M. Jean Pike's Blog, page 16

Square pegs, my acting debut, and living life in the background

A blogger I follow recently mentioned she’d spent the evening watching a DVD of The Music Man. And just like that, I was traveling back in time again.

I’ve never been a joiner. A lot of the things I’ve joined, I’ve quit. The high school chorus. The band. 4-H. A bit of a square peg, I could never quite find a place I could comfortably fit into. I don’t remember why I tried out for The Music Man. My friends probably put me up to it. I was 15 years old, still looking for that magical land called You Belongville.

I didn’t get a big part in the musical. I didn’t want one. Not only a square peg, but klutzy to boot, the thought of singing and dancing in the spotlight made me feel a little sick to my stomach. I was happy to be townsperson number 12, to blend into the background. To do my part without a lot of fanfare.

People like to say Go Big or Go Home! Make a Statement! But there’s a certain satisfaction in keeping it small and simple. In being unremarkable. Not everybody is meant to be a superstar. Though I loved the costumes and the music, the stage, and being part of something amazing, I had no desire to steal the show.

All these years later, I’m still hanging out in the background. A supporting character. Townsperson 5,673. Cashier by day, writer by night. Move along, folks, nothing to see here.

My books speak more loudly than their author ever will. 

God has given each of us a distinct personality. How boring if we were all the same. Some are meant to take the world by storm. Some are content to go about life quietly, singing their songs in the background for an audience of One, hoping to make an impact, no matter how small. We’re all threads in this amazing tapestry called life. Every one of us belongs. Every one of us is necessary. Even the square pegs. Even townsperson number 12. We all have a role to play, and hopefully at the end of the day, we can each look back and say, “I was part of something amazing. “

A few thoughts on my son’s birthday…

Is this the little girl I carried?
Is this the little boy at play?
I don’t remember growing older
When did they?

Sunrise, sunset

Sunrise, sunset

Swiftly fly the years…

(Sheldon Harnick from Fiddler on the Roof)

My son turns 32 today and pictures fill my mind, one segueing into another.

 Every little thing about my baby was a miracle and I was amazed and terrified that I’d been given the privilege and responsibility of raising him. So excited. So afraid I’d do it wrong. So clueless about what it took to be a mother. But despite my fears and flaws, he grew.

From a baby into a little boy who loved to run and play, who brought me gifts of grasshoppers and dandelions.

Sunrise, sunset and he was off to school. I cried and cried.  He grew and grew. Grade school, middle school, high school. Football and wrestling and girlfriends and I looked at him and wondered where my little boy had gone.

Off to college and I cried again, more tears than I thought a mother could hold. How could those years have gone by so quickly? Did I do everything I could have, should have?

He’s always wanted to try everything, my son, and he pushes himself to succeed. Music. Skateboarding. Power lifting. Jiu Jitsu.

Sunrise, sunset and he was a businessman with responsibilities the mother of that grade school/ middle school/ high school boy could not imagine.

Sunrise, sunset and my football- playing, power lifting, rock star, businessman is a girl dad, his most outstanding achievement yet. My little boy has become the most amazing daddy. Maybe I did it right after all.

I love you, my son. All the boys you were and the man you are today.

 I’m so proud of you.

You amaze me.

Happy Birthday!

Springtime in Italy

One of the best things about blogging is that through my blogging community I get to travel! I have blogging friends from all over the world; Latvia, the Philippines, the UK, Australia and all across the USA. I don’t travel much any more. In fact I rarely leave the county, let alone the country. So it’s wonderful to get these little glimpses of how other people live.

I don’t recall how I happened upon JAM’s blog, but after reading one of her poems I immediately subscribed. Her photos and poetry are treasures! A few days ago in a comment I mentioned I’d love to see photos of Italy in springtime. She posted them today, a lovely tour of a country I will probably never see outside of these photos. They are so beautiful I just had to share them with you! If you haven’t discovered her poetry blog yet, do yourself a favor and subscribe. You’ll be glad you did

Spring in Italy: Photographic Journey

Happy Spring!

I wanted to jump on here this morning and wish all of you a happy first day of spring! After a very wild and windy night, it is overcast and 48 here in southern Ohio. We have heavy clouds, but the sun is starting to win out

Miss Emma went out to take care of business and do her morning inspection of the yard, but the ground is still wet from last night’s rain, so she hung out on her pad (she couldn’t possibly get her feet wet!) while I made a check of the flower beds.

Things are really coming along now. The daffodils and tulips, columbine and lilies are showing up like dear friends I haven’t seen in far too long.

Excuse their messy beds, they have just woken up from a long winter’s nap!

The birds are busy in the maple tree, singing their songs of spring and planning for this year’s nest building.

I hope the weather is playing nice on this first day of spring, wherever you may be. I’ll leave you with one of my favorite Bible verses:

For lo, the winter is past. The rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; The time of the singing of birds is come, And the voice of the turtle is heard in our land… Song of Solomon 2:11

I hope you have the best day!

A friendly reminder

I’ve never been good about going to the doctor. In my defense, I’ve had times in my adult life where I was without insurance, but even fully insured, to say that I was not good about my checkups would be an understatement. Maybe I thought things would take care of themselves. But as I get older, I realize the importance of keeping a handle on things. Like any machine, the human body needs maintenance. Let a small problem go, and before you know it the whole thing is broken down.

When I first came to Ohio, I didn’t have a doctor for the first few years, so when I started working at my current job and had insurance again, I made it a priority to find one. My first visit was eye opening. My blood pressure was through the roof, my heart rate, beyond frightening. In the past few years we’ve gotten that under control (mostly.) My doctor is wonderful. Since I am easily overwhelmed, we tackled my health issues one at a time. She encouraged me to get a blood workup. She noticed a suspicious spot on my face and referred me to a dermatologist. (Thank heavens she did, it was precancerous). She encouraged me to follow through with all the things I’d put off, including a mammogram.  I knew the benefits of early detection of any kind of cancer. I’ve also seen the toll breast cancer has taken on friends. Breast cancer definitely doesn’t take care of itself, so why did I wait until I was 55 to have my first mammogram? I don’t know, but I go every year now. I went this morning. Was it fun? Not really. Was it uncomfortable? Heck yes. Will I go again next year? Absolutely. My body is the vehicle that gets me around and I’m done taking chances with it!

So here’s a friendly reminder… If you’re forty or older and have never had, or are putting off getting a mammogram, please make an appointment today. We have to take care of our girls, girls I always kind of dread going, but I make myself, and I’m always glad I did. So today was the day and now I’m off the hook for another year. And I even got a “booby prize” lol.

The past, revisited

Yesterday I posted about the breakneck speed at which time passes. It got me thinking about my ancestors and the treasure trove of family photos we like to look through on rainy days. I thought it might be fun to pull up this old post from 2018. I think of these people as living in a different world, a different time, but their reality in 1917 was every bit as real to them as ours is to us today. And though the photo captures them in black and white, I have a feeling their reality was quite colorful!

Vic, Mrs. Yerkis, and the 100-Year Kiss

Whatever happened to Elvis Costello?

While in the grocery store last week I heard Every Day I Write the Book by Elvis Costello playing on the soundtrack and now I can’t get it out of my head.

And I’m giving you a longing look
Everyday
Everyday
Everyday I write the book
Chapter One: We didn’t really get along
Chapter Two: I think I fell in love with you
You said you’d stand by me in the middle of Chapter Three

But you were up to your old tricks in Chapters Four
Five and Six.
And I’m giving you a longing look
The way you walk
The way you talk and try to kiss me
And laugh in four or five paragraphs.
All your compliments and your cutting remarks
Are captured here in my quotation marks.

That song came out in 1983. I wasn’t a serious writer then, but it resonated.

Elvis is 70 years old now. It’s shocking when you stop and think about how quickly time passes. Even my old music heroes are not exempt. Bruce Springsteen is 75. Carly Simon is 80. Anne Wilson is 74 and Nancy is 71. Somehow as I went about my busy life, I had these people frozen in time, but then I see them on a magazine cover or hear an old song and think about the year it came out and reality sets in.

We’re getting older the world’s getting colder
For the life of me I don’t know the reason why
Maybe it’s livin’ making us give in
Hearts rolling in taken back on the tide

Those old songs never fail to take me back in time. To 16, 20, 30… I’m thinking a lot about the passage of time right now. My child will soon turn 32 and I can’t quite wrap my mind around where those years went to. It’s not a bad thing to revisit the past every now and then, as long as you don’t set up camp there. Like classic literature and beautiful paintings, music has the power to transport you to another time. I guess that’s the beauty and magic of art.

Light

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 8:12

Happy Sunday everyone!

Who doesn’t like free?

Hey friends! I just got word from my publisher that the first two of my Redford’s Crossing Romances are now available to read for free with Kindle Unlimited! If you like free (who doesn’t ) and you love beautiful Christian romances, this is the perfect time to hop over to Amazon and stock up your Kindle for romantic summer reading!

King of Hearts

The Little Things

Thanks!

A new-to-me table and 2,500 words

I’ve always loved vintage 1950s tables. The ones with the Formica tops (I’ve seen them in various colors, red, green, yellow, blue…) with chrome legs and trim. I’ve wanted one forever and have occasionally come across them in antique stores, flee markets and even at garage sales. Their prices have always been beyond my reach. Until yesterday. While browsing through a new antique/home décor/jewelry/clothing/books/basically everything store downtown I happened to see one of these little cuties being used to display kitchen goods. I was sure it was just a display piece and not for sale, but I asked anyway. It was, indeed, for sale. Kicking my courage up another notch, I asked the price. The answer almost knocked me over. It was missing its leaf but I don’t have space for that anyway. It also needed a good scrubbing, and the base was a bit pitted, but it was a fraction of what I have seen them for in the past. Frugal is my middle name, but even I could not pass this one up. I got a small income tax return this year. A big chunk of it went to buy Miss Emma’s medicines. Another chunk, I threw at a pesky medical bill I have been making payments on. The last little chunk was going to be put in savings, but sometimes a girl just needs to treat herself. My brother-in-law was kind enough to swing by with his truck and pick it up for me this morning. Isn’t it lovely?

So I got a new- to- me table today. And after I cleaned it, I sat down at it and wrote 2500 words, the opening scene of a new story I am working on. Hey, it’s a start. So all in all, I’ve had a lovely day. Sometimes it’s the little things