thinking

yes, thinking.
about lots of things.
like...feet. feet can be ugly.
they get dry and scaly..they smell bad.
But, a couple of weeks ago I was learning how
to massage and exercise my grandmother's feet.
she can't move her right foot or hand any more.
the physical therapists say she is not improving so
they can't come anymore... (medicare rules you know)
so, one kind girl showed my mother how to do a few
things that might stimulate circulation and give comfort...
then mom showed me.

so, as I rubbed lotion on my tiny little grandma's tiny little
feet I thought about feet. Her feet aren't very pretty, they are dry
and sad looking. as I massaged and exercised her tiny little toes
I remembered that for many, many years my grandmother did
not have a car. She had to work for most of her life and raised
five kids by herself. She had to walk to work, no matter the weather...
snow and ice, extreme heat, pouring down rain. She walked.
And after she walked home after a very long day working in
a dry cleaning establishment...she had to continue to use her
feet to stand in front of a stove and sink so she could feed
her five kids. those poor little ninety-two year old feet
have lived long lives. they have carried a person around
for ninety-two years. they are tired feet.

I tried to be very careful not to hurt...I warmed the lotion
between my own hands before touching those feet. I rubbed
ever so carefully and massaged as gently as I could..and still
she winced a couple of times. I thought how amazing those feet
were. all the places they have been. all the times they were so tired
maybe they just wanted to rest a while...
well, now they are resting. they can't do their job anymore. and that
makes me very sad.

BOOKS!!!!

These are a few of my favorites.... I love books... I want to read books all the time...

who cares if the dishes are dirty and the laundry has turned into mountains...

sometimes I just want to have a whole afternoon with a book and no one to disturb me.

Maybe a hot cup of coffee or tea...a blanket and a pillow...a window with a bird feeder...

to draw my attention away once in a while.

But, of course, since the kids are homeschooling I have to read things like the story of

the Incan Empire and the urinary system of the human body and how to do algebra problems...

and the best this week....The Homecoming...by Earl Hamner. Love that story.

Homeschooling has many up sides, don't you think?