Smile Making

The other day we began talking about our upcoming trip to Disneyland and I mused about all the wonderful “sights” we would be enjoying. Elizabeth looked at Lydia and said, “Tour Guide Barbie just showed up.”

Rachel looked up from her latest “project” and said, “Guess I’d be Nerd Knowledge Barbie.”

“YEP!” we all chimed in.

[This shouldn’t come as too much a surprise since I married Nerd Knowledge Ken with the bonus entrepreneurial accessories and she’s a chip off the old block, if there ever was one!]

Judging from Rachel’s latest “fun” read and the artsy-craftsy expression it inspires in the doodles of her free time after she finishes schoolwork:

coupled with the fact that she thinks safety glasses and a test tube make sensible fashion accessories . . .

I’d say she’s well-qualified to launch the Nerd Knowledge Barbie line.

It gets even better! Rachel's Nerd Knowledge Barbie could be friends with Computer Engineer Barbie who makes her debut on December 15th according to Amazon.com.

I expect to be hearing from Mattel any day now!

When I do, I will definitely tell them they need to expand the line to include a Makes Me Smile Every Day "Mom" Barbie waiting in the wings.

Psssst!

My computer took a vacation (causing me untold irritation), but a young man with essential skills came to my rescue.

I shall be waxing eloquent with glimpses from among the wisteria and the roses in the coming days.

So much to share . . . so much to savor as we take an accounting of the past season -- taking stock and stocking up. There have been roosters butchered, final produce harvested, and new goals set. Many a teapot has been drained, many a new book has been cracked as we wind down from Summer's fun and prepare to tuck in for Winter following Autumn's gentle harvest dance.

Come join me as we celebrate life here at Wisteria Cottage with a new header, a newly fitted computer, and a renewed sense of joy.

Suppose . . .

. . . it were just a cosmic chance for two girls to be set side-by-side for a summer's spate -- a thread of common language and little else to hold them. It could have been by chance, but as the season unfolded and enfolded them into friendship and sisterhood that crossed oceans, endured silence, flourished in letters, and flowed vividly through the years the chance of chances melted into a design of love. A name drawn by lottery concealed seeds designed for the heart.


Just last week the rainy skies of fall (which had literally thundered in!) broke wide into smiles of summertime's rich sunshine that nearly matched the smile I wore as I greeted my Norwegian sister Mimmi, her daughter Siv, and my precious "Mamma."




An earlier email informing of flight info also pleaded for a bit of warm sun, as Norway had been bypassed by summer this year. This simple request prompted prayers on my part for clear skies of the former season while my dear "sister" and family visited. Did chance swing by again? I never bothered to wonder as we dined out of doors on artichokes and apple pie, discussing Nordic summerhouses and fjords, clothed in gauzy skirts and sleeveless tops -- surely my prayers had been heard by a designer rather than a will o' the wisp wind.




Grass Valley, Roseville, Lake Tahoe, and San Francisco -- it mattered not where we traveled -- the sun joined us every day. Yet, on the day of departure the clouds gathered above and sweaters rescued chilly arms. The day after they left I awoke to the pitter-patter of raindrops and a quiet coffeepot. No sun in the sky, no strong coffee calling out, "Come and play!"

I contented myself with warm memories as I sipped tea and wondered whether our plans for a midsommer visit to Norge next summer will come to fruition . . . and after that a meeting up in Southern California, then Florida, Italy . . .

I finished up my tea and set about praying -- leaving nothing to chance. : D

_____________

p.s.

Past posts about my Norwegian Connection can be found here and here.

I've Been Away . . . So Long . . .

. . . among friends and family.

It is so good to be loved.

* * *

Oh, the comfort,

the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person;

having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words,

but to pour them all out,

just as they are,

chaff and grain together,

knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them,

keep what is worth keeping,

and then,

with the breath of kindness,

blow the rest away.

~~ George Eliot ~~

* * *

And the gentle breeze of such love

has blown me back to the blogdom

to share amongst the loved ones

known to me and not yet known.

After a time of extended quiet

my heart runs freely

with a net trained to find

words and glimpses of life among

the wisteria and the roses

and share them

with gleeful abandon.

I've repaired my computer glitches.

I've rested my heart in a summer of sweetness.

I've returned to dance.

Shall we dance?

: D