Monday, December 6, 2010
Wish Upon a Star
I used to believe in wishes coming true,
in a life of dreams and adventures too.
I used to think you could make me happy,
in a dream life made for two.
I used to think I was wise,
now I know now it's not true.
yd 9-21-10
yd 9-21-10
Monday, November 29, 2010
Partners in Crime
I'll share another story of my life and times with my soul-friend Cynthia. For those newcomers, we were the best of friends in 5th and 6th grade. The kind of friend that you didn't even need words to communicate with. We would take one look at each other and laugh hysterically. We got ourselves into so much trouble together! She was a foster child and I felt like one, so we understood each other's pain and need for escape.
Maybe some people remember a time that we as kids discovered if you cracked open a golf ball, you could have loads of fun unwinding all the rubber string for what seemed like forever until finally you reach the treasure in the center...a fantastic SUPER-BALL! Then we would have loads of fun bouncing these super-balls all over town and as high into the sky as possible.
We burnt through all our fathers' imperfect balls that they were willing to part with, so Cynthia had a marvelous idea of going to look on the outskirts of the golf course. It was only a few minutes walk from our house. So we walked over and searched in the tall grasses all around the back nine area. We found one, but needed at least two (to be fair). I think we were slow to figure out the treasure trove that others had already realized. Moments later our prayers were answered. A beautiful white ball sitting right on the green of the 12th hole. We didn't see anyone even close to the area so Cynthia said to grab it and go. Perhaps they quit playing? She grabbed the ball and we began walking home.
Stupidly we chose to cut across the golf course. Really should have gone the long way around, because it wasn't long after that we had a cart full of men yelling and zooming towards us. We did what we always do....we ran!!! We were very fast runners because we used to have races with the boys around the track. Cynthia was taller and thinner than me and she was like lightening! I could run pretty fast too. I always beat Tom and Paul when we raced. They were scrawny like me.
Anyway, it did feel like we were running for twenty minutes and we decided to split up, but eventually the golf cart caught Cynthia and since she was caught I just stopped running. The men in the cart picked me up too and they brought us back to the club house to be scolded by the golf ball police. The worst was that they called our parents and both of us would get into serious trouble for this. This was definitely going to be a belt lashing punishment.
Cynthia's parents were called and so were mine, but mine never answered the phone...so Cynthia's agreed to drive me home too. They dumped me off at the curb and I went into my house to find both my parents out in the yard working in the garden with a very loud rototiller. They never heard the phone and there were no such thing as message machines back then. I was then faced with wondering "Would Cynthia's parent ever tell mine?" They never said "boo" to each other otherwise, so I just let it go. I certainly didn't tell. I did feel terrible for my friend though. Since I wasn't on restriction I was then free to sneak goodies to her through her window. She didn't want me to get in trouble, so all was good with our world again about two weeks.
Maybe some people remember a time that we as kids discovered if you cracked open a golf ball, you could have loads of fun unwinding all the rubber string for what seemed like forever until finally you reach the treasure in the center...a fantastic SUPER-BALL! Then we would have loads of fun bouncing these super-balls all over town and as high into the sky as possible.
We burnt through all our fathers' imperfect balls that they were willing to part with, so Cynthia had a marvelous idea of going to look on the outskirts of the golf course. It was only a few minutes walk from our house. So we walked over and searched in the tall grasses all around the back nine area. We found one, but needed at least two (to be fair). I think we were slow to figure out the treasure trove that others had already realized. Moments later our prayers were answered. A beautiful white ball sitting right on the green of the 12th hole. We didn't see anyone even close to the area so Cynthia said to grab it and go. Perhaps they quit playing? She grabbed the ball and we began walking home.
Stupidly we chose to cut across the golf course. Really should have gone the long way around, because it wasn't long after that we had a cart full of men yelling and zooming towards us. We did what we always do....we ran!!! We were very fast runners because we used to have races with the boys around the track. Cynthia was taller and thinner than me and she was like lightening! I could run pretty fast too. I always beat Tom and Paul when we raced. They were scrawny like me.
Anyway, it did feel like we were running for twenty minutes and we decided to split up, but eventually the golf cart caught Cynthia and since she was caught I just stopped running. The men in the cart picked me up too and they brought us back to the club house to be scolded by the golf ball police. The worst was that they called our parents and both of us would get into serious trouble for this. This was definitely going to be a belt lashing punishment.
Cynthia's parents were called and so were mine, but mine never answered the phone...so Cynthia's agreed to drive me home too. They dumped me off at the curb and I went into my house to find both my parents out in the yard working in the garden with a very loud rototiller. They never heard the phone and there were no such thing as message machines back then. I was then faced with wondering "Would Cynthia's parent ever tell mine?" They never said "boo" to each other otherwise, so I just let it go. I certainly didn't tell. I did feel terrible for my friend though. Since I wasn't on restriction I was then free to sneak goodies to her through her window. She didn't want me to get in trouble, so all was good with our world again about two weeks.
Friday, November 12, 2010
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
My Phone Art
This is my phone wallpaper,
I love it so much!
I'm sharing it here at
O'Dopey Me,
because I typed the name of the artist
into the wrong place.
Now I don't know who to give credit to.
I swear I am going back to find out
someday soon!
I took this picture at a gallery in San Francisco.
In the little circle under the snake
I place my little analog clock.
When I look at my phone I imagine
the bigger black circle as the shadow
of my head.
The snake-like figure above
reminds me of
daily temptations.
The star-like designs remind me of
the good things I try to focus on
like love and kindness.
All the different spots are
various distractions,
but I try to remain constant
with the light.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Wild and Free
I want to share another story with you about a time Cynthia and I were wild and free. A time of joy before they took her away from me. You remember, I said we were the best of friends and could crack ourselves up just by looking at each other? We did.
We were about ten years old and one day after school we decided to go to the stables and check out the horses. We both had an affinity for horses and used to gallop around the play ground pretending to be wild and free. Neither of us owned a horse nor could we ever ever rent one. Cynthia was a foster child and I felt like one.
So at the stables we found our favorites to feed and caress. Mine was a Palomino and hers a Quarter horse. They seemed so cooped up in their little stalls and feeling a little antsy..a bit like us. We took one look at each other and smiled. We knew exactly what each was thinking. Nobody was anywhere around. They had bridles on, but no reins or saddle. We could just lay on them and hold the bridle. So after opening our gates we hopped on our chosen horses and took off out to the pasture. But that was not enough. We really wanted to feel the power of the gallop, so we opened the gate of the pasture and took off through the wild wetlands. The horses followed each other. Mine followed hers. I found it easier to just hang on to the neck of the horse and sometimes I squeezed the mane very tightly, but I was afraid to hurt my horse. the bumping up and down hurt at first, but then I found a way to relax that made me feel like I was moving as one with the horse. That worked much better.
Hearts a pumping.... we trusted the horses and when they finally slowed down we encouraged them to turn around and head back, but some jack rabbits shot out and startled them. We found ourselves riding through the golf course. It was going to be fine because the stable was just on the other side of the golf course. However, the golfers didn't like it and some men in a cart began chasing us and screaming. I don't know what they were screaming, but I kept my head resting on the neck of the horse. (I have another story similar to this about this same golf course.) Anyway, we made it back to the stables and the horses seemed to know where to go. The golfers gave up on us and no one ever knew what we had done. The horses were happy and we went to visit them often, but we only took that wild ride just once.