Today we are headed to a party at the home of my friend, Carol Orr. She is the 95 year old that I wrote about in this blog last year: via 95 Years of Life Lessons
Carol went to her heavenly home a month or so ago… and today her family and friends are gathering to remember her love and share some of her wit and wisdom. Tomorrow is her memorial service.
Click on the link to “95 Years of Life Lessons” above and enjoy Carol’s wit and wisdom with me. Such a bright, “with-it”, fun-loving, kind friend! I miss her!
I wrote this poem in honor of my dear Dad, Sal DeAngeles, shortly after he died in April of 1995. I thought this was a good time to pull it out and share it with you, my dear blog readers. I hope you have equally vivid and happy memories of your Father. You can get a pretty good picture of who my daddy was by seeing what he left us… and the things he left behind.
He Left Us
He left us his roses and hydrangeas,
and his garden with zucchini,
but he forgot to take the old wheelbarrow,
and he forgot to take the bocci ball court.
.
He left his mother’s crucifix on my wall,
his watch in the top dresser drawer,
the Balsamic vinegar in the cupboard,
and his love of ravioli and French bread,
but he forgot to take his Gallo Burgundy.
.
He left in each of us his love of family,
his teary-eyed sentimentality, and he left
the aches and pains of his earthly body,
but he forgot to take his spray paint, and
his love of convertibles with the top down.
.
He left the wife he loved so well,
the family and neighbors who miss him so,
and the unconditional love, but he
forgot his collection of nude calendars,
and he forgot to take his twinkle.
I know – I have it!
If your dad has left this earth, try writing a poem about what he left and what he forgot to take. Have fun with it!
Happy Sunday.
Happy Father’s Day!
See you with my sermon notes after church.
God bless you!
When you google that question,
you realize how new the verb, “google” is!
Of course, you know how that word, Google, originated.
It was those 4 or 5 guys in a garage, right?
But what about the word “zany”?
Where did it originate?
Shakespeare!
Shakespeare had an incredible influence on the English language and invented “zany” – as well as hundreds of other words we still use today.
Here are some of the more than 1,700 words first used in Shakespeare’s writing:
amazement
bedroom
champion
dawn
eyeball
fashionable
gossip
moonbeam
olympian
puking
swagger
unreal
zany
Wow! Shakespeare!
He was sooooo creative!!
(That’s an understatement) We’ll never know exactly what Shakespeare looked like,
but many portraits share similar features. This one is a Getty image.
Here’s an image of Zany Me:
How zany can you get?
You have to “SnapChat” it before you get
those ears and eyelashes – and such smooth skin!
Do you know SnapChat?
It’s one of many programs out there that
help us creatively present ourselves.
Internet Writing Programs
Sometimes we present ourselves visually with doctored images (like the one above).
Do we “doctor” our verbal images of ourselves, too? Microsoft Word is one of many programs in this technological world that allows us to spice up what we say and how we say it. I love using their templates. In addition to Microsoft Word and other well-known programs, I recently discovered Google Docs. Do you know about that app?
I have Google Docs on my iPhone.
Do you use that program to
create and edit documents on the go?
You can “get stuff done”
(how’s that for creative word usage?)
with or without an internet connection.
You can write on your own – or invite more people to contibute.
My granddaughter, Faith, used Google Docs to write her
paternal (DeAngeles) Family History.
Her dad is our son, Ty.
Faith sent the Goodle Doc to me to see and edit.
It’s a great program.
Descriptive Words
Particular words jumped out at me as I read Faith’s geneological study that included health histories of her grandparents, parents, siblings, and aunts/uncles:
heart attack
valve replacement
Valley Fever
arthritis
cancer
diabetis
high cholesterol
These medical issues and troublesome words don’t describe the people, or
the beauty,
the personalities,
the faith,
stamina,
and creativity of the family.
Where do we make sure such characteristics make it to the printed page and live on in history?
Signature Vocabulary
As a writer who has created a blog, YOU can be sure the beauty, the uniqueness, and the zaniness of your personality and your loved ones lives on. You can create a legacy for your family; one that tells more than birth, marriage, children, illnesses and death.
What words might people attribute to YOU? Have you a signature vocabulary? What do you want folks to remember about your family?
My Precious Husband
My precious husband, Bob, may not have invented the word, “Foo-Foo,” but his use of it for someone’s name is becoming a signature of his.
“You know, help me out, Foo-Foo was just over there by the Wuch-a-me-call-it. You remember!”
Uh, can you help me out a little more! Who and/or where?
He makes me laugh!!
The older we get, the more “Foo-Foos” there are in our lives!
Yes, words are our trademark. Just as identifiable as our fingerprints.
I don’t think I’ve actually invented any words, though. Have you?
Using Words Creatively
Do you use words in unique ways?
My blogging friend, Dorothy (deyspublishing.wordpress.com),
posted today about pouting clouds.
I said they were pouting and spouting.
Giving animate qualities to inanimate objects is a great use of words. I love the way many poets do that. They attribute people qualities and actions to things in nature… animals, clouds, unfriendly chairs.
My iPhone has a dictionary app that allows me to look at synonyms and antonyms as well as definitions. You probably have that app, too. It’s a great tool for finding ways to creatively use words.
Sharing Creative Writing With Others
In addition to sharing my writing on WordPress, I belong to a writers’ group. We meet every 1st & 3rd Friday. Our first 15 minutes is a Free Write on a topic we draw out of a hat.
Draw out of a Hat
I think when next we meet, we should have a list of original Shakespearean words and see if we can select six (or so) of them to weave into a story – with instructions to try and add one more – an “original” – one of our own.
Doesn’t that sound like fun?
Try it! Share your zany new word with me!
Have a whimsical*, zany weekend!
See ya tomorrow
*Whimsical is a Bob Goff “signature word” in my mind. Have you read his book, Love Does? I highly recommend it. Talk about a “wordsmith!”
A friend sent me this link to Humane Goods website. She saw that I had posted a reference to the “Rainbow Bridge” in relation to my friend, Carol, passing.
I found it very interesting – and thought I would pass it along to you, my WordPress friends.
After reading it, I decided I would like to enter that “other-worldly place consisting of a sunny, green meadow and multi-colored, prismatic bridge … [that] eventually crosses … to heaven.”
No reason it should be reserved only for our pets!!
I like to think both Carol and her beloved pet, “Basta” are romping in that green meadow, whole and strong and playing awhile before crossing over the Rainbow Bridge together!!
Here’s Basta!
Where Does the Term “Rainbow Bridge” Come From and Why is It Synonymous with the Loss of a Pet?
Over the course of several years, the term Rainbow Bridge has become synonymous with animal lovers who have lost a pet.
You may hear a grief-stricken owner say their deceased pet has “crossed the Rainbow Bridge” or say “I’ll meet you at the Rainbow Bridge” in reference to the pet.
However, have you wondered what exactly the “Rainbow Bridge” is, where it came from, and how it became so widely used?
Although there is still some speculation as to how the term came about, pet lovers do have a number of answers which we’ll cover in this article.
What is the Rainbow Bridge?
The “Rainbow Bridge” refers to an other-worldly place consisting of a sunny, green meadow and multi-colored, prismatic bridge the pet eventually crosses that leads it to heaven.
The term is believed to have originated in several works of poetry from the 1980s and 1990s that were meant to help relieve deceased pet owners of the pain of their loss.
According to poems, upon death, the pet finds itself in a lush, green meadow filled with sunshine. The pet’s health is fully restored and it can run and play as it did in its prime with unlimited food and water.
There, the pet waits until its human companion dies and is reunited with them in the meadow. Together, they cross the Rainbow Bridge to heaven.
Where Did the Rainbow Bridge Idea Come From?
The concept for the pet Rainbow Bridge may have been based on the Bifröst bridge of Norse Mythology.
The Bifrost bridge was said to be a burning rainbow bridge that reaches between Midgard (Earth) and Asgard, the realm of the gods.
The first reference to a meadow in which pets await their owners can be found in the book Beautiful Joe’s Paradise by Margaret Marshall Saunders.
Beautiful Joe’s Paradise is a sequel to the book Beautiful Joe, which was one of the first that helped raise awareness toward animal cruelty and told the story Beautiful Joe, a dog from the town of Meaford, Ontario
In Beautiful Joe’s Paradise, pets await their owners in a grassland and help one another heal from cruelty they endured during their lives. However, the book makes no mention of a Rainbow Bridge and the pets eventually ascend into heaven by balloon.
Who Wrote the Original Rainbow Bridge Poem?
The first appearance of the Rainbow Bridge in relation to animals is believed to come from a poem by Paul C. Dahm, a grief counselor in Oregon. He wrote the first Rainbow Bridge poem in prose style as seen below:
“Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.
All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.
You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.
Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together….”
The popular rhyming version by Steve and Diane Bodofsky came later and was inspired by this original version.
How Did the Term “Rainbow Bridge” Become So Popular?
Steve Bodofsky believed the original poem by Paul C. Dahm was great, but needed “a bit of coaxing to bring out the meter and rhyme”.
Together with his wife they created their own rhyming version of the Rainbow Bridge poem which they shared with friends shown below:
Another popular Rainbow Bridge poem that helped popularize the concept worldwide came later from Steve and Diane Bodofsky, a couple that operated a ferret rescue.
“By the edge of a woods, at the foot of a hill,
Is a lush, green meadow where time stands still.
Where the friends of man and woman do run,
When their time on earth is over and done.
For here, between this world and the next,
Is a place where each beloved creature finds rest.
On this golden land, they wait and they play,
Till the Rainbow Bridge they cross over one day.
No more do they suffer, in pain or in sadness,
For here they are whole, their lives filled with gladness.
Their limbs are restored, their health renewed,
Their bodies have healed, with strength imbued.
They romp through the grass, without even a care,
Until one day they start, and sniff at the air.
All ears prick forward, eyes dart front and back,
Then all of a sudden, one breaks from the pack.
For just at that instant, their eyes have met;
Together again, both person and pet.
So they run to each other, these friends from long past,
The time of their parting is over at last.
The sadness they felt while they were apart,
Has turned into joy once more in each heart.
They embrace with a love that will last forever,
And then, side-by-side, they cross over… together.
(I hope I have not violated copyright laws by posting this for you!)
Upon getting positive feedback, they collaborated with a graphic design artist to produce Rainbow Bridge Fine Art Print and Rainbow Bridge Sympathy Cards and thus began increasing popularity of the term.
It’s debated when exactly the term Rainbow Bridge was first mentioned online, but the term began circulating in articles and websites as early as 1993 and possibly before that.
The rise of pet forums and pet groups, especially public Facebook pet owner groups, helped Rainbow Bridge reach the mainstream term that it is today.
Rainbow Bridge and Memorials
The reason the term because so popular is because most pet owners view their pet as more than just “a cat” or “a dog”.
The thought of reuniting with that specific animal companion is a heartwarming feeling in a very painful, emotional time.
In addition to printed versions of the poem in sympathy cards, there are now several “Rainbow Bridge” memorials one can buy to honor their pet or to give to someone who is grief-stricken.
In fact, Humane Goods is proud to have made our own memorial, the Rainbow Bridge Memorial Chimes.
These chimes are multi-colored and made of high-quality material for a beautiful sound. Each chime has a special remembrance seal at the bottom which catches the wind for the chime.
Today, it’s widely accepted that all types of animals not just cats and dogs, are eligible to cross the Rainbow Bridge and make it to heaven.
For animals that did not have an owner, it’s assumed they go straight to heaven and that the Rainbow Bridge is meant for pets who wish to cross together with their still-alive human companion.
As losing an animal is a devastating event, it’s easy to see why this term gained so much popularity in just a few decades and will most likely continue to be widely used.
What do you think about the Rainbow Bridge story? Do you have any pets that have “crossed the Rainbow Bridge”? Let us know below.
Memorial Day – a day to remember
Those who gave their lives
That we might enjoy freedom.
How quickly that freedom dies!
Some want our soldiers to believe
They are giving their lives so we
Can live in liberty and can behave
However we choose – we are free!
Free – what do you think it means?
Free to worship as we please –
Free to squander resources at random –
Free to waste and abuse? Jeez!!
Today more than ever before,
We must exhibit a life of respect.
We must oppose the forces of hate
And show love for all … Otherwise expect Universal Destruction!
I want to be free to see a world with:
no war
no hate
no hunger
no suffering
no abuse
no prejudice
no squandering
May have to wait for the Promise of Eternity, huh?
Photo by Reynaldo #brigworkz Brigantty on Pexels.com
JUST LOVE ONE ANOTHER!!!
Have a Love-filled Memorial Day Be the Missing Peace!!
See ya tomorrow.
Written
on July 28, 2019