The mouse in the back of the stove is a childhood memory of dread,
There came to be a horrible aroma as mother was baking her bread.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Song/Poem 4 "Felt So Loved"
When we were kids playing outdoors was the best time of all,
Until we heard, "First come-First served", our Mom's dinner call.
And we would race for home like we had never eaten before,
And try for first place by the back kitchen door.
We had played tag and chased away all the imaginary foes,
Running in and out of the fresh, clean, hung out clothes.
In and out under the clothes line we had spent the day,
It was the only place Mom didn't want us to play.
And we didn't wear namebrands or know any videos,
Mom was a widow who sewed our clothes.
In our coats she made a heart-shaped pocket for our gloves,
And life was so good, I think it's because we felt so loved.
We felt so loved.
Our property was quite a sight to see
with all the trees marked with "Z's".
Sword fights with lumber scraps
over hidden treasure maps.
Next came hot rods in the yard
taking jobs, working hard.
Seasons came and seasons went
and our time together was well spent.
And we didn't wear namebrands or know any videos,
Mom was a widow who sewed our clothes.
In our coats she made a heart-shaped pocket for our gloves,
And life was so good, I think it's because we felt so loved.
We felt so loved.
One by one we left home and tried to keep in touch
Even, at times, if it wasn't all that much.
And life as we knew it faded away,
New life came in with our children at play.
There is one thing that we are certain of,
We want to pass on the gift of feeling so loved.
And we didn't wear namebreand or know any videos,
Mom was a widow who sewed our clothes.
In our coats she made a heart-shaped pocket for our gloves,
And life was so good, I think It's because we felt so loved.
We felt so loved.
Until we heard, "First come-First served", our Mom's dinner call.
And we would race for home like we had never eaten before,
And try for first place by the back kitchen door.
We had played tag and chased away all the imaginary foes,
Running in and out of the fresh, clean, hung out clothes.
In and out under the clothes line we had spent the day,
It was the only place Mom didn't want us to play.
And we didn't wear namebrands or know any videos,
Mom was a widow who sewed our clothes.
In our coats she made a heart-shaped pocket for our gloves,
And life was so good, I think it's because we felt so loved.
We felt so loved.
Our property was quite a sight to see
with all the trees marked with "Z's".
Sword fights with lumber scraps
over hidden treasure maps.
Next came hot rods in the yard
taking jobs, working hard.
Seasons came and seasons went
and our time together was well spent.
And we didn't wear namebrands or know any videos,
Mom was a widow who sewed our clothes.
In our coats she made a heart-shaped pocket for our gloves,
And life was so good, I think it's because we felt so loved.
We felt so loved.
One by one we left home and tried to keep in touch
Even, at times, if it wasn't all that much.
And life as we knew it faded away,
New life came in with our children at play.
There is one thing that we are certain of,
We want to pass on the gift of feeling so loved.
And we didn't wear namebreand or know any videos,
Mom was a widow who sewed our clothes.
In our coats she made a heart-shaped pocket for our gloves,
And life was so good, I think It's because we felt so loved.
We felt so loved.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Song/Poem 3 "Fall Memories"
Tomorrow is officially the first day of Fall. I love the season of Fall. I enjoy the sight of the golden shades and reddish mixtures of the spectacular colors of the leaves. The taste of Fall to me is hot apple cider or apple slices dipped in melted caramel. The smell of Fall are the lovely spices of cinnamon and nutmeg with an outdoor whiff of someone using their wood burning fireplace for the first time in this cooler season. The feel of Fall is the feeling of being warm and cozy with the softness of a woolen blanket. To hear Fall I would leave the sidewalk and walk across the yard and hear the crunch, crakling of crisp leaves underfoot.
Fall was a special season as I grew up. Our dad had built the home that I grew up in and on the North side of the house he had planted three maple trees ( a silver maple, a sugar maple and a red maple). I wrote this poem/song, "Fall Momories", to commemorate this special childhood memory of Fall.
"Fall Memories"
My dad died when I was small
I really don't remember him at all.
Mom raised four sons and me
giving us a special Fall memory.
Each Fall I remember mom gathering clusters of leaves
from the three maple trees by our home.
She brought them in and enjoyed their beauty,
decorating in reds and golds.
She put a big bouquet of leaves in front of the picture window.
Beautiful maple leaves, glistening in the sunlight,
beautiful maple leaves, rustling in the wind
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
She pinned some leaves to the curtain by the sink,
and as she washed dishes she would look at them and think
Of the day dad had planted the trees and of the house he had built
and love for him she still felt.
Beautiful maple leaves, glistening in the sunlight,
beautiful maple leaves, rustling in the wind
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
When mom's eyesight went dim
she still thought of him,
And when she was seventy-nine
the porchsteps were hard for her to climb.
It had been forty years since she held dad's hand
and the special touch he left I grew to understand
As she would gather more leaves in the Fall,
for more kind memories to recall.
Beautiful maple leaves, glistening in the sunlight,
beautiful maple leaves rustling in the winds
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
And I thank God above
for the gift of an unending love
Shown to me by the leaves of the maple trees.
Beautiful maple leaves
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
.
Fall was a special season as I grew up. Our dad had built the home that I grew up in and on the North side of the house he had planted three maple trees ( a silver maple, a sugar maple and a red maple). I wrote this poem/song, "Fall Momories", to commemorate this special childhood memory of Fall.
"Fall Memories"
My dad died when I was small
I really don't remember him at all.
Mom raised four sons and me
giving us a special Fall memory.
Each Fall I remember mom gathering clusters of leaves
from the three maple trees by our home.
She brought them in and enjoyed their beauty,
decorating in reds and golds.
She put a big bouquet of leaves in front of the picture window.
Beautiful maple leaves, glistening in the sunlight,
beautiful maple leaves, rustling in the wind
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
She pinned some leaves to the curtain by the sink,
and as she washed dishes she would look at them and think
Of the day dad had planted the trees and of the house he had built
and love for him she still felt.
Beautiful maple leaves, glistening in the sunlight,
beautiful maple leaves, rustling in the wind
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
When mom's eyesight went dim
she still thought of him,
And when she was seventy-nine
the porchsteps were hard for her to climb.
It had been forty years since she held dad's hand
and the special touch he left I grew to understand
As she would gather more leaves in the Fall,
for more kind memories to recall.
Beautiful maple leaves, glistening in the sunlight,
beautiful maple leaves rustling in the winds
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
And I thank God above
for the gift of an unending love
Shown to me by the leaves of the maple trees.
Beautiful maple leaves
returning a loving Fall memory to me, again.
.
Monday, September 20, 2010
#3 "Love for One's Self Brings New Strengths and Beauty"
A couple of months ago I was having therapy for some weak muscles. The therapist kept telling me during the therapy session to be sure to tell her if I was experiencing any type of pain. After awhile and into the therapy session, surprisingly, there came a sharp pain. I told the therapist I was having pain on the right side. She said that pain will always go to the weakest side. So the therapy session showed us the right side was the weak side. I didn't know my right side of the muscles was weaker than the left side. I don't even know if my therapist knew it for sure but the pain showed the weakness. Believe it or not a creative writing came out of the theraphy experience so here goes.
I thought that if pain always goes to the weak side maybe there are certain pains in my life that show me something weak about myself. I thought about what causes me pain. One thought was when I feel unappreciated. Another thought was when people say something uncomplimentary about me. These two things hurt me and make me feel a pain from the actions and words of others. Then I thought about what weakness in me could cause me to feel this kind of pain. I thought that if I look to others for my worth or value or self esteem I am dependent on others to feel good about myself and that would be a weakness. If I am confident of my own worth and have good self esteem then I wouldn't be dependent on what others think of me to know I have true value.
So I decided to think this through a little further and this is what I discovered. It is out of the awareness of what is causing the pain in my life that brings to me an opportunity to do something about it in certain situations. Out of the pain that shows to me an area of recognized weakness can come a strength of character that removes the pain of the irritation by this delvelopment of the new strength. If the weakness is no longer there then the irritation will no longer be able to cause the same pain as before. The hurt from others won't cause the same pain when a solid and good self esteem is in place.
I think a lot of lessons in life teach us how to love ourselves. To love ourselves and to love others as we love ourselves. There will be irritations throughout our life. That is just the way life is. But some of these irritations do not have to cause us tremendous pain if we recognize that the pain can be remedied by a development of a strength. This strength can become a strength of character and to learn how to love ourselves will give us a rare beauty from within ourselves.
As this process of change continues our desires may change also and we truly may enjoy new surroundings. To be around people who enjoy attacking others self esteem will not be painful but rather it will become annoying and new people who also have love for themselves will be more attracive associations. So from the original pain can come a new internal beauty and a new external beauty to our environment and surroundings.
People who do not know their true worth, value or have good self esteem will have a weak side to them and pain always goes to the weakest side. Maybe to have more peace of mind we should have more love for ourselves. There is more to gain by having less pain in some circumstances. Only an awareness of the true cause of pain can direct us to discovering a new beauty about ouselves that has been waiting for us to find.
I thought that if pain always goes to the weak side maybe there are certain pains in my life that show me something weak about myself. I thought about what causes me pain. One thought was when I feel unappreciated. Another thought was when people say something uncomplimentary about me. These two things hurt me and make me feel a pain from the actions and words of others. Then I thought about what weakness in me could cause me to feel this kind of pain. I thought that if I look to others for my worth or value or self esteem I am dependent on others to feel good about myself and that would be a weakness. If I am confident of my own worth and have good self esteem then I wouldn't be dependent on what others think of me to know I have true value.
So I decided to think this through a little further and this is what I discovered. It is out of the awareness of what is causing the pain in my life that brings to me an opportunity to do something about it in certain situations. Out of the pain that shows to me an area of recognized weakness can come a strength of character that removes the pain of the irritation by this delvelopment of the new strength. If the weakness is no longer there then the irritation will no longer be able to cause the same pain as before. The hurt from others won't cause the same pain when a solid and good self esteem is in place.
I think a lot of lessons in life teach us how to love ourselves. To love ourselves and to love others as we love ourselves. There will be irritations throughout our life. That is just the way life is. But some of these irritations do not have to cause us tremendous pain if we recognize that the pain can be remedied by a development of a strength. This strength can become a strength of character and to learn how to love ourselves will give us a rare beauty from within ourselves.
As this process of change continues our desires may change also and we truly may enjoy new surroundings. To be around people who enjoy attacking others self esteem will not be painful but rather it will become annoying and new people who also have love for themselves will be more attracive associations. So from the original pain can come a new internal beauty and a new external beauty to our environment and surroundings.
People who do not know their true worth, value or have good self esteem will have a weak side to them and pain always goes to the weakest side. Maybe to have more peace of mind we should have more love for ourselves. There is more to gain by having less pain in some circumstances. Only an awareness of the true cause of pain can direct us to discovering a new beauty about ouselves that has been waiting for us to find.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
#2 Vise Versus Vice/ a Thought from Susan Pearl
"Our thoughts should be free and not caught in a vise grip,
otherwise, our thoughts may become gripped by vice."
otherwise, our thoughts may become gripped by vice."
Monday, September 13, 2010
#1 "Battles Won by Battles Lost"
A Creative Writing by Susan Pearl:
This creative writing is about the wonderful parents of a young boy who lost his battle of finding his way out of a forest. It was a battle against time and elements and these two facotrs did beat the chances of a successful recovery. The boy died in the forest. In the midst of their grief the boy's parents decided to give their son a special memorial without telling anyone. They leased a plane and a good friend who was a pilot flew them to be over the area where their son had been lost. Over the area the parents dropped over 100 compasses in memory of their son. No one knew about this but the pilot and another close friend. Years and years passed and then one morning something happened. On the front page of the morning newspaper was a picture of a family being reunited with their son who had been lost in the forest. The boy had found a compass in the forest and was able to navigate his way out of the woods. The reunion was wonderful and so happy and everyone considered it a miracle. No one, in the newspaper report, had any idea of what someone else had gone through to help make this successful outcome possible.
We, ourselves, may have no idea what others have gone through and done for our behalf. What provisions have been put into place for our benefit and the benefit of others. Out of a tragic loss came a successful gain. Out of trmendous sorrow came overwhelming happiness. A lost battle made way for the next battle to be won.
Throughout life are personal battles. A lost battle is not in vain if it gives direction to win the next battle.
This creative writing is about the wonderful parents of a young boy who lost his battle of finding his way out of a forest. It was a battle against time and elements and these two facotrs did beat the chances of a successful recovery. The boy died in the forest. In the midst of their grief the boy's parents decided to give their son a special memorial without telling anyone. They leased a plane and a good friend who was a pilot flew them to be over the area where their son had been lost. Over the area the parents dropped over 100 compasses in memory of their son. No one knew about this but the pilot and another close friend. Years and years passed and then one morning something happened. On the front page of the morning newspaper was a picture of a family being reunited with their son who had been lost in the forest. The boy had found a compass in the forest and was able to navigate his way out of the woods. The reunion was wonderful and so happy and everyone considered it a miracle. No one, in the newspaper report, had any idea of what someone else had gone through to help make this successful outcome possible.
We, ourselves, may have no idea what others have gone through and done for our behalf. What provisions have been put into place for our benefit and the benefit of others. Out of a tragic loss came a successful gain. Out of trmendous sorrow came overwhelming happiness. A lost battle made way for the next battle to be won.
Throughout life are personal battles. A lost battle is not in vain if it gives direction to win the next battle.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Song/Poem 2- " The Pearl Song"
Dad, I kept looking for you.
I think I have my whole life through.
Leaving like you did
when I was a kid,
Oh, Dad, if you only knew,
I kept looking for you.
But from this came
the meaning of my name.
You see, a pearl is a gem of great value,
but it doesn't start out that way.
It begins as a displeasure
that has to be lived with night and day.
And like the grain of sand
the pain at hand
can be very hard to bear.
But with time and grace
a change takes place
that makes a design so fair,
A hard to find,
a one of a kind, that's rare.
Lately, I've been thinking it through
knowing the name "Pearl" had great meaning to you.
A gem so rare you wanted me to wear
each day my whole life through,
I think it was a gift from you.
Cause for each loss there is a cost
that may seem to have no end.
But it has to be faced
and held in its' place for a new look to begin
and this new look has to start from within.
Some truths in life take time to find,
and, by looking for you, I found mine.
A pearl is a gem of great value
but it doesn't start out that way.
It begins as a displeasure
that has to be lived with night and day.
And like the grain of sand
the pain at hand
can be very hard to bear.
But with time and grace
a change takes place
that makes a design so fair.
A hard to find
a one of a kind, that's rare.
I think I have my whole life through.
Leaving like you did
when I was a kid,
Oh, Dad, if you only knew,
I kept looking for you.
But from this came
the meaning of my name.
You see, a pearl is a gem of great value,
but it doesn't start out that way.
It begins as a displeasure
that has to be lived with night and day.
And like the grain of sand
the pain at hand
can be very hard to bear.
But with time and grace
a change takes place
that makes a design so fair,
A hard to find,
a one of a kind, that's rare.
Lately, I've been thinking it through
knowing the name "Pearl" had great meaning to you.
A gem so rare you wanted me to wear
each day my whole life through,
I think it was a gift from you.
Cause for each loss there is a cost
that may seem to have no end.
But it has to be faced
and held in its' place for a new look to begin
and this new look has to start from within.
Some truths in life take time to find,
and, by looking for you, I found mine.
A pearl is a gem of great value
but it doesn't start out that way.
It begins as a displeasure
that has to be lived with night and day.
And like the grain of sand
the pain at hand
can be very hard to bear.
But with time and grace
a change takes place
that makes a design so fair.
A hard to find
a one of a kind, that's rare.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
The Setting for Writing "The Pearl Song"
My name, Susan Pearl, has great meaning to me. My Dad had chosen that name even before the birth of his and Mother's first child. After having four sons, Dad still hung on to that name. I am the fifth and youngest child in the family and Dad got to name me Susan Pearl. My Dad died in a car accident when I was one year old and so I did not get to know him. But I heard the story of how he wanted his "Susan Pearl".
As time went on I was raised by my widowed mother and grew up in a single parent setting. This was back in the 1950's and 1960's, and I was the only one in my small rural community class who did not have a dad and that is something I really missed.
When I was in my forties, I came across an explanation of the pearl. This explanation revealed to me that a pearl is made from a self defense device of the oyster. To stop the irritation of a grain of sand inside the oyster, a mother of pearl substance is formed to coat the grain of sand and thus the once irritation becomes a rare beauty of a gem, a one of a kind, a beautiful pearl. I knew then the true meaning of my name.
As time went on I was raised by my widowed mother and grew up in a single parent setting. This was back in the 1950's and 1960's, and I was the only one in my small rural community class who did not have a dad and that is something I really missed.
When I was in my forties, I came across an explanation of the pearl. This explanation revealed to me that a pearl is made from a self defense device of the oyster. To stop the irritation of a grain of sand inside the oyster, a mother of pearl substance is formed to coat the grain of sand and thus the once irritation becomes a rare beauty of a gem, a one of a kind, a beautiful pearl. I knew then the true meaning of my name.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Song/Poem-1 "Pearls Take Time"
Life has so many moments and to –”live in the moment”– as they say
It is up to us to look and find the pearl (the rare times) in each day.
It seems so good to think how far we have come,
From those early years when we started out so young.
Like a pearl our love has grown more beautiful with time,
And, like a pearl, a love like ours is hard to find.
Do you know that pearls take time?
Do you know the love for you I have in this heart of mine?
It would be so good for you to know these things are true.
And take time to find the moments of my love for you.
Sometimes pearls are set aside and kept in a jewelry chest
Only to be worn on those occasions when we dress in our best
Well, it’s a very special occasion for me to be with you,
And I treasure our time together- I really do.
Did you know that pearls take time?
Do you know the love for you I have in this heart of mine?
It would be so good for you to know these things are true.
And take time to find the moments of my love for you.
What the future holds in store for us – I don’t know what will be,
But I hope it holds more of your love in it for me,
Because I have lived long enough to know
“Under calm or stormy times beauty can grow.
Did you know that pearls take time?
Do you know the love for you I have in this heart of mine?
It would be so good for you to know these things are true.
And take time to find the moments of my love for you.
The End
It is up to us to look and find the pearl (the rare times) in each day.
It seems so good to think how far we have come,
From those early years when we started out so young.
Like a pearl our love has grown more beautiful with time,
And, like a pearl, a love like ours is hard to find.
Do you know that pearls take time?
Do you know the love for you I have in this heart of mine?
It would be so good for you to know these things are true.
And take time to find the moments of my love for you.
Sometimes pearls are set aside and kept in a jewelry chest
Only to be worn on those occasions when we dress in our best
Well, it’s a very special occasion for me to be with you,
And I treasure our time together- I really do.
Did you know that pearls take time?
Do you know the love for you I have in this heart of mine?
It would be so good for you to know these things are true.
And take time to find the moments of my love for you.
What the future holds in store for us – I don’t know what will be,
But I hope it holds more of your love in it for me,
Because I have lived long enough to know
“Under calm or stormy times beauty can grow.
Did you know that pearls take time?
Do you know the love for you I have in this heart of mine?
It would be so good for you to know these things are true.
And take time to find the moments of my love for you.
The End
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)