Sometimes when you least expect it, clouds get in the way…

 

You might be surprised at how cautiously I approach things here.  For all the rambling I've done & all the nonsense I've shared, I try my best to do more than post the "obligatory blog".  If I'm not feeling it, well...that explains why I haven't had anything to share these past 3 weeks.  Between work, too much tv and too much cold weather, I dunno...I've been drawing blanks.

And something else:  after my last entry, when I was running around & getting permission to share the infamous details of a "friend of a friend", I felt like I needed to take a step back and re-evaluate just what it is I'm doing here.  I've been treating these blogs like commentaries of a sort, more than...I dunno, personal letters.  And that's not why I started this in the first place. 

I think I just want to share more personal honesty and "less show".  Wait, come back!

At the same time, it feels like there's been a lot happening around me in regards to family, while all I can do is sit here & wonder what's next.

The 'Goodbye Girls', my niece Drew & sister Donda

A couple weeks ago, my sister Donda announced that her and Bobby have decided to move south.  (They already live south--well, of me--but this is the South we're talking about; what used to take me 2 hours by car will now be 15.)  It's not like they have to move; Bob's job involves a lot of travel so they can pretty much live anywhere they want.  But they've lived by the beach before, and miss it, so I can't blame them.  And with free long distance calls & email, it's not like they'll be out of touch.   But at the same time...they WILL be. 

I can't help but feel a little sad for my sister Shawn & other niece Sophia though.  Those 4 girls always have such a good time when they're all together. 

Shawn & the 'Pink Chef' in Donda's kitchen last week

At the very least there should be some fun summer visits to look forward to; I've already got my swimming trunks packed.  But until then...Donda, I hope you know how much you guys will be missed.

 

A pair of red clogs & a letter from Shawn...

You know that pleasant feeling you get when you come across something you once loved as a kid but had completely forgotten about?  A couple nights ago I was looking for a particular children's book for my niece & came across this one by accident.  "A Pair of Red Clogs", about a little Japanese girl named Mako who covets a pair of red clogs in a storefront window.  I haven't seen this since I was in the second grade but I remember it well.  (I borrowed it from the school library once a week for months just to keep it with me.  Back then, kids didn't own 'real' books like they do today.)  Anyway, I emailed my sister to see if Sophie already owned it (as the kid has a small library) and enjoyed my sister's response:

Friday, February 06, 2009 9:48 AM

"I have never heard of the book. I know the story The Red Shoes, which I bought the book and movie for Courtney. But don't know this one.

I actually volunteered to be a "guest reader" yesterday at Sophie's school for the first time. Brought 2 books with me, "The New Bear at School" and "Cookie's Week". It was amazing. I told Jim that I've never, NEVER, seen Sophia look so beautiful and floaty~happy. She sat in the back of the circle on her spot of the mat, and truly glowed.

I couldn't even look at her because the 2 times my eyes made contact with her I started to cry and had to look away. Because she was so beautific - and strange, but no other way to put it. She BEAMED. And 18 children sat silently with their mouths hanging open over Boris' plight at being new in Pre-K and trying to make friends. THAT was making me emotional, just how silent and worried for Boris they were.  I was looking at the children while I read (knowing the book by heart); it was wrenching me, the looks on their faces. My god my hand was shaking holding the book for them to see the picture because they were all staring so intently, not at me, but at the book and had such genuine looks on their faces. It was too moving to me. It took real concentration not to cry.  Again, couldn't look at Sophie. She was like a little mother, enjoying her friends listening to HER books.  It was amazing."

I hope I haven't been too sappy here.  I feel almost guilty, shouldn't I be boasting about the Steelers latest Super Bowl victory, or discussing Obama's stimulus plan, Michael Phelps caught smoking pot or that woman who just gave birth to octuplets?  They're the only things that have been all over the news lately.  (I just think they've already been written about enough.) 

For now, I just felt like sharing this.