MaryAlice Musings and More

I am amazed at what it feels like to be proud of our president to be, it feels like he is the president.  He is a leader and he is leading. I am happy that my friend Brendan is sober and getting the treatment he needs. I am glad for 911,  there was a big fight at my neighbors house.  It took me awhile to realize that what I was hearing was screams from my neighbor's house.  I called 911, as I was looking out the window -- two men were there to do some work on the house --- one was trying to push the other into the truck as he was screaming,  the woman on the 911 phone kept asking questions, and I told her what was happening.  She said she had gotten a number of calls the police and ambulance were on the way,  they arrived in seconds!  Thank you for good public service.  It was 14 years ago that I had a sudden asthma attack,  if I had not been in an ambulance I would have been dead.  They kept me alive when during complete pulmunary failure and cardiac shutdown!  Now that is somethi...

It has been a long time since I wrote about my sleep.  Yesterday was a big day,  lots of fun,  lots of food, long time being up, and to bed smiling and sighing!  I woke up at 1:30 a.m.  and went back to sleep in about 2 minutes, next wake up 6:30  very good for this post - surgical sleep apnea gal,  then I fell back to sleep again, and woke up after 8 a.m.  This was indication of tiredness, but also that my surgery in September has accomplished some of what was supposed to happen,  I can sleep longer uninterrupted, my sleep is of a better quality, and I breathe when I sleep.  I think all of those are happening, I go to have a sleep study in January, then back to the Dr. then we'll see what science says about my "condition".  So a simple thing to be thankful for breathing and sleeping!

How good to have this day - to just be reminded of what we are thankful for.  Myah, age 8 grand daughter this morning told me she was most thankful that I was making delicata squash,  then she said, "No,  the squash is third." I asked what was first? She said, " my family and second is that we are going to have really good food today."   She stopped and said, "not everyone has enough to eat".  So having food is something to be thankful for.  Yes it is, and we did.  I am really full, happy, thankful, tired and glad to have had my heart, my mind, my body feed and appreciated all day long.  May it happen every day - the thankfulness, appreciation, and moments of joy.

Big Noodle Little Noodle (sen yai sen lek) inspired from the Isaam region of Thailand.  It is the newest restaurant in NE Minneapolis - Thai in the NE how fun!  This family is creative, grounded, and gracious in their efforts to provide a wonderful community place to eat, drink, come together.  Every detail is simple and beautiful, the walls, the silk wall coverings (spun, designed, dyed and woven by an aunt in Thailand) great black and white photos, and oil paintings on silk.  And the food is great.  Kate, Kira, Emma, Sissie, Myah, Luke, Sasha and I all went to have some noodles, the kids get Izzie's ice cream for dessert!  The sticky rice was so good.  It was our pre-thanksgiving day dinner gathering early - the women who will cook together enjoying an evening of home cooked food not at home,  great attention, and really fun conversations!  Everyone was looking forward to a fun day - honoring family, honoring friendship, Luke and Emma wanting to share their reading skills with ea...

I just finished going through my recipe box that I started when I was 19 years old, that is 39 years ago!  I was looking for my families hardtack recipe.  This recipe started with my great grandmother (maybe earlier, but I can only verify that many generations!).  I am sure that it changed slightly through good and bad times but it is great!  I loved it as a kid, and my daughter loves it, and we have moved the recipe to yet another generation.  The best is the recipe I pulled out is written by my Mom,  she isn't here, but her paper, her act of writing the recipe for me is here.  And all the memories, it is a souvenir.   So you can have the recipe to, we made it only on holidays.  You can make the hardtack weeks ahead of time.  Then whip the cream and fold in the hardtack a few hours before dinner.  Some people think this is dessert, but it was always on the plate with all the other food, and then extra helpings later!  Yummm.  Hard Tack -  from the Washington Family 1 Cup packed br...

Jack and Jack - yesterday was the 45th anniversary of the of  C.S. Lewis and John F. Kennedy.  They both were called Jack by their families and friends early and throughout their lives.  I went to Shadowlands at the Guthrie on Saturday, I had not seen the movie so I was delighted and surprised by what I experienced!  What an incredible story of the relationship of Joy David Gresham and C.S. Lewis.  This was the North American premiers of the play - that has been playing in London --- I have not read the spiritual work of C.S. Lewis but I did read all the Tales of Narnia.  Many people say the Narnia was created by "Jack" early in his life when his mother died of cancer when he was eight years old.  The last time I picked up Narnia  as an adult was when I was with my Mother in the last 5 weeks of her life.  The stories were an incredible comfort and an escape and an inspiration.  So what about President Kennedy -  his assassination overshadowed the death of C.S. Lewis - and tha...

What a great image from Hubble Space Craft - I have felt the pull of the speed of light - days are packed with work meetings, time is filled with social and civic obligations, and weeks can easily fly by....lots of people are "busy".  How do I/we slow down - take in the moment, check the internal me - that which does connect to space - to the absolute stillness and presence of all of nothing?  The breath --- breathe breathe breathe, hear the heartbeat.  I knit a stitch, take up my needle, take steps with my feet as I sing out.   I have been saying "breathe through your feet" for decades,  I first heard or more accurately was asked firmly to "breath through your feet" by Peg West in the late 70's.  She was one of my early mentors,  a women who had a mountain in Alaska named for her, she was a fierce advocate for children, believing that a person (young or old) best knew when they did not feel safe - helped create ways for them to do something about it! ...

Sometimes it is a gift to just read and re-read and then read again words that have been spoken, have been written, and have been shared. I am sharing words from the Judy Chicago installation of the Dinner Party - reminding us of what it is that can be celebrated. The power of words, the power of images. All of us around a table all of us living in a way that honors the earth, honors each one of us. I have been busy, been pulled in many directions, distracted, and I was glad when someone sent along this piece from the Dinner Party. I was stopped, became present, enjoyed a moment of imagining, really taking in the words, the possibility. Great for this time of transition and thanksgiving! And then all that has divided us will merge And then compassion will be wedded with power And then softness will come to a world that is harsh and unkind And then both men and women will be gentle And then both women and men will be strong And then no person will be the subjected to another's will ...

I have made my first felted hat -- and  I figured out how to attach a picture - with my safari program and blogspot I'll post a picture.  I started with a sweather I felted (recycling) then I needle felted designs.  I is the funniest, laughable hat!  Looks like something a jester might wear, but I figure in a climate where you need a warm wool hat 7 months of the year, you might as well make people laugh!  I love it, and took an order today to make another one for a colleagues daughter!  I'm not quitting my day job, but I am having so much fun!  Another way in which I am transforming creatively....how fun, how deeply connecting, such connecting with heart and soul and fun and being!

Another morning where I am captivated by light, it is so pink in the eastern sky, with patches of the clearest blue, and as I type the golds and oranges begin to come forth from the horizon.  As I took a few breaths just took it all in, it all changed.  No grasping, no attachment, now the sky has a few bands of the faintest pink, then blue, almost colorless in contrast.  The trees do not one leaf on them, and I am now thinking of the horizon more like a November Sky when moments before I was transported and transfixed in the morning glory.   Oh, and it is cold outside 22 degrees.  I going to keep those glorious colors close by as I go through the day.

I had my first dinner with the Women Who Dine group - each of us having jobs and responsibilities that stretch and stress!  So how could we come together, have a way to relax and name out loud how to support each other and our work.  We talked about having big goals for our work.  One that we talked about was information that came from an Asst. Secretary in Department of Labor , he was talking about SSA projected deficits --- if 1% of SSA disability beneficiaries worked their way off of cash payments it would save $50 Billion - that is the same amount of money that is projected in the SSA budget in 2020 --- So why not support people working!  Great goal.  Great evening,  good food, fine company.

I have spent a delicious Sunday Morning at home.  There have been snowflakes falling and it grey (it is November!) and a cold that reminds me that winter is not YET here.  This morning I watched Sunday Morning on CBS -  I could not remember the last time I saw it, but I could remember sitting with Grampa and watching on Sunday mornings as my Gramma was making Breakfast for us all in the kitchen,  I loved the end when they show pictures in nature mostly I think, and then there is the sounds...they still do it at the end, and I still have the feeling like being in church.  As I watched this morning I started working on a new felt hat --- listening and watching and creating and remembering!  What an expansive way to just be present, with it all.  Then as the designs on the hat became more vibrant and beautiful I listening to Krista Tibbetts interviewing Studs Terkel.  I grew up just outside of Chicago, and moved there as soon as I could after high school!  Studs Terkel was always there, h...

Today I was with a small group of champions who are taking real steps to ensure that our expectations and actions support people with disabilities in  being a real and necessary part of Minnesota's workforce.  Supporting a vision to end the  barriers that support the inabilities versus the abilities of all people.  It is so exciting to hear people's passion and commitment to provide the support, the services, and the expectation that people with disabilities like any other group of people, want to work and receive the benefits of being in the workforce.  I had such a great time talking with young advocates who only know of the "deinstitution" of people with disabilities as a part of history, and they really see and know in their hearts and minds that people no longer need to be "exempted" from work --- but that people with disabilities want to work and it is time to support the full inclusion of people with disabilities in our communities including our workp...

I am still onto the light, this morning as I was standing by window looking out into the blackness of Lake Superior, a twinkling huge shape appeared. Bright white lights, like a big rectangle christmas tree - twinkling in the early morning pre-dawn. I watched as the ship moved along the lake, twinkling, moving north, out into the next great lake, and probably all the way to the ocean. We are not land locked here in the upper in midwest, we have ancient roots: water and light in guide us on the land.

This morning I woke early, it was so quiet, and the light coming from outside seemed so different.  The light at this time of the morning in November comes from street lights, alley lights, my decorative lights that go along the sidewalk from the house to the garage.  The sun is not up, not even as a type.  The silence of the early morning seemed different and the lights that I could see out the window was more diffuse.  I found myself walking out to see, to notice more of what I was feeling.  As I looked out into the backyard, there it was, a small blanket of snow.  I like snow, I live in a northern climate, if it is going to be cold, let there be snow.  Snow is such an insulator - it makes for such stillness.  No two snowflakes are alike, and these look like they were forged in windy, cold cold.  They are not big and fluffy, but small almost bead like snow is piled less than an inch in spots on my patio, and there are dark patches in the yard.  And it is quiet, a different vibration,...

I had an opportunity to read from the Dhammpada (Buddhist Text) this weekend, this passage resonated for me in reflecting where we are in this post election environment: Why is there laughter, Why merriment when this world is on fire? When you are living in darkness, Why don't you look for light?  

What a great weekend seminar, Passion, Play, Purpose and Presence -- lots of ways to explore how to be in the light, keep the spark alive, honor our souls, live life -- our own lives in the uniquely wonderful way in which we each do. It is a great gift to be in the circle, be open hearted, be me. So as we listened, and sang, and heard great stories I watched the snow fall, and the light shine through in the grey cloudy sky! It is November, and we are moving towards the darkness, and yet each of us was radianting. What keeps our light alive, where are the sparks, how do we nourish our dreams? What great questions, and what a gift to have time and space to sit with them. It is such a priviledge. I thought often this weekend about this blog, how good it feels to write, to share, to be unattached to how these words and questions and thoughts move through anyone else. I also thought about the intention, the native clarity of what we put in the world is there for at least seven gener...

Rosa Sat So Martin Could Walk Martin Walked So Barack Could Run Barack Ran So the Children Could Fly May we all soar!

I took an introduction to needle felting this evening --- it is so fun to do something that is so transformative.  I took loosely spun wool and made buttons!  Made a heart with wings pin to put on my coat and whatever!  And used a cookie cutter in the shape of Minnesota to create a holiday ornament for Jane the Sesquicentennial Queen!  How fun.  I brought home my pack of needles, some great yarn, and loads of possibility and creativity!  I love the pleasures of my hand crafting, each stitch is a prayer - felting is a moment of presence and attention, writing a poem a message of my soul!  Such moments of joy, plain and simple.

Last night as a spent the evening with a few good friends, I got calls from several of my friends in other states.  We all thanked Lonnie and cheered for the Pennsylvania victory.  Kathleen was an election judge in Wisconsin.  Karen and Jen called from Arizona, all of us shifting from deep joy and tears that reflected the magnitude of our feelings.  My daughter Sasha, keep calling throughout the night and as the victory for Obama was announced she was on the phone with me expressing her joy and being so very happy.   She was/is so engaged in this presidency, she has hope, and she believes in Obama as a leader, for her, for her family, for everyone.   What a difference from her lack of engagement the last 6 years, her complete defeat in the political landscape and reality.   This morning at 8 a.m. she called to tell me about what had happened this a.m.  Myah, age 8  and Luke age 6 were together in Luke's room shortly after getting up, Sasha walked in and asked them if they wanted to...

I am waiting for a few of my friends to show up - it is only in my circle of friends that people are coming to my house because I have the biggest TV -- my daughter would have a great laugh hearing that.  So we are going to watch returns, listen to NPR, and share our reactions, along with some good food and drink.  I think that tomorrow morning is going to come way to early.   I spent the afternoon doing my phone banking!  Late in the afternoon we stopped our get out the vote calls and switched to get out volunteers for door knocking!  Obama was polling very strong, but Franken and Colman are too close to call.  It is going to be a long night in the Senate race, and as I type it looks like Democratic Senators in North Carolina and New Hampshire.  And tomorrow we will know who our next President will be and start the process of how will I engage, what will the MN legislature look like, how will this impact my work on a state and national level.  Tonight I am going to breathe deep, and w...

It was about 70 degrees here today, yes that is 70 on November 3rd!  I burned up the phones again at the Obama Minneapolis Headquarters!  Today I used a computerized system, it keeps calling until you get a live voice, then all the info pops up on screen!  Very amazing, except I had 3 calls for people who were deceased ranging from 6 months ago (that is understandable) to eight years!  People were all and all very nice about the situation.  We still have a ways to go to really interface information!  My heart story of the night was getting people to vote for Al Franken - tonight people who were struggling really seemed to want to engage - I had some real, good stories about Al and Franni --- I hope that MN brings Al Franken to the Senate.  I have gotten calls from friends all over the country putting the heat on - we are doing our best.  The polls open in a little less than 11 hours from the time of this post.  Enjoy the Election Day --- it is going to be blue sky, sunny, and unseasona...

I spent the afternoon at the Obama Headquarters in NE Minneapolis doing phone banking, made over 200 calls.  Most where NO Answer, and we did not have to leave a message.  We helped people plan where, how, when they would go vote!  Perfect job for more as I am into visualizing these days, and most especially the outcome of this election.  Had a fun time sitting at my table, and watching people just come in one by one, in families, with the kids -- some volunteering, many picking up yard signs, everyone smiling, energy was upbeat.  Many of the people I talked to where for Obama, had to spend more time talking about Al Franken, but in the end I had very few hangups, just one cursing, and lots of great when I said I was a volunteer with the MN DFL.  Of course, some people don't know what DFL means, but today was not the day for that chapter of education.  Just as I was leaving my friend Cindy walked in for her shift, and we are working together on election day!  There was lots of food...

On Friday afternoon, after my roundtable was done, I took a walk up to the capitol and out onto the Mall.  There were parts of grounds near the capitol that were cordoned off - this was not homeland security, it was "preparing for the inauguration".  I stood and saw exactly where the next president will get sworn in, the sun was shining, the sky was brilliant blue, it was warm, there were green leaves on the trees, and I SAW Barack Obama right there.  Our President.   Today I went to vote,  there was a line, people were talking and easy about the wait.  I loved getting that ballot in my hand, it has been so long to be at this place - and I am so glad to have cast my vote.  I saved my "I voted" sticker so I can wear it on Tuesday be in comradeship with all the other people who will vote. Tomorrow I am doing phone banking.  Get out the vote.  Each day another step closer.  I am visualizing, I am doing what I can,  I am believing.  I have hope, and I have a vote.  It h...