AN OLD MEMORY

For lack of a topic for this post, I found this tidbit which I had jotted down years ago. So I m going to print it just as I wrote it then.



It is an unfinished poem I was composing as I drove the car on a trip and Bill tried to write it down. I know words are missing and we haven't refined it or got it right, but I have been carrying it in my purse for so long on an old envelope that I did copy it down to preserve it for future work.

It is about the time we were in Estes Park, Colorado and just as we were leaving I saw a car stoppd by the side of the road. I looked and a glorious herd of elk were coming down from the woods into the town. I didn't have a camera. Many more people stopped and took pictures. I almost gave one of them some money and my address and asked them to send me a shot of the scene, but I never did and have regretted it ever since.

Apparently it is quite common for there is a preserve nearby and I understand it occurs every rutting season. One lady told me in the grocery store that the elk had gathered outside their church one Sunday and they were bugeling so loudly they had to cancel the service.

That day also I saw my first white Mountain Goat high up on a sort of shelf as we went by. He stood out in the sunshine like a white god and I was thrilled at the sight of him. It was a miraculous day.

Here is my description of the Elks:

And there they emerged from the wood

Materializing where before there had been nothing.

Yet the wild things were surely and slowly

Softly picking their way down the hill

God's gorgeous four-legged creatures.

But wait! Here comes their King! Who with every movement displays

Royalty and the mantle of command;

His rack is large and has many branches

His head heavy with its weight.

No matter he is old and infirm

Deference and honor belong to him

And he knows it and glories in it

Because he knows that his strength

Lies in past victories of wars won.

This is all she wrote folks. Can you see what I saw that day?

WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY?

Yesterday was the fourth of July--a celebration of our Declaration of Independence where among many other rights we were given was the pursuit of happiness. Some of our Middle Eastern countries are now beginning their revolutions against the tyranny of dictators and seeking the same rights as we enjoy.

So just what is happiness. Happiness is different for a lot of people. Some are happy just to have something to eat and a place to sleep. Others have to have houses with all the amenities, the supposed disappearing middle class. And still others are not happy unless they own big and multiple houses built like castles. A lot of us today would be happy to just have a job!

That is just one phase or example of what makes some people happy. We could list many more. Healthy children. Being loved by someone, having numerous friends, traveling wherever we like, being healthy which is probably foremost as none of the others matter if you are not well. Having a lifework that one enjoys and supports one's family. Certain foods one loves to eat. Losing weight. There are so many things one can think of that make us happy.

So why are so many of us unhappy? Are we getting too greedy? Do we try too hard to keep up with the Joneses? Do we forget to count our blessings instead of the bad things that happen to us? Do we take our measure of health for granted? Have material things taken over what really matters in life? The loss of a loved one. Do we forget that there is a mystery here that we cannot know.

What makes you happy? Little things like someone I know--a cold glass of beer. Being able to get up when you feel like it. Being able to even walk. The feel of the water around your body while swimming in a beautiful lake. A piece of lemon meringe pie. A surprise visit from a friend. A warm Spring rain or a lovely floaty snowfall. A dog who adores you for no reason at all.

Take a minute or two and comment on what makes you happy.