I Lived (OneRepublic)

Today got off to a great start, with a family meet-up at the park in our old neighborhood, The MossFam5 plus Colin plus Holly (Rob's dog).  Gorgeous spring day, with temps lower than usual, and we ended up hanging for two hours, some of us sitting (me) while others (Sarah) ran after a toddler, who segued from beach ball to sticks to bubbles to running through the grass at breakneck speed just because he can to watching Dar's It's Alright video to regaling us with his ever-expanding vocabulary of seahorse, zebra, Ants Marching, mine (his seagull imitation from Finding Nemo), Hakuna Matata to stroller dancing.  He fell asleep in his carseat on the way home, and I'm pretty d*mn tired as well.  Plus, I just cannot get enough of his chubby feet (from six feet away).  These visits sustain me, and I cry every time I see a commercial on TV showing grandparents loving a little one through a window screen or across the yard.  When I am finally allowed to hug him, post-virus, it will be a while before I let go!  [The photo below is from last week; we forgot to take one today... 😲 ]

Also, buy stock in Yoga with Adriene, as I have been rocking the h*ll out of her videos on YouTube.  Walking is off my agenda for a while, until I can get my back issues under control, and I've had fun exploring Yoga for Sciatica, Yoga for Seniors, and Yoga for Beginners:  Back to Basics and, to quote Joni, you know there may be more.  I need gentle, restorative work-outs until I can return to sessions that challenge me.  She is patient, funny, and knows her sh*t, and I am in good hands on so many levels...  :-)

It's Feel Good Friday.  Zippity!  Five items below of beauty, interest, and humor to brighten your day/weekend/week:


~ Celeste Ng, Ann Patchett, Min Jin Lee and Others on the Books That Bring Them Comfort:  Authors are just like the rest of us — they like to soothe their anxieties by losing themselves in  the pages of a beloved book. Here are some of the ones they turn to when times get tough.


~ Beatles-a-Day - The Covid Lockdown Sessions with Mo & Amelia:  Sing and play along - this began as  a thing to keep us and our friends happy during Covid-19 quarantine and lockdown - and it turns out, it's been helping distract folks and keep them singing and harmonizing!  So, we continued... (thanks to Judi for the heads-up!)


~ Himalayan Mountaintops Visible for the First Time in 30 Years as Air Pollution Continues to Plummet in India:  For the last 30 years, the tops of the Himalayan mountains have been obscured by air pollution and smog. Now as the city streets are emptied of traffic and gas-guzzling vehicles, the mountaintops were clearly visible to the millions of local communities in quarantine.


~ Dressing up to take out the trash becomes lockdown trend, with formal wear, costumes:  Getting dressed up to take out the trash has become a sport for people cooped up by coronavirus lockdowns, and they don’t care if you think it’s crazy.


~ Let’s Bury the Hatchet!  Some people are using time in isolation to resolve deeply held grudges.


SONG:  I Lived by OneRepublic

BOOK:  Silence: In the Age of Noise by Erling Kagge, Becky L. Crook (Translator)

POEM:  May Day by Tess Taylor

They go, the early flags, the gory maples—
so too the daffodils & Lenten roses.
Other petals swirl & nights warm.

Buds thicken and cast shadows:
in a thunderstorm
I almost forget the ice that was.

Narcissi suckle watery paths;
meadows heap up emerald masses.
How green & I want to delight

except this undertow—it pulls so fast
passing before I recognize it—
like souls in Dante who can’t see the present,

white lilacs curdle in pre-summer heat.
The parade I barely noticed was beginning
is already halfway down the street.

QUOTE:  “Do something nice for yourself today. Find some quiet, sit in stillness, breathe. Put your problems on pause. You deserve a break.” ~ Ariroq Brost