"If I Only Had A Brain"

An excerpt from the show....see more about it in the post below!

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

It's been nearly two months since I've written here; not because there was nothing to write, but because there was so much to be done. These photos tell the story of why I've been absent for the past few weeks.

My son, the scarecrow in our production of "The Wizard of Oz", performed for the last time on Saturday night and I wanted to be there for the journey. That included making several costumes, building sets and gathering props. Though it was a long and exhausting process, I wouldn't have traded it for anything.

In our very small school, theatre is far down on the list of priorities so in order for it to be successful, it takes outside help to make things work. Along with a wonderful director and pianist, a handful of parents stepped in to transform 14 kids into magical creatures from a land somewhere over the rainbow.

A few students, including Uncle Henry and Auntie Em, had to play more than one role. Though it proved to be challenging it also showcased their talents and gave them more opportunities to perform. The efforts and success of these dedicated kids shows that it is the quality that goes into a show, not the quantity. It also proves that with encouragement from others, the right tail wind and a belief in their own wings, they can indeed fly.

Embrace the moment!

This is a picture I love. It was taken by one of my daughter's friends while they walked down the road leading away from our house. There is something unbridled and unrehearsed when young people take the camera, and it's reflected in moments like these. Moments when joy comes naturally from time spent together; when you look down the road and see so much ahead. When the world is embraced with energy and hope and plans for the future. When you love everything about your life.

"Oh, who will walk a mile with me...along life's merry way?"
This is a picture I love...

Sky Watch - Morning Windmill

This was the sky that greeted me a couple of mornings ago as I headed off to work. With the windmill and cattle silhouetted by the dawn, it was easy to start the day with a song in my heart.

"Oh what a beautiful morning...
Oh what a beautiful day...
I've got a beautiful feeling...
Everything's goin' my way..."



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Skywatch - Gold on Blue

There are many things of beauty in this world: the great works of art, the masterpieces of architecture and literature...visual concepts and words that touch our soul. But there is nothing so lovely as the the magnificence of nature and those things that no man - no matter how talented - can capture.

A sunflower field is always a beautiful sight, but especially in the morning. Though dusk adds a golden glow and a feeling of peace, the sun in its beginning enhances the brilliance of their golden palette. Add a canvas of blue and you have a true work of art.

The Master's handiwork, at its best.





















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Son Flower

It's Sunflower time again. With the brilliant golden blooms that dot the Kansas prairie brings the dawn of my son's senior year....and I'm not ready.

You tell yourself that this time is coming. While he rides his stick horse around the living room, helps you with brownie-baking and creepy-crawler-making and lies beside you on a blanket of green grass with a storybook in one hand and a cookie in the other, you tell yourself that these times don't last. But with the busyness of everyday life and the endless days of childhood sweetness, you don't really believe it.

Then before you know it, he's taller than you with a deep voice and in a circle where you're no longer the center. It's where you want him to be, where you raised him to be and you encourage him to fly, while clipping your own wings just a bit so you're not tempted to follow behind.

He is a unique individual, my son; strong in who he is and marching confidently to the rhythm that he hears, knowing that I love him unconditionally. While his friends gear up for a year filled with football and fun, he looks beyond that to what's over the horizon and the possibilities that lie past the boundaries of our little town. And while I feel melancholy at the prospect of him growing up, I'm excited for the paths he has before him. I know he carries the tools to build a joyful life and will use them well in his journey.

So as this last school year approaches and an era comes to an end, embrace your life, son. Enjoy who you are and what this world has to offer. Leave each day a little better than its dawning possibilities. Be strong and go forward with a song - and a Kansas Sunflower - in your heart, knowing I love you.....and that I always will.

SkyWatch - Thistles

I can't resist taking photos of thistles everytime I pass them by. There is something beautiful and intriguing in the brilliant fuchsia blooms, even though their thorny leaves are a menace to the farmers.

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Beautiful Weeds

Beauty is all around me on the path that leads to home. It is unpaved and set deep with ruts that make it near impossible to travel by car. That's why I like it. The chances of running into another person are remote and thus, I have the whole place to myself.

There are no roses that line this weed-infested path; no flowering vines that wind enchantingly around the whispering cottonwoods. Here are the overlooked beauties of the roadside: the noxious thistle, foxtail, field bindweed, common yarrow and many others whose names escape me.

In the bright Kansas sun they could be easily missed. Their presence is ordinary and to most, unwelcome. They invade field and pasture like an uninvited guest who camps haphazardly wherever they feel at home. At first glance they are hardly impressive and plain, at best.

But kneel down and take another look. Intrusive, perhaps. Common, most certainly. But one cannot question their beauty against the cobalt of a bright May sky.

Look again. Life is comprised of much more than just roses. Consider the thistle. It holds a magic - and loveliness - of its own.

The beauty of today.....and yesterday

A few days ago I took some students outside to write. It was a picture-perfect spring day; blue skies and sunshine. Very conducive for writing. To encourage self-expression and so I don't 'hover', I write along with them. On this particular day we sat at different places on the playground, and my thoughts led me here...

For some reason this weather makes me miss Salina and my mind returns there.

I miss my old back yard, the glider on the deck, the flowers I planted: larkspur, lantana, iris, lobelia, daisies and marigolds, yarrow, dianthus and my butterfly bush. I miss my little corner - the creeping phlox and low-growing evergreens in the front yard...the porch swing where I sat and read and watched the rain fall. I miss seeing neighbors working in their yards, calling across the fence and sharing tips about flowers...advice about life. I miss riding my bicycle down the path by the airport and the pizza plant where the smell of dough and spices permeated the air. I miss the neighborhood children I've known since they were little; their laughter ringing from the backyard, the sound of screen doors as they ran in and out. I miss the old grade school and familiar faces in familiar hallways. I miss my job at the university with close connections and diverse people. I miss the lack of gossip and the positive feeling of support - of help from friends, but also space to reside in one's own place without interference or judgement.

But of course I know, if I went back now it would all have changed. A new family lives in what once was home. The trees have grown, the flowers are gone and what once was familiar no longer remains. Front porch melodies are silent where the swing once hung. Neighbors have moved, some passing to another life. Children have grown and left for college, and the lovely little school has grown into a building with new walls, rules, and faces. Co-workers from my days have moved on to new locations and vocations. Time stands still for no man....and I am hardly an exception.


But for today, I'm dreaming of the past. My heart is a hundred miles away, in another place and time, when the spokes of my life's wheel were in perfect alignment and turned my world with exactly what I needed.

Glory in a Sunset

The sunset tonight was amazing. I sat in the grass in our backyard, hidden away from the rest of the world and watched as the sun descended silently below the horizon.

I knew, from looking at the bank of clouds in the west earlier that evening, we would have a beautiful sunset tonight. And I wasn't disappointed.

To many more glorious sunsets...and sunrises. Happy Earth Day!

Prom 2009

Another prom has come and gone. My son, a junior, enjoyed the festivities for the first time with his beautiful date - a girl whom we love - and my daughter came back to accompany a friend whom we also hold very close to our family. His lovely and dear twin sister and her date joined in as well.
The preparations were many, including these five foot cards I drew for the backdrop. Several kids helped me paint them; a task I could never have completed by myself in those last two days.

As dates arrived, hairstyles were sprayed and finery completed, the photos began:














































Then it was time for a walk down the "red carpet" and photos in the limo...

These years have flown by and that little boy and girl of times past have grown up so quickly. I know my time of holding them close in this way is growing fewer, and though their future prospects invite wonderful anticipation, I can't help but be a bit melancholy for those days when time stretched endlessly and gloriously before us.











To my beautiful daughter and handsome son, I'm proud of you in so many ways and for so many reasons. May the doors continue to open up for you as you walk through this life, and may the love you hold on this special day continue to embrace you in the road that lies ahead.

Cow Patty

These are my closest neighbors; a group of Angus cattle who live across the road from us. A storm was trying to blow our way as I crossed the ditch and looked over the barbed wire, though it never quite materialized. The cattle, used to these spring tirades, lumbered slowly towards me. I'm sure they expected hay and feed instead of a lens pointed at them.

Some were gentle-faced, their eyes knowing and patient while others, like the big black bull, glared with defiance: daring me to come closer...yet warning me not to.

It's funny that even though cattle are as commonplace as dandelions, I still find delight in capturing these images. There is fun to be found in the shot; the story we tell in the frame that we take.

I think my favorite of the day was the "kissing cow". She really did look like she was sharing a tender moment with the bull. But then, what is it they say? "Spring is a time when a young man's fancy turns lightly to thoughts of love...!"

Sky Watch - Stormy March

Two nights ago we had a big storm pass overhead. The worst of it skirted to our NE, though a rotating cloud passed just outside our backyard.

These were taken in the aftermath, looking to the east where the angry wrath looked beautiful from a distance.




































As always the sunshine returns with the promise of clear skies on tomorrow's horizon...


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Sky Watch - Man's Best Friend

It's almost spring...and he knows it.
As soon as we step outside and he gets a whiff of my sneakers, he begins whining. I call his name and look him in the eye as his ears perk up, his dog smile frozen as he studies my face.

"Walkies?" I ask him. Immediately he jumps up, then runs around in anticipation. He has looked forward to this all winter: time to get back moving and journey down the dirt road with his people.

We don't go far, just up to the bridge a half mile away. The traffic is loud and busy so we don't linger. We like the solitude and the quietness that awaits in our backyard.

The cats all greet him as if he were back from an exotic getaway, and he acknowledges them with nonchalance; secure in the fact that he is indeed, man's best friend.

It's almost spring. We all are ready...




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The Dinosaur Lives!

Friday I was working outside, clearing up brush in the trench when I came across this little critter.

The horned-lizard or horny toad is such a peculiar creature. We don't see them often as they're hard to pick out in the grass. When I saw this one scrambling up the bank I snatched him up then called to my son to bring me my camera.

I shot with one hand while I held him with the other, and I have to admit I was a little glad I was wearing gloves! It was pretty bright outside so I wasn't sure what kind of photographs I was going to have when I checked them later.

I always tease my family that I don't believe in dinosaurs because, well...they just don't fit in with my time line of events! But seeing these interesting little creatures, it's easy to see that they're a miniature version of their giant ancestors.

Thankfully, nothing of that magnitude shared the trench with me on this day of outdoors cleaning!

Sky Watch Friday - Spring is Coming

The sky never fails to amaze me. You can look in one direction on a dozen different nights and be treated to a dozen different views.

I had fun watching the big fluffy cloud on the left as it floated over me. There was no threat on this beautiful evening. Just the promise of a spring-like day on the other side...



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"For You" - Remembering John

He first came into my life in the early 70's; a shaggy-haired, wire-rimmed man whose eyes sparkled and smile lit up the room. He was a part of my early adolescence with the songs that touched many hearts, and I sang along with both the notes of his melodies and his life.

Twenty years later he came to my hometown. I went to his concert with my neighbor and heard this song for the very first time. He was alone on the stage with just his piano, and you could have heard a pin drop in the hush that fell over the audience. I remember turning to my friend after he had finished and saying, "That is one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard." I still think so to this day. It's how I've always seen true love, and how I hoped it would be.

In memory of John Denver; a lovely spirit that left us too soon.... "For You".

Intriguing Rainbow

It started out as a beautiful rainbow in the eastern sky. A storm was skirting all around us, spilling a few raindrops on the ground yet allowing the sun to display a double rainbow that stretched all the way across the sky.

It looked as if the cars on the highway could run right into the pot of gold - the prismatic rays appeared so close - and there almost seemed to be a glow arising from the first and brightest rainbow.

As hard as I tried, I couldn't get far enough back to capture the whole image in my lens so settled for watching it "first person" as it spread its finery against the gray clouds.

I shot from different places in the yard as the clouds continued to billow up and around the rainbows like a genie escaping from his bottle.

The buttery rays of evening turned the wild prairie grasses into a golden blanket from a technicolor dream and I zoomed in for a closer look.

The rainbow's colors intensified from a pastel palette to a richer tone, and it was dazzling in the making.

But then the smokey clouds began to gather and surround the colors in a contrast of charcoal fog. Though still beautiful, it was somewhat eery.

We escaped the storms that night, but it was an early reminder of what a spring in Kansas can hold.

When words fail, post a kitty!

Musings

It's been awhile since I've written. And I'm not really sure what's holding me back...

Nearly four years ago I carved out this spot for my thoughts, never knowing that it would become a place of safe-keeping for my memories; a guardian of my most precious moments, reflections and joys. It has become a part of me and lately, I have missed that.

Life has its share of ebbs and flows. The tide comes in bringing promise and hope; a new day, a new start. And it goes out, taking the familiar, old dreams and "what might have been." A long time ago I read a quote that said, "If you want to make God laugh, just tell Him your plans."

Indeed.

Life never happens the way we intend. Sometimes it surprises us with obstacles and we lose our footing as we waver on the footbridge of our days. And other times we look out a seemingly bland window and are greeted by a magnificent sky.

It's time to walk out to the waves, wet my feet...and jump in.
Life marches on. And I want to be part of the band.

And so it goes...

Before they even met, there was a connection. Dad's co-workers in the warehouse where he'd worked before the army got together to write him letters from home. Mom, being the new girl, was asked if she'd like to add a note, which she did.

When he returned home in 1947, they noticed one another, but from a distance. Daddy began riding his motorcycle to work, and Mother, loving the feeling of freedom and flight was charmed by the two-wheeled cycle. He promised her a ride as soon as he got his buddy seat and it wasn't long before it was a ride built for two: a match meant to be. It may not have been love at first sight....but it was certainly love.

Dad decided to go to Kansas City to an automotive trade school in January of 1948. Most weekends he would return home to visit Mom and their relationship continued to grow. It would be September before he returned to Wichita for good, but in July of that year, he went to Peacock Jewelry Store on Douglas Street and in my Mother's basement apartment, gave her a ring.

There was no bended knee, as he explained, and no formal question posed, but it was understood between them that this was the road they were intended to take; a road that has led them through 60 years of blessings.

On that New Year's Day back in 1949, they took vows that began the rest of their lives, and set the stage for what was the beginning of mine....

Introducing....... my dad

In 1945 after my parents graduated from high school, Mother said good-bye to her family in Fredonia, KS and left to make her own way in Wichita. At the same time, my father was drafted into the Army and left his home in Wichita to fulfill his duties on the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. In these photos he is on the right; his face - even as a young man - so familiar to me, his smile reflected in my own young son's face.

There in Alaska along the shoreline, he and his buddy found an old boat and seeing an island in the distance, decided to row out to it. Using an old board for an oar they began their journey, but after some time discovered that the island was a lot further out than they'd originally thought. Anxious to get back to base, they turned the boat only to discover the tide had turned as well. Rowing frantically they were finally able to make it back to shore safely and unseen. Later that night word got around that the Coast Guard had been alerted to two men adrift on the sea....and he was asked, had he seen any sign of them while he was down on the shore?!

Daddy came home a year later and went back to his job at McKesson's. My mother still remembers hearing his voice as he came into the office where she worked, and he remembers seeing her in the back room running the mimeograph machine.

That was their beginning....

Discoveries in Black and White

I spent this weekend at my parents' house, catching up on memories, hearing new stories and making time to just be. I always feel a reconnect when I go home and that's something I've been needing for some time now.

After my mom and dad had gone to bed, I sat on the old-fashioned high bed, perusing through old photographs. Many I had seen before: precious pictures of my parents in their younger, carefree days alive in black and white and smiling at me from behind another era.

There is something about these two that caught my attention. Perhaps it is the sweetness in my mother's face or the youth behind her smile. Maybe it's the charm of the late 1940's; the grace and style of a bygone era. Or it could simply be that this is my mother - a woman I admire, respect, adore... and that I love seeing her in younger days with a lifetime still before her.

As I sort through these photographs of my parents' beginning, I know I'll find wonder and magic between the lines that are the writing of our family.

I am looking forward to reading more.

Remember When

On New Year's Day, we celebrated my mom and dad's 60th wedding anniversary. We gathered at my sister's house where she had put together a video representing their years together. While viewing it the first time, I used my camera to tape it directly off of the television. I didn't have a tripod and had to zoom in close, so it was pretty shaky. But it was also difficult to hold the camera still due to the emotion and tears while watching my parents - and our family - grow through the years.

We are so fortunate, all of us. I thank God for the blessing of my parents; for their meeting and their marriage all those years ago and for what we have - and have become - through the passing of time.

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad. I'm so glad to be part of it all.

The Way He Was

My son has always been happy-go-lucky; a boy with a perpetual grin and sunshine in his pockets. When he was little it was easy to dispel his temporary sadness with a hug and kiss, and to chase away any shadows that threatened to shroud his sunny world.

It's been said that high school is the best time in a young person's life....but I beg to differ. It's a trying time when you're straddling the world of childhood and adulthood, teetering on a thin line of who you are and who you want to be. It's days of mixed feelings and looking at the future while trying to decide which path to take. And while hugs and kind words are helpful, they no longer "fix" the sorrow and the questions in a now, young man's heart.

I miss the way he was. Though I know that everything is temporary, I'm looking forward to the day when the skies clear and there's light in his heart once again.

Farewell 2008

It was our last sunset of the year. We saw it as we drove the back roads just south of home; God's brush dipped from a warm palette and spread across a watercolor sky.

It was a good year, 2008. And it was a challenging year. We celebrated many joys and we faced some trials. But when push came to shove, we emerged through it all and are thankful to be healthy and whole.

New Year's Eve has always been a time of melancholy for me. When my sister and I were teenagers we would watch Dick Clark in New York City and ponder all of the things that would 'never be' again. I would always wonder - with more trepidation than excitement - what the new year ahead would hold. I've never anticipated or welcomed change. Perhaps, coming from a people and a place that has always been safe and loving, I never wanted that comfort to end. Looking ahead into the dawn of a new year, I could never be sure that my wonderful little world would remain as it was.

But here we are; on the cusp of 2009....and those feelings still remain. Maybe, no matter how old one gets, the need for the familiar never changes. Or at least, it's that way for me.

Tonight, as the sunset faded into darkness, the stars came out in a clear and brilliant display. One could see for miles, and our little house tucked way back on country roads suddenly seemed in the midst of lights from every neighboring farm and nearby town. Everything was brighter in the crisp, pre-New Year night, and it was difficult to see anything but optimism and hope in its beauty.

May your 2009 be joyous and whole and may your blessings be many in the new year ahead!Click here to enjoy more SkyWatch.

A Well for Wishing

It was just after noon when we settled down for our daily chapter of Little House on the Prairie; little girls with pixie faces on either side of me, arms intertwined with mine and bright eyes studying my face as I read.

The Ingalls family, too, had just settled on the Kansas prairie, building a log cabin and stretching their wagon’s billowy canvas across the top for a temporary roof. Ma wished for a clothesline, Pa for a well.

“Do you girls know what a well is?” I asked.
“Oh yes!” came a ready reply. “It’s something that you throw money into to make a wish.”

“Well, yes,” I nodded. “People do that sometimes. But do you know what’s at the bottom of the well?”

An eager hand shot up on the other side of me as she smiled widely, “Wishes!”

Happy Birthday!

My husband's birthday comes on the heels of Christmas. While we are finishing up the leftovers, picking tree needles off the carpet and contemplating taking down all the decorations, he is celebrating another year of life. Those whose birthdays fall in the aftermath of Christmas cheer tend to get overlooked as their special day slips in among the holidays.

So today a post, in honor of his birthday. To my James on his 48th....I Love You!

Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!!!

What Makes a Mother Happy

I'm always after my kids for a picture. They can tell you themselves how many times I've said, "You guys! Quit goofing around and be serious so I can have a nice picture of you together!"

For Christmas they had a friend take not one, but several "nice pictures together." And at the same time, they threw in a couple of silly ones for good measure, because of course...that's who they are.

And honestly......
I wouldn't have it any other way.

In Favor of the Kitties

In all the flurry of Christmas activity and searching for the perfect presents, we sometimes forget that the most basic joys of everyday life not only suffice but often exceed that very goal.

A little boy is surrounded by trucks and puzzles, fancy wrappings and pretty much anything he could possibly desire from the toy store. But what he found the most delight in, what brought the most smiles and squeals of excitement were our furry little kittens. There were so many moments I could have captured with the camera, but instead I watched as he laid his cheek against their soft heads and carried them around, usually two at a time.

In the New Year ahead, remember the joys in your own backyard and learn to find contentment there. Realize that you aren't "settling" for less than what you deserve but rather, truly appreciating the treasures that you already have.

Merry Christmas

Wishing you a very joyous and blessed Christmas!

Snowman

When I was in kindergarten in 1967, my teacher, Mrs. Bartel, gave us each a Christmas ornament. It was nothing fancy: a small felt snowman cut with pinking shears and stitched with love. For years he hung on our family Christmas tree - the first ornament I had that was exclusively mine.

Every year I get him out along with all of the lovely things I have collected over the years. His smile is faded now through all the handling of the past forty-one years. But he is a sweet reminder of a simpler time, when a kindergarten teacher could still kiss you on the cheek each day, and a child could marvel in a handmade gift of felt and love.