Sunday 31 January 2016

The Sunday Prayer

Dove of Peace by Pablo Picasso


Father, Mother, God,

Thank you for your presence during the hard and mean days.
For then we have you to lean upon.

Thank you for your presence during the bright and sunny days.
For then we can share that which we have with those who have less.

And thank you for your presence during the Holy Days.
For then we are able to celebrate you and our families and our friends

For those who have no voice, we ask you to speak.

For those who feel unworthy, we ask you to pour your love out in waterfalls of tenderness.

For those who live in pain, we ask you to bathe them in the river of your healing.

For those who are lonely, we ask you to keep them company.

For those who are depressed, we ask you to shower upon them the light of hope.

Dear Creator, You, the borderless sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the world that which we need most.....PEACE.

Maya Angelou
(4th April 1928 - 28th May 2014)

Friday 29 January 2016

Feel-good Friday

Thursday 28 January 2016

The Thursday Poem

Potted Flowers with Books IV
Eric Barjot


from Ode: Intimations of Immortality
from Recollections of Early Childhood

There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,
The earth, and every common sight
To me did seem
Apparell'd in celestial light,
The glory and the freshness of a dream.
It is not now as it has been of yore; -
Turn it wheresoe'er I may,
By night or day,
The things which I have seen I now can see no more!
The rainbow comes and goes,
And lovely is the rose;
The moon doth with delight
Look round her when the heavens are bare;
Waters on a starry night
Are beautiful and fair;
The sunshine is a glorious birth;
But yet I know, where'er I go,
That there hath pass'd away a glory from the earth.

William Wordsworth
(7th April 1770 - 23rd April 1850)

Wednesday 27 January 2016

Words on Wednesday

Alphabet Overlay 1



Recession is when a neighbour loses his job.
Depression is when you lose yours

Sunday 24 January 2016

The Sunday Prayer

Dove of Peace by Pablo Picasso


Father, Mother, God,

Thank you for your presence during the hard and mean days.
For then we have you to lean upon.

Thank you for your presence during the bright and sunny days.
For then we can share that which we have with those who have less.

And thank you for your presence during the Holy Days.
For then we are able to celebrate you and our families and our friends

For those who have no voice, we ask you to speak.

For those who feel unworthy, we ask you to pour your love out in waterfalls of tenderness.

For those who live in pain, we ask you to bathe them in the river of your healing.

For those who are lonely, we ask you to keep them company.

For those who are depressed, we ask you to shower upon them the light of hope.

Dear Creator, You, the borderless sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the world that which we need most.....PEACE.

Maya Angelou
(4th April 1928 - 28th May 2014)

Friday 22 January 2016

Feel-good Friday

Thursday 21 January 2016

The Thursday Poem

Potted Flowers with Books IV
Eric Barjot


from A Shropshire Lad
XXXII

From far, from eve and morning
And yon twelve-winded sky,
The stuff of life to knit me
Blew hither: here am I.

Now - for a breath I tarry
Nor yet disperse apart -
Take my hand quick and tell me,
What have you in your heart.

Speak now, and I will answer;
How shall I help you, say:
Ere to the wind's twelve quarters
I take my endless way.

A.E. Houseman
(26th March 1859 - 30th April 1936)

Wednesday 20 January 2016

Words on Wednesday

Alphabet Overlay 1


Every survival kit should include a sense of humour

Monday 18 January 2016

Some good news...


...at last!

We had a phone call from one of the care homes here in our town a couple of weeks back to say that they now had a vacancy ~ what a relief that was!  Adrian and I had already visited the home previously, but obviously his sister needed to see the home too.  She felt, like us, that it would be a good home for mother-in-law to move to, and the place was accepted.  We all thought that it would probably take at least a couple of weeks or so for the move to go ahead, as it needed to be cleared with social services, etc, plus notice had to be given at the home she was currently living in.

Well, the upshot of it all was that no sooner had the place been accepted and MIL's care worker contacted, than a date had been arranged for the transfer!  I must admit that we were very surprised at how quickly things moved along but on reflection, I suppose that in effect MIL was "blocking" a bed in a nursing care home when she has actually been assessed as needing the highest level of residential care.

In the end, MIL moved to the care home on the same day that her flat was cleared in the sheltered housing complex she had been living in before going into hospital, so I saw to that whilst Adrian was with his Mum for her transfer.  She has been there about ten days now and seems to have settled in well.  Amazingly, the "dementia" symptoms have all but gone now, too.  The manager of her new care home has said that anxiety can cause the elderly to exhibit the signs of dementia, plus of course she had a urine infection to contend with as well.

The last few week have been stressful for all of us, but especially so for Adrian and his sister.  Hopefully things will settle down now that MIL is back living here in our home town.  I know that she is very pleased to be back, even though she is sad that she wasn't able to go back to her little flat.  I went to visit her the week before last and the change in her was amazing.  She is, obviously, still very frail but her colour is so much better, and I think she is feeling somewhat better in herself.  It will be easy for me to visit MIL each week now, although I didn't see her last week as I was feeling so rough.  I'm hoping that I will be fully recovered from this cold in a few days ~ I can't really go to see her until it is properly cleared up.

She is very aware that she was having hallucinations whilst she was in the nursing home ~ she told Adrian that she didn't really like it there, and it did something to her mind!  From what Adrian and Elaine have told me, the atmosphere was very different there to the home she is now living in.  But, then again, it was a nursing home and I suppose it had more of a hospital feel to it.  Where she is now living is a rather lovely old house, and her room is bright, freshly decorated, and with a view into town.  It has a nice, comfortable, "homely" to it, which is as much down to the staff as to the actual house, so here's hoping she will continue to be happy there :-)

Sunday 17 January 2016

Decidedly under the weather...

www.allposters.co.uk

So much for getting back to "normal" blogging ~ but to be fair, I haven't been a well bunny!  I know that I have already related our sorry family ill-health woes we all suffered from in the run-up and over the Christmas period.  Well, to add insult to injury Sam came down with another nasty cold, which he very kindly shared with me.  I started with a cough and sore throat in the middle of last week, and had to cancel my dental appointment on Thursday.  By Friday I was feeling worse, and in the end had to take myself off to bed by the late afternoon as I just couldn't stop shivering or get warm.  I had an awful night, veering from freezing cold to boiling hot, and coughing like someone who smokes like the proverbial chimney!

I was just exhausted all day on Saturday, and my ribs were incredibly sore with all the coughing.  I didn't feel too bad when I got up this morning but after having a shower, I was pooped!  Today has been another day of just not having the energy to do anything ~ I haven't even had much of an appetite, so I know I must have been poorly ;-)  It's almost been like 'flu but not quite as bad.  I'm really hoping that we aren't going to come down with any more of these dratted colds ~ I think we have had more than our fair share already!  

The Sunday Prayer

Dove of Peace by Pablo Picasso


Father, Mother, God,

Thank you for your presence during the hard and mean days.
For then we have you to lean upon.

Thank you for your presence during the bright and sunny days.
For then we can share that which we have with those who have less.

And thank you for your presence during the Holy Days.
For then we are able to celebrate you and our families and our friends

For those who have no voice, we ask you to speak.

For those who feel unworthy, we ask you to pour your love out in waterfalls of tenderness.

For those who live in pain, we ask you to bathe them in the river of your healing.

For those who are lonely, we ask you to keep them company.

For those who are depressed, we ask you to shower upon them the light of hope.

Dear Creator, You, the borderless sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the world that which we need most.....PEACE.

Maya Angelou
(4th April 1928 - 28th May 2014)

Friday 15 January 2016

Feel-good Friday

Thursday 14 January 2016

The Thursday Poem

Potted Flowers with Books IV
Eric Barjot


The Destruction of Sennacherib

The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.

Like the leaves of the forest when Summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen;
Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.

For the Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he pass'd;
And the eyes of the sleepers wax'd deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still!

And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide;
But through it there roll'd not the breath of his pride:
And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.

And there lay the rider, distorted and pale,
With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail;
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,
The lances uplifted, the trumpets unblown.

And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail;
And idols are broke in the temple of Baal;
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord!

George Gordon, Lord Byron
(22nd January 1788 - 19th April 1824)

Wednesday 13 January 2016

Words on Wednesday

Alphabet Overlay 1



Seeing ourselves as others see us would probably confirm
our worst suspicions about them

Sunday 10 January 2016

The Sunday Prayer

Dove of Peace by Pablo Picasso


Father, Mother, God,

Thank you for your presence during the hard and mean days.
For then we have you to lean upon.

Thank you for your presence during the bright and sunny days.
For then we can share that which we have with those who have less.

And thank you for your presence during the Holy Days.
For then we are able to celebrate you and our families and our friends

For those who have no voice, we ask you to speak.

For those who feel unworthy, we ask you to pour your love out in waterfalls of tenderness.

For those who live in pain, we ask you to bathe them in the river of your healing.

For those who are lonely, we ask you to keep them company.

For those who are depressed, we ask you to shower upon them the light of hope.

Dear Creator, You, the borderless sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the world that which we need most.....PEACE.

Maya Angelou
(4th April 1928 - 28th May 2014)

Friday 8 January 2016

Feel-good Friday

Thursday 7 January 2016

The Thursday Poem

Potted Flowers with Books IV
Eric Barjot


Don't Let that Horse

Don't let that horse
eat that violin

cried Chagall's mother

But he
kept right on
painting

And became famous

And kept on painting
The Horse With Violin In Mouth
And when he finally finished it
he jumped up upon the horse
and rode away
waving the violin

And then with a low bow gave it
to the first naked nude he ran across

And there were no strings
attached

Lawrence Ferlinghetti(24th March 1919 - )

Wednesday 6 January 2016

Words on Wednesday

Alphabet Overlay 1



This is a youth-oriented society, and the joke is on them because youth is a disease from which we all recover

Monday 4 January 2016

Too much...

of this...


this...


and this...


and definitely not enough of this!


 My current eating habits are in dire need of a major overhaul.  And I can't in all honesty just blame it on the annual Christmas eating frenzy, as I was overdoing things way before then!  I know that I've said this before, but I am once again the heaviest I have ever been ~ and even I am getting somewhat fearful for my health.

I think it's high time I got to grips with my decidedly unhealthy eating habits. Amazingly, I think I can safely say that for the first time ever, I am actually looking forward to starting a new "diet" ~ shock, horror!  And I don't mean "diet" as in a slimming plan, I'm referring simply to the food that I eat.  Let's face it, it's not rocket science to eat healthily ~ I'm afraid it just boils down to sheer laziness on my part!  

Never fear, though, my loves, I'm not planning to bore you with weekly updates ~ but I will post regularly with my progress, along with any good recipes to share :-)

Sunday 3 January 2016

The Sunday Prayer

Dove of Peace by Pablo Picasso


Father, Mother, God,

Thank you for your presence during the hard and mean days.
For then we have you to lean upon.

Thank you for your presence during the bright and sunny days.
For then we can share that which we have with those who have less.

And thank you for your presence during the Holy Days.
For then we are able to celebrate you and our families and our friends

For those who have no voice, we ask you to speak.

For those who feel unworthy, we ask you to pour your love out in waterfalls of tenderness.

For those who live in pain, we ask you to bathe them in the river of your healing.

For those who are lonely, we ask you to keep them company.

For those who are depressed, we ask you to shower upon them the light of hope.

Dear Creator, You, the borderless sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the world that which we need most.....PEACE.

Maya Angelou
(4th April 1928 - 28th May 2014)