Month: September 2014 | Shiny Bits of Life

September 30, 2014September 24, 2014

Disappearing beauty

flowers After Heather’s mom died, we had a lovely memorial service. A handful of very kind people gave loads of beautiful flowers. There were so many that her dad couldn’t keep them all in his condo. So we inherited several bouquets. (I took this photo of my favorite arrangement.)

As the days after the service passed, the flowers slowly died. I continually mourned the loss of all that beauty.

Part of my brain lives so much in the present that I feel like the flowers will last forever. The same feelings about those flowers have been true for the apples on our backyard tree. This year, our tree has produced the very best apples yet. And I enjoyed one for lunch almost every day for at least three weeks.

I’m sad.

September 23, 2014September 24, 2014

It takes a special person

spiky shoes How fun that there are completely impractical shoes! My wife would not wear them. I might buy them for her, if she would.

It’s just great that things like this exist.

(I took the photo in Los Angeles. Denver is home to fewer such stores.)

September 16, 2014September 14, 2014

Something fun

bathtub soap holder Life is short. I am happy this time to focus on something fun…

Creativity.

How great to have a soap dish like a little bathtub! The creator simply took something out of context – a soap dish – and made it into something related but entirely different than normal.

May we all be infused with a bit of fun creativity today.

September 8, 2014September 6, 2014

Full disclosure

sunset I always feel a tension about how much is appropriate to share. If I lean toward the vulnerable side, my experiences may resonate with some of my readers in a deeper way than otherwise possible. If I lean toward the surface level, I won’t alienate anyone. And how much disclosure is too much?

I’ve been struggling with how to share a significant life event. Last week, my mother-in-law died after a long struggle with many illnesses. Her release from a body that was not working anywhere close to what it did earlier in life was a blessing to her and others. But we greatly miss her – the woman we remember who was funny, loving, nurturing and much more. How can anyone sum up the life of another in a few short words?

I was the first to visit her room at the hospice. I saw her frail form lying with her hands folded, holding a pink rose. I walked to the lobby to wait for her husband to come. Then we went to her room together and cried. I cry, even writing this.

Life is a blessing. Love those around you today.

September 2, 2014September 2, 2014

Blind

blurred image - what a partially blind person might see What’s it like to be blind? Those with sight can never know. Those who lost their sight later in life have different perceptions than those born blind, as they retain memories of what the world looks like.

The perceptions of a blind person must be totally different than the perceptions of a sighted person. Temperature changes and smells are much more important, I would guess. Seeing people can never know what a song is like to a blind person. I imagine that a richer and deeper set of colors accompany the mood of a piece of music.

But we are all blind. Another Paul said this: “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror.” They say humans only use about 5% of their brains (or something like that). Maybe a deaf person uses 10% of the visual part of their brain, and a blind person uses 10% of the auditory part of their brain – and a person with sight and hearing only uses 5% of every part. Everyone uses different levels of each sense. We all have our strengths and weaknesses. Our strengths and weaknesses open us up to different vulnerabilities – and abilities.

If you are blind and reading this, I’d love your reflections on the topic.