The Last First Day

No classes yet.

We started the day with a district-wide breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, and French toast sticks in our cafeteria where our superintendent greeted us all and wished us a good year.

Following that we had a little time to get our rooms prepared.

An English department meeting occurred at 10 then a staff photo in the gym.

Then it was time for an early lunch because at noon we had a staff meeting followed by a workshop about the new portfolios we have to have our advisory kids complete.

By the time that got done, I had an hour to get some prep work done for actual teaching which will begin on Wednesday.

One day down.  183 to go!

(My computer is still in for repairs so I had to use these internet images.  The top one shows one section of our school.  It's built into the side of a mountain and does not look like a typical school building.  What you can see here is our vocational wing.  The second photo is of our new soccer field and track, and the third picture is the logo on our hockey jerseys.)

Mom's Day

My mom's funeral was beautiful yesterday.  So many people attended.  Sister Monique made the service very personal by reading a short poem I'd written about my mom and she presented us with a small needlepoint picture, made by her sister, of a sailboat with the words "Sail on!" underneath it.  

My brother-in-law sang the following song and made everyone sniffle.  I wrote the words a couple years ago for my mom's 82nd birthday and he put them to music.   My mom's name, Fleurette, means, "little flower."


Our Flower


VERSE
We want to write a song
about how great a mom you’ve been
We want to mention all the things
you’ve done again and again
We search our mind for memories
of you throughout the years
And there are just so many.
Some bring smiles and some bring tears.


VERSE
We see you sewing in the night
and braiding hair and rugs
Cooking meals and cleaning
and always there with hugs
You slowly knit us sweaters
after we were tucked in bed.
You always put yourself last
and did for us instead.


CHORUS
You made our lives a garden
giving us a loving start.
You may be a “little flower”
but you’ve got a big, big heart.


VERSE
We see you beating us at cards
and winning at the slots,
Playing golf, and bowling,
and washing tons of pots.
And when the days got cloudy
and cancer tried to win
We see you fighting bravely
and never giving in.


BRIDGE
We grew in sunshine
and in rain from above
We grew tall and straight
because of your love.


CHORUS
You made our lives a garden
giving us a loving start.
You may be a “little flower”
but you’ve got a big, big heart.

August 10, 2010

Nothing else seemed important enough to write about on the day my mom died. 

But the next day, the sticker on my banana seemed appropriate.

Luv Ya, 2, Michelle!

Michelle did one more background for me just before she and her parents had to head back to Florida.

Recycling

I used an envelope and letter from Anne for the background to this page then painted over them with metallic champagne acrylic paint. 

I love her little owls.

The circles were made with a shot glass.

The Christmas stamp has no significance; I just liked the colors.

Regina's Magical Woods

Last week my friend, Donna, and I took a walk through another friend, Regina's, magical woods in Topsham, Maine.  I call it magical because Donna has been suffering from a sore foot all summer.  Here she is sitting on a piece of ledge that Regina swears has healing properties. 

Now, I told Donna that we were going for a walk in the woods but what does she wear?  Flip flops!  But she was game and off we meandered, anyway.  The miraculous thing is that her foot never even bothered her!

I took tons of pictures and here are just a few:

Bean blossom on Regina's deck

Black-eyed Susan

Hummingbird

Clover

A family of mushrooms

Yellow mushroom

Mikey, Regina's cat, hanging from her shoulder.

Regina and I

Yes, Another Tuna!

This is #6 and is especially sweet because our son was with him.  Nathan has gone many times with Gary but had never gotten a keeper. 

This one weighed 341 lbs and was 90 inches long.

Here's Nay fueling the boat before the fish was dropped off.  You can see the tuna lying on the bottom of the boat covered with a white towel and several bags of ice.

And here are the happy fishermen in their lucky turquoise shirts.

Pink and Green

Yes, I was fingerpainting again!  Kind of messy but it was fun.

My Mom

My mom died on Tuesday evening.  Sally and Nancy were with her.

This picture is of the four of us kids with my mom at Silver Lake.  Sally is the baby.  I'm next to my mom, with Nancy next to me and Tim at the end.

This is the last picture of the six of us together taken shortly before my dad died in 1997.

My mom and I during the summer she had cancer in 2004.

This was taken last Christmas.  My mom was suffering from compression fractures and had to wear that brace.

Just after my mom died, I wrote the following poem:

Who’s that man

standing with his arms

wide open,

tears in his eyes,

and a smile on his face?

Oh, it’s my dad

welcoming my mom.

He’s been waiting

thirteen years

for this day.

See how fast

she’s running,

now, all long legs

and limber,

dark hair

flying behind her.

It’s no joke,

Dad; she’s really there.

Scoop her up,

give her a big

hug. You’re

the remedy

she’s needed

these last declining

days.

Turn around,

walk with her

like a bride

and groom

holding hands,

grins on your faces

down the long

aisle

of a heavenly

forever.

Trip to Florida

I finger painted this page.  It felt cool to be a kid, again.  I even left my fingerprint.

They say it's therapeutic. 

I needed it after kowing that I'd probably never see my mom again.

She's in the hospital right now dying.  She was taken there because of kidney stones, high sodium levels, and dehydration because she can't swallow.  She's on morphine for the pain and her systems are shutting down.

I'm so glad I went to see her.  We had about ten minutes of connection, when she was in the present and "there." 

She's dying naturally and not in pain but I'll miss her so much.

Michelle Was Here, Again!

Every time she visits, she asks if she can design a page in my journal and I'm always glad to say yes. 

I guess I've rubbed off on her because she and her friend, Amanda, keep a cooperative journal of their summers here in Maine.  At the end of the season, they put it away and don't look at it for 2 years.  It's like a time capsule of their lives.

Middle of July

I've finally gotten caught up in my journal.  I was determined to do a page a day but, of course, that didn't happen.  I am, however, trying to journal each day even if each day doesn't have its own page.

Not the Fourth of July

But, I had this flag napkin from when we ate at Sally's and I had the glittery flag from an Anne letter so just went with it.