D*mn, I missed uploading a blog post yesterday as well. What the h*ll?!? I guess my social life is picking up, such that more days/hours are filled with joyful activities (besides reading, that is... 😍 )
Went to Colin's swim lesson in the morning (he is doing very well learning pool safety), which segued into another few hours of pool fun with Sarah, Donna and her kids as well, which led to a few interesting conversations about mythology, feelings, and coping mechanisms (with her 6- and 9-year-old tiny humans!). Swung by the library to pick up a few books on reserve, then on to Hollywood Beach to meet up with SharonG (one of my "folk daughters"-turned-friend) and Jennifer. The water was a bit rough but the breeze was lovely, the sky cerulean, and the conversation deep and loving. Home by 5:30 p.m. feeling refilled and relaxed.
In the mail was the new CD by Friction Farm, which I had only ordered a few days ago. Zippity to their "Shipping Department" as well as the Post Office. I had heard most of the songs previously (during livestreamed concerts or the South Florida Folk Festival), and it is delightful to have them recorded and accessible now, not to mention discovering the ones that are new to me! From FF: The new album, “Evidence of Hope”, explores the topics of fear, loss, immigration, family, protest. Looking at the songs as a collection we were surprised to see how much hope was embodied in each track. Hope nurtured by a belief in nature, in our institutions, but mostly in one another. We didn't feel hopeful, in fact we felt a little desperate, but we wrote our experience; what we did, saw, and heard in mostly virtual encounters with the world. Truth always finds its way to the surface in the music. Maybe it will bring you some hope."
Today is rainy and productive, but no less joyful. Feeling/conjuring my default these days is Gratitude... 💞
NR: The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton (thanks, Mari... 💝 )
BOOK: 100 Days of Actions & Intentions to Create the Life You Wish For: Guide Yourself to a Place Where You're Happy & Free and Achieving Your Dreams. All Day, Every Day by Susan Balogh
POEM: Home Remedies by Couri Johnson
First;
I will weave heartache into a blanket
the way my mother taught me, white knuckled,
catching it on hooks held between browning fingers.
When it is done I will wear it as a shawl when I am out,
at night lay it down on the vacant side of the bed
and wake tangled in it and suffocating.
Next;
I will unlearn my manners. Rub sandpaper
and salt along the skin that had been kissed
and caressed soft, grow the callouses back
in my voice and nip the word sweetheart
off of my tongue. I will call you once before dawn
to tell you I was never sweet, but all you will hear
is blood and breath, and the final click of bones
resetting into a primal shape.
Finally;
I will brew coffee without a filter; black and bitter
thick like the soil after thunderstorms. I will curl my fingers
around the cup and let it burn my palm. I will let its steam
sting in my eyes. I will read our future by flicking ash
off the end of my cigarette into the mug.
I will watch it sink. I will watch it dissolve.
I will watch it turn into nothing at all.
QUOTE: "You are under no obligation to remain the same person you were a year ago, a month ago, or even a day ago. You are here to create yourself, continuously." ~ Richard Feynman
