”Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it you can.”
I didn’t realize there is a limit as to how many lovely spring days we get in a row. This morning I found out the limit is two. It is a rainy, damp, chilly, uninviting day. I do need to go out, though, to a concert, the second of three in a row, and to get some dog food and a comforting Snickers bar.
Last night I had a flutternutter. The peanut butter was super chunky. The bread was soft. I was in sandwich heaven.
I watched Ice Quake, a B+ movie. In it, people died by falling in crevasses, being buried by snow and inhaling methane gas. The dog, Yeti, ran away from his humans and was running all over the mountain. He survived. Dogs usually do except for Old Yeller.
I am done cleaning for a while. The kitchen floor looked great for a couple of days, but now the paw prints are back. In the hall and den, the dust balls again stir when I walk by them. Cleaning is futile.
In the play Our Town, Emily has died, but before she takes her place among the dead, she gets to relive a day. She chooses her 12th birthday. She sees the town as it was and how young her parents look. She sees George who would become her husband. She finds the experience devastating and returns to the afterlife. She says, “Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?”
I can answer Emily. I found an old, really old, aerogram I sent from Ghana, just a few months away from closing service. In it, I worry about going home, what I’ll do and what I’ll find. I also talk about Ghana and what I’d learned. I’m going to share some of this aerogram.
”I’m beginning to realize how lucky I am. This is the sort of experience that no one should or can do without. In a way it is a bit mind blowing. All of a sudden you’re awake to sounds, sights and feelings you never knew existed before, and it is the sort of experience you can never forget because you’ve tried to absorb every particle that you can so it can all be brought back whenever it begins to dim.” I figure I realized how wonderful and beautiful my life was, and those two years taught me to hold close to every day.
I still do that now, realize the joy in every day. I’d hate to miss anything.
April 18, 2024 at 9:40 pm
Hi Kat,
Today was mostly cloudy and humid. There’s a cool front approaching from the west. Tonight we are expecting thunderstorms, but the cap is holding and we haven’t had any storms yet. The cap is a warm air temperature inversion which if strong enough prevents the thunderstorms from building.
I had to stop and think for a moment what you meant by an aero gram. I’m sure you remember telegrams and rotary dial telephones. Last year I read that the last two pay telephone booths in Manhattan were removed. My kids probably have no idea what was a pay phone or what is a phone booth. How can you enjoy Superman without knowing about phone booths. 🙂
I enjoyed your excerpt from your aero gram. Yes, you were extremely lucky to have experienced the Peace Corps and touched the lives of your students. You were especially lucky to have served in Ghana.
April 18, 2024 at 10:12 pm
Hi Bob,
Today the air was so damp it almost seemed misty. I went out to the car then went back inside to get a jacket. It felt that chilly. There will be scattered showers tonight.
The aerograms were the least expensive way to write home. I filled all the spaces including the two flaps. My mother said she couldn’t believe how much I was able to fit. I also remember fax machines. They were so quick they seemed a marvel. I agree kids will have no idea what a rotary phone is. Poor Superman!
Thanks! I wanted to remember everything. Ghana is a wonderful country. I have always felt lucky to have lived there.
April 18, 2024 at 11:52 pm
You needed a jacket while we almost got to 90°.
April 19, 2024 at 5:51 pm
Bob,
It was so damp the air was chilly. Everyone had a jacket or sweater on. 90° is rare except in August.