A dear friend texted me the other day to tell me how much the essays in my book, “When I Was a Rock Star,” encouraged her and thanked me. Being valued is a great way to start my day. The essay she referred to is ‘How Do You Be So Brave?’ which is about kids who have medically complex health issues at Seattle Children’s Hospital and Dr. Stanley Stamm, who founded the pediatric cardiology department at Children’s and pioneered treatments. One of his caveats, “Treat kids like people, not patients.”
These kids have to work to be alive every single day, some in order to take their next breath.
And they do it.
My dear friend has bought six copies of my book! One for herself and five as gifts. Yes, I am very grateful.
This amaryllis is something, right? It usually blooms end of April/early May. Here it is blooming the end of February. This amazing plant is about forty-four years old. Yup! and it was a start from my Aunt Margaret’s plant those many moons ago.
It gets more amazing: it blooms once a year, sometimes three stalks of blossoms, sometimes just one stalk. When my mom died eight years ago on September 2, a single stalk came up with a single blossom on it.
I have no explanation for it other than this is some remarkable, perceptive plant.
Another dear friend gifted me with a remarkable book, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse, by Charles Mackesy. “We don’t know about tomorrow,” said the horse, “all we need to know is that we love each other.”
“We have such a long way to go,” sighed the boy. “Yes, but look how far we’ve come,” said the horse.
How far we’ve come. Each of us measures this in different ways, hopefully we do indeed see it.
Another talking horse: Mr. Ed.
Remember this fun television show from the ’60’s? Some of you do!
Our family looked forward to it each week. We got our first television around 1961. Mr. Ed, the talking horse who spoke only to his owner, Wilbur, was played by a gorgeous American Saddlebred, who’s name was Bamboo Harvester, and his voice was done by an actor from westerns, Allen Rocky Lane.
Mr. Ed had a mind of his own:
“My mom didn’t raise her horse to be a jackass.”
“You don’t have to say your horse told you. Tell your friends it was your cat.”
“Quit gabbing and bring me some oats.”
Okay, I’ll quit gabbing~ Thank you for reading.
And my book, “When I Was a Rock Star: Thoughts on Being Present on the World” with the foreword written by fabulous musician, Dmitri Matheny, is available on Amazon in paperback and e-book!