Greetings,
I write this on an autumn day in the spring of my autumn years in life.
On this life's journey, I have been generously gifted with the
presence of remarkable men, women, children and animal friends.
Intertwining their lives with mine, they have graced my time on
Earth with
their shared passions, hopes and dreams.
Before I and they
become lost memories in the winter years of my life, it is time to bring life to this online
journal, as this September morn, I awoke with the thought, "Today is
the first day of my second half century..." I was feeling
peacefully happy, and yes, relieved, that I've made it this
far.
I've had a few close
calls.
~~~
"But then there was a star danced,
and under that was I born."
~ Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing
Yes, I am turning 50.
I was born in
Hawai`i on Saturday, September
29, 1951 at 4:53 pm, HST. I live in Southern California now,
so at
7:53 PST this evening, I will
officially cross the half-century threshold, The Big
5-0.
What day are you?
According to Any-Day-in-History,
the CBS network telecasted the first football game in color
on my birthday.
>>
Here's
what else was going on in the world on 9/29/51
In 1951, this is
what was going on:
- -
One and a half million TV sets in U.S., a tenfold jump in one
year.
- - Cinerama will
briefly dazzle with a wide, curved screen and three
projectors.
- - Computers are
sold commercially.
- - Still camera
get built-in flash units.
- - Coaxial cable
reaches coast to coast.
~~~
As is
my morning ritual upon awakening, my day begins gauzily in prayer.
Just as breathing keeps my body alive, praying keeps my spirit
alive. For me, prayer is as essential as breathing.
I pray a gratitude prayer for the gifts of the past 49
years. Then, I ask for "A Closer Walk with Thee"
and continued Presence and Guidance. I ramble, as I often do in
that netherland.
As I
transition to Earthside, I grow increasingly more wakeful. With deliberate
care, I acknowledge each and every member of my Heavenly Family.
Listening, I am once again thoroughly assured:
All is
well.
~~~
When DH (short for
"Dear Husband," the moniker I've given my husband for this journal) awakens, he smiles, whispering "Happy Birthday, Sweety
Pie." We snuggle close. I love him so very
much. Our bond is a solid one, so precious.
Our
dog-kids, O and Freddy B, hearing us, enthusiastically pile on
us to help us greet the day with their slurpy kisses.
I make a quick calculation and declare, "I'm 350 dog years today. Yowwwww!"
Twenty
days later, I've caught up with DH in chronological years.
He, too, was born in September in the morning, on September 9,
1951 at 5:42 a.m. He is a Sunday's
child -- "fair and wise, good and gay."
Yes, we were born
20 days apart, on the same island, in the same town (Hilo,
Hawai`i), in the
same hospital, but we were not to meet until 20 years later.
~~~
We are September's
Sweet Children. Today, both of us are now in "Our
Fifties." Chronologically, we may be adults, but our inner
children are alive and well, thank you.
He's
looking mighty fine to me, and his spirit, more beautiful than
ever. We're
happy, healthy and One. I couldn't ask for more.
When
our feet hit the deck, I decide that I'm going to start my next
half-century thoroughly cleansed, from top to bottom. I draw a
bath. I step in and luxuriate in the bubbles. O and
Freddy B keep me company alongside the tub. O adorably rests her
precious little chin on the side of the tub looking at me, while Freddy
B busily laps
up splashed water droplets.
I just
now got out after a long soak. I've sleeked my hair back into a
ponytail. Wearing my favorite mountainwear, I'm ready for
this day, this next half-century, donning a white t-shirt topped
with a cranberry-colored travel vest over tan
khaki shorts, Mickey earrings, wedding ring,
sportswatch, and phoenix ring.
Barefooted, just the
way I arrived 50 years ago.
~~~
I am
exactly where I want to be to celebrate this landmark day. In
front of a broad expanse of windows, upstairs in the sitting room,
in our mountain home, our "Heaven" on Earth, overlooking the lush green lawn and flower
gardens.
DH
and dog-kids
are noisily rustling up breakfast
downstairs.
Outside,
sunlight is filtering through the still pine trees. There's
a cloudless blue sky in every direction. From where I
write this in the sitting room, I can see outside in every
cardinal direction; we call this room, "The
Aerie." Outside, it's a perfect fall
morning, warm enough for shirtsleeves and shorts, but with a
perceptible nip in the air.
It is lovely.
~~~
I am
grateful to be here. I appreciate my life. God shares His gift of Life with me,
and I'll be sharing bits and pieces of it with you.
"Life is a Gift."
This online journal
will chronicle my life, what is left of it, God willing. A birthday gift to
myself. We, the web journal and I, now share the same
birthday. I expect it to take on a life of its own.
My life is but one (1) of
6,193,498,394 on Planet Earth.
A teensy tiny drop in a huge bucket of teeming humanity.
Mine is no more important than any other, no less. Mine is a
special life, but no more special than any other life. But maybe that's why I wish to chronicle it.
It's a chronicle of a
life. A singular life.
~~~
As a budding reader,
I devoured biographies; I must have read every biography on
the shelves of the bookmobile that visited my village every two
weeks. As an adult, I continue to relish biographies and autobiographies.
These days, I read online journals for pleasure reading. While I live my own full life, I
do augment it by vicariously experiencing many lives.
I enjoy getting into
other people's heads and thoughts through their own words. Gaining
valuable insights and perspectives this way, my life is enriched and
enhanced. I've read the gamut of lives. Whether
simple, complex, extravagant, humble, famous, not-so-famous, and not
famous at all, each life holds its own value and is given its unique lessons.
Perhaps, this journal
of my life in real time will hold a gift or two for you. At
50, I fully acknowledge that my life has been a gift, and I am ready to write with my heart.
I have some things to say about my life and what it means to be
human in this time and space.
~~~
It is my hope that I will
share this life well with anyone interested. I believe:
"The
best gifts are those we share with others."
If you are
interested, fine. If you're not, that's fine, too. Being
graciously accepting of other people's choices is one of the
acquired graces
of being 50.
~~~
As I write, DH is
busy in the kitchen. After he bathed, he announced, "I'm
going to make you a birthday breakfast." And now, here he
comes, climbing up the stairs, hands full, with dog-kids trailing behind
him.
It's a No Holds
Barred island
breakfast of sausages and over-easy eggs, drizzled with shoyu,
with hot rice on the side, seasoned with sesame seeds and sea salt furikake
on red "You're
Special Today" plates. And steaming Kona
coffee.
Mm-mmm, smells
wonderful, looks great! The
Big Five-Oh is starting off just fine.
See you later.
Happily, on her
birthday,
Author Unknown
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