For a Friend

He stands atop an emerald knoll,
Eyes to the sky, searching for an answer.

He stands atop a jade hilltop,
Eyes to the partner crests, searching for a soul.

Scouring the valleys for the one he's missing,
Eyes squinted for increased focus, searching for that comfort.

The warmth of a breath, the solace of a kind word, the joy of gratitude,
The support of an embrace.  Longing to feel those again, alive again.

Warmth radiates from above with the evaporation of the murky sky,
Replaced with brilliant sunlight.

He stands atop a dune, face turned up, red with heat.
Feeling the warmth of a missing breath, the solace of a kind word, the joy of gratitude,  
The support of an embrace...feeling the missing, knowing he's alive....and never alone.

Hola, Mi Nombre es Velma

Hi,  My name is Velma.  I'm a daughter to Julie and Mike; sister to Michael and Charlie, wife to Kip, daughter in law to Reta and Frank, mom to Aaron and Matt, niece of a dozen or more people, employee at Syncopation, friend to many, close friend to a few.  I'm a chef, dishwasher, laundress, seamstress, domestic manager, finances coordinator.  I develop best practices in my fields and work hard to keep everything running smoothly.

Hi, My name is Velma....I love to listen to music.  I listen for the message in the lyrics, the harmony between the lyrics and the music, the interpretation by others about the same song.  I love to have spirited discussions about sports, politics, ethics, advancements of technology, downward spiral of our country, the merit of zombie movies (I find no merit in zombie movies.)  I love to read....and will read most anything, just not books that make me cry.  I hate crying.  I love long walks...anywhere, but most often fantasize about walks on the beach with a long billowy skirt blowing against my ankles.  I love to hold hands and kiss.  I love to look in my lover's eyes and see myself...unaltered, unadorned....just me.

I cherish every moment with my children and family.  I love to learn from them.  I love to learn new things.  I get super excited when someone/something manages to make me change my mind about a stance.  I love in depth discussions about personal growth.  I love to be told I'm beautiful, sexy, smart, important.

I love food...sometimes a little too much.  And, if you pair the right wine with the right food...it should create an orgasm in your mouth when consumed together...I love that!  Sunsets make me sad...sunrises make me smile.  Children's laughter and old people's memories remind me that life is fragile.


I realize this blog sounds a lot like a personal ad...but it's not.  For years, I've defined myself by other people's terms....I've allowed myself to be something that is theirs.  But I think I'm finally able to start answering that question I couldn't answer a few years ago:  "Velma, what do you like? What do you want?  Who are you?"  I am everything above...the good and the bad.  They are me....

Time

There are a lot of sayings about time.  Time heals all wounds.  Don't count every hour in the day, make every hour in the day count. Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.  Time discovers truth.  Time flies when you're having fun. I could go on.

Time, it's a funny  thing.  When something is coming up that your anxious about...good or bad...time can fly or drag.  Time with your children seems to pass quickly...one moment diapers, then next driver's license.  Reasons for conflict fade over time...what was it that you were mad about anyway?  Absence makes the heart grow fonder...don't we forget each others faults when we're not near each other?  Can time be kept in a bottle?  Does anyone really know?

I've been thinking a lot about time lately...in many different ways.  The most prominent is the time with my children...gone in a flash!  Diaper to driver's licenses.  Walking to Graduation...it's all coming so quickly...I just want to stop time, for just a second.  I gave my oldest a hug for his birthday yesterday...and I realized two things.  One, what a great hugger he is.  And two, I don't hug him enough.  I think I'm going to resolve to hug him every day....even if he fights me about it.

I've also been thinking about time healing all wounds and how reasons for conflicts fade.  That used to be true...I have some wounds that are pretty deep.  Some go back years, some a few months.  I think the fact that I can still identify exactly what upset me tells me that my actions were probably the right course of action...could that change in the future...sure.  But right now, for the most part, time hasn't quite healed the wounds.  It has healed some...that can be true.  And it has...and I'm struggling a little bit with how to reconcile that.  But I'll find a way.  I'll find a way to make it fit into my life and my new frame of mind.

Does absence really make the heart grow fonder?  I don't think so...I don't think you slowly forget the faults of those you hold dear because they aren't around to "bug" you anymore.  I think what really happens is that time removes the instantaneous reactions to events....it forces you to think.  It forces you to think about yourself...and that person.  What is missing from your life because of them being gone?  Can you live without it?  Can you not live without it?  How would your life be impacted if they were to come back?  Positively? Negatively?

I've tried to keep time in a bottle...and I have to say I was successful.  Unfortunately, my watch is now stuck in a coke bottle that I must carry around.  Oops!

Stealing from a friend...Gratitude is Attitude.  Perhaps shifting my focus from what time is taking away from me....I should focus on what I can do with what time has given me.  I can hug my children every day.  I can look forward to missing those daily hugs when they've reached adulthood and moved from my home.  I can be thankful that my memories of why I have a conflict are fading...and look forward to reconciliation.  I can act upon the fondness I feel for someone when they are within my distance (virtual and physical)   And I can buy a new watch! 

Changes and Transitions

This picture is of my NBS (non-biological son)....it's a phrase that was coined over four years ago when our family reconnected with his.  I'm NBM2 (non-biological mom 2)...his step mother is NBM1 and my best friend.  I've known this young man since he was a baby, his father and mother since we were in our teens and his step mom for five years.  He's being sworn into the United States Navy and will be on his way to Great Lakes today for boot camp.

It's an event that leaves me feeling very, very sad....and I'm not mom or dad!  It marks an event in our family's that will forever change us.  One of our own is officially entering adulthood and moving onto a life where they are fully responsible for themselves.  Next is my oldest...then two years after that both youngest boys will be heading on their way. 

I'm not sure if it's the knowledge of what boot camp will be like for him, or the fact that we have to let go, that is the hardest.  I've been in tears off and on since his going away party on Sunday.  He is leaving us a boy/young man...fun, carefree, relaxed...and he'll return to us hopefully still all those, but add seriousness, responsible, sense of purpose...and maybe the weight of the world on his shoulders.  He's got broad shoulders...I know he can handle it....but like his parent's, I just want him to be able to relish in his last moments of childhood just a bit longer.  The naivety, the bright eyed wonder at something new, the innocence....just a bit longer.

But, everything must change...and he must transition into being an adult. And, in one year's time, it will be my turn to watch my child to go through these changes and transitions.  Dear Reader, I am not ready for this.  I'm not ready for my non-biological son to become a man...and I'm not ready for my son to take his turn next year.  The next year is going to be tough...excitement for him and scared for me. 

People Can Change

I guess my theme this year has been the trials and tribulations of relationships.  This is any relationship: friendship, marriage, family,  working. I've taken a lot of stock in things.  In how my behavior in regards to some of those I interact with.  In how I've allowed certain treatment to continue, even though detrimental to me.  No one is similar enough that there is never conflict.  And, I believe conflict in a relationship can create a stronger bond...it's certainly true for my marriage and for the relationship I have with the two women closest to me.  It took a lot of work....A LOT OF WORK

I'm the kind of person who will work my hardest to find resolutions to conflicts that I have with people.  In the beginning, I don't really look at where I might have acted/reacted different...I think that's human nature.  We're wounded, our pride has been damaged, our minds are trying to process the events.  It's all about YOU and what YOU did in the beginning.  But I also believe through honest, open communication...you can get past this...you can get past the conflict and find a resolution and move forward.  I've done with the woman I call my sister...now, we're not related at all....but I share EVERYTHING with her.  It hasn't always been this way...we come from very, very different familial backgrounds...her view of my world is different and vise versa.  We needed to work through some pretty weighty conflicts to get to a place where we can say "OK...this is a boundary item...I don't view this the way that you do...but I respect that you have good reasons for why you see it this way."  We've also learned alot about taking responsibility for where we've fucked up....and we both have.

Sometimes, a conflict is deadly...you can't come back from it.  I believe I have a few friendships this year that have taken that road.  And sometimes what you need is someone new....or someone old who is new again...to show you that you are worthy of a better, healthier, more productive relationship.  Sometimes someone you once wrote off will show you that people can change. 

That gives me hope...hope that I'm changing in my interactions with others.  Hope that maybe, someday, a few of the relationships I have had to step away from this year...can be repaired and stronger for the conflict.  

Hello Old Friend

After nearly a year away, I took a "stroll" along the one of the trails on Pineland Campus today.  I had stopped in mid-August during the oppressive heat.  When I originally started the Oak Hill Trail (I don't think I do the full 2.8k as it only takes me 47 minutes) it took me a whopping 58 minutes.  My goal last summer was to get this under 40 minutes...and then I would start to job portions of it....slowly working on that until I was running the whole trail.

Then the oppressive heat began.  I'd work until about 1pm and then decide to go for my walk...only to be waylaid by the tree in front of our office (see a post from last summer about my tree.) I'd lounge under that tree during my lunch break pondering my life and how I was doing in my life.  Always intent on going back to my walk in the woods, I had planned to begin walking the trail again in September.  Then the unimaginable happened...I broke my foot!  Recovery has been slow...I attempted the trail about a month ago only to have my ankle bother me on the uneven ground almost immediately.  Then yesterday, I went to walk around the parking lots and buildings here and decided that what I really wanted was my trail back!

Today was the day!  I filled my water bottle, took a quick stop in the ladies room and made my way out!  Determination setting my mood...I WAS going to do this today!  It's a little about the exercise and a lot about my piece of mind.  While walking and listening to my play list...I process....I think about the things in my life...what's going well, what's not.  Anything decisions I'm conflicted about get worked out here...I've missed this psychologically therapeutic exercise.  I've needed it.  Songs that have meaning to me can help bring clearer focus to something I'm conflicted about.  New people in my life can make an "old" song come alive.  People who are not longer apart of my life (whether by death, moving, or ending of friendships) come to mind as I hear songs that remind me of them.  I relieve good memories...good memories that can help with closure and help remove the bitterness of hurt feelings.

So, Hello old friend!  Same goal as last year...I think we're off to a good start as I finished in 47 minutes.  Only...can we do without the broken foot next year?

Thanks for taking time out of your busy, hectic lives to read a little bit into mine.  I'm always grateful for the feedback from you Dear Reader.

Conflict Resolutions

Sometimes, no matter how you try, conflict resolution just isn't possible.  We all enter conflicts believing WE are right and WE have all the facts....but the old adage says there are two sides to every story and the truth is somewhere in the middle. We bring into our conflicts our own emotional baggage and preconceived notions.  And unless we have a true understanding of what our emotional baggage is...we'll never see our part in the conflict.

I'm certainly not saying I don't have emotional baggage...my goodness...I think mine might sink the Titanic.  But I'm very aware of my emotional baggage.  I'm aware of my constant feeling of being left out, not being a part of the group.  Isn't this a major step in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs?  The need to belong?  I'm also over analytical to a fault....perhaps some of my blog helps illustrate that point.  I'm also a very, very serious person.  I simply don't know how to loosen up....it comes with carrying all that baggage.  And there is so much, much more...but I digress.

Because we go into conflict ready to battle, ready to change another person's mind...we tend to forget that maybe our mind needs to be changed...sometimes....there just is no middle ground.  Each side has viable facts, viable feelings, viable concerns.  It's in the mature relationships that each party can accept proper responsibility for their actions and promise to take care that it doesn't happen again.  When that can't happen...sometimes, the relationship is irrevocably broken.  Friendship destroyed, never to be regained.  Sometimes it's easier to swim with the current than to fight against it...against what will never change. 

Unfortunately, I think that's happened in my life very recently...when you remove all evidence that someone existed in your life (or when you realize someone has removed evidence of your existence)...it's a sad moment...sad for everyone involved.  No pictures, no emails, no cell phone numbers, no gifts, no facebook, nothing.  Sometimes that is the only way you can move on and begin to work on improving yourself.

Dear Reader, you've been following me through some interesting times in the last few years.  I am for ever grateful that you allow me into to your world for even just a little bit...this is my therapy.