Story Telling - Others' stories

I am a story teller and often it is not my story but some else's.

While on Star we sat at lunch with a man who had not been back to Star for 50 years. The last time on Star he was a Pelican (college age worker at Star). He talked about stepping back on the Island after 50 years and he had tears in his eyes as he tried to communicate that feeling. I noticed those tears and the level of conversation deepened. I of course had a million questions and in reporter mode I asked them. "Why did you take so long to come back?" "Have you thought of coming other years?" "What has changed?"

He answered them conversationally and I had his story near my heart. Later I talked to
other conferees, and staff about him. He was there for some of that and at one point called me his PR agent. His story touched me so much that I knew it had to be told and retold.

As a corporation, we are trying to get people back who love the Island and have wandered away for whatever reason.

Beautiful sunsets are icing on the cake

Rocks remembering those Shoalers we have lost

A result of me telling his story had an effect. There will probably be a newsletter article about his return in an upcoming Star Island newsletter, and he got the 50% past Pelican discount for coming back after an absence. BTW he his returning that discount around as an annual gift to the Island.

Lanterns in the Chapel

If you have been there you understand his tears when he told his story of stepping on the Pier. Some people tell their story, and others like me are so touched that we tell their story as well. This is one that stays and will stay close to my heart, and I will retell appropriately.

Star Island is our spirits home..........

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Coffee and Baths

The only two things missing on Star Island for me are good coffee and a nice bath.  However, I can last a really long time in Paradise without these two leisure activities.

Returning from Star yesterday, I was really cranky.  Some close to me would argue that this was caused by the lack of good coffee.  Maybe!

It gave me the opportunity to reflect on what I get and what is missing from my Island experience.  Yes, I miss good coffee and the showers, whereas they have been improved, are still not very good for their sole purpose of cleaning the body.  A pitcher of warm water and wash cloth only go so far to clean yourself.

Last summer, while volunteering, I made the coffee early one morning, so I know how the sausage is made of the coffee in this case.  When I get organized I bring my own coffee and filters and conduct a coffee ministry on Island.  This year I was not organized for any of my visits there.

So those two things are missing but what is present on Star is: natural beauty, good friends, spontaneous spirituality, rocking chairs and conversations you don't have in your normal day.

I was there for a Star Island Board meeting, so it was not my normal conference.  But other friends arrived on Island and unexpected greetings happened.  A friend from our July conference brought her new boy friend and we got to meet him and see her so happy.  We talked at dinner one night to a man who has not been back in 50 years, his last year working on the Island as a pelican (college age workers who run the Island).  He had tears in his eyes when he told us this.  You cannot described the experience of touching your foot down on the Pier, and being there again, even after 50 years, or a few weeks.

So I can do without the coffee and bath, for a pretty long time.  I am not sure however, that I can do without regular visits to Star in my life.

My Achilles Heel - tendon

I finally understand at least one reason for the term Achilles heel.  For about a year now I have had an inflamed Achilles tendon.  I probably wore the wrong shoes last summer, and then really injured it in January walking on the beach barefoot.  Honestly for about 2 years it has been bothering me and I worked through it for a long time which is exactly the wrong thing to do.

Finally in January for my annual physical, I mentioned to my new physician that I had this pain.  She prescribed PT which I did for 6 weeks until the woman gave up on me.  She cured the acute pain, and now I only have the chronic pain and boy is it chronic.

I finally saw an Orthopedic surgeon in March, who gave me a soft brace to wear most of the time and a boot to wear at night.  I have read a lot on the internet  and you really have to stop injuring the tendon in order to get over it.  That is why I wear the brace all day and the boot at night.  I can actually feel the little micro tears when I re-injure it.  Stretching it all the time is also very important and building up strength. And ice, ice, ice.

So anyone who knows me knows that patience is not a strong suit of mine and I am being very patient, in my mind anyway.  I wear the brace and boot, I stretch before and after exercise, and when I get up after sitting.  I am now icing it at least once a day.  I am riding the bike instead of walking on the treadmill, although I do walk some of the time for my exercise.

Just when I think it is getting better I slide back and it hurts again.  I sometimes wonder if I will be wearing this damn brace and boot forever.  I also think maybe I can just continue this amount of exercise and it will always have a bit of pain or tightness.  To be honest, at times it really gets me depressed, that I cannot exercise the way I used to.  I cannot go for an hour walk without thinking of the consequences of maybe hurting it again.

I will not stop playing golf however.  Even though it hurts at the end of a round, I still play every Monday with my lady friends.  If I have to be in a wheel chair on the course I am going to play golf.

For now, I stretch, ice, exercise, and wear the support mechanisms and hope that someday this injury will be behind me.  I will probably have another one to nurse along at that point but for now this injury is my Achilles heel.

Retirement time filling

I have been retired for almost 3 years and my better half retires in just over a month. This gives me cause to reflect on filling time in retirement.

What do I currently do with my time? I sleep past 6 am, I sit and read a book for as long as I want, I volunteer, I belong to groups which meet during the day, I run errands, I have coffee and lunch with friends, yadda, yadda, yadda.

Now that we will both be retired, we are planning our big trips. My wild idea was to rent our house out for a year, and just travel, or live in VT in our house there.  I said it was a wild idea, but it would help with the trip budget dilemma.

We are also planning smaller trips to sight see and visit friends and family. We could go during the week to NYC for a quick trip or visit Chicago and do that boat architectural tour that has been recommended.  We can stay a few extra days in the Berkshires, when we are there for a regular Star chairs meeting instead of having to be back to work.

Oh, and we will have a grand daughter to visit.......

Given that we have plans and that they change on a whim, we will be busy but not sure exactly of timing of some of them.

However, how will we continue our current commitments of choir and groups, and volunteer activities?

This is an exciting time as we launch into joint retirement and grand parenting. We will talk about a lot of ideas, and slide into a schedule that works, and we will feel torn by competing communities and activities.

We are always available to be reached by mobile phone and email, so we won't lose touch, but we will be less regular.

We are so fortunate and blessed and excited......Bring it on!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Ball Game Chants - "Throw it Back"

One fun part of being at a live ball game are the chants. Last night against the Yankees, there were way too many Yankees fans and there was the battle for the loudest of "Let's go Red Sox" versus "Let's go Yankees".

During one of these the Yankees actually sounded louder so the Red Sox resorted to their most civil chant "Yankees Suck"', because they could not outshout the Yankees fans. It was just so humorous. I asked Rod if the Yankees fans have a counter chant of "Red Sox Suck" and we don't think they do.

Last night Arod hit a home run and for 30 minutes sporadically the fans around the person who caught the ball, and sometimes the entire stadium chanted "Throw it back, throw it back". We think that the fans who caught that ball were so perturbed by the chant that they moved their seats.

There was also chants when Arod was batting of "Afraud" and most of the Yankees fans as well as most of the Red Sox fans booed him when he came to bat.

We watched "42" on Saturday night and baseball really has changed since that time. I think some of the chanting is the big stadiums and the sound of that many fans all in unison chanting. You miss this part of the game watching on TV.

Memories of last nights game will be with me for a while and a grin on my face as I remember the silly fans chanting. Yes, I was one of those silly fans chanting.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Local Tourists - Lexington and Concord

Walden Pond with George and Judy

Having family visiting this weekend allowed us to be tourists in our backyard. My brother and sister-in-law have never been to Walden Pond or to any of the sites along the Minuteman Battle Road National Park between Lexington and Concord. Yes, that battle!

Early Sunday we set out for Walden, and walked around the entire pond with brief stops at the foundation of Thoreau's cottage. We have been to Walden many times with other visitors and also by ourselves to swim or hike. Seen though their eyes, they expected a small pond, and did not expect it to be a destination on a beautiful summer day for swimmers, kayakers and picnickers.

We then visited the Visitors Center and watched a 30 minute show recreating the battle.  Next we traveled to Old North Bridge in Concord to see the diorama and view the site at the bridge of the standoff and retreat of the Redcoats. A nice lunch at the Colonial Inn in Concord completed our morning of being tourists.

Living in Lexington we see the Patriots Day reenactment early every Patriots Day on our town green, so the history is well known to us. Yesterday we saw it again through our family's eyes and hopefully they will join us next year for the 5am reenactment.

In our joint retirement which happens October 1st, I expect we will do more tourist trips like this to destinations, we fly by now, on our way somewhere.

More stopping to smell the roses and learning of local history is in our future.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad