Wednesday, May 18, 2011

video games and tv

Monday...finished science project about crystals, rode bikes, had barefoot races down the sidewalk, played video games for 30 minutes, had soccer practice, and had pizza for dinner. When at the dinner table, I asked the kids what their favorite part of the day was. They responded with video games.
Tuesday...went to last full day of school, had lots of fun on the swing set, went to the playground at the mall, set up a tent and sleeping bags in the gameroom and "camped out" there that night, watched tv for an hour. When at the dinner table, I asked the kids what their favorite part of the day was. They responded with watching tv.
Wednesday...woke up and played with Aunt Amy, had lunch at Panera Bread with Aunt Amy, took Aunt Amy to Simply Cinco where Liam and his classmates' art is being displayed, ate a cookie cake, played on swing set, played video games for an hour, took Aunt Amy to the airport and saw several big planes taking off, landing and taxiing. When at the dinner table, I asked the kids what their favorite part of the day was. They responded with playing video games.
But then they added, "Well, we actually like all parts of all days." So maybe, just maybe something is sinking in!

Sunday, May 8, 2011

a mother's hope

I, like other mothers I'm sure, have many hopes for my children.



I hope they do well in school. I hope they make a lot of friends. I hope they get into a good college. I hope they find love. I hope, I hope, I hope...


Most of all I just hope they're happy. It's this hope that reminds me of a poem I used to read a lot when I was younger. It's a poem about growing up and reminiscing on the time of childhood and how that time is so carefree and innocent.


And this is what I hope for the most for my children. I hope that when they grow up, they will look back on the time I had with them and think fondly of it. I hope the memories of their childhood will be like a warm cozy sweater that they can wrap themselves in when adulthood sometimes gets cold.



So for my mother's day this year, instead of being pampered or taking the day off, I decided to use my time to make a few more memories for them.



"Fern Hill" by Dylan Thomas


Now as I was young and easy under the apple boughs

About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green,

The night above the dingle starry,

Time let me hail and climb

Golden in the heydays of his eyes,

And honoured among wagons I was prince of the apple towns

And once below a time I lordly had the trees and leaves

Trail with daisies and barley

Down the rivers of the windfall light.


And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns

About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home,

In the sun that is young once only,

Time let me play and be

Golden in the mercy of his means,

And green and golden I was huntsman and herdsman, the calves

Sang to my horn, the foxes on the hills barked clear and cold,

And the sabbath rang slowly

In the pebbles of the holy streams.


All the sun long it was running, it was lovely, the hay

Fields high as the house, the tunes from the chimneys, it was air

And playing, lovely and watery

And fire green as grass.

And nightly under the simple stars

As I rode to sleep the owls were bearing the farm away,

All the moon long I heard, blessed among stables, the nightjars

Flying with the ricks, and the horses

Flashing into the dark.


And then to awake, and the farm, like a wanderer white

With the dew, come back, the cock on his shoulder: it was all

Shining, it was Adam and maiden,

The sky gathered again

And the sun grew round that very day.

So it must have been after the birth of the simple light

In the first, spinning place, the spellbound horses walking warm

Out of the whinnying green stable

On to the fields of praise.


And honoured among foxes and pheasants by the gay house

Under the new made clouds and happy as the heart was long,

In the sun born over and over,

I ran my heedless ways,

My wishes raced through the house high hay

And nothing I cared, at my sky blue trades, that time allows

In all his tuneful turning so few and such morning songs

Before the children green and golden

Follow him out of grace,


Nothing I cared, in the lamb white days, that time would take me

Up to the swallow thronged loft by the shadow of my hand,

In the moon that is always rising,

Nor that riding to sleep

I should hear him fly with the high fields

And wake to the farm forever fled from the childless land.

Oh as I was young and easy in the mercy of his means,

Time held me green and dying

Though I sang in my chains like the sea.



































Monday, May 2, 2011

It's complicated.

My heart is heavy today. I hesitate to even say this out loud. In the midst of all the cheering and yahooing because Bin Laden is dead, I feel like a little girl standing all alone in the corner.

This isn't a new feeling for me. I felt the same way when Sadam Hussein was executed. When the rest of the country is chanting "Justice!", I can only think one life was lost and no one cares.

Yes, I know that Bin Laden killed. Yes, I understand he had to be killed. Do I have to like it? No.

I don't like it because no matter how awful a man he is, he's still one of God's children. I don't like it because, no matter how extremist he was, people are still going to hate Muslims, who are definitely undeserving of any hate, because of this. I don't like it because it will make some people more bloodthirsty. I don't like it because I don't like dehumanization of any person.

I don't usually write about any of my political opinions on any of my blogs. I've barely touched upon any of my feelings here, mostly because I usually have children crawling all over me (as I do this moment) and can't give my full concentration. I'm also just a really private person so it's really hard for me to make this a very coherent post.

I'm not saying that I'm morally above anyone. I'm quite the opposite. I'm just saying that it makes my heart heavy when people rejoice so much over the death of a human. And I'm not really sure if it's the death that saddens me the most, or the overwhelming joy emanating from the public because of the death. As I said, it's complicated.