Monday, July 05, 2010

Daily Reminder # 39


My mother collected Hummels. When I was a little girl, centuries ago, they were a great cheap gift. By the time she died at age 80, she had a lot of them. I divided the collection up between my brother, my sister's children and myself and I think I even sent one to each of her sisters, though I'm not sure if I did do that in the end. Anyway, eventually, with all my moves, I purged all but the little angel pictured above. I'm not sure if it's just my personal fancy, but I've always thought of this little angel as Diogenes... who I thought of as someone who spent his life looking for truth/an honest man. Alas, when I googled a few minutes ago, I discovered that he was not such a nice or noble guy and the whole lamp thing was kind of a stunt. BUT... I still like this little angel and I do think that life is, on some level, a journey in search of our own personal truth. In the end, I don't think there are any wrong turns. Every road and side-road is just a wonderful part of the adventure of living.


Well, that's all I've got. My decider is broken tonight. It has taken me forever to get even this much written this evening and I can't even decide on pictures. I ended up choosing old pictures from before I got my new camera.... some from AZ, some from my my early days back in New York. Anyway, I'm going to just let tonight's poem speak for itself.... I'm go glad E suggested the poems... they are life savers when the brain is vacationing somewhere far far away. I wrote this one a year or so ago for the OSI meme, so it's a repeat, but I'm using it anyway...



Reflecting on my life,
I wonder about decisions I have made
If I had done this instead of that,
What would it look like now?
Would I be happier
Sadder, wiser
Reflecting on my life
It’s so tempting to second guess
And blame myself for roads not taken
To think, “ah… if only… then…:
As though who I am is not enough
As though the road not taken
Would have been rut free with no detours
Reflecting on my life
I wish I could run, but I’m glad I can walk
I wish I had more
But then I remember how many have so much less
Reflecting on my life
I would be wiser, perhaps
Less prone to sorrow
I would laugh and sing more
Reflecting on my life
The things I most would change
Were not in my hands
The things I most would change
Changed me
Often – not always - for the better
Reflecting on my life
On my best days I am grateful
To love and be loved
To live, breathe, think, dream
And yes – even to reflect.

Katherine E. Rabenau



Some things I'm grateful for tonight:

  • roads taken
  • movies
  • flowers
  • memories
  • friends




4 comments:

Janie B said...

Awesome! Love the poem and the pictures.

quilly said...

Lovely poem. We all often feel that way. "If only I had done this ..." and then we think of all the wonderful things we would have missed had we traveled another route.

You calim your brain power is down, but I am here to tell you that you just won the Punny Monday Contest at my place! Congrats!

Carletta said...

Love the poem!
That last shot could have been here in WV. :)
And what a precious little Hummel. I've always loved them but could never afford them.
Hope you're staying cool.

Argent said...

Your poem really captures a state of mind that I often experience.