Memories are made of this

 My daughter just posted this to her cousin as they were talking about my mom.  I remember just bits, but of her being very warm, smiling, and affectionate. She would be proud to call you her Granddaughter, I'm sure.

I lost my mom early; she was in her 50s and I was in my mid 30’s when she died of cancer. I am glad that my daughter has some memories of her. My mom was a remarkable woman, she was feisty, determined, loving and kind. Her mom left when she was young and she was tasked with raising her younger brother and sister, which she did. She lived in as small town in Saskatchewan in the 30’s and 40’s that was almost all Romanian. This was the language of the community, so she grew up with English as a second language. When she went to high school, people made fun of her accent. Within three years she had lost her accent and when we were growing up, we never knew that she spoke another language.

She was elected to the School Board for two terms and was active in the community in which grew up. She did not talk about her early years very much that I recall. When she died, I and my brothers went through her papers and discovered that she had kept a diary of her early life. It took a while, but I eventually read her words.

Her words allowed me to get to know her better and could understand some of the things that I did not understand as a youngster. Because she wrote her diary and I got the chance to read it, I started writing this blog for my grandson. One day my hope is that he will read it and it will give him some understanding of what my world is like, what I find interesting, my sense of humour and my love for him and my family. I hope my niece gets to read my mom’s diary so that she can have a better understanding of her.

Dance as if no one is looking

Have you ever had a setback a delay or had to take a detour? I know I have had that happen many times. Sometimes you can think that these setbacks, delays, and detours are often just a way of "keeping" you for something way better. Many take this view.

There is, however, another way of looking at setbacks, delays and detours. First, don't let them discourage you, second, don't see them out of context. Third, consider that these events may lead you to a new adventure, a new road to travel, or a new way of thinking.

Life is complicated, our lives follow dance-like steps in the mambo, tango, or the cha-cha. If you dissected the movements and saw them without the rest of the dance, you’d only see painful contortions. But when you see the big picture can you see the poetry of your life in motion. The sad fact is we only see the big picture when it is completed, not when we are dancing, so whatever you do, don't stop dancing. Remember you are your own choreographer 

Rainbow connection and Pride Celebrations

Yesterday I posted about rainbows, and I always wondered how the Rainbow flag become a symbol of LGBTQ pride? June has long been recognized as LGBTQ Pride Month, in honour of the Stonewall riots, which took place in New York City in June 1969. During Pride Month, it is common to see the rainbow flag being proudly displayed as a symbol of the LGBTQ rights movement.

It goes back to 1978, when the artist Gilbert Baker, an openly gay man and a drag queen, designed the first rainbow flag. As he said in an interview, “… A flag really fit that mission, because that’s a way of proclaiming your visibility or saying, ‘This is who I am!’” Baker saw the rainbow as a natural flag from the sky, so he adopted eight colours for the stripes, each colour with its own meaning (hot pink for sex, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for sunlight, green for nature, turquoise for art, indigo for harmony, and violet for spirit).

It was not until 1994 that the rainbow flag was truly established as the symbol of LGBTQ pride. That year Baker made a mile-long version for the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall riots. Now the rainbow flag is an international symbol of LGBTQ pride and can be seen flying proudly, during both the promising times and the difficult ones, all around the world.

Rainbows

 I believe in the idea of the rainbow. And I've spent my entire life trying to get over it. Judy Garland

What does it mean to believe in the idea of the rainbow? Is the idea of the rainbow as some would believe a pathway to find a pot of gold? Or is it a metaphor for trying to find something beyond your reach or capability to achieve? Is it as the ancient Greeks believed a foreteller of storms and wars? Or is it as the Hebrews believe a sign that there will be no more massive floods? The Norse believed the rainbow was a bridge upon which their gods took to go home after spending time on earth. Some believe it is a miracle with no explanation.

The rainbow inspires metaphor and simile both in poetry and in song. In Rainbow Connection, a song known for being sung by Kermit the Frog, the idea of a rainbow is seen as something to wish on, as it is popularly seen as a vision, or symbol of hope.

During COVID-19 The rainbow was adopted as a symbol of hope, especially during periods of lockdown. Households worldwide displayed homemade images of rainbows in their windows, often alongside positive messages.

The rainbow is now a symbol of ethnic and racial diversity. Various Rainbow Coalition movements have used the rainbow as a metaphor for bringing together people from a broad spectrum of races and creeds.

Richard Dawkins; in his 1998 book Unweaving the Rainbow: Science, Delusion and the Appetite for Wonder, wrote:

My title is from Keats, who believed that Newton had destroyed all the poetry of the rainbow by reducing it to the prismatic colours. Keats could hardly have been more wrong, and my aim is to guide all who are tempted by a similar view, towards the opposite conclusion. Science is, or ought to be, the inspiration for great poetry.

The poet Woodsworth has a poem that says

My heart leaps up when I behold

A rainbow in the sky:

So was it when my life began;

So is it now I am a man;

So be it when I shall grow old,

Or let me die!..

John Keats in his 1820 poem "Lamia":

Do not all charms fly

At the mere touch of cold philosophy?

There was an awful rainbow once in heaven:

We know her woof, her texture; she is given

In the dull catalogue of common things.

Philosophy will clip an Angel's wings,

Conquer all mysteries by rule and line,

Empty the haunted air, and gnomed mine –

Unweave a rainbow

Whatever your views of rainbows are, when you see one, just enjoy the beauty of the rainbow