SONGS IN THE NIGHT

I have a friend who was going through a really difficult time in her life.  She was a 'praying woman', and she cried out to God in her distress. She came to a point where she felt she'd been given a promise from Him, that He would give her 'songs in the night.'

Her life went on and she saw her share of struggles as it did, but she also saw some joys, as do most of us do. Moving toward her seventies, she found herself in a place where divorce loomed over her. No breaking up of a marriage is pleasant, and this seemed to be a particularly sad and hurtful time. Her friends were supportive of her and we tried to encourage. We couldn't, however, take the pain away. We just had to wait with her, pray for her, for her to find her healing.

In not-much-time, what seemed to be 'too quickly', a new man entered her life. We,her friends, were concerned about a 'rebound' relationship and one that might bring her even more suffering. However, we didn't know this man. We listened to her talking about him, and he almost seemed to be too good to be true. I think we feared that she, like so many of us do, couldn't see anything through the rose colored glasses.  We got to see through those spectacles ourselves, hearing her words. He 'doted on her', he seemed to be most pleased to please her.  Having a husband much like that myself, I could see how it would be possible for a man to do that for a woman. Still, we had reservations. I don't think any of us spoke  negatively about this relationship, but I think we all gave our loving 'warning' to be careful.

The heart does not have ears ...only a voice. Our friend was listening only to the voice in her heart. Soon we heard her news, she and her new guy were making plans to marry!  Perhaps we questioned the wisdom of such a swift move. Maybe we were sincerely worried that this was a mistake. However, she sounded so happy, so peaceful, more so than we'd ever known her to be in the years we'd known her. And so, we gave her our congratulations, our sincere wishes that she would be very happy in her new life with her Mr.Wonderful.

Now, the years have passed. My friend is still as happy as she seemed to be at the beginning of her relationship with him. They appear to have a loving and firm relationship, built on the idea of making each other happy and sharing their days together.  I, for one, am over-joyed for them, and I'm glad that my worries and concerns were in vain.

Thinking about all of it this morning, I came to realize that God kept His promise,as He always does. It was a bit slow in appearing, but at the darkest time in her life, God brought a partner who brought her love like she'd never known. This man was truly her 'song in the night'.

 

Time to Create...

It's about that time again...time for me to create.  What am I saying? It's always time for me to create!
But, looking at the calendar, I see that I'm way behind on making Christmas things. By this time, I've usually got piles of gifts, some even wrapped, some bought, others made by hand. It's mid-October, and generally my Christmas cards are made and ready for addressing. Not so, this year.

So, today I will put a pork roast into the oven, with some baked cinnamon apples, and I'll gather the glitter, the cardstock, the paint, the paper cutters, the glue, the ribbon,etc. I'll put on my 'creative thinking cap' and I will park myself in the sunroom. I'll play an instrumental Christmas cd, and I'll begin the creation of those cards to be sent to all the people on my list. I expect that I'll need to stoop to purchasing some for our church card exchange, for example. There are just too many now to make each one.  Especially this year, when I'm so late, I'll need to cut corners a little.

I wonder what inspirations will 'hit' me... or if any will at all!  Sometimes, all it takes is for me to sit down and begin. I guess I'd better start there.

The Weekend Ahead....

This weekend will be a more special one than usual. My daughter will be here. It's always fun for me when guests arrive, but even more so when it's one of the family.  Usually when she makes the two hour trip, she comes with her daughters and sometimes her husband comes too,sometimes not. Sinc he works out of the home, he can always use the  quiet time to catch up. This time, she'll come alone and my son-in-law will be 'on guard duty' over the girls.

My daughter has always been artistic, and her latest pursuit is to seriously create photographs worthy of professional endeavor. She's been a 'good' photographer for years, because she has that 'eye' for composition and detail, but these days she looks at her images with a more critical eye. She has done some free photo shoots for high school seniors, for a few weddings and some parties, in exchange for their permission to use the best of the photos for a portfolio to show her abilities to potential paying customers.  So, this weekend, we will be shot by lens and shutter as her models. She's instructed us as to what 'props' she'd like to use, what outfits to gather, and she's given us an idea of schedules in order to catch the best light. My job in the whole thing was to scout out locations to fit her ideas, and to be available at the appointed times. 

It shouldn't be a problem for me to be up and ready before sun up, because I'm naturally a morning person. However, we may have to take pictures of a snoozing Mike, since he's all about sleeping in 'til mid-morning! I am having some trouble with which outfits I want to be photographed in, that will fit the look E. is going for.  I'll do my best.

We hope, after all this, to have good weather and great images. We'd been hoping for brilliant tree colors, but I think we're not quite there yet. The wild flowers are drying and beginning to fade in color, but the leaves are still quite green. Well, even green makes a lovely backdrop, so we'll see what we end up with.  I'll share a few,once I get them from her. I can't wait!  A whole bunch of new images will be in our scrapbook...and we'll have a fun time with my daughter!

Going Backwards

Some of us are going backwards....and we like that way.  We're of the age where looking back is pleasant for us, reminiscing about the way things 'used to be', concluding that the old ways were far better than where we're heading, sharing our sweet memories.

I'm sure that there are many who would say that that 'reverse thinking' is a sign of our aging, Maybe so, but knowing where we've been, and unsure of what's to come, it's a security for some of us. Knowing that we've been through rough times, and that we've made it this far in life, we know that we're 'tough old birds', and we'll make it come-what-may.

I'm so glad to have other friends of my age group who remember things and places that I hold dear. It's difficult to realize that your kids and grandkids can't relate at all to the way things were when you were their ages. That's called 'progress'.  Some day these same kids and grandkids will speak of their youth, and the younger generation won't 'get it' either.  Well, truthfully, there are an awful lot of stories my grandfather  tried to share, that fell upon my deaf ears too.  What I wouldn't  give now to hear those tales of his young life!

 As many complaints we have of how technology has taken over our every day lives, I must say that I'm grateful for knowing how to use a computer. I fought so hard NOT to be a part of the technical world, but I'm glad,now, that I can at  least wade a bit into that area. It keeps me in touch with family, old friends and new ones too, via Facebook and email.  No matter where we are in the world today, we can communicate in seconds,with no long distance phone bills. We can even talk and see each other via Skype. What a world.

Few people who  are my age want to lose the old ways,though. Books, film cameras, photos that can be held in the hand, that crack with age, dragging up old memories to think of, to miss, and to  share with others who understand. Slapping the mind in reverse now and then isn't such a bad thing.

It's That Time Again...

What happened to Summer? Two or three days ago,it was nearly 80 degrees. Today it won't get above 62 degrees...and started out at 48!  Yikes!  I like the changing seasons....but a gentle change, one that sneaks in slowly, is far more welcome to me than a blast of cold air when you climb out of bed. Our temperatures are below normal at the moment,for this time of year.

Oh, Hallelujah! I've had half an ear on the TV, waiting for the weather forecast for the next few days. We'll be climbing back up to  the mid-high 70's before the weekend! Now those are the kind of numbers I like to spend my days with!  It's cool enough to be comfortable, and yet warm enough,too, so that we can still wear short sleeves. Yesterday I found myself piling on the layers of long-sleeved shirt,sweatshirt,sweatpants, and warm socks. Then I wrapped myself in the small quilt that graces the back of the couch.

We can take some of the chill off the air inside the house by doing more 'oven-cooking',  At this time of year it's natural to want heavier foods....meatloaf, winter squashes, casseroles and stews.  I think it's Mother Nature's way of helping our bodies stay warmer. Well, it works for me!  I'm not ready for turning on the heat.  I'll wait until 'the last horn toots'. When I can't get out of the shower without icicles hanging from my nose, then I'll cave in and crank up the thermostat.'Til then, I'll dress in those bulky clothes, and move less gracefully than the Michelin man does.

Ready or not, Kids. We're heading into the cold weather.  While I look forward to heartier food, lower temperatures, colorful trees, I'm really not ready for it yet. I think the week of Thanksgiving would be a good time to start feeling a 'nip' in the air....working up to a gentle,light snowfall for Christmas, followed by the New Year and a slow warm up through 'til next Thanksgiving.

Well, since I don't run the zoo, I guess I'll just have to go with the flow.

Thoughts on a Small Business

Once, years ago,  I started a small business. Because it was something I was doing from home, all I needed to do to get started,if I remember correctly,was to register a name with the county, and begin to advertise. I had some business cards made and set to work.  Since it was a sewing,crafts and quilt repair operation, I called my endeavor "In Stitches".

I did ok, brought in enough money to add to our income and have some 'no guilt' spending cash.  I did a few jobs for antique shops, repairing quilts that had lost some stitching or come apart in places. There was one job I enjoyed...the putting together of many handmade squares made by friends of someone who was going to be honored by a certain organization.   I made and sold some cloth soft-sculpture baby dolls,some rag dolls, and some other items.  I have to admit that boredom got the best of me, and I didn't many years at it. It's one thing to do your crafts for fun and quite another to 'have to' make them.

The opening of a business requires that you choose something specific to the need in the community. I recently passed a vacant building with a sign that indicated that it had been a tanning salon.  I suspect that this business didn't do much action...or not enough,anyway, to keep it going. My thoughts, as I passed this empty storefront were:

1) WHY would anyone open a tanning salon in a rural farm community, away from any other types of businesses?

2)  WHY would anyone even think that a tanning salon would do well in a predominantly African American community?!

3) WHAT would possess anyone to open a tanning salon,anyway, in sunny SC?  If you want a sun tan in these parts, wouldn't it be available by going outside for fifteen minutes a day?

Sometimes you just have to scratch your head with wonder...and giggle at the sensibility of things...or the lack thereof.

More Charleston Photos

The area from Charleston and south is known as the Low Country in SC. It is at, or below, level, and is dotted with much vacant and marshy land. There are homes built high on stilts or piers in order to prevent flooding, but there are also homes that lay directly on slabs on the ground. In light of the high water table, I can't imagine building so close to the earth. On the other hand, I'm not sure how secure any home would be,  constructed on sand and water!

 

There are many plantations sprinkled throughout the Low Country, most are private...not open to the public, and they're located in remote areas, down long dirt roads, and are not visible from the main roads.  However, there are public ones, some of which,like Drayton Hall, are preserved to show their architecture, their history and their long endurance. Drayton, Middleton, and Magnolia Plantations are located on the same road,and can all be seen,for a price.  They were owned by families who were related. Drayton Hall  is the only one of the three that was left exactly as it looked at the time of the Civil War.  

We arrived at the plantations too late in the day to warrant the price of the admission, and the historian at the gate house advised us to wait and come earlier on another day. So,we drove through the entry area at Magnolia Plantation instead, without having to pay to see the interior areas of the property.  On that drive,  we were able to see the group of slave cabins (I believe there where 9 of them). The slaves who worked in the house lived in these tiny cabins. They had it better than the field hands and animal keeper lived in 'other buildings' on the properties.

This is the main house at Magnolia Plantation. It is house #3 since it was built, not the one there during the Civil War.

 

This house is at Grove Plantation. Can you imagine sittingon the upper porch, fanning yourself and drinking a cold beverage,while you look out over your rice crops and the Ashley River? It is now being used as offices for an environmental group. Sadly,it is not open for viewing,except for the downstairs area (information rooms for environment) 

These are the hands of a skilled basket weaver. The Gullah people are descendants of the slaves, and have kept some of the language and arts of their 'people'. This woman allowed me only to photograph her busy and talented hands. but not her face.

 

This is Lily, a Gullah woman,originally from Mt. Pleasant (N.Charleston) She lives now, and has her roadside booth, on Edisto Island. She was very nice and answered my hundreds of questions regarding her craft, the language, the food of the Gullahs, etc. I could have stayed all day! She has taught her grandchildren the art of weaving these lovely sea grass and pine needle baskets, and she tries,too, to preserve the language,by speaking to them in the words used by people who came before her. However, she fears that the young people will lose this part of their heritage, as they consider it to be 'low class' to speak in such a way. It saddens her...and me....to think that old traditions and languages are fading away.

My happy husband at the ocean...Edisto Island. It's been two years since we saw the sea that we used to view EVERY  day when we lived on NY's Long Island. The smell of salt air, the sound of the waves, the fine, white sand, and the sight of the same sea we knew 900 miles north, brought both of us a peace in our hearts.

No...this is not Jaws! Not a shark at all...it is a camera shy dolphin. It was the best I could do to capture any of them in the playful pod. Everytime I'd take aim with the lens, they'd pop up outside of the range of lens! My arms got so tired of holding the camera at the ready,waiting for them to resurface!

 

Watch for a few more photos tomorrow. I hope you aren't bored!