, he treated his injuries and was rescued after 65 hours


The words on the pages of the plain black notebook are written in a semi-scrawl, punctuated by smears of blood — stark evidence of the desperation in which they were written.

Sitting with his wife, Christina, in Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital, Dan Woolley showed the notebook to TODAY’s Meredith Vieira via satellite hookup Tuesday. Trapped for 65 hours under tons of wreckage in the lobby of his hotel by Haiti’s Jan. 12 earthquake and knowing he could die, Woolley had written notes to his two young boys and his wife.

“I always wanted to survive, but I knew that was something that I couldn’t control. So I decided if I had to go, I wanted to leave some last notes for them,” Woolley said. Opening the book and fighting his emotions, he read an entry he addressed to his sons, Josh, 6, and Nathan, 3:

“I was in a big accident. Don’t be upset at God. He always provides for his children, even in hard times. I’m still praying that God will get me out, but He may not. But He will always take care of you.”

‘Boy, I cried’
Woolley had taken refuge in an elevator shaft, where he used an iPhone first-aid app to treat a compound fracture of his leg and a cut on his head. He had already used his digital SLR camera’s focusing light to illuminate his surroundings, and taken pictures of the wreckage to help find a safe place to wait to be rescued — or to die.

Writing the notes to his wife and children wasn’t easy, the deeply religious man said.

“Boy, I cried,” he admitted. “Obviously, no one wants to come to that point. I also didn’t want to just get found after having some time — God gave me some time — to think and to pray and to come to grips with the reality. I wanted to use that time to do everything I could for my family. If that could be surviving, get out, then I would. If it could be just to leave some notes that would help them in life, I would do that.”

Woolley had been working for Compassion International, a mission organization, making a film about the impact of poverty on the people of Haiti. He and a colleague, David Hames, had just returned to the Hotel Montana in Port-au-Prince from a day of filming when the earthquake struck.......
finish reading -- http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/34933053/ns/today-today_people/

Ready, Set, Go!

 

This has been an interesting week. I have learned a lot about interpersonal relationships.

I manage a crew of around 5 on a given day for a design installation.  The challenge comes when one of the people does not carry their weight.   My husband gave me a wonderful sense of encouragement on Monday morning as he read from the Message Bible “Don’t fret or worry.  Instead of worrying, pray.”  It went on to say “let G-d know all your concerns.  Before you know it, it is a sense of wholeness, everything coming together for good,  will come and settle you down.”

  This was going to be a great Monday, as  a builder called me to have us “stage” 2 of his homes, one he took in on a trade and another of his $5million custom homes he had built, to help clear out his present inventory.  This seemed to be a “match made in heaven” I am trying to “let go” of  furniture from “previous relationships” -  a furniture affair!

      This “match” had a few added pieces to the puzzle.  Some of the furniture was already happily “arranged” in another home.  How would it be  “broken up” and split between 2 households?  Would it work and have the right sense of arrival? Rooms, like people, talk and make a statement. The timing of the day was essential.  We had 3 houses to do, one to undo , a warehouse pick up, and 2 new houses to stage.

  I am so glad I am only moving furniture and not people with emotions and children with broken hearts form one parent and home to the next.   My frustrations come from unheaded worry about how “things will work out” and nothing will be broken, missing, or not fit. Will my crew be  responsive to the day?

Are they READY to GO?

    I love and hate cell phone communication.  I love it when I get the call from my married son in San Franscico saying “I made the Presidents Club”.  I hate it when I get the call from the driver and he is LATE.  I am ready to go.  How many times have we made people wait?  I say no problem. I know the traffic is bad on Monday morning, so will you be there in 20 minutes?  “Sure”. I settle into a hassle free day knowing I can go to the warehouse and sort thru the necessary components for the “rooms”. 

      The next call: “I am here but I am LOST”.  This is over an HOUR LATE.  I say “did you get a map from the guard at the gate?”  “No”. he says. I say “where is the map with the lot numbers I gave you?”  At this point everything my husband has said to me has gone out the window. Worry changed to ANXIETY.  Now all I need is another “call” saying they have no room in the truck for all the furnishings.   Sure enough, the CALL came “we don’t think it will all fit”.  I was near breakdown but I knew that I had to reach into that place hidden inside and pull up those  BURRIED TREASURES… PEACE  JOY & FAITH.

     I had done these moves many times and they always worked out.  The furniture like relationships change and move but the lasting ones work and stay with you . 

    What else could go wrong with this wonderful blue- sky- filled Monday?  We were already LATE and LOST.   What next??

       I get the CALL they were leaving the gated golf community and I could meet them at the next house, the NEW HOUSE.  I must start being excited to see where all  the pieces from the “past relationships” would fit.  It is just like meeting people for the first time. You are not sure how they will like you and the other way around.  There is excitement mixed with apprension.  I had everything I needed for the first trip so I better go and MEET AND GREET my CREW.  The next truck could get anything I forgot. My nerves were calm, my heart was steady, SET to GO. 

        By this time I had prepared to take the crew cookies and chocolate for the explosive phone conversation…after I lost it, like when your husband brings you flowers when he comes home LATE!   I was really “settling into the words of Paul read from my husband to START my day,  I  like NIKE,  JUST WANTED TO DO IT!!

          I turned on the key to my car - not a sound,  not even an engine grind.  Oh my, the BATTERY is DEAD.  I must REJOICE IN ALL THINGS, but this was getting ridiculous!!  I truly had seen the CALM before the storm.  My warehouse is next to several people who could help me “jump” the car.    I needed a JUMP START TODAY!!

   I finally arrived at another beautiful European Villa, LATE but not LOST.   I  realized this day would turnaround.   I  turned it over to prayer.  IT  is like LOVE and MARRIAGE. They do stay together when we work on keeping our BATTERY CHARGED.

     I will write next week on how the houses turned out and perhaps include some pictures.  One thing for sure, the G-d that loves me watches over me.  He is NEVER LATE & LOST and always EVER READY TO HELP!!     

Box Office Hit

  Well. I will tell you something about a great night out.  Have you ever gone to something based solely on a recommendation from someone else.  Or better yet a movie review that made you believe it would be better than the “Titanic”, after all it was the same director & producers.  $200 million in one week - surely this would be a great pick for a Saturday night flick.

  Since we live rather close to the theater  I thought a brisk walk would be fun to start our “date”.  This would give us time  to talk about what we were going to see.   Sometimes this is our only time to play catch up &  find each other.  Emotions tug and our hearts break when we don’t find each other.   Walking clears the air and opens communication.  Blue skies clear our cloudy days!

     There was a shift  in the barometric atmosphere as plans changed.  Alone I ran across the golf course to the mall where the theater is located.  I averted snow showers and ”freezing” heart conditions with warm thoughts of popcorn.  So much for a nice walk to start our date! 

      He hurried ahead to save 2 seats in the middle.  He was fearful they would “sell out” early, since this was such a box office hit.  I acquiesced and bought the bait.  It happened the other day when I let him take me out to dinner because of a coupon he had.  I should have remembered he never told me the menu.  I trusted his taste.  I walked into the movie to “will call” picked up my ticket not even sure of the name of the movie.  Was it Atomizer, or Aviation, oh, I know, Avant Guard.  He hands me the ticket it reads AVATAR.   I thought it would be a romantic love story that would make me tear up over the thoughts of seeing an actor like De Caprio.  This would be a great escape. 

   As I joined him center seat, like he said, I braced myself for romance and laughter, perhaps a step back in time.  I think that is why we are always decorating homes after a place we have so often never been.  We somehow get to dream we are in Provence or Tuscany instead of where we are.

      As the movie opened  I realized we were in some scientific lab with far out ideas about changing brains and places.  We were being thrust into the Future.  I wanted to be some place other than in the land of Pandora . Avatar got my attention all right. I never liked Jurassic Park - I shut my eyes the whole time!  Sci-fi I detest, give me a doctor like Dr. Zivago.  I am not drawn to GI Joe in some  techni-colored Vortex.   I know there will be after market dolls that my grandson will hug.  After all his mom had an ET doll.   Another movie not high on my favorite list.  These movies confuse spiritual issues making the reality of the ONE TRUE G-D a  myth.   See the movie review "Plugged In"  http://www.pluggedin.com/movies/intheaters/avatar.aspx and you can further decide if this is great food for a child’s soul. We all want to cuddle and embrace something thinking this will FIX our pain.

      People are looking for a justification for the messes we  and our world are in.  We want something to hold and value. We want the gods to come down and fix things!

 I looked up the meaning of the word Avatar in the Webster’s Dictionary to discover why I felt uncomfortable with the content.  It stated this fact of incarnation by the god’s.   The central theme of this movie was based on a Hindu concept where the god’s come down in bodily form to the earth.  The worship of the EARTH in the movie was mesmerizing.  A true departure from  worship of the LIVING G-D.

    We are always looking for an imaginary land to move to, a place where everything will be better.  I have embraced the one true G-d concept central in the Bible.  When you study the Pentateuch a warning is pronounced to have NO OTHER gods besides ADONAI.  As a child I discovered this and sought to know HIM,   He grew real BIG inside of me.  My world changes because He changes me. 

     Life teaches us lessons. The book of Proverbs talks about man planning his way but the LORD directs his steps.  We have wonderful building blocks if we will apply them in every area of our family life.  Our communication strengthens as we grow in HIS LOVE language.  

     So am I a romantic by not wanting to save the “trees”?  I want to save lives that are slipping and connect them to purposeful living and meaningful relationships.  I want to hold on to life and enjoy the pleasures that a precious baby bring. I want children to dream big because G-d is dreaming big in them.

    Live dreams thru loving life. Allow the G-d that holds the universe in place to complete His plans and purposes in you.

    Francis Bacon said, “A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.” 

    I am yet to uncover all the mysteries in this world.  Just like in the movie as they were discovering how to see their world thru the forest’s eyes, I too am so sensitive to my CREATOR.  I am beginning to have HIS EYES AND SEE AND FEEL LIKE HIM.   Am I really from another planet?

Invisible Resolutions.

 This week is a time for reflection and a closer look at those things that are hidden from VIEW. It is a time to work on resolutions.  The first of the year make us look at personal choices, weigh-ins and work outs.   A resolve and determination to take action for the future.  I always love to get a new calendar and planner.  I am determined to use my iCal this NEW YEAR!  At least it is in the forefront of "my intentions".    Have you ever thought about "good intentions"?  What is behind them?  Are you doing them to impress someone or does it make you feel like a better person than you "know you are"?  I have really been  introspective the last few days,  year end inventory control.  The reassessment has left me with some unanswered questions that have prompted this post.

  The design principle to re examine is "unity".  This is the sense that everything in the SPACE is in order.  All the objects have a certain "feel" and balance .  We like to say everything "belongs in the room".  We usually unify a room by repetition of pattern or color using the "same element"  to create a STYLE.   All the pieces work together in the room.  One piece does not compete for attention.  They work together!  Harmony.  If life and relationships could be so easy as furniture placement.

    Let's go into our own living rooms and sit awhile.  Where is the wall sconce out of balance? It is like we are hanging around the wrong room of "friends".  Why do we wreck the design harmony by being too dimly lit or to garish and obvious.  I love great design that is understated, yet important.   Each element speaks.   I want to unify the room with pure heart intentions.  So often I have been like a fixture that is out of place.   This year  I resolve to hang out in the "right rooms".   I don't want to go into those rooms of "regret" again.

     Now, I am not in the New Year yet so I must confess a little room of regret.  I want to know the "WHY" behind my "DO".  

   When I go to the store  a preoccupation with the latest "gossip" headlines grabs me.  Why is there so much intrigue with someone else' s mistakes and failures?   I really hit a wall today as I thought of how  a world famous and dearly loved "golf icon" could tumble so hard.   Humpty Dumpty had a great FALL.  I read in USA Today on December 15 09  how the "tiger" talked about  his eye surgery for the TLC Laser Eye centers.  His invisible handicap came into full view.   The website had a recorded message : "Hi, this is Tiger woods.  For years, I played golf with an invisible handicap.  Invisible to everyone but me." Woods says.

     We have many invisible handicaps that we can only "SEE".  I guess if you're like me it must make us feel  a "little better" than who we are reading about.  I can sneak the chocolate as I pay.  Later I  pay again when the jeans are too tight!   It is time to bring to light the things that are hidden so the invisible handicaps do not cost me.  

     This years resolution : let's unify the design style in our rooms.  We can make everything brand new again.   We can determine to know the G-d who made the universe and all the elements that make for GREAT DESIGN.   He is watching our moves.  He makes our invisible visible.  The place to begin is to  keep HIS  number one commandment.  How do we really love Him with our whole heart?  We begin by obeying the "little nudges" to do what He says.  We must not only do as Adonai directs but also FEAR Him this coming Year.  Invite Him  into your own living rooms.    He will make a visible difference!

 

CHERISH the gift

         

      As I scurry to this store and that one wondering what is in sight.  I look at my list and say "oh no, this is not a welcome delight!!"   We do not have some of  these,  Swiss cheeses to make the holiday  fondue.  I decided to  send my husband to the store. Not a welcome sight!   Three cell phone calls later,  I ponder the day and say oh e ve!   What kind of french bread?   I try to not yell at him on the phone so all the bystanders will hear.   

     How can French bread be so complicated?  He says there are 4 different kinds. I say "just get the one that looks right".   "You have to feel it and make sure you can cut it easily", I say.  I know men are from Mars and women Venus, but this is ridiculous.   All I want is some wonderful French bread.  The kind you cut in cubes for the fondue.  We are only beginning the list - one store and three to go, oh no!   

        Family time used to be so easy when mom was in the kitchen with help nearby.  Now with our busy workloads we "job share".  I thought the grocery would be a welcome delight, as plenty of samples to tantalize the war-torn knight. 

        I am married to a wonderfully complex man.  The best of him comes out  at the grocery stores.  He is a bond trader.   I, on the other hand, am a blond designer.  Further explanation not needed.  I thought this expedition would run smoothly.  I even wrote neatly. I tried to categorize by store. Today I even took the cookbook out to show him the pictures.  I want  "baby carrots"  with the green on the ends.   I am a visual learner; this seemed sensible.  Facts, like the price out way the picture.   He says"so how am I going to find a boneless leg of lamb this size?".  What will it cost?   My answer  "  not to bother. I will  go to "the other store". 

  

       Now the "other store" is where the "yuppies" shop, our daughter for sure!   It is expensive and sure to have whatever dear husband can't find insight!

       He would never come home with the items if I sent him to that store.  I learned to make love and marriage work this way: there are some "things" you never tell a husband.  Shopping "details" is one for sure!  The way I beat inflation is stay away from the stores.   When I do go  I just close my eyes and swipe the credit card.  He of course reads the statement at the end of the month.  The festive meal is consumed and that favorite dress is admired, somehow the pain is not remembered!

         This reminds me of a wonderful design client I had in California.  We handled some of the decorating choices  ourselves!   The fabrics she selected were all from France and quite expensive.   We did not weigh the "cost" to sacrifice the beautiful window dressing.  I presented the bill unashamedly to her husband,  after the installation.   They were exquisite and no one cared at this point about price.

        The enjoyment and beauty in life is often missed by hidden fears that spoil the gift. Consider the  joy that comes when we open our hearts to each other. The hurry and scurry vanishes from sight as we see the faces "light up" in sheer delight as they open the gifts and share the festive meal. 

  

      The joy of a finished design job comes with the thrill of satisfied clients.  They soon forget the delays, wasted phone calls and budget overruns when they are cozily sitting on the "french sofa", musing , laughing and loving...

       We can be extravagant some of the time so memories are remembered and shared.  Extravagant loving comes from extravagant giving.   Meal time is the best way to let love flow. Remember to let the "small stuff" go and forget the things that do not matter.

     We will have 3 to 4 different fondue pots and conversations going.  The meal will last 2 to 3 hours and we will laugh a lot  and remember this Christmas when we were together.    Family time,  "cherish" is the name.  The gift we remember!

           I read an interesting article about a study done on rats. Researchers at Yale University found that rats that were in isolation and lonely were prone to cancer.  They suffered greater levels of stress.  Stress has actually been shown to "trigger cancer-causing genes in humans". Fear and anxiety were discovered in these rats that create higher levels of cancer like breast tumors.

  

            We have to guard our hearts at this time and not let the shopping frenzy or unfulfilled groceries lists steal our joy.  We need to be so grateful that we have family to shop for  and are not alone during the Holidays.  I always look for people who are alone, or children who will not get presents to bless.  We have so much, we have each other.   We  combat loneliness and little irritations  by looking for opportunities.   May you be blessed to be a BLESSING!!

             I thank G-d for everyone who has come into my life and circle of love.  May we open our hearts to the best gift life has to offer.  We as Christians celebrate the birth of our Messiah.  He is the reason for this SEASON of GIVING.  He gave LOVE.  So we can LOVE.   Let us celebrate with a reason to look for ways to " love on"  each other and forget about the flaws.

            Pass the chocolate to the "ones" you LOVE.    Cherish the gift.      

LOVE Connection

       

Private dining room at the Eden Rock Hotel, Miami

    The Eden Rock Hotel was a wonderful escape.  The bold new decor was a designers dream.  I felt like I had stepped back in time as I  imagined the movie stars that had graced these walls.  You must check out their website http://boldnewedenroc.com/   and see the fabulous renovation.   The wall in the private dining room depicts a blending of old and new.    If only these walls could talk and tell stories, I am sure they would share  of the countless people who have dined before.  Imagine  the movie stars who have graced these interiors.

.    

      In any relationship you will use elements from the past to bring out a new dimension.  I love the small mirrored cutouts.  The reflection of a little glitter against the natural stone with the embedded shell fossils was so intriguing.   Something of a previous generation was left to give an imprint to the Florida Chic dining room.

        I discovered more than a beach getaway in a fabulous resort.   The true imprint left  in the wall of my heart is forever lasting.    I was invited to the 70th anniversary of the voyage of the St. Louis.  In 1939 it carried Jewish refugees from Europe, but was turned away from Havana, Miami, and Ft. Lauderdale ports. This was a reunion for the remaining survivors.  Look at the front page Monday, December 14, 2009 Miami Herald  Miamiherald.com for the article.

         Life is so fragile.   I saw this reflected in the many vases displayed throughout the hotel.  The glass vases reminded me of the lives that  were just as transparent.   As I saw thru their precious hearts and felt the warmth in their stories,  I somehow felt a part of it.  Stories connect  the heart.  Life lessons mirror  others love, laughter and heartbreak.   They let us see and connect to people who we have never met before.  We feel the love connection.

New "friends", a survivor and her sister from NY and me!

        

  1939 was a time when  the existence of Judaism was in question .  History cannot change the past; it only paints a picture  to help redesign our future.  We preserve our stories thru scrapbooks  that recapture events and reunite hearts.   A picture portrays much more than a thousand words!   I so delighted to see the faces of the "survivors" light up as Rosemary Schlindler of Schindler's Ark opened her album of their past get-togethers.     Memories unite families, bridge the gap between  generations and are the glue that bind us together.  We really learn we are so much more than "scrap".   Do not throw away your valuable times with your families and friends.  This is the season to "cherish" and "cherish is the reason..."

         Family  legacies of faith and fun are kept alive as we share holidays together.  View the last two blogs to learn more   The stories told of their families and how they had managed thru difficult times showed the roses so beautifully. In years past they were playmates in the orphanages.  Now they were sharing losses of spouses and old friends.  Life sails by and we miss the beauty of each passing day by rushing too fast past memory lane.    Celebrate each season you are in and share the joy of it!

 

        There was one wall in the hotel filled with large, medium and smaller cylinders.  They had beautiful rose buds floating in a row .  I loved the patterns that were reflected.  The precious people I met so displayed the beauty in these vases.   I saw and heard the love and joy of old   friends  reuniting.    The wall to my heart these precious friends  display is much more beautiful than a thousand walls of roses.   Their fragrance will last forever.   You will not have to keep changing the display  and adding fresh flowers.  Stories of the heart last forever. They can be viewed by all. 

  

Ceremony outside and a Rabbi singing!

       This weekend I listened slowly and absorbed fragments to pass on to my children.  Life lessons  enhance future generations.   I so remember my grandmother sharing recipes with mom.   She loved us tenderly and spoiled us wonderfully.   I am so excited to "grandmother" next May.  Love passing from one generation to the next.  We must hold tightly the values we share and the faith we resemble. 

  

        I could not smell the roses in the vases.  However, the fragrance of cherished lives I met is lingering.   It will forever be remembered.   I saw in these heroic people that love wins out.  Love and laughter can only help soften the tears.  Tragedies are buried forever in the heart.  I had tears as  I listened.  What could I do to soften the pain?

       We as Americans were attempting to bring closure to buried hurts.  We were attempting to  acknowledge our guilt in turning the ship away.   A Congressional Resolution was being signed.  Now  ownership was shifting.   How many times do we dodge responsibility to a friend?   When have we turned our hearts away from doing what is best in a situation?   Compromise is the enemy of the soul.  We all tread water and think  we can make it when we join the current of pressure.  I do not know what FDR faced in his soul as he sent the ship away.

      I am attempting to be a love connection.  This weekend  connected me.  My faith compels me to continue.   My heart leaves a  trail of roses  behind the event,  to all the wonderful people who  made it happen.  Thank you for being a love connection.   In our own room we can re-arrange the furniture of our thoughts.   We can rehang memories that will endure the test of time.  We can love lots, kiss slowly, color outside the lines and see joy light up a face when we learn to live from the inside out.  Live to laugh.  Love to live.  

Saying goodbye to Rosemary...Old friends

  A REUNION!