On a cold day, early in November, I noticed
a lone bumblebee clinging to an outdoor window
screen. It was barely moving. Being so cold, I
knew that it would not bite me . . . so I stroked
its back ever so gently. Left alone, it tumbled to
the ground in the perennial flower garden and
found a secure crevice near the house's foundation
and disappeared.
B U M B L E R S
In summer
bumblebees
skim through
bundles of blooms.
They gather
sweet
syrups.
Load up
packs fo
yellow dust.
Come late fall . . .
a slowdown to
survive.
Hibernate on through
winter's
sting.
Thursday, December 18, 2014
Friday, November 28, 2014
SLAVA . . . WHERE ARE YOU ?
One spring, I was visiting in Tallin, Estonia. I was amazed to
meet up with, and make friends with a person who was a
professor of Russian/English at Moscow University. Slava
was so proud that his newborn child had been born on the
4th of July! At one point, Slava and I found ourselves comparing
customs and beliefs of our respective countries.
I spied a 3-leafed clover growing along the beach walkway, and asked
him if it was his belief that . . . if one found a clover with 4 petals,
that it meant you will be certain to have good luck? As children,
we would play a trick by carefully splitting one of a clover's 3 petals
so that it now had 4, and say: "Hey, look what I found".
Slava replied, "No we don't, but Clem, do you see that lilac over
there? The flowers have 4 petals, right? If you find one with
5 petals . . . it means lots of luck!" We kept on walking for a long
time along the beach and ended up at the once-distant lighthouse.
We stood there at the base of the lighthouse and looked across
at Finland, just eighty miles across the bay. The next day, we would
each return to our homes.
Slava's son would be 35 years old by now.
I trust that he has had lots of luck!
I always will wish we could have kept in touch.
meet up with, and make friends with a person who was a
professor of Russian/English at Moscow University. Slava
was so proud that his newborn child had been born on the
4th of July! At one point, Slava and I found ourselves comparing
customs and beliefs of our respective countries.
I spied a 3-leafed clover growing along the beach walkway, and asked
him if it was his belief that . . . if one found a clover with 4 petals,
that it meant you will be certain to have good luck? As children,
we would play a trick by carefully splitting one of a clover's 3 petals
so that it now had 4, and say: "Hey, look what I found".
Slava replied, "No we don't, but Clem, do you see that lilac over
there? The flowers have 4 petals, right? If you find one with
5 petals . . . it means lots of luck!" We kept on walking for a long
time along the beach and ended up at the once-distant lighthouse.
We stood there at the base of the lighthouse and looked across
at Finland, just eighty miles across the bay. The next day, we would
each return to our homes.
Slava's son would be 35 years old by now.
I trust that he has had lots of luck!
I always will wish we could have kept in touch.
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
So What Now ?
Our earth must be
so frustrated.
Once, for a long time,
the seasons tended toward
regularity. And,
we took notice.
Plant potatoes in spring when
budding oak leaves are the
size of mouse ears.
The earth is older
and seems to wobble
just a bit.
Does anyone notice - or
is it me
becoming less stable?
so frustrated.
Once, for a long time,
the seasons tended toward
regularity. And,
we took notice.
Plant potatoes in spring when
budding oak leaves are the
size of mouse ears.
The earth is older
and seems to wobble
just a bit.
Does anyone notice - or
is it me
becoming less stable?
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
T H A N K F U L N E S S
This morning, as I opened the front door to bring in the morning
paper, I happened to spot a strange object lying in among the leaves
that had fallen from the old Schwedler Maple. It was about the
size of a Sunbeam Toaster, but was roundish and rather lumpy.
Intrigued, I went back into the house to put on more clothes.
Upon returning with tongs, a roll of paper toweling, and a heavy-
duty plastic bag, I realized that the object had moved to the northwest
just about 1 1/2 feet. I approached with extreme caution.
It looked harmless enough . . . so I picked it up and transferred it
into the kitchen and dropped it into our porcelain sink basin. Our
two cats, Pixie and Maggie, were very wary and they refused to come
within 17 3/5th inches from the object. They finally wandered off,
confident and relieved that, this time, someone else was in charge.
It was then I thought that the object looked vaguely familiar. It was
almost the size, shape, and had the lumpy surface of an old-fashioned
holiday fruitcake. I remembered, back when I was a kid, that those
creations would regularly make their appearance a few days before
Christmas. Now, that would make sense! Thanksgiving Day is just
a couple of weeks or so away and that means "Christmas can't be far
behind!"
I also recalled that those holiday fruitcakes would not mold, spoil, and
didn't need to be refrigerated. They just "were." And, very seldom
did anyone ever eat much of one. It was simply a tradition back then
to exchange them. I would not be surprised that many of them had
been close to 10-16 years old. And that was 60-some years ago!
But, that's history. I returned to the present and resumed examining
the object in the sink. What was discovered is hard to believe!
The surface was imbedded with various-sized chunks of something
hard and stone-like. It was as if, whatever this object was, it had been
quite hot. Its surface, while not waxy, seemed as though it had been
somehow fused together. I located our roast meat oven thermometer
and with some effort . . . inserted it.
The interior was still quite warm AND the temperature was rising
significantly!
It was then that I made the decision to rush the object to the university
and have it properly analyzed. (Still have not heard back.) I pay attention
to the local and national news for any live, late-breaking reports from
the field. Do you suppose that what I had found was one of the myriad
pieces of space junk circling around out there?!
I am so thankful at this season of Thanksgiving that it didn't fall on me
or, for that matter, on any living creature!
Always, there is something for which to be thankful.
paper, I happened to spot a strange object lying in among the leaves
that had fallen from the old Schwedler Maple. It was about the
size of a Sunbeam Toaster, but was roundish and rather lumpy.
Intrigued, I went back into the house to put on more clothes.
Upon returning with tongs, a roll of paper toweling, and a heavy-
duty plastic bag, I realized that the object had moved to the northwest
just about 1 1/2 feet. I approached with extreme caution.
It looked harmless enough . . . so I picked it up and transferred it
into the kitchen and dropped it into our porcelain sink basin. Our
two cats, Pixie and Maggie, were very wary and they refused to come
within 17 3/5th inches from the object. They finally wandered off,
confident and relieved that, this time, someone else was in charge.
It was then I thought that the object looked vaguely familiar. It was
almost the size, shape, and had the lumpy surface of an old-fashioned
holiday fruitcake. I remembered, back when I was a kid, that those
creations would regularly make their appearance a few days before
Christmas. Now, that would make sense! Thanksgiving Day is just
a couple of weeks or so away and that means "Christmas can't be far
behind!"
I also recalled that those holiday fruitcakes would not mold, spoil, and
didn't need to be refrigerated. They just "were." And, very seldom
did anyone ever eat much of one. It was simply a tradition back then
to exchange them. I would not be surprised that many of them had
been close to 10-16 years old. And that was 60-some years ago!
But, that's history. I returned to the present and resumed examining
the object in the sink. What was discovered is hard to believe!
The surface was imbedded with various-sized chunks of something
hard and stone-like. It was as if, whatever this object was, it had been
quite hot. Its surface, while not waxy, seemed as though it had been
somehow fused together. I located our roast meat oven thermometer
and with some effort . . . inserted it.
The interior was still quite warm AND the temperature was rising
significantly!
It was then that I made the decision to rush the object to the university
and have it properly analyzed. (Still have not heard back.) I pay attention
to the local and national news for any live, late-breaking reports from
the field. Do you suppose that what I had found was one of the myriad
pieces of space junk circling around out there?!
I am so thankful at this season of Thanksgiving that it didn't fall on me
or, for that matter, on any living creature!
Always, there is something for which to be thankful.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
ON WRITING A COLUMN: SOME ADVICE
I frequently read columns in
newspapers and magazines.
Some are advice columns or
general commentaries. Often
they appear on a r egular basis.
When they happen to miss a
time, I wonder what happened?
Then they show up. Perhaps
I need to work ridding myself
of having to have things be so
regular. (There must be a term
for such behavior.) Now . . .
advice on writing an effective
column. First of all, know that
the only "columns" that I write
are those that are a part of our
monthly newsletter. And those
appear periodically in our blog.
Second, and most importantly,
keep it short! A recent survey
reported by the local Wolverton
Daily News supports the fact
that most people, under the age
of 37 1/2, only read columns
that are under 23 lines long and
not over 26 characters in width.
newspapers and magazines.
Some are advice columns or
general commentaries. Often
they appear on a r egular basis.
When they happen to miss a
time, I wonder what happened?
Then they show up. Perhaps
I need to work ridding myself
of having to have things be so
regular. (There must be a term
for such behavior.) Now . . .
advice on writing an effective
column. First of all, know that
the only "columns" that I write
are those that are a part of our
monthly newsletter. And those
appear periodically in our blog.
Second, and most importantly,
keep it short! A recent survey
reported by the local Wolverton
Daily News supports the fact
that most people, under the age
of 37 1/2, only read columns
that are under 23 lines long and
not over 26 characters in width.
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
IT'S DIFFERENT NOW
It has been a great year for consuming fresh sweet corn.
With delight I chomp away on three or four rows at a time.
(Still have my front teeth.) And, it doesn't even need butter.
YUM! I recall as a child, that our family consumed fresh
corn. It was not as sweet back then. And - our parents
cautioned us to watch out for corn smut and the little worms
called corn borers.
As a budding naturalist, I thought the borers were interesting.
Corn borers peer out
from holes. Lumps of smut erupt
from along the ends of ears.
Hey . . . It's
chemical free !
Monday, September 1, 2014
NO WAY!
Yesterday marked the end of meteorological summer. Today is the first day of September . . .
No way! I am in early August, enjoying the lazy, beautiful summer days. There must be some major mistake by the calendar people, who are charged with keeping us all on a tight schedule.
I am not ready for beautiful fall colors on trees, anticipation of beautiful snowfalls, or the end of the gardening season. Please - someone tell me this is a huge ghastly mistake.
Why is it as we grow older, time whizzes by faster and faster. I remember as a child how the last day of the school year meant summer stretched out, almost endless in length. Now if I doze off for a brief nap in the summer sun, some breeze ruffles the calendar pages and suddenly it is autumn. As children we did not have much wisdom to enjoy what we were given. Now that we have gained such wisdom, there is little time to exercise it and reflect on the joys of life. Not even on rainy days.
We need to pass a law extending time for older people. Delicious long days to savor our reflections on the meaning our lives. After all, our peers are dropping like flies and who knows when it will be our time.
Oh, that's right. Washington gridlock means nothing gets passed these days. Maybe it is the result of the average age of our elected officials. Perhaps they do do not realize their time is moving at an ever faster pace.
On second thought, the downside of such legislation would mean longer winters - and after this past long winter (that went on far too long), I think the passage of time is a bit more complicated. Perhaps what we really need are longer summers and shorter winters - and not the kind that occur due to climate change.
So I am going outside and enjoy my early August . . . no leaves fallen that need raking yet.
And don't tell me summer is over!
No way! I am in early August, enjoying the lazy, beautiful summer days. There must be some major mistake by the calendar people, who are charged with keeping us all on a tight schedule.
I am not ready for beautiful fall colors on trees, anticipation of beautiful snowfalls, or the end of the gardening season. Please - someone tell me this is a huge ghastly mistake.
Why is it as we grow older, time whizzes by faster and faster. I remember as a child how the last day of the school year meant summer stretched out, almost endless in length. Now if I doze off for a brief nap in the summer sun, some breeze ruffles the calendar pages and suddenly it is autumn. As children we did not have much wisdom to enjoy what we were given. Now that we have gained such wisdom, there is little time to exercise it and reflect on the joys of life. Not even on rainy days.
We need to pass a law extending time for older people. Delicious long days to savor our reflections on the meaning our lives. After all, our peers are dropping like flies and who knows when it will be our time.
Oh, that's right. Washington gridlock means nothing gets passed these days. Maybe it is the result of the average age of our elected officials. Perhaps they do do not realize their time is moving at an ever faster pace.
On second thought, the downside of such legislation would mean longer winters - and after this past long winter (that went on far too long), I think the passage of time is a bit more complicated. Perhaps what we really need are longer summers and shorter winters - and not the kind that occur due to climate change.
So I am going outside and enjoy my early August . . . no leaves fallen that need raking yet.
And don't tell me summer is over!
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