Day 3549: I Saw the Light

“I Saw the Light” is a song I love by Todd Rundgren.

My husband Michael and I danced to “I Saw the Light” after I got home from a trip where I saw the light at Disney World, the gorgeous islands off the Southeast coast of Georgia, and (unexpectedly) a Georgia hospital after I had a TIA.

During a long and restorative walk in my neighborhood yesterday, I Saw the Light.

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For me, I Saw the Light means that I’m in the moment, observing the beauty surrounding me, and realizing again an important lesson I learned when I was young: life is short and every day is precious.

I Saw the Light when I was capturing all these other images for today’s blog post.

On this precious day when people might be talking like pirates while eating butterscotch pudding, what does “I saw the light” mean to you?

I saw the light while gathering expressions of gratitude for all those who have helped me see the light, including YOU!

Day 3267: What no one ever says

Today’s title is inspired by many things, including today’s Daily Bitch Calendar.

I may be the only one who says how that is an example of a cognitive distortion, because chances are that SOMEBODY has said that. At this point in my life, it’s hard to believe that no one has ever said anything, which is my way of saying that there might be nothing new under the sun in terms of what people communicate.

Stephen Sondheim, however, said things in his lyrics that people seldom say, like these lines from “The Ladies Who Lunch”:

So here’s to the girls on the go,

Everybody tries.

Look into their eyes

And you’ll see what they know:

Everybody dies.

When I first heard those lines in the 1970’s, I thought, “Stephen Sondheim is saying what no one ever says: ‘Everybody dies.'” And while other people have said it, nobody said it like Sondheim, who died the day after Thanksgiving.

I’m thinking about that line — “Everybody dies” — today because Michael Nesmith passed away yesterday.

No one (including me) ever says that “Everybody Dies” is a good title for this kind of blog, so I didn’t use it today. However, as we get older, “Everybody Dies” rings truer with each loss of somebody we loved.

And I did love Mike Nesmith and the Monkees.

Do you see what no one ever says in my other images for today?

I might assume that no one ever says “Let’s celebrate National Noodle Ring Day,” but I’m probably wrong.

Whether or not someone else says it, this is one of my vivid memories of the Monkees TV show, which seemed to include words that no one ever said before.

This next video includes what Mike and Davy said during their screen tests (which no one ever said during a tryout for a major TV show before).

No one ever says, I hope, that I don’t try to share relevant videos in my blog posts. Here’s another one:

Finally, no one ever says that I end these posts without expressing gratitude for those I appreciate, including YOU.

Day 2811: If you love someone …

• set them free.

• invite them to connect with you.
• tell them you love them, because you don’t know how much time you have left with them.
• take pictures for them.

I took that last picture for people I graduated high school with in 1970, whom I love. I’m looking forward to seeing them at our Zoom reunion tomorrow evening.

If you love someone, what do you do?

I tell them how grateful I am that they (including YOU!) are still on this earth.

Day 2689: Savor the moment

Savor the moment, especially when the moment provides wise guidance for every moment.

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Savor the moments I captured during a moment-filled and rare day off from work yesterday.

 

The best part of knowing that I’ll be dead someday is it helps me savor the moment.

Here‘s “Savor the Moment” by Sara Renner.

I’m savoring the moments in “Savor the Moment” that are a perfect match for the moments in today’s blog post.

Now I’m looking forward to savoring your comments and I hope you savor my gratitude for everyone who helps me savor and share moments on this blog, including YOU.

 

Day 2188: I’m very aware of the passage of time

I’m very aware of the passage of time, as I took time to express in a therapy group exercise about time.

Are you very aware of the passage of time?  Do you believe that you have all the time you need? Do you rush and get very anxious because of time? I’m very aware that the passage of time affects everybody.

I’m very aware of the passage of time in my other photos from yesterday.

I’m very aware that I notice more over the passage of time.  What do you notice, during this very precious time?

I’m very aware of the passage of time that’s bringing me closer to the first Friday of the month, which means it’s time for me sing a new original song at a local Open Mic.  I’m very aware that I need to choose between “Don’t Call Me” and “It’s Not Me.”

I’m very aware that I haven’t yet shared the lyrics of “It’s Not Me.” I will, after sharing this passage-of-time song:

I’m very aware of how much time passed before I found “Time Has Come Today” by the Chamber Brothers. Feel free to pass the time by sharing your favorite song about the passage of time, below.

Before any more passage of time, here are  lyrics for “It’s Not Me.”‘

It’s Not Me

by me, Ann Koplow

It’s not me resenting

the mistakes of the past.

It’s not me presenting

why our love shouldn’t last.

 

It’s not me who’s judging,

It’s not me keeping score.

It’s not me begrudging

Saying “you should do more.”

 

It’s not me who’s hurting,

It’s not me feeling bad.

It’s not me deserting

All the good things we’ve had.

 

It’s not me complaining

From dusk until dawn.

It IS me explaining

That it’s me, moving on.

© Ann Koplow, 2018

I’m very aware of the passage of time as I ask for comments and express my thanks to all  (including YOU!) who have helped me in my blogging passages, over time.

Day 1691: Matters of life and death

Yesterday, people in my therapy groups talked about life and death matters, because that mattered to them.  They asked each other life-and-death questions, including the following:

If you were immortal, how would that change how you live your life?

If you had control over how you would die, what would you choose?

They found those life-and-death questions — and questions  about other matters (like the sources of fear) —  in the book “If … Questions for the Soul.”

When I answered the second question in last night’s therapy group, I referenced a memorable scene from the TV show St. Elsewhere, where an old man, dying alone in the hospital, asks to be held by an orderly in the middle of the night.  When the orderly lifted the man off the bed and held him in his arms as he passed, that mattered so much to me.

How might you answer those life-and-death questions? I hope you know your answers matter.

I wonder if there are any life-and-death matters in my photos from yesterday. Let’s see ….

 

Was losing and finding my wallet this week a matter of life and death?  My next step is quoting Shakespeare:

He who steals my purse steals trash. ‘Tis something, nothing: ‘Twas mine, ’tis his, and has been slave to thousands. A good reputation is the most valuable thing we have—men and women alike.

I took one other photo yesterday.

Is being calmer a matter of life and death?

Does this YouTube video about a St. Elsewhere cast reunion include matters of life and death?

I have some important matters to deal with today, including getting an INR blood test before I leave for Scotland tomorrow. But what matters most to me, here and now, is thanking all those who helped me create today’s post and — of course! — YOU.

 

Day 1526: A Window in Time

During a recent window in time, I saw this:

During that same window in time, I

• noticed that the time in that window in time was incorrect,
• looked at a house with lots of windows near the ocean,
• thought about the healing power of nature, and
• considered my own mortality.

How will I use the window in time that is today’s blog post?

I will show you the delicious meal my boyfriend Michael in Massachusetts and my son Aaron in Scotland cooked together in a window in time last night.

Soon after that window in time, I was happily eating a large piece of that by a window.

How else should I use A Window in Time?

I love windows in time to wonderful music.

I hope you use a window in time to leave a comment.

There’s no window in time like the present to express my appreciation to all who helped me create this window-in-time post and to you — of course! — for visiting me during this window in time, here and now.

Day 1458: We’re still alive

Yesterday, in a therapy group, somebody said, “We’re still alive.”  Since that phrase felt very alive to me, I wrote it on my white board, where it still is.

I heard and wrote that shortly  before I found out that Carrie Fisher was no longer alive, when I  read this on Facebook: “We lost a Jedi.”

I still believe it’s important,  every day, to remember we’re still alive, because eventually every one of us will be still.

Here‘s the best song for this post —  Stephen Sondheim’s “I’m Still Here” from Carrie Fisher’s Postcards from the Edge:

 

I often sing that song when I walk around, still alive,  and see scenes like this:

Which images are still alive, for you?

I’m very grateful we’re still alive as I thank all  who helped me create this post and you — of course —  for still being here.

Day 1241: How ’bout them apples?

How ’bout that title?  Do you know what it’s ’bout?

How ’bout a definition from the Urban Dictionary?

How bout them apples?

Rur. What do you think of that? (Often used to express admiration; bout is short for about.)

Tom: I got first prize! Mary: Well! How bout them apples? Joe got a job as a newspaper reporter. How do you like them apples?

How ’bout these apples?

 How ’bout that sign on the elevator of the hotel where my sister and I are staying in Rochester, Minnesota?

I’ve only got ’bout ten minutes this morning before I have to leave for ’bout eight hours of medical tests and doctor consults at the famous Mayo Clinic.

How ’bout that saying that an apple a day keeps them doctors away? Because I eat ’bout one pink lady apple per day, I’m ’bout to give up on that idea.

How ’bout them pictures I took yesterday?

 

 

How ’bout them …

• quotes from “Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death” by Irvin Yalom,
• giant corn,
• Minnesota sunsets, and
•  other images.

How ’bout this post?

How ’bout a bout of thanks to my sister Ellen (for accompanying me on this bout of cardiac consultations) and another bout of thanks to every other helpful person ’bout me, including you (of course!).

 

Day 1237: Immortality

Some say that human beings are the only creatures aware of their own mortality. I say that a yearning for immortality, of some kind, affects most of us.

People can seek immortality through

• art,
• religion,
• their children, and/or
• their work.

Where I work, I found this message about immortality:

Should I submit any of my other pictures from yesterday to the hospital’s research study on human immortality?

 

Last night, at live piano karaoke, I sang an immortal song:

Speaking of (im)mortality, I killed it.

Any thoughts or feelings about immortality? If you leave a comment, it will live forever in my heart.

Immortal thanks to Judy Garland, my handsome son Aaron, the Red Sox, the hospital where I work,  piano karaoke, people who are so good and so caring and so close, and you — of course!  — for reading this all-too-mortal post.