Mono but not Monday

This morning before breakfast I walked around our garden taking photos. There were raindrops everywhere from an overnight sprinkling. These are the Day Lilies along the driveway, leafed out but not flowering yet. I like the pattern of all the drops. The extra is the large lilac bush that is full of blossoms. I took a few sprouts from a neighbor's lilac over 20 years ago and I am so glad I did.

Ric came this morning and finished installing two flat bird feeders that hang out over the garden. From now on the shells and other scratchings of the birds will fall below instead of on our deck making it necessary to power wash the deck periodically. Ric is happy about that too as he was the one who built our deck.

Three of us met for lunch today at the Hearthfire. We are all Whatcom CC retirees and try to meet at least once a quarter to catch up on each other's news. Today we talked quite a bit about politics. We share lots of views though we aren't triplets. We tend to be left but some more than others.

I visited Arvin who was asleep when I got to Silverado. I turned on some beautiful Bach and sat and rubbed his neck and cheek while the music surrounded us. We both love Bach's music. I was talking to Arvin's older daughter yesterday and she read me a poem she had written. It was so moving I asked her if I could share it with you. She said, "sure", so here it is:

 A Daughter's Lament

I find myself praying
   for my Father
      to die
   because it would be
      mercy
   because I love him

and I know he would not
   want to spend at least
      two more years
    in a wheelchair
      unable to speak
      unable to comprehend
   adult diapered
      incapable of feeding himself,

the cruelty of Alzheimer's
   having robbed him of himself
      except for that tiny obdurate
   inviolate flame of love
      at the center of his enduring
      heart,

the essence of who he was,
   of who he
      will always be,
   an ember so precious to me
      that I would give it up in the flesh
         to free him.


           - Lynda B Chaikin   May7, 2017