Sunday Scribblings- Music

Music is such a powerful force in my life, I hardly know where to begin. Should I describe the way my fingers ache to touch piano keys when I'm away from a keyboard for more than a day or two? Or the complete fulfillment I experience when I'm playing with my handbell group and the 14 of us are like one big instrument, totally connected, and the music flows effortlessly toward the audience? How about the chills that run down my spine when the high school choir I'm accompanying achieves a perfect blend on that last chord, sending the final note soaring into the air? I love making music more than anything else I do.

But it isn't just the act of playing music that has been so life changing for me. Music has helped me face down my fears - of performing, of traveling, of speaking in front of people - and in doing so, has given me the confidence to pursue so many other avenues in my life. Through making music, I have met some of the most remarkable, inspirational people I have ever known, and made lifelong friends of all ages. And, most importantly, music led me to my true love. I met my husband when I was 13 and he was 15 - we were piano duet partners then, and have been partners in life for the past 30 years.

So you see, I could write a book about the importance of music in my life. It would be a book full of lyrical melodies, exciting rhythms, and fascinating harmonies. It would be a book that never ends, because for me, this song will go on forever.

Grateful Friday

Grace to experience the joy and beauty of summer Relaxation, which I, in my perpetual busy-ness, need to remember is necessary Antiques, especially the lovely tea set I found at an estate sale Terry cloth towels, which feel so good when you climb out of the pool Exercise, which gives me so much energy when I can motivate myself to do it! Friends, those near, far, and in cyberspace United Kingdom, my most favorite country to visit (so far!) Lipstick, the glossy kind with tiny sparkles Fresh fruit and vegetables, already appearing at the Saturday farmer's market Reading, and the extra time I have for it now that summer is here Inspiration, to write, to make music, to garden, to do all the things that add beauty to life Digital - cameras, tv's, dvd's, computers Anticipation, of all the good things yet to come You and me and all the things we can accomplish if we work together!

Poetry Thursday

STORM CLOUDS

Black as ground coffee

they percolate low on the horizon,

roiling, boiling,

bubbling to the surface.

Lifegiving

they overflow their cup of sky

soaking parched soil

with warm elixir.

Sated at last,

earth wakens with a smile.

This week's prompt on Poetry Thursday suggested a poem using words we love and/or words we hate. Anyone who knows me is aware that coffee is one of my great obsessions. As I was drinking this morning's brew, a much needed summer storm rolled in. The moist downpour was a jolt of caffeine to our dry, brown grass and wilted flowers. They perked up just like I do after my first cup! I love all these works associated with making coffee too, especially "percolate"- (thanks, Annie!) So, it seemed natural to put it all together.

American Girl

Here I am with one of my favorite girls - her name is Cara, and she's eight (going on 18!) years old. Cara loves her cat Sweetpea, really wants to get a dog, knows all the songs and dances from High School Musical, is reading the latest Harry Potter book, takes tennis lessons, and is going to horseback riding camp next month. Her favorite foods are pizza, pancakes, and bacon. She like to paint her nails with sparkly nail polish and loves having "spa days" at home with her mom. She is an all America girl. Last week, Cara was with us in Walt Disney World for three days and nights of wonderful, park hopping fun. But about eight years ago, Cara was abandoned outside a hospital in a small town in the Hunan Province of China. She was two weeks old. She spent the next nine months in a Chinese orphanage, until her parents, our dear friends Stuart and Donna, traveled to China to bring her home. Cara is very aware of her history, and is also very proud of her heritage. She meets regularly with the other Chinese girls who were adopted from the orphange with her, goes to Chinese school once a week, and will undoubtedly travel to China quite soon, since her father goes there each summer to teach English in an exchange program affiliated with Ohio State University.

I have loved being with Cara from the minute I met her, right after she got to America. Although we don't get to see each all that often, we always pick up right we left off. I find her pretty irresistable, and she can usually convince me to do things I would never have imagined I'd do (like riding Splash Mountain three times in a row at 10:30 pm!). But whenever we're together, it's never far from my mind that she could have been growing up in that little Chinese town we saw in pictures, where the streets were paved in red clay and the largest homes were only a little bigger than my two car garage. It's also never far from my mind that living in that town is the Chinese woman who gave birth to her and couldn't keep her, and who most likely thinks about her day and night. I wish that she could somehow know how happy, safe, beautiful, and loved her daughter is. She is truly one lucky little American girl.

Back in the Real World

It's been a very short Monday, a day with not nearly enough hours. Trying to regain my equilibrium after a week away has seemed unusually difficult. I was attempting to get in a few minutes of everything I had on my summer "resolutions" list - there was a haiku to compose and a photo to take for One Deep Breath, all those great posts at Sunday Scribblings to read, a stack of library books to return (and of course who could resist perusing the new arrival shelves), a workout at the gym, the Beethoven Sonata still open on the piano, plus doggies who hadn't been walked for a week, grocery shopping for me and my mom, a weeks worth of mail...well, you get the picture. Nevertheless, I'm rather glad to be home. I actually don't like taking vacations in the summer, because being home in the summer is it's own vacation. From September to May, I have not only my office job to contend with, but also school rehearsals and concerts, church choir rehearsals and service responsibilities, plus the schedule of subscription concerts and plays I always attend - Detroit Symphony, The Hilberry Theater, Measure for Measure (my husband's men's choir), et al. Every day is filled to the max. But from June to August, there is absolutely nothing on my calendar. I flip through all those blank pages and just shake my head in wonder. I am so protective of those empty days, that I don't even want to give them up to go on vacation!

However, if today was any indication of the way this summer is going to go, I'm not too happy about it. Fact is, the day got completely out of my control. I felt like I was standing in the middle of a funnel cloud, being spun around in a frenzied circle, and when it finally stopped I was too dizzy and disoriented to accomplish anything!

So, it's 11:00 pm, and I'm once again here at my keyboard, the place I started this day, sipping Chardonnay now instead of Gevalia coffee. The puppies are sleeping contentedly under the cool breeze from the ceiling fan, resting from their late evening walk. My haiku and photo are posted. My muscles are starting to feel just a little sore from the morning's workout at FitZone. We had a lovely (healthy) grilled chicken dinner, with rice and fresh green salad. I worked out the "A" section on the Beethoven F major Sonata. The mail is sorted, and my little stack of things to take to work/bank/post office is piled neatly on the kitchen table.

Actually, I guess I accomplished more that I thought. After all, it's summer, and tomorrow is another day!