Loaf Pan Theology

Well, the real 'Purple Prince' of the cosmos came and quietly and peacefully took away my Uncle Aaron.
I choose to imagine that his death was as it is described in the Jewish Encyclopedia of the much more famous Aaron, the Levite.
"Aaron did as commanded; and they entered the cave, where was prepared a bed around which angels stood. "Go lie down upon thy bed, my brother," Moses continued; and Aaron obeyed without a murmur. Then his soul departed as if by a kiss from God."- Jewish Encyclopedia
My Uncle Aaron just departed, ...

Simply. No fanfare. No bedside vigils, no emergency anything. He just... departed.
Mary called with the 'news,' before nine, on this Wednesday morning.
The forsythia flowers looked brightly cheerful and being in the 'Oleaceae' or 'olive family,' they smiled and comforted with a grafted in promise. She sided with David H. Stern, a Messianic Jewish theologian, in his 'Olive Tree Theology.'  
Simmy went out to the greenhouse to check on the loaf pans of planted seeds.

"Well, my loaf pan challah, aren't you are a good metaphor as well, hmm? Let's hope the seed of Uncle Aaron that will decay in the ground will grow good sturdy plants... out of those wild and untameable children of his."
Simmy's brow furrowed as she remembered what his oldest daughter, Helen, had said at the family reunion.
Helen works in a personal care home and she has a reputation for being greatly loved by the citizens. Simmy had asked what Helen thought was her very best characteristic.
Helen's face had softened and her lips had pursed sweetly and she had looked at Simmy shyly, quietly sincere, and said, "My heart."

Purple Prince of the Cosmos

The paint peeled door of the little greenhouse with the large, recycled, French windows sat in the early morning son, vivid and promising with... FLOWERS. As Simmy stepped over the ice patches, she glanced at the temperature gauge. Good, good! It was holding its' own. Inside this little space, the metal loaf pans were cooking up something green. 
"Ooh, look at you my Purple Prince, you are growing very well." This zinnia was pushing up through the soil and looked quite spunky indeed. 

The White Cosmos was also pushing its way up towards the sun that was slanting in through the fence board cracks. Another seasons' promise. Digging in the dirt and planting seeds were always a good reminder that God is still in the business of beauty, waking the world to a springtime wonder. 
But wait, some of these seeds were from the U.K. Did those seeds then belong to them?
Simmy laughed. 
No!
She remembered a riddle that PA had once told. In church, no less.
'The Devil challenges God to a contest.
"I'll bet I can grow plants just as green and lush as yours," says the Devil to God.
"Alright. You're on!" God accepts the challenge.
The devil bends down to pick up some soil but God interrupts and says, "Oh, no, no, no, no," shaking his finger. "Get your own dirt."
Ha!
After watching 'Bruce Almighty' on television last night that joke was even funnier.
  

A Vive L'amour

Why is it that just when you would like to enjoy a good romance novel... you end up having to deal with real life issues that tend to ruin your good mood.
The old field of house insurance is growing a weed, silently, but nobody is pulling it up. Now, that sounds just like a good line from a novel.
Surreptitiously, insurance companies have been adding a little 'naughty' to your policy.
In a world of crime some might say the word 'extortion' and maybe not be very far off.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2010/04/08/consumer-insurance-credit-score.html
The link, above, is an article worth reading if you are juggling your dollars to find good insurance rates for your home.
It names 'Aviva Canada' as a U.K.- based company and, you may not like what happened to the solid citizen, in this story, who decided not to let 'Aviva' get fresh with him.
For anyone who is too young to know what 'get fresh' with you means... Loosely, it means someone is crossing a boundary, sexually, that they have no business crossing. They are taking advantage of you.
Apparently, if you choose not to let 'Aviva' into your private life... it will cost you.
So, let me try to get some perspective... it will cost you either way? Yep! I'm getting that 'I've lost that lovin'  feelin', wo oh, that lovin' feelin.' Again!
Now, correct me if I'm wrong... isn't the U.K. kind of known for being private, very private and rather combatant if we were ever to try to meddle in their affairs.
Just ask me about my interchange with a Professor Richard. He so nettled me that I've made 'Richard' the main character of the novel I am currently writing.

Darn it! I think I've fallen for their method of gaining even more fame.
My insurance broker suggested that I speak to my MLA to voice my concerns because the 'brouhaha' is just beginning.
Vive la, vive la, vive L'amour...eux,  vive la, vive la, vive L'amour...eux,...
or maybe,...
A viva, A viva, A viva, no more,...
Vive new company.

Designing Beauty

...in your garden.
Simmy got out of bed feeling nauseous from the vivid pictures in her dream. She prayed about that and then went to start the day, shaking off the dreadful images.
There had been a big storm warning for the city but she just had not been able to accept that right now so she had prayed that God would just calm it... despite all the doomsayers around her. She had just shut out their negative forecasts.
That may seem silly to some people but... Spring and gardening and planting were all she could handle right now especially with all the issues with old parents creating a whirlwind of their own.
She laid out the metal loaf pans she was using for planters this year.

A plant sale... she was going to put the plants straight into containers that would be perfect for merchandising.
She stepped back to survey the possibilities.
'Beautiful! I would love to buy plants put into cool containers like this... and I already know that the metal will rust and disintegrate so... that even makes the containers a 'green solution.'

How will you help?

F...ing Difficult

On a Sunday morning sidewalk... Oh, I'm wishing Lord that I..., okay, I don't really want to be on drugs,... But there's something in a Sunday that makes the body feel alone...
"Oh wait, I can go to church and feel a little less alone."
Youngest construction son was in the kitchen making himself an omelet.
"Wow! That's a perfect omelet. It's never looked so perfect before," he giggled with delight.
Simmy grabbed the camera and snapped a shot. Yep! It looked perfect!
Simmy and Sam went to church... without the beer for breakfast... and it was a tough 'Isaiah' sermon. Basically, the preacha' done told us that Isaiah would be using some 'swearin' type' language... basically... okay, that's what I heard.
It wasn't one of those 'feel good' sermons and it was just perfect for Simmy's mood.
Having struggled to feel good about anything for a while already, it kind of felt right to be told 'take all your good works and blow it out your ear if you think you done good.' 
Well, Isaiah did give a tough sermon, too.
When they got back from the church, the weather matched the sermon and Sam went straight to bed and Simmy stayed in her quiet depression.
An hour later, the phone rang. It was Simmy's Mom.
"I made eggs for lunch and Dad barfed."
Unsure if the connection was being made deliberately or accidentally... Simmy asked a lot of questions.
'Horn' had just come through some really hard times... two strokes, some seizures, license taken away, refusing help... and let's not talk about anything that happens in a bathroom... the situation was a difficult one... well, as she told her sister an hour later, it was a f...ing difficult one.
'Don't judge me!'
Read Isaiah!
I don't know why people always get their panties in a wad when someone uses the F-word. Even Steve Bell said it's just a word... really, he did... oh, but then he said, it's not really a nice word... so, find a substitute.
Simmy thought hard... 'Fornicate!' It means the same and... it's in the Bible.
Perfect!

In the dream...

Simmy woke up, out of a dream that left her with uneasy feelings.
'I woke up from a dream. There was a 'test...' show up and perform these physical exercises and you will get paid __ agreed upon dollars. The man who was running the test went around the room and paid each person what they were promised. There was a ripple of... 'That's too much! Oh, that's way too much!...' following him around the room.
When he came to me, he bent down and kissed me on the lips, then turned, and as he walked away... his lips were counting, "...one, two, three...," waiting for me to protest.
Everyone in the room was very quiet.
I stood up as he went and paid another person.
I walked away!
Shortly, this man came after me, "Where are you going?" He stood in front of me, trying to bar my way. "I just wanted to see what you would do," he explained.
"If you would choose to break the rules at the first encounter that we have, in front of a roomful of people, I can't imagine what you think might be your right to do, as a relationship went further. I choose not to play your game."
I then walked away without my money.'

Simmy ground some coffee beans and as the coffee brewed, so did her thoughts... about the dream. Was it a dream about a previous employer? It really did seem like it was, in some ways.
This employer had presented the job in a sunny yellow light, kind of like the yellow bowl, (pictured above), that she had purchased for a bargain price at Home Sense just yesterday. When she washed the bowl, it immediately showed that it had flawed glaze as the clay darkened and stained the bottom of the inside of the bowl.
Simmy should have walked away from the job when she was expected to, manually, retrieve large carpets ( up to 11- 12 feet long), from a rack and carry them out of the store for customers.
She should have realized, from the exclamations of the customers, that this was an unreasonable expectation. The 'people in the room' had blatantly told her so.
Unfortunately, she had stayed at the job for almost 2 years and her body had become quite broken from these tasks.
When she finally resigned, due to the fact that her knees would not stay in place even while trying to sleep at night, this employer did not pay her the full wages that she was supposed to get.
There was a higher authority that told him he must, but he still refused.
Simmy had conceded, walked away and decided to leave it to a yet higher authority.
One of the partners in this business was an accountant and Simmy had thought about going to him and pleading her case. There was a possibility that he didn't know how this 'part owner' was running this business. She hadn't, but now she wished she had.
Oh well, in the end there will always be an accounting, for this employer and his accountant.

Simmy stepped back and took another picture.
"Yes, how dark the shadows outside the light!"

Irish Bread

... is rising?
Simmy and Deborah both sprang for a loaf of Irish bread, um, with style? Deborah was also going to put green food colouring in their beer... she's such a celebrator.
It was just past 5:30 and the jalapeno potatoes were cooking in the oven. Jalapenos are green!
Simmy opened the bag of bread to get a taste of Ireland.
"What does it smell like?" Sam asked from his spot in the living room where he was reading the newspaper.
Simmy glanced around the corner and shivered a bit, thinking... oy, if you add some dark paneling on the walls, Sam will look like he's ensconced in an Irish pub with all that beard growth.
Thoughts aside, what came out of her mouth was, "It smells like potatoes. I think they've managed to slip some into the bread."
Sam laughed, "Ah yes, they like their potatoes."
There was something significant happening that day but Simmy didn't know what it was until she read the obituaries a couple of days later.
A feisty, no nonsense, petite Irish woman that Simmy had served coffee to for many years, when she had worked in a cafe, had chosen,...
yes, chosen, to die that day.
Over eighty years old, she had been a productive busy person who hadn't spared you a smile unless she deemed you worthy of one.
Simmy chuckled, remembering how she had tried hard to win over that customer. Her brusque exterior hadn't bothered Simmy and she had a good memory of this daunting tasker.
In particular, Simmy remembered the one time she had succeeded in coaxing a smile from this little Irish whirlwind.
One smile!
It was enough! It helped her recognize the beautiful photo in the obituaries.

Great Scott! It's 'Roy'ally Good

The grey skies of Wednesday morning enticed Simmy to sit down and finish reading 'Heidi.' A few tears came spilling out of her eyes as she read the last few pages that revealed all the blessings... yes, blessings. 'Heidi,' by Johanna Spyri, was first published, in this edition, in 1949.

The language is very old and hymns are quoted as a sustainable life force,... unapologetically, I might add. 
The mailman pounded up the stairs and the creaking of the mailbox being pushed to its' brazed seams maximum had Simmy thinking that a parcel was being wedged into it.
Without haste, Simmy read the last page of 'Heidi' and then checked on the mailbox.
"Mmm hmm, as I suspected," she mumbled as she pulled a 2 3/4 inch parcel out of a gap 2 1/2 inches, thus made by the newspaper that was taking up space in the metal mailbox.
She checked the mailing address...  "Oh, the electrical box that... has been waiting for," Simmy mumbled as she sent electrician son a text...
Simmy- 'That box from U.K. finally arrived.'
Son- 'Finally! Roy was right. The Royal mail service is not that good!'
'Roy' was also an electrician, who used to live in the U.K., and these two electricians had teamed up to do some volunteer work at their church.
Simmy-... 'a royal pain more apt.'
Son- 'LoL! That's what Roy said.'
Siimmy- 'Cool! Me and Roy have a similar sense of humour.'
Son- 'He laughed when I told him about that Top Gear episode where they race a letter from the bottom tip of the UK to the top and the letter wins! He said the whole time he was there, they were known for extremely slow service.'
Simmy- 'They did that episode precisely because everyone knows the reputation of Royal mail.'

Son- 'They paid them off!'
Simmy- 'Likely!'

'Top Gear' Royal Mail

After this little humourous exchange Simmy plucked a flower stem out of the bouquet she had purchased the previous week because it had an uncanny resemblance to the blue harebells that finally entice Clara to try to walk after years of being wheelchair bound.

   The old milk glass bottle seemed the perfect fit for an old classic.
The electrical box from the UK had arrived in time for the big fund raiser at the church and that was 'Roy'ally good indeed. Great Scott! We're having a fine week.

Is Eight Enough?

When it comes to helping... you'd think that an old couple who has eight children should be able to get enough help when the going gets tough. Right?
Well, maybe not so right. Two of the children may have financial problems. The ones who don't have financial issues may not be willing to give up their pay checks in trade for helping.  At least, not for any great length of time.
Some may not be willing to help. Some may think they have helped already.

'Enough already!" Some may be thinking that.
In the big picture, let's hope that life isn't just a rock- paper- scissors game when it comes to meting out justice in an unjust world.
Mercy trumps justice... every time.
And... when it comes right down to it... we all need mercy.
Right?
Right!
Let's hope that... 'There's  a magic in the morning, when the sun smiles on everything around... It's a portrait of the happiness that we feel and always will, for eight is enough to fill our lives with love...
'Oh we love those days when we're bright and shiny new dimes
but we're ever puzzled by the changing times

There's a plate of homemade wishes on the kitchen window sill,...

Wish No. 1- I wish there was less pain in the world
Wish No. 2- I wish everyone would get along
Wish No. 3- I wish for enough love
to fill our lives.

Whatever happened to...

Benjamin Guggenheim and Mrs. John Thayer?
Youngest construction son and his fiance went to the 'Titanic' event. As part of the interactive drama... each person is given the name of a passenger at the beginning of the tour.
You get to check the passenger list at the end to see what happened to... Benjamin Guggenheim and Mrs. John Thayer...a.k.a. Mrs. Marian Longstreth Thayer.
In the tradition of the day, it was normal to identify a woman by her husbands' name by just putting Mrs. in front of it. In today's world that would be strange indeed.
Right smack dab in the middle of dealing with old folks who still have enough chutzpah to tell off their kids, who are hardly kids anymore... you can still have a birthday party and enjoy the treasure of a happy time. Oh, and yes, a middle of March snow storm that cancels some flights and delays others just adds to the excitement all around as it strands people in the country who are trying to get into the city and...
it strands people in the city who are trying to get into the country.
We'll just call it all a mixed blessing weekend!

Wordy Vision

I love to live in an attitude of romance... especially when it comes to parties.

Getting a vision of the event in little 'set capsules' makes the atmosphere a creative dessert.
Birthday party... here we come!

Justice Journey

 

On a day where lots of the news is bad... there can be good news too.

'Born of Benjamin' got a job working for Mission without Borders. He was put in charge of 'special projects' for the Mission. Simmy opened an email and inside was the most beautiful picture of a child who became a man while being supported from a little place in Canada... to a little place in Romania.
This is a picture of what $375 can buy for someone who has nothing, owns nothing... yet, gives his time freely to teach deaf children... because he, also, is deaf.
Just one tiny little bit of justice in the world today.

While you were sleeping

... the world was changing.
The largest earthquake ever recorded hit Japan turning cars, ships, infrastructure and houses into rubble. It doesn't seem real... but it is.
People are waiting for the tsunamis in many different coastal places... another opportunity to pray for the masses.
In times like these it is very easy to... be thankful... if you are privileged enough to be the one whose house is built upon The Rock and you are safely snuggled in your little home...

... happily kissing the ground and praying with all your might for those whose lives have been swept away by this catastrophe.
Sing it, 'Casting Crowns...'
'Jerusalem, what you have missed while you were sleeping... United States of America... we're sung to sleep by philosophies that save the trees and kill the children...'
'While we were sleeping...
Let's not be sleeping...'

Faculty of faculties

Sam and Simmy spent a day with the old folks. Thankfully, 'Horn' didn't land on his head and his legs had become a little less rubbery.
Sun Ray was less than sunny and said, 'I'm not enjoying myself anymore.'
Simmy just met her eyes with a wordless understanding look.
Hard to imagine me at a loss for words, you say?
Well, wise guys, what would you say to that?
'Horn' said he wasn't the boss anymore and Simmy thought, 'Oh yah? Oh no! Who is then?'
It was like... overnight... the parents' faculties had done flown the coop.
The new medication packs... which seemed like the ideal solution to the 'Faculty of Baby Boomers'- a.k.a. the children... were not self- explanatory after all, not to the faculties of the 'Builder Generation' parents.
And, of course, the medical faculty had prescribed enough medication to fell a horse. But hey, it's keeping all the bodies' vital signs right where they need to be.
Darn shame you can't walk with all those meds, 'Horn.' Can't walk from your rocking chair to the bathroom? I can't imagine why! Your vital signs are perfect!
We can't work out the conflict of the faculties anymore than Kant could. Can we?

Making it work

...takes a little longer. Making it work takes a little time, darling.
"Waiting for people to volunteer is a tough haul. The folks need help. People only want to help when it's convenient. Are you listening, kitty?"
The cat yowled in protest and tried to cover his face and ears... 'I can't hear you, I can't hear you... shh! You're disturbing my sleep,..."

"How do you prepare food, get it all apportioned, try to get the meds straightened out, make sure someone is around to see that the once sturdy legs which are now really wobbly won't rubberize again... causing another landing on the noggin face plant... leaving a reminder that the grown kids kinda suck at this care-giving thing."
"Meow!"
"Blacker, bluer, the floor packs a pretty punch," Simmy tried for some dark humour.
"Bad nights, more wine, oh, that's how we made it through..."
"Meow?"
"Wrong lyrics? Okay, I changed a few words," Simmy mumbled.
"I wonder how I'm still on the case... Help me, help you, oh, we'll find us a place... maybe, the help there, won't let you land on your face...
making it work, takes a little longer, making it work, takes a little time,
darling..."
The cat moved his paws over his ears in sympathetic pose for less than sympathetic prose... "Let Doug and the Slugs write the lyrics?... you're probably right..."

It's a Dog's World

Sam and Simmy were the oddballs out at the 'doggie park.'
"Where's your dog?" One fella said as they scootched over on the path to let 'Fifi' by.
"I'm so glad your folks don't have a dog," Sam said. "We wouldn't want to add to the workload right now."
"No kidding! It's funny you say that, though. I was just thinking how a small kitten would give them something to watch or entertain them."
"Well, a cat is pretty low- maintenance. You can leave a cat with some food and water and pretty much leave it for almost a week and it'll be fine... a dog, now that's a different story... much more high maintenance."
As they traversed the 'doggie doo-doo' paths, they were quite happy to leave the dogs behind.

As they tried to get to the Hummer, there was an irate dog owner, somewhat annoyed by his not so loyal Boxer-ish dog that was trying to go home with someone else.

The wheaten terrier was adorable to look at but, woah, how long to do the hair?
The boxer-ish doggie has a face only his owner can love, yes? He should consider being a bit more loyal.

Little Big Town Manorisms

...and the creek don't rise

It was such a relief to wake up to sunshine on Friday morning. The phrase that kept running through Simmy's mind was,... 'Lord willing and the creek don't rise...' Sometimes idioms just help to get a perspective of necessity.
Simmy had struggled through parts of Thursday as she and Sam had driven out to the suburban city where the folks had re-settled, over 50 years after their return to Canada.

As they drove past an old manor, it was good to see new PVC windows in an old stately brick structure. The new technology married with the old architecture gave one a sense of hope as the fixing up of old existing structures often does.
As they arrived in the little big town, they stopped at the grocery store to buy some bread for the soup, stew, and chili that was a home-style meals on wheels offering from Sam and Simmy.
After picking a few options, they went to sit with Simmy's folks. This was no easy task as 'Horn' was thinking of his death and he wasn't going to get too cheerful this day.
'Sun Ray' was thinking of all the changes her life may go through and she was in a solemn mood as well.
As is usual, Thursday turns into Friday and the sun came out to lift the heavy mood of the day before and Simmy thought, 'Do not worry about tomorrow.'

'right as rain' David

On Monday, Deborah had called Simmy to say, "Hey, I've got some good news. David, who used to live on Jonathan, is really doing well. His Mom just called and said he'll just need some physio but then he'll be 'right as rain.'"
"Oh, that's just amazing. His heart was torn but it's mended well, is that what I'm hearing?"
"Yes," Deborah was sounding chipper.
"Another chance for this young man to dream and sing and embrace life. Thanks for the good news."
Simmy's cellphone vibrated.
Her Dad must have perked right up because the hospital was kicking him out. Sun Ray would most definitely like that.

Spicy Dad's Cookies

Simmy was baking up a storm trying to keep her hands busy. Since Friday, when her Dad had been dashed to the hospital... she had been fielding more text messages than ever.
Interesting man, this father of hers... he told one child he was ready to leave his earthly confines. He became emotional when talking about his demise... that, at least, seemed normal to Simmy.
Sometimes, it seemed that her parents had lived their lives so well that they could even muster up all the right emotions for each situation and each person that visited Cornelius in the hospital.
Being oldest children, they felt a certain responsibility for everyone and everything... even dying well.
Simmy just kept baking those spicy Dad's cookies... 'kind of apt for today,' she mused with a bit of dark humour and salty tears.
"Ya gotta love that builder generation pragmatism."

Drama in Castle

Things were heating up with 'Parrot Stew' Mama and this time there was no latitude for compromise. 
http://romancedesigner.blogspot.com/2010/12/latitude-for-compromise.html
She was starting to to get very upset with the doctors who were treating her husband. Friday night she had looked at their personal G.P. with big worshipful moony eyes and Sam and Simmy had been very happy with the evidence of love between doctor and patients... it's so adorable when the age difference is like that of parent to child. Their doctor was the age of their children and he seemed so protective over 'Parrot Stew' Mama.
But... Sun Ray or Shining Light was squinting her eyes and looking stormy and obstinate yesterday. She was getting very hard to handle and whatever the doctor on rounds yesterday had said had earned him the not so complimentary moniker... dummy.
Simmy was not on duty Monday night so she had decided to enjoy the televised romance between Castle and Beckett.
The family room already had another real time romance couple sitting cuddled together like a couple of bear cubs. They were both enjoying a chunk of rice krispie cake that Simmy had tossed together the day before. Quickly, Simmy grabbed her camera and captured a picture of the pair with their fingers in sticky piano pose.
'Castle' was entertaining and it was a one hour distraction from the real life romantic drama that Simmy's parents were currently wrapped up in.
'Love is all there is... when the spark of youth someday surrenders... the years may come and go but one thing I know, love is all there is... when I'm with you.'
That was the theme song for Simmy's folks.