Straight From The Hart

 The Perils of Joan and her Keys I was born in the State of Infancy, grew up in the State of Poverty, and it appears I will die in the State of Confusion.  As a young person, I always wondered what old people do when they retire. They always seem so busy but I couldn't figure out why. Now I know. They spend all their time hunting things they lose or forget. (I'm not retired, but I'm old, and it still works that way.)  I have never had a good relationship with Keys. Keys on a piano and the key any given song is written in - I can handle. But keys that unlock doors and cars are my bugaboo. Take today for example, oh, why not just take the last week.  It all started last Thursday night. I grabbed the church van key out of my keybox near the door and laboriously made my way half a block down past my house, hobbling along with my cane to make sure I didn't fall, only to find once I got there that I had the wrong bunch of keys.  Made my way back to the house, but the bunch of

  When I am an old woman, I will wear purple! Yes, and hot pink with roses that smell (if you scratch them) so wonderfully well! I shall wear my purple and pink in the fall and not worry should 'looks' follow, wherever I stall. On the sidewalk or street bench I'll sit in the sun, and never get up until I am done. Yes, wearing purple I'll feel such a queen, and won't mind a bit when some watch me preen. In fact, I'll enjoy a sneak peak now and then just to see if they wonder, and smile once again. I'll wear my bright purple and feed squirrels and birds, enjoying their friendship without any words. Yes, sharing these songs of the feathered and furry, I'll hear all the sounds of this world without worry. Green leaves rustle tunes for each season they last, till winter has come and their sound is all past. Those greyed branches that tremble and lift to the sky are rooted in earth that holds spring's bright sigh! So, aging and newness walk life altogether

  "Comes the Dawn" "After a while you learn the subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul. And you learn that love doesn't mean leaning and company isn't security. (Kisses aren't contracts and presents aren't promises.) After awhile you begin to accept your defeats with your head up and your eyes open, with the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child. And you learn to build your roads on today because tomorrow's ground is too uncertain and the inevitable has a way of crumbling in mid-flight. After a while you learn that even sunshine burns if you stand too long in one place. So, you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul instead of waiting for someone else to bring you flowers. And you learn you really can endure, that you really do have worth. You learn that with every good-bye comes the dawn." Author Unknown

  Have you all heard the story about the two friends discussing the sad state of our country? One man says. “Don’t you think our problems are caused by ignorance and apathy?” The other thinks a minute then says, “I don’t know and I don’t care”. I fear that the second man speaks for a great majority of American citizens. We have become a nation of uninformed people when it comes to politics and our economy. Some are just too busy to get involved. Others just grow tired of the cacophony of talking TV heads with their shrill voices and rude manners. Some feel that it just doesn’t do any good to even care. They are panocitzens, another word I made up to describe the people who just don’t want to be bothered by it all. They say however it all pans out is fine with them. Surveys routinely show that the general public is poorly informed about government and politics. In a survey conducted in 2010, for example, fewer than half of respondents even knew which political party held the majo

 

  (I did not write this and have no information as to the author.) Barely the day started and... it's already six in the evening. Barely arrived on Monday and it's already Friday. ... and the month is already over. ... and the year is almost over. ... and already 40, 50 or 60 years of our lives have passed. ... and we realize that we lost our parents, friends. and we realize it's too late to go back... So... Let's try, despite everything, to enjoy the remaining time... Let's keep looking for activities that we like... Let's put some color in our grey... Let's smile at the little things in life that put balm in our hearts. And despite everything, we must continue to enjoy with serenity this time we have left. Let's try to eliminate the afters... I'm doing it after... I'll say after... I'll think about it after... We leave everything for later like ′′ after ′′ is ours. Because what we don't understand is that: Afterwards, the coffee gets co

  I love to write poetry and I love to read poetry out loud just for the rhythm and flow of the words, and one famous poem which always comes to mind this time of the year is Joyce Kilmer’s “Trees” which is so beautiful in its simplicity. Although Kilmer writes of the summer tree with a “nest of robins in her hair”,and the winter tree “upon whose bosom snow hath lain”, I would venture to say that he never drove through the Missouri Ozarks in the fall to see the blazing red of the autumn foliage, and the neon yellows with the sun shining through, or the orange leaves falling like miniature pumpkins from Charllie Brown’s “Great Pumpkin Tree”, or the muted mauves and dusty roses spread across the “hills and hollers” as you travel the highways and byways of the Ozarks. I have always enjoyed the beautiful colors of fall and have my favorite routes I take to view the trees here in town. The City Cemetery of course is spectacular. The mature trees along Harwood Avemue are magnificent. S

    Measurements are not included because depends on how much cabbage etc you are making. To shredded cabbage he adds shredded carrots, sweet red pepper sliced very fine, onion sliced fine and celery half sliced fine, other half grated. Dressing: he refuses to use anything on coleslaw except Hellman's mayonnaise (not lite), combined with sugar, salt and Heinz salad vinegar, not plain kitchen/cooking vinegar.