watching this very moving play
at the historic fisher theatre
as a story of people
who have always felt outsiders
unheard, unloved, and unseen
plays out before us
in words, in actions, in music
where the audience sits in total silence
and cries.
—
“Even when the dark comes crashing through,
when you need a friend to carry you and when you are broken on the ground,
you will be found.”
-You Will Be Found, ‘Dear Evan Hansen’.
when an unexpected robot cat rolls up to deliver your dinner and gives you a wink
just smile and wink back.
—
“be unprepared. that’s my motto. let life surprise you.”
-marty rubin
one has a story that’s not like the others
—
“make your life story so amazing that unicorns have trouble believing it is true.”
– karen salmansohn
an adventurous visit to the michigan renaissance festival
way back when
in days of yore
i took my daughters
to this very shire
all of us dressed up
now my grandsons
have picked up where we left off
as brave knights
“look, it’s my duty as a knight to sample as much peril as I can.”
– Sir Galahad (Holy Grail)
people enjoying the day
being whoever they imagine themselves to be
villagers from far and wide are all welcomed here
no matter their dress or look or form
and what could be better than spying a kilted warrior brave enough to pick up his own hot latte?
—
“live every day as if it’s a festival. turn your life into a celebration.”
-shri radhe maa
Kummakivi Balancing Rock
This rock stands in the middle of the forest balancing on another much smaller rock. There is a legend that the rock was placed here by giants, but there is also a scientific explanation for this. Geologists say that the rock may have been moved by the power of glacier over 8,000 years ago. This captivating stone can be found in Valtola, Southern Savonia, Finland.
The rock is well-visited no matter what you believe to be its origin story, and the best time to visit the rock is summer and early autumn, as you can easily get to the forest. It can be difficult to get to the middle of deep forest during long winter nights when there will be snow and maybe even wolves.
i’m a fan of the giant theory and would love to see this up close.
—
“how one walks through the world,
the endless small adjustments of balance,
is affected by the shifting weights of beautiful things.”
-elaine scarry
“look, i made a waterfall!”
—
“there is a hidden message in every waterfall.
it says if you are flexible, falling will not hurt you.”
-mehmet murat ildan
art credit: the hope tree, by ashvin harrison
—
she looked older, tired, worn down, but trying
dark eyeliner, hair an unnatural black, a gold barrette
standing at the register
waiting as i approached
buying paper for an art project
noticing colors and prints on the papers
she pointed at them, saying:
“if you mix this blue with this flowered print, it looks exactly like the inside of the locket that i had when i was a little girl. it was shaped like a heart, my mother gave it to me, it had both of our pictures in it. is was really something. it didn’t make it through the fire though. i think someone came and took it after that happened. they didn’t know how important it was. i’ve had my dreams squashed before, but i still have hope.”
she shared all of that with me, a random stranger, in a 2 minute encounter. something about her was achingly sad, yet i also felt admiration for her refusal to surrender to a life that may have never been easy, still holding out hope for a better day, yet to come. amazing person.
—
“hope is the feeling we have that the feeling we have is not permanent.”
-mignon mclaughlin
in talking with my grandson
about the reason shopping carts are found all over
i told him to think about where he sees them and why that might be
i told him to consider the fact that they are often found
where there are people without transportation or without disposable income
who may have to walk a long distance, have a disability, or take public transportation to get home
most with challenging life circumstances
i told him about
when i moved to family housing here for grad school
with no money, but still one of my favorite times of my life
everyone in debt, in grad school, with families, with limited income
most did not have cars and could not afford taxis
i saw that shopping carts were all around us
quickly noticed why.
families used them for everything
to move in and out, to move their children, to move their laundry to the common area
to move things to our monthly swap meets, to carry food, to carry things to their car, and on and on…
my youngest daughter lived with me
for a few months before heading off to her university
before long, we were using them
they had come from the local grocery store
when people would walk home with food for their families
the carts would stay to be used in the community
the grocery store would send a truck once a week
to round them up and take them back to the store
and the next week they would be back
it seemed to be an unwritten understanding
i came to love the custom and used them many times for every imaginable purpose
understanding why they were so helpful and important to the community.
everyone was just trying to find a way to live their life
to get things done that needed doing
while making the best of their circumstances.
“do what you can with what you have, where you are.”
-theodore ‘teddy’ roosevelt – 26th president of the united states
according to turkmenistanian math
i am in the ‘inspirational’ cycle of my life
heading toward ‘wise’
so i had better get on it!
if i was in the wise cycle
i would have
read all the way to the bottom
to see these cycles
only apply to turkmenistanians
so the pressure is off
now i can comfortably return
to my blissfully unaware/immature cycle.
—
“there is a savor of life and immortality in substantial fare. like balloons, we are nothing till filled.”
– herman melville
I didn't have my glasses on.... 