UPDATE TO PRIOR BLOG……..April 27, 2013 “COLOR OUTSIDE THE LINES”
I cannot believe it has been this long since I have written anything for this blog. I have written lots of things just not here. We have been in transition from one state to the other – states in the USA as well as states of mind and states of positions. All very busy. We are enjoying summer at our cottage while having accepted a ministry position in our winter home. Lots to do to become acclimated to all these changes. I must say we are doing quite well with it this far.
My mind has been hearing two words lately – courage and joy. Not sure I can identify why or where they belong in the scheme of our daily activities. We are fairly caught up with chores at our summer cottage. So much so that we took a 3 wk trip back to our winter house to celebrate our granddaughters 17th birthday. We then took the long way back by going up into Canada. It was an interesting journey.
I went to my former blog, ktsquaredtreasures, to see if I had written anything about courage. One of the blogs that came up is the one I am including with this post. With updates of course.
Grandcamp no longer happens as our wonderful grandchildren are now 19, 17 and 15 and too old and busy for us.
The little girls in the following blog are now grown up and have been joined by siblings. Phoebe and Cassidy have an older sister who was not with us that day. Miss Mallory is a beauty having just turned 13. A very creative young lady who loves to play basketball. Miss Phoebe is now 11 I believe and a cheerleader! She is still a delight and I chuckle each time I see her as her spirit is unquenchable. Miss Cassidy completed that family for a long time until they were joined by Aubrey. Four girls! A nicer group of kids I do not think you will find anywhere. They organize a bake sale each year to give the proceeds to a local charity. This year they earned $800 for a food pantry. They give me much faith in the humans coming up.
In this blog I also mentioned Jolene who now has been joined by a brother named Guy. They also help with the bake sale each year. My sister and her husband have lovely grandchildren – there are 3 more boys not mentioned here!
It takes courage to raise children I believe. I takes joy to raise them as well. It takes both to give them the fundamentals and pray they make wise choices throughout their lives.
Our youngest grandson gave me a bracelet for Christmas with one ornament. It was a disc that had a saying imprinted on it. “Courage is fear that has said its prayers.” Isn’t that what we do with our children – have the courage to birth them, raise them and then set aside our fears for them by simply saying our prayers.
……Onward to more misadventure……….
GOOD MORNING WORLD
Had the most delightful lunch yesterday and I am so sorry I said that Miss Phoebe is 4. She is not she is 5 and quite mature and lots of fun. She has an infectious giggle and I love those! She has a glint in her eyes as well that says she has a bit of mischief in her though at the lunch table it was not the time nor place. I think in her teens she is going to give her parents a run for their money!!!
All the girls were coloring on their placemats while we waited for our meal. Cassidy was ever so serious as she tried to stay inside the lines. Jolene was lining up the jams, that were in the container, in a straight line. Her mom said that she was told that when children did this they were ready for potty training. It was an associative thing. I asked, ‘I wonder why we were taught to color inside the lines’ as a lot happens in life that is definitely outside the lines and certainly okay as in not breaking the rules. I cannot remember the answer. It was a busy lunch. I think it was about order and neatness. Once we learned that we could do anything.
Harry Chapin had a favorite song of mine – “Flowers are Red”…..the words are:
http://www.lyricsdepot.com/harry-chapin/flowers-are-red.html
The little boy went first day of school
He got some crayons and started to draw
He put colors all over the paper
For colors was what he saw
And the teacher said.. What you doin’ young man
I’m paintin’ flowers he said
She said… It’s not the time for art young man
And anyway flowers are green and red
There’s a time for everything young man
And a way it should be done
You’ve got to show concern for everyone else
For you’re not the only one
And she said…
Flowers are red young man
Green leaves are green
There’s no need to see flowers any other way
Than the way they always have been seen
But the little boy said…
There are so many colors in the rainbow
So many colors in the morning sun
So many colors in the flower and I see every one
Well the teacher said.. You’re sassy
There’s ways that things should be
And you’ll paint flowers the way they are
So repeat after me…..
And she said…
Flowers are red young man
Green leaves are green
There’s no need to see flowers any other way
Than the way they always have been seen
But the little boy said…
There are so many colors in the rainbow
So many colors in the morning sun
So many colors in the flower and I see every one
The teacher put him in a corner
She said.. It’s for your own good..
And you won’t come out ’til you get it right
And all responding like you should
Well finally he got lonely
Frightened thoughts filled his head
And he went up to the teacher
And this is what he said.. and he said
Flowers are red, green leaves are green
There’s no need to see flowers any other way
Than the way they always have been seen
Time went by like it always does
And they moved to another town
And the little boy went to another school
And this is what he found
The teacher there was smilin’
She said…Painting should be fun
And there are so many colors in a flower
So let’s use every one
But that little boy painted flowers
In neat rows of green and red
And when the teacher asked him why
This is what he said.. and he said
Flowers are red, green leaves are green
There’s no need to see flowers any other way
Than the way they always have been seen.
I included all the words as I think you need to read them to understand how we are programmed to think one way or the other. It does start young!
I am a rules kind of gal. I follow them when they make sense. As I have aged I have also been able to appreciate the colors that are outside of the lines. I can paint flowers any color I want. I usually choose ordinary. I am no Salvador Dali. Yet the world is better for him and Picasso as well. They add flavor to our senses. Or the words of EE Cummings or Thoreau. How tantalizing our poets and authors!
I like organization and can still appreciate the fun that comes with chaos. While I love a clean house I will not ever not enjoy the messiness that comes when the three grands are there for Grandcamp. I thankfully have learned the lesson that life is too short to waste energy on uselessness.
I think the lesson for me is that we have to learn what is right or wrong, correct or proper in order to choose to make life better. If we know the ordinary then we are free to imagine better and more creative. Coloring inside the lines of red flowers and green grass set the stage for us to move on and leap into and discover a colorful diverse world.
Ever grateful for my 6th grade art teacher who allowed expression and encouraged creativity. Not sure I have it completely and do so enjoy the option to leap a few lines creatively. Think I might take a different route home next week. Why? Because it will be outside the ordinary!!!
…..ONWARD TO MORE MISADVENTURE…
ktsquared 