Yes, I'm Still Here

Doorway in Paris, July 2009

Last week was a very busy one. I saw my friend Kathleen, who you may remember as Hayden's & Gunnar's mom. She is doing well, and I am grateful to God for sustaining her and giving her joy in life.

I worked diligently on the Open Door blog with my friends Chris, Karen J. and Robin. It was a deep week of mining our memories of the passing of each of our children. We wrote our memories and read each other's. These are hard stories, and they bring up deep grief for ourselves and for one another - yet the work is good, powerful and meaningful. I read, wrote and prayed a lot. On those days, there was little time or energy left to write here.

You may recall the poem, Litany, by Billy Collins. I had an inspiration (and a visual concept) after watching the videos of Samuel (the 3-year old  boy) and Mr. Collins himself reciting the poem, so I wrote to him and asked his permission to create a book out of it. He said, "No." I loved my concept so much that I dared to argue with him (politely) in an email. No go. I am still working on it, for myself - not for publication - and devoted hours to the project last week. It was challenging and rewarding to see the images in my mind take shape, and a good counterpoint to all of the mental work I was doing last week. I am happy with the product, although I was disappointed to learn that Mr. Collins' considerable creative imagination does not stretch as far as I had assumed a poet laureate's would. {Other applications for a work of art ARE possible, even though they are not what you had in mind when you made it. But it is his masterpiece, so I will leave it at that.}

I met with another bereaved mother, a talented sculptor whose son died over 20 years ago, and heard/discussed a vision that she has for a local group of moms of children who have passed away. It was fascinating, and I will wrote more if/when it comes to fruition.

A reporter friend came to interview me about Katie's Comforters Guild, blogging and what is going on now. She did a wonderful job of making me feel at ease, and it was a pleasure sharing news with her. We had four new offers of help and/or inquiries about membership last week, including a donation of fabric. The guild continues to grow and to be a blessing - I'm very thankful for each offer of help and each member's contributions.

Gregg and I spent a quiet and happy weekend exploring our area on foot, seeing friends, pruning plants and cleaning up the yard, watching good movies and enjoying each other's company. I love that guy!

The Zags lost their basketball game in overtime.

All of this means that the house is in a bit of a mess, and I have to get busy cleaning now. Blessings on your day.