MARY’S ONGOING ROMANCE

A garden rose in lavender.
(All pictures by Marylin WArner)

Patron Saint of Lovers

Santa Ana

Dear Mom,

In LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP, Jane Austen wrote this: “The Very first moment I beheld him, my heart was irrevocably gone.”

It’s true, isn’t it, Mom?  One glance, and you can lose your heart.

I’m going to share the poem you wrote in 1990 and show our readers just how true love at first glance was in your experience.

“SHOPPING MALL ROMANCE”   ~by Mary Shepherd

Surrounded by parcels I sat there,

On a bench in the shopping park mall.

I had finished my Christmas shopping

And in exhaustion feared I might fall.

 

I could see him coming toward me;

His eyes sought mine all the while.

I tenderly watched his quick footsteps.

He held out his arms with a smile.

 

I glanced at the pretty young lady

Who possessively grabbed for his hand.

Did she know what a treasure she held there?

The greatest in all our fair land.

 

He fell on my lap and clung to me.

I patted his plump-diapered rear:

A seventy-two-year-old grandma,

And a fifteen-month toddler so dear.

I love this poem, Mom. Every child is precious to you, and each one makes you fall in love.  What a wonderful, creative way to live!

In her book, THE GIFTS OF IMPERFECTION, author Brene Brown says there is no such thing as “creative and non-creative people. There are only people who use their creativity and people who don’t.”

Thanks, Mom, for a lifetime of using your creativity.   Love, Marylin

Mary’s great-grandchildren,
Grace and Gannon

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YOU CAN’T BLAME GRAVITY

Goodbye Oz: The Tin Man has moved to Abilene, KS

Dear Mom,

In several polls to determine readers’ favorites from Dorothy’s traveling companions in THE WIZARD OF OZ, Tin Man is often in third place. Sometimes he even comes in fourth, behind Toto, her little dog.

But no matter. In this blog, this week, The Tin Man is our featured star. He’s in love! Really. We don’t know his girlfriend’s name, but you have to admit, they make a shiny couple. If we can’t quite see the attraction, we’ll chalk it up to love being blind. As Albert Einstein said, “You can’t blame gravity for falling in love.”

We can give the credit for the creation of Tin Man and Dotty (I named them that) to the staff of the Dickinson County Transfer Station near Abilene, Kansas. Their creation is not a monster made of body parts dug up in cemeteries like Mary Shelley’s FRANKENSTEIN, but a fun couple made of disposable electronics recycled into something new.

In THE WIZARD OF OZ, two of Tin Man’s lines make him my favorite character. The first is when he’s about to lose his friend Dorothy: “Now I know I’ve got a heart, ‘cause it’s breaking.” The other is his wisdom about the measure of love: “It’s not how much you love, but how much you are loved by others.”

That’s the quote I dedicate to you, Mom. You have always had a tremendous capacity to love others, to respect, accept, befriend and help them. And now, at 94 when your dementia, frailty and confusion limit the love you can offer others, the Karma of love has come full circle back to you. Can you feel the love, Mom? I hope so. It’s there.

Mary Shepherd sharing love and hugs with great-grandson, Gannon.
(all photos by Marylin Warner)

___A NOTE TO READERS FROM TIN MAN AND DOTTIE: ___

Our nation dumps between 300-400 million electronic items per year, and less than 20% of that e-waste is recycled.  www.dosomething.org/actnow/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-e-waste

HOW TO BUILD A SURVIVOR

Nancy’s favorite family photo, 1995

4 roses: three have already bloomed, one is still in the process
(photo by Marylin Warner ~ a tribute to Joel, Adam, Seth…and Nancy)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What do you say to a woman who is fighting breast cancer?  What do you say to a woman when her almost 13-year-old son dies in a plane crash? And when her 11-year-old son dies, too…along with her beloved husband?  What can you possibly say?

In this case, the most meaningful answer is what Nancy Saltzman says to us.

If there is one must-read nonfiction book for you to buy for yourself or to give to those you love this season, it’s the honest, unforgettable, touching and inspiring RADICAL SURVIVOR: One Woman’s Path Through Life, Love, And Uncharted Tragedy. In the book’s 242 pages—with 62 ordinary, wonderful pictures—you are welcomed into the extraordinary lives of the Saltzman and Herzog families. From the first chapter, “How To Build A Survivor,” you share in the joys and sorrows…and the triumph of love, hope and determination.

The author, Dr. Nancy Saltzman, is a treasured voice throughout Colorado, an educator, writer and a strong, loving reminder of what it was–and still is–to be Joel’s wife, the mother of Adam and Seth, and a cancer survivor.

November is Thanksgiving, and it is also American Indian Heritage Month. Chief Seattle wrote: “Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are wound together. All things connect.”

Saltzman’s book gives thanks for years, moments and memories; it also reminds us of the true web connecting us all with what is important, real…and lasting.

Thank you, Nancy, for RADICAL SURVIVOR, and for your kind support of this blog. Last month I read your mother’s letters to you (from your book) to my mother. The web of connection between mother and daughter is strong, as is the strength of the web that even death cannot break.

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RADICAL SURVIVOR by Dr. Nancy Saltzman is available on Amazon. For a signed copy and 2-3 day shipping, go to http://www.nancysaltzman.com

Celebrating the book: Nancy and friends