How Old is Old?... ABC ME.. Shadows and Flowers..

"A flower cannot blossom without sunshine, and man cannot live without love. "
~Max Muller

"A flower falls, even though we love it; and a weed grows, even though we do not love it."
~ Dogen

"Life is the flower for which love is the honey."
~ Victor Hugo


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Tomorrow is my Birthday.. I am getting old.. when I was 15 I was asked out by an "old" man.. he was 25... when I was almost single for a few months in 1985 I was asked out by an "old" man.. he was 45... when I was a bona-fide divorced woman in 1993 I actually dated an "old" man.. he was 52.. tomorrow I will be 51.. I am getting old.. some days I am almost there.. other days I am already beyond old.. In honor of being "OLD" I will be sharing a 26 thing meme about myself.. read along maybe you will find a laugh hidden here..

A is for Acrobat.. I wanted to be an acrobat and tried to learn to tumble and flip.. I did finally.. barely.. land a cart wheel.. I quickly decided I'd rather be a baroness..

B is for Bread.. I don't really like bread..but if I must eat it.. I would rather have home baked bread than bought bread..

C is for Cooking.. I love to cook and can whip up tasty meals in just a fondue pot.. I can work from a short ingredient list too as long as I have some chosen spices I will turn out a good meal..

D is for dolls.. yes I love and collect dolls...

E is for Everlasting.. my love and friendship is everlasting.. so if I haven't seen you in a while./. I still love you and will get over being provoked eventually..

F is for family.. I love my family..I will let strangers be family too sometimes..

G is for growing.. I love to grow stuff.. flowers.. food.. animals..

H is for home.. I knew this place was Home the moment I set foot here.. Home is indeed where your heart is..

I is for Inside out.. I turn myself inside out with worry many times when it is wasted energy.. I worry about him and him and him and her and even you!!

J is for jump rope.. I love to play jump rope and still remember most of the "jump rope" songs from my childhood..

K is for kisses.. I really like kisses.. the plain..chocolate ones are fine... but I like the ones with nuts the best

L is for licking.. along with all my siblings.. I once licked my way to the center of a tootsie roll pop.. we counted and sent the answer to the address on the label.. they were not impressed..we figured they would at least send us some suckers..

M is for Mystery.. I know a few secrets..

N is for notes.. I have almost every note that was ever written to me.. I take them out and read a few sometimes.. to remind myself that people can change..

O is for Open minded.. I try to be open minded but honestly I have a hard time dealing with modern emotions.. or the modern lack of emotions.. and morals.. I think it's because I am getting old..

P is for purple.. I used to love to wear purple.. now there are so many different "purples" that the whole color has become way to busy for me.. maybe I'll just pull on some black clothes and blend in..

Q is for quickly.. the days pass quickly and the nights are sometimes long..

R is for Resting... resting takes up more and more of my time..

S is for silly.. I overheard someone call me a silly Old woman in the store the other day.. I just smiled at her.. she was after all just a silly young girl...

T is for talented.. I wish I was more talented in many things.. I would love to paint cathedrals and design wonderful fashions.. I would also love to be an acrobat who could flip and twist in many directions.. thankfully I can turn a word..

U is for underwear.. I once slept without my underwear because a friend told me it would set me free.. I am not sure what I expected but the following morning I didn't feel free.. I was ten and I had to jump right up when Daddy called and get my underwear on and go to school..

V is for vacation.. I would love to take a real vacation.. no phone?.. no computer?.. Hmm.. maybe not..

W is for wishes.. I still make wishes on falling stars.. the first star.. single stars and birthday candles..

X is for X-rays.. though I have had sonograms 4 times.. I have never had a regular x-ray of my own body... on the other hand I have held my children's hands through a gazillion of them through the years..

Y is for year.. I am another year older.. another year smarter.. and still you ignore my wisdom... silly.. silly you!

Z is for zippers.. my all time favorite pair of jeans had two zippers..and two buttons.. I wore them till they fell apart.. I wish I could find a pair of them now.. they were different even way back then.. it made me feel special to wear them.. now that I'm "almost" old I might want to feel special sometimes..

~ Noah and I...

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Shadow Shot Sunday #132 ~

~ The reception table

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Macro Flowers Saturday~


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Thanks for stopping by my blog.. I welcome both comments and followers.. Have a wonderful day!
Patsy

Photography Contest .... Paper

"Poetry surrounds us everywhere, but putting it on paper is, alas, not so easy as looking at it." ~ Vincent Van Gogh

"Like everything, what compels one to put pen to paper is a great question."
~ Todd Solondz

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~ I Heart Faces !!

Photography Challenge ~This weeks theme is Paper..

what a beautiful spot for reading... on the Beach at Botany Bay/Edisto Island SC

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Thanks for stopping by my blog today... I welcome both comments and followers!
Have a great day!
Patsy

Wednesday.. Holidays Surround Us.. All Crammed Together on Store Shelves..

"A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up, that happened a long time ago and now there's nothing left to celebrate but the dead."
~ Abraham Polonsky

"With all of the holiday cheer in the air, it's easy to overlook the ingredients in the foods. Ingredients such as salt, sugar, and fat - all of which leads to diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes, strokes, heart disease, and cancer."
~ Lee Haney

"Wal-Mart doesn't really care about your faith. Wal-Mart cares if you have money to spend, and it is going to be as generic as possible in exploiting the holiday season for every buck it can make." ~ Richard Roeper

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Wordless Wednesday~

RUN! (photo by Tana Holder)

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Three Word Wednesday~

clutch, delight, happy


Concert

happy children sing
filled with holiday delight~
dunce in teacher's clutch

Written By: Patricia Sawyer
11-17-2010

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One Shot Wednesday - Week 20 ~

Sweet Winter Fire


Shut in three days
howling wind whipping
power lines dangle

Ham and beans simmer
atop the old wood heater.
a head start on tomorrow's hunger

four finally tired
Children asleep in bunches
scattered around the warm barn

Mine and yours tumbled together.
forgetting to be jealous
we know it can't last

Daylight spent carrying wood
and entertaining children
I'm all out of games

But nights, heart to heart
we danced by the light of
our sweet winter fire

Written By: Patricia Sawyer

12-16-2008

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~ ABC Wednesday~ R is for..

.. "Really Regina?

Must you roar?" Reginald asked.. "Can't you realize that I am Resting?"

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Thanks for stopping by my blog today.. I welcome both comments and followers.. Have a wonderful day!

Patsy

Monday.. Monday.. Please Hurry By.. Take the Moods Away With You..

"It is impossible to discourage the real writers - they don't give a damn what you say, they're going to write." ~Sinclair Lewis

"Dancing in all its forms cannot be excluded from the curriculum of all noble education; dancing with the feet, with ideas, with words, and, need I add that one must also be able to dance with the pen?" ~Friedrich Nietzsche

"Writing is both mask and unveiling." ~E.B. White

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~ Haiku Heights ~ prompt #17-

Caught

long legs twirl

knitting silken threads~

fly struggles

Written by: Patricia sawyer

11-15-2010
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Microfiction Monday #57 ~




Border Patrol

standing silent in the shadow of the rock.. the meanest man I ever saw..

I wanted to go home.. he said I had to stay inside

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~ Saturday Centus ~ week 28

Graveside~

The early November sunshine cast golden rays.. the sweet scents of roses and carnations filling the afternoon air.. the crowd smiled and posed for the camera.. silently I looked on in awe.. had we not suffered .. where were the tears.. I wanted to scream "pull up your pants" and "put away that camera".. but I could not.. my grief kept me mute.. a glint of light caught in his rich dark hair as he stumbled away.. a young man's hand his tender guide.. Our lives changed forever.. a circus for some.. "Did you hear" I heard.. as I turned away.. willing for now to be deaf...

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~ Reuben and Sheila

Yesterday's celebration of Love was a beautiful respite from the last few weeks of grief and darkness.... Reuben and his BFF.. Shelia.. joined in Holy Matrimony... I welcome some smiles and sunshine into my world.. thanks for stopping by my blog today.. I welcome both comments and followers....

Have a great day!
Patsy

A Celebration of Veterans... and a Few Words!

"Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die." -G.K. Chesterton

"This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave."
-Elmer Davis

"But the freedom that they fought for, and the country grand they wrought for, Is their monument to-day, and for aye." -Thomas Dunn English

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Wordless Wednesday- Some of the Veterans whose lives have touched mine... Each of them different.. each of them special...

Daddy~

~ David~

Jimmy~

~ Reuben~

David- (Dave)~

~ David- (Bubba)~

~ Anthony~

~ Tana~

~ Chris~

~ Uncle Oneal~


~ Uncle Emmett~

~ Uncle Robert~


~ Uncle JC~

~ Charles- (Charlie)~

~ Uncle Charles~

~ Chris~

~ Chris~

each of them unique.. each of them a hero!.. Happy Veterans day to each of you!

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One Shot Wednesday~ week #19

Soldier's Prayer

Lord
Hold close
Your children.
Our Pains eased
By your loving touch.
Give us strength to endure.
Wisdom and courage each day.
Keep Our loved ones safe from harm.
Oh Lord, Let our Deaths be not in vain.
Lord Watch over us as the winds of war
Blow us onto paths we fear to walk alone.
We know you walk beside us every day.
Never Forsaking us as we trod.
Let us return home full of pride.
Having served Our Country.
And Our God with Honor.
Hold us safely now
within your hand.
Amen!

Written By: Patricia Sawyer
3-6-2008

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3 Word Wednesday~
gesture, immediate, treasure

Road Rage~

one finger gesture
brings immediate relief ~
Pops shock a treasure

Written By: Patricia Sawyer
11-10-2010
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Thanks for stopping by my blog today.. I hope you have enjoyed your visit.. I welcome both comments and followers.. Have a wonderful day..
Patsy

Tuesday~ A New Day.. Cooler but Bone Dry!

“Poetry surrounds us everywhere, but putting it on paper is, alas, not so easy as looking at it.” ~ Vincent van Gogh

"The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it." ~ Jean-Paul Sartre

"One of the illusions of life is that the present hour is not the critical, decisive hour. Write it on your heart that every day is the best day of the year."
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

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~ nothing beats fresh corn!

Harvest-time

Honey combs swollen..sticky and sweet
Apples candied or chopped for mince meat
Raisins dried from my Daddy's grape vine
Verily I say.. it's again harvest time..
Eager for Winter and sun shortened days
Storehouses busting we bring in the strays
Tilling and tending ... the work and the grime

Toiling and teamwork.. we receive Harvest time..
Intervals of hours.. of weeks and years
Miles of work.. with blood.. sweat and tears..
Every time to a season.. every season for a time
~With our hearts full of gladness..
we celebrate Harvest Time!

Written By: Patricia Sawyer
10-26-2009

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~ we call this pair Polka and Dot...

The Chicken Yard

cackles hen to hen
feathery gossip about eggs
feisty rooster crows

Written By: Patricia Sawyer
6-5-2010


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Allergic

heady perfumes rise
sweet gardenia scents the air
helplessly I sneeze

Written By: Patricia Sawyer
6-5-2010

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~ our dog Buzz..

A Dog's Walk

around and around
nose firmly down on the ground
finally he squats


Written By: Patricia Sawyer
6-5-2010

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I apologize for being a missing person for more than a week.. This last week has been one of the worst I have ever known.. I struggle to understand how anyone can have so little regard for life that they would shoot and kill our friend.. she went to work like any other day.. but just before her shift ended she was shot and killed by a man who had stalked and harassed her for months.. I wonder if any of us are safe? She filed reports and did everything we are told to do to protect ourselves and yet she was murdered.. I am angry.. I am sad.. I struggle to stand up and move on.. please remember us all in your prayers as we try to find some good in the world that for us was knocked out of line last week by the act of a single killer.. I was proud of my son who will forever miss her and of my daughter.. who's first concern was that he not get the news from a stranger.. Our lives have been changed forever by a senseless act of violence.. I plan to say I love you more often and to try to be slow to anger with my family and friends.. after all we never know when our last minute may come..

Thanks for stopping by my blog today.. I will do my best to get myself together and get back to my blog.. I welcome both comments and followers.. Have a great day!

Patsy

Monday- All the Spooks are Gone.. a New Month Rushes In!

"Words should be an intense pleasure, just as leather should be to a shoemaker."
~ Evelyn Waugh

"A writer should write what he has to say and not speak it."
~ Ernest Hemingway

"I believe that man will not only endure: he will prevail. He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance."
~ William Faulkner

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I Heart Faces- weekly photo Challenge-
My Story/Fall
(photo by Tana Holder)

~I love this photo of my grand-daughter.. Maya.... it reminds me that she grows up faster and faster as times moves on.. I love her so much and hate that we are on opposite sides of the country.. her Mom is great at sharing photos and I am kept up to date on her life by phone calls and emails.. Still I feel that I am missing something.. I remember baking pumpkin pies with my own Grandma.. maybe some day Maya and I will bake pies together too.. Until then I sure am thankful for her mom and her camera...

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Microfiction Monday- #55

Welcome to Microfiction Monday,
where a picture paints 140 characters, or even fewer.

"oh Miss Kitty don't be so cranky... I know you wanted mice and not chocolates... maybe Next year if you're good.. you can guide the broom!"
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..~.. JR and JC ready to take on the tricksters for a few chocolaty treats...

~ a group shot of some of my tricksters..HB.. JR..DM..TJ..AC.. Happy Halloween..

Ghostly Photos~

- TJ ... with a ghostly hand pinching his cheek...

~ JR.. ~

the camera decided to give him extra eyes!

~ and Happy Halloween from New Mexico!..

Halloween was a blast even if we did have some ghostly photos when we pulled them up on the computer.. we haven't figured out why there is a tiny hand on TJ's cheek since we had no tiny ones here.. or why JR has an extra set of eyes in one of his photos... creepy to say the very least.. either I have a booger in my house or my camera is haunted.. or something else weird.. I'm not sure I want to know.. after all it was Halloween..

Thanks for stopping by to share a moment of my world today.. I welcome both comments and followers.. have a wonderful day!

Patsy