Thought for 2017 from Geoffrey Latham: “Music is the vernacular of the human soul.”
“Bluegrass music. Ordinary people making extraordinary music.” Plato.
For our CBA friends in Germany… Guter anfang ist halbe arbeit! So let us begin.
Started out 2017 on New Years Day with a healthy four mile walk with Zoey, the wonder dog.Zoey is a trooper. Small in stature,but her tiny legs are able to keep up with her master’s much longer strides and she never complains. She is a joy to walk with.
We were about 1/4 mile from home when my left foot got caught on a tiny elevated piece of the sidewalk and my 68 year old aging body with (accompanying walking stick) went face down on the hard cold cement pavement. My left knee took the brunt of the fall while my back went along for the painful ride.
When you are a kid falling down and scraping your knee is a daily occurrence. The injured knee may get a kiss from mom to make it better, or maybe a dollop of mercurochrome topped off with a nice bright band aid might do the trick so you are free to once again to *wreak havoc in the outdoors. But as a senior citizen the less than two foot drop from knee to pavement might as well be coming from a 15 foot drop from a rooftop or tree. You experience intense pain and your body screams out, “Hey what the hell is going on here? I was just walking here minding my own business and all this happens.”
I heard a car approaching and then slowed down to a stop.I heard a lady’s concerned voice call out,”Hey, are you ok?” I was so embarrassed I wanted to crawl into a hole.I tried to make light of the situation.With my head barely able to turn I said in a very manly voice, “I am just practicing.” The nice lady replied, “Well if you are sure.” She pulled away from the curb and continued to where she was headed. With no one to observe my fallen state I grabbed my walking stick and used it as a crutch pull up myself up off the ground. I got about halfway up and my walking stick broke in half sending me face down in the resident’s lawn bordering the sidewalk.
I actually cursed out loud and then prayed that there were no other cars to come along and witness my sorry state. I slowly got up from the damp grass, and aching from head to toe I looked at Zoey stood erect and proud and we began the once short but now very long painful walk back to the homestead. The rest of the day was spent dealing with the pain. At ten p.m.I slowly eased my self into bed took a deep breath and hoped that Monday morning would bring some relief.
I mentioned earlier that Sheila and I will be taking a cruise in June that will begin in England with stops in Ireland,Scotland, and France. We are busily preparing for our adventure.It will be a chance for Sheila to visit the homeland of her ancestors and a chance for us as a couple to travel outside the United States.
My sister Maria has made several trips to the island of Pico in the Azores, home of our grandparents, John and Ignacia Goulart. Maria has tracked down our relatives on the island and has located the homes they grew up in. Maria is making another trip to Pico in April and was kind enough to ask me if I wanted to accompany her. I mentioned it to Sheila and she urged me to take this opportunity because the chance many not happen again. Sheila reminded me that I was getting older and so was Maria.
Maria has made all the arrangements. She knows a couple who have three dwellings on the island. They have offered up one of the dwellings for Maria and I to stay in. They will also pick us up from the airport and be local guides if needed. We will also be visiting relatives Maria contacted on her last trip to Pico. It will be fun. Like Sheila I cannot wait to visit the homeland of my grandparents. I also want to take a dip in this particular section of the Atlantic. I swam in the Atlantic off the coast of Florida and it would be cool to say I swam in the Atlantic off the island of Pico in the Azores. I am almost a world traveler.
Lots to get done so this column is a bit shorter than usual. Hope everyone enjoyed Christmas and the holidays. So until Friday February 3, 2017….
Read a book, hug a child,pet a dog, stroke a cat, eat a bar of chocolate and Ikiru…..
*wreak. I had written this as “reek”. My oldest grandson was at the house and I invited him into the writing den to observe his grandfather, Grumpy, writing his welcome column for the CBA. He looked over my shoulder for about ten seconds and said, “Grumpy you spelled that word wrong. It should be W R E A K . I looked at the word and realized he was right. A fifth grader no doubt. My oh my.