Dueling Sisters:Passage of Time

Space Time Continuum (CMH) At first glance- The walls of the cabin are empty except for windows that admit air and light. But when seated at the kitchen table the windows seem more like frames for forty-eight inch square monitors showing three-dimensional nature films produced in full Technicolor. They display the surrounding woods on both sides and behind the cabin like a surrealistic dream where one sees into the surface of a beautiful painting, searching into the depths- watching, listening, waiting for some unknown factor to make itself known. Tiny glimpses of sky are seen only by looking up and beyond the frame. Soft rain blurs the vision but there are no knobs to put it in focus or to adjust the volume. There is only time to consider its illimitable dimension, continuous and boundless, and feel the inner peace that flows over your body as the rain washes stones and carries them away into space-time continuum. The Many Faces of Dull (MLM) So, you think your life is dull, boring and without joy, devoid of interest? How can that be if you are alive and your five senses are functioning? See the cardinals and hear their melodies, the songs of many finches with their tiny heads of many colors standing out against the blue sky; see the squirrels play their games chasing each other with switching tails and bright, beady eyes, which return your stare without flinching. See the spider web on your car door beaded with drops of moisture that has miraculously appeared overnight; the spinner is no where in sight. See the grass, every blade sparkling in the early sunlight, lined with beads of dew. The air seems so fresh and clean early in the morning and every step leaves tracks…funny, you never noticed the neat pattern the soles of your shoes make. Somehow your senses are fully awake this morning; you can smell the charming fragrance of a fireplace nearby, a chilly breeze makes you shiver, a rather exhilarating sensation and you suddenly realize, that the leaves on trees are already changing color; you are compelled to look at the sky, your curiosity aroused. It is so blue after so many days of gray and you see a huge bird soaring across the blue, but you do not believe your first impression…an eagle…then it is gone and you wonder all day if it truly was an eagle. As you leave for work or school, you have a new resolve to pay more attention to your surroundings from now on. You drive by so many late blooming flowers you never really noticed before, even though you pass this way every day. Your world and your life does not seem as dull and faceless as before, not because it has changed, but because you have changed your perspective! “O my, what a beautiful morning!” Yesteryear (CMH) I know that it’s called progress but forgive me if I regret the loss of bygone yesterdays, memories of what was but no more. Things recalled from my childhood that soon gave way to change. The absence of the Jewell Tea man, the Autumn Leaf dishes they sold now found in old and used stores. The Manor Bread trucks that replaced former horse drawn wagons when their horses were lost in a stable fire. The huckster with fresh fruit and bushels of home grown vegetables brought directly to your door. Today’s equivalent is found in the open farmer’s market. The pickup truck piled high with a load of huge frozen blocks picked up and carried by oversized tongs for the neighbor’s aging ice box. The old Victrola replaced by electrical record players, stereos, hi-fis, boom boxes and then- those plugs placed in your ears. Records are old fashioned, CDs are in Typewriters then, electrical now competing with home computers. Cameras have changed over time and some are now obsolete. Lots of luck to find a place where the film can still be developed. Unless, of course, you’ve gone digital and are able to do it yourself. One consolation is Instant Ralston. My favorite hot cereal from yesteryear can still be ordered by mail from a Vermont country store. Forget the Gaps (MLM) My past is full of gaps; holes in my memory I cannot fill, things forgotten, thoughts scrambled and mixed up to create more pleasant memories, or in some cases, memories rearranged so that whatever actually happened, is as thickly hidden as a forest in a heavy fog… sometimes our desires to know what lies hidden, lead to unwise actions and time spent without profit… wonder who came up with the phrase, “let dead dogs lie?” It is hard not to care about the empty spaces in my memory and just let go!