Let Me Out

Claudius, 2000-2011

Claudius, one of my two cats, slipped peacefully away right before our eyes this past week.  He began the day hardly able to walk, and crying in pain.  He had weighed over 20 lbs.  Now he weighed nine.  We took him to the vet wrapped, like a little baby, in a blanket.  On the way home we were both crying.  Cats do not just take up residence in your home.  They get inside your heart in a wonderful way.

I wrote this poem today in memory of many happy times over the past decade.

FLY AWAY

Fly away my little friend;
With purrs you warmed my heart.
You snuggled soft upon my lap,
But now we have to part.

Fly away my little friend,
A friend I loved so dear.
You never spoke, you never talked,
Yet your voice I still do hear.

Little darling, little friend,
I am grateful for the days
You shared my home and touched my heart,
In soft mysterious ways.

Patrick A Rose
Feb. 1, 2011.

Free Patches

This week, on both Monday and Tuesday, I received a free patch.  Amazing synchronicity!  Even though a free patch might sound a small thing, both lifted the spirit.  After all, most of life is made up of small things.

The first free patch involved a tire.  To be precise it was a rear passenger tire that needed more air, but proved to have a nail stuck in it.  I drove it to the local Discount Tire.  They happened to be busy, so I decided to leave the car there and walk 3/4 mile or so to my next stop, the gym.  After all, a good walk sounded like a good prelude to the gym. Before I even made it back to the tire place, the manager phoned and told me it was ready -- ahead of time.  After I got there he handed me my key and as I was about to leave I wondered why there was no charge.  Maybe I had paid before leaving the car, and had forgotten.  The manager,though, told me there was no charge for a tire patch, and in payment all he asked is that I give his card to three different people.  I suggested I put it up on the web instead, which I do here.

It is easy to be cynical -- just a marketing ploy perhaps.  I choose to take another viewpoint.  I think it is just plain nice.  Let me add, I have been to this tire place before, and the manager is a real neat fellow, and that time too I came away just feeling more cheerful than when I arrived -- they put on some new tires quickly, efficiently and with a genuine smile.  The little things we do for other people can brighten their days.  So too the little things that people do for us.

Thank you Discount Tire.

My second experience with a free patch was at the Roswell office of  Allergy & Asthma Consultants.  I went there for my regular allergy shots.  This time, though, I was bleeding before they stabbed me.  My elbow had a scrape on it, and was leaking, and there was blood on my arm.  No problem.  They cleaned me up, put a dressing on it, and once again I heard those magic words, "No charge!"  By the way, this also is a place of cheer, a place that exudes a happy spirit.

People may grumble about this world.  I say that there are many smiles to be had, and many wonderful people with which to interact.

Piano Practice

There is something to learn from learning the piano as an adult.  It is most likely too late in life to become good enough for Carnegie Hall.  And it is certainly a time of life where hours and hours of practice are simply not possible.  In fact, once one takes into account a very busy work schedule and that undeniable sense of fatigue at the end of the day, it is amazing I practice at all.  Actually, for my last piano lesson I didn't -- practice at all, that is.  Except for the few odd minutes at the keyboard while waiting for a meal to cook.  So... while driving to my lesson, I did what most men are particularly talented at.  I searched for some excuses.  Not just one excuse, but excuses.

The first excuse was easy.  I had been traveling.  Not only had I been traveling, but I had been to Arizona and New Mexico before heading back to Atlanta.  I was thinking of throwing in a related excuse and mentioning that I had gotten some desert dust in my eyes in New Mexico, but decided against it.  It is never good to appear too pathetic.

The second excuse suddenly hit me -- fortunately only in a metaphorical sense, since I was driving.  The mot du jour would be "dabble."  Not only does the word have a certain breezy sound to it -- try saying it quickly five times in a row -- but it was the TRUTH!

Oh yes, I have been taking piano lessons for about ten years now.  But I have not been practicing that much for those lessons.  I have learned a fair amount, for sure.  But I could have learned so much more if I had not dabbled.  I dabble at learning the piano.  But -- and here was the sudden insight that metaphorically hit me while driving -- it is not necessarily bad to dabble.

We cannot excel at everything.  We do not have the time to excel at everything.  And it is just as well, because we would than fail to excel at being humble.  Adult piano lessons are not about excelling.  They are about adding something of balance to one's life.  They help one understand music better, enjoy music better.  They enrich the mind.  They lend cultural depth in an electronic instant world.

I was set.  I sat down at the piano, and explained to my teacher that I had been traveling, so had not had a chance to practice.  Then, after a subtle but calculated pause, I added that what what I was really doing was dabbling at the piano.  I mentioned the way it added a certain balance to my life. 

She nodded wisely and agreed wholeheartedly.

I have a terrific teacher, don't I?

Grocery Shopping

I have come to the conclusion that though sometimes it is hard to fit it in to a busy schedule, mostly I really enjoy grocery shopping.  I am not sure whether people are actually meant to enjoy grocery shopping, but I do.

There is one reason more than any other that I enjoy grocery shopping, and that is, the place I shop is so very friendly.  It might sometimes seem a thankless task working the checkout at a supermarket, and I am not sure I would be up to it myself.  But the men and women who work at my local Publix are terrific.  They really are.  Yes, the food is of good quality and reasonably priced.  But the people that work there, genuine, friendly people, are priceless.  I thank them.

The Piles of our Lives

We all have those "piles" in our lives, huge daunting backlogs that are scary to look at and frighten us when we even consider tackling them.  Some piles are physical piles, such as a huge pile of letters to be answered.  Some piles are more of the metaphorical variety . . . the list of repairs to do around the house.

Some of us, though, are professional pile builders.  A year ago I finally got caught up on entering all my receipts into Quicken, and swore it would never happen again.  But sadly, shamefully, this year the pile grew even higher.  I am now taking daily whacks at it until it is all entered in the system.

Another pile, though, that I have been having much more success with is my weight.  Being overweight is very much a pile... a pile of unused calories consumed over the years, and piling up around one's tummy and other places.  Like all piles, this is daunting.  But, three months of self discipline, increased exercise, and -- ok -- a few slip ups on the way, I have lost over 10% of my body weight and am feeling much better.  The pile is still there, but week by week it is gradually disappearing.  The trick will be to keep the pile off at the end.  That is where they say a slow weight loss works best, presumably because one changes one's habits over time, so the longer the time, the more permanent the change in habits.

For myself, I much prefer those things that do not pile up when we put them off.  If I put off shaving for four days, it really does not take much longer to shave than if I had been shaving ever day.  Ditto mowing the lawn.  Ditto vacuuming.  Ditto unpacking a suitcase.

But there are a limited number of these dittos.  The underlying truth about life is that all our little decisions or lack of decisions have consequences.  We wish they didn't, or, we say we wish they didn't, but the do!  And on one level, on a very deep level methinks, we are happy to have a part of in choosing for ourselves, day by day, the course of our lives.

We can live with unmown lawns, and we can live (though perhaps for a shorter time) with bulging waistlines.  But, there are deeper piles -- a constant pattern of feeling sorry for ourselves, or of putting ourselves first, or belittling others or....... these are very serious piles indeed.

But, then there are -- and here is an example of a happy pile --- smile lines.  Smile every day and the consequence will eventually be some of the happiest wrinkles in the world:  a face that testifies through its very lines that each day is day to be useful, to be industrious, to rejoice, to be grateful, to be of service to others, to share with others, and infect others with the truth that life is a gift from Him and life is so very good.

My mother had the most wonderful smile lines.  I still miss her passing -- it is just over six months now.  But she is happy where she is.  And I am happy in the here and now.  I am ready to start this blog again, and to start by saying, above all, thank you dear Lord Jesus!