To Be With Each Other

To Be One With Each Other George Eliot

What greater thing is there for two human souls
than to feel that they are joined together to strengthen
each other in all labor, to minister to each other in all sorrow,
to share with each other in all gladness,
to be one with each other in the
silent unspoken memories?

Today's writing has nothing to do with miniatures, or a fantastic picture I found, or a great idea, it's about phone calls I got today?

Today many people asked- how is that husband of yours? He has just gone through surgery number 5 - melenoma -cancer on his scalp/head. We are lucky to have a great surgeon, who is one of the world's best and promises me, Kirby will outlive me! This time the wound made me gasp when I saw it. But everyone- Kirby is great!

Yes, we are both retired - then ,we laugh- as we both are busier than ever. I took an early retirement- maybe that was good, maybe that was bad. I am still adjusting to life on my own terms. I miss my Virginia friends a great deal,( my Kevin, my Jewel, my Joey, my Jeane, my dear 568 students of the class of 2008), I miss the sights and sounds and food and entertainment of Washington DC/Virginia, I miss museums, great plays but I do not miss the traffic/the politics/the life of beltway people.

Moving to Kentucky was a huge change from our hectic lives in the world of education, where we began our days at 4:30 am and often returned home at 10:30 pm. But today, we still begin our days at 4:30 am - I, in my art studio, days often end at 10:30 pm- as he still continues to coach basketball on the college level at Berea College.We own a Baby doll Sheep farm and acres of pumpkins, vegetables and more which allowed us to help begin a Farmer's Market. The pumpkins are now allowing us to be with Bobby Flay next week in Lexington. Who would have ever thought . AND now, I am closer to members of my family,closer to friend(s) who had seemed so very far away. I have wonderful new friends in my miniature world from Lexington- who have made me laugh-made me see new sights and sounds, taken me to great new restaurants, enjoy the same kind of movies I do, travel to new places and I owe them many thanks!

Both of us, have left the headaches of high school education and our coaching at the high school level behind. I wonder how many students have walked in and out of our lives?

We, now, do what we love- at our own pace, our own schedule,
continuing to make the above words of George Elliott a part of our lives.

Now, why do I write such ramblings today, on a quiet evening, good question... or think of this poem- one of my favorites -maybe, this September day did it to me.. 29 years ago , on a September day, I walked into his life to stay, could it be because of an IM conversation I had today, a photo I looked at, a song I heard or was it because several people called today and said " How is that husband of yours?"