Remembering is easy --for now. But I have visions of days to come where my memory may fade. Alzeheimer's. It's a horrible disease. There are other horrible diseases in our world, but this one that takes away memory and thinking is in my mind --the worst. Hoping, wishing and praying that this wretched affliction never touches another member of my family or me.  I remember it took away my mother. My first recollection of something wrong was when she was supposed to come and visit, yet she never showed up. I called and called and finally she answered. When I asked why she didn't show up, her tearful reply was that she had started driving but couldn't remember how to get to my house. A route she had taken hundreds of times. Thank you Lord for her being able to remember how to get back home.  I recollect this malady being the nightmare that caused my mother not to remember that she had had a heart attack and that she was in a hospital. Nightmare is the only ...

The butterflies began as small as gnats The jitters were released from within Nervousness gave way to anxiety Butterflies now the size of buzzards Voice reduced to a squeak Imagination turned into reality Warmth spread like a rash over the body Mortification settled on the shoulders Death was wished for Forgetfulness not as forgiven as amnesia Embarassment is forever.

I'm not a hater of Fall. For the most part I like the weather, at least the sunny, crisp Fall days. But not the end of Fall when frost begins to show up on the ground. I love the Fall decorations, the crunch of leaves and the pumpkin and apple goodies so readily available this time of year. I'm not a lover of Fall either. Fall is a time of sadness for me, the least of which is that when Fall arrives  it means Summer is over. The big hit I take during the Fall is that both of my parents passed away in the Fall. No matter that it's been 16 years since my mother left us in September and 9 years since my father passed away in October, when the leaves start changing and the feeling of Fall is in the air, it seems like yesterday   today. So Fall is only a time of year to get through. Space between the lovliest of seasons and the ugliest.

Your friend Respectively Sincerely Yours truly XXX & OOO Love to you Lots of love Love always Missing you Wish you were here Yours faithfully Till we meet again

                                                                                                                      Shoes on the porch Lined up, waiting for direction Facing the elements With quiet decorum Shoes by the door Piled up, left in disarray Sitting around in a tangle With muted confusion       Shoes under the bed    Kicked about, mates lost Gathering in isolation    With hushed uncertainty Shoes on the feet Moving on, seeing the world C...