In My Blue Rocking Chair

I started writing about my favorite bird, the cardinal, and ended up writing about the day my mother died. Where this came from I do not know, but it tells the story of my mother's death in February, 1988.

On this particular day Daddy fixed Mother breakfast, which she ate in her blue lounge chair. He then cut a rose and put it on the table by her chair. He noticed that she had fallen asleep.

Daddy had cut a lot of roses so he left to take them to the sick and invalid. When he returned home, he found Mother still asleep in her chair. When he tried to awaken her, he realized that she had died.

In My Blue Rocking Chair

I hear you chirping happily
by my window sill.
I look out quickly,
trying to be quiet and still.

Your brilliant feathers
are crimson red.
A small little tuft
crowns the top of your head.

Your mate is nearby.
You always come in a pair.
I sit and I look
from my blue rocking chair.

This happens to be
a favorite pastime of mine,
watching the birds feed
and waiting in line.

It was on a morning
just like today
that I ate and drank coffee
and then passed away.

How peaceful it was
when I arrived in heaven.
I saw Mother and Daddy
and little Anne of seven.

To see her once again
brought joy to my eyes.
I had missed her so much
since the day that she died.

I look down below
and see the rose by my chair.
I see the anguish and tears
of the man who placed it there.

I send Ed my love and say
"Please don’t grieve for me.
I’m up here in heaven,
where I was meant to be."

Open Wide

The dentist smiles
And says, "Open wide!"
I open my mouth
But I really want to hide!

How I hate the sounds
Coming from the dentist’s chair
The grinding and grating
Is really hard to bear.

First comes the shots
He says, "Just a little sting!"
Oh, the horrible pain
That these little shots bring!

He doesn’t stop at one
Or at two or at three
But he continues on
To almost twenty-three!

Now my mouth is numb
And it doesn’t hurt a bit
I even snooze for a while
In the chair as I sit.

But when I wake up
I feel a little pain
My jaw is so sore
So I start "Raising Cain!"

Then the doctor tells me
That the shots are wearing out
He says, “Come back on Tuesday.”
How I wanted to shout!

But of course I say, “Sure!”
Now I have to go back
And I’m already beginning
To have another panic attack!

California Wine Trip

On our trek out west, Joe and I spent a week in the Worldmark Windsor, which is located in the middle of Sonoma Valley. Our initial wine tasting adventure began in the town of Healdsburg. I had the map and was looking for three tasting rooms that were on the same street. We never found the ones we were looking for but soon realized that wine tasting rooms were everywhere! Our first and favorite wine tasting was done at Chateau Felice Winery. The woman handling the tasting was the daughter of the owners. She knew a lot about wine, and we enjoyed her so much we tried to get a private tour of the family winery. The wish was granted but too expensive for our taste.

The next tasting was done down the street at Selby. It was free, but not the best wine! Since I had beer drinkers with me, we lunched at the Bear Brewing Company in Healdsburg and called it a day.

Another day we went to Clos Du Bois, another favorite of mine. Our fee was waived because of where we were staying, we got to keep the glass, and the wine was excellent! I came home with a bottle of wine from Trentadue and Beringer so some where along the week we went there also.

The V. Sattui Winery was beautiful and just what you would expect a winery to look like. After tasting the wine, we purchased some food from the deli and a chilled bottle of white wine and headed to the grounds for lunch. Joe and Marion enjoyed a tour of the winery.

While looking for a place to eat one day, I ran across the Kendall Jackson tasting room. Once again the fee was waived because we were at the Worldmark Windsor. This worked out great because we had a chance to taste some wine before we ate.

Our last wine tasting experience took place as we were leaving Sonoma Valley. We chose to stop at the Martin Ray Winery. Before we had a chance to step out of our car, we were invited to join the barbeque and eat hot dogs and hamburgers. They were celebrating the kegging of one of their wines, at least that's what I think they told us. We decided to taste wine before we ate. Everyone was so friendly, and this proved to be a great way to end our California wine tasting adventure!

Canyon de Chelly

Canyon de Chelly (pronounced duh-shay) is a National Monument located in northeast Arizona. This canyon was another favorite place on my recent southwest trek. Joe and I, along with Alice and David, traveled by foot down into the canyon hiking the White House Trail. We descended more than 500 feet to the canyon floor where we continued walking until we reached ancient Indian ruins.

Under the shade trees, with the cliff dwellings in view, we discovered several artists with their hand-made treasures. Since Joe and I love to shop we quickly started looking. Joe picked out a sterling silver story bracelet for me and an original sketch of an Indian chief for himself. But.....there was one little problem! We had no money since we hadn't planned on shopping on the canyon floor. Both artists easily followed us back up and got their money, but the walk back up was a "killer" for me!

Mount Rushmore

Well, I can now cross Mount Rushmore off my list. I've been there and done that!

Mount Rushmore is very impressive not only for the massive carved busts of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln but also for the Avenue of Flags displaying flags of the states, districts, commonwealths, and territories of the USA.

Each president was selected for an important moment in American history by the artist Gutzon Borglum. George Washington, a general during the Revolutionary War, was chosen for the birth of our country. Thomas Jefferson was chosen for expansion, as the Louisiana Purchase was completed during his term of office. Theodore Roosevelt represents development for his conservation of natural wonders, and Abraham Lincoln was selected for preservation for saving the union during the Civil War.

Some trivia for you:

Each face is 60 feet tall.

Each eye is 11 feet wide.

George Washinton's 21 foot nose is one foot longer than all of the other presidents.

And last but not least, Washington's mouth is 18 feet wide.

If you go to my blog below, you will see the profile of George Washington, our first president.