Barbara Curtis's Blog, page 27

Verdi's "Rigoletto" Live HD Met Opera in Theatres near you tomorrow!

Saturday, February  16, 2013, 12:55 pm EST

Michael Mayer's bold new production locates Verdi's tragedy of lust, betrayal, and revenge in Las Vegas in 1960. Zelijko Lucic sings the title role and Diana Damrau is his beautiful daughter, who falls under the spell of Piotr Beczala's womanizing Duke.
Being dubbed the "Rat Pack Rigoletto" styled like the Frank Sinatra days of Vegas this should be an opera to revel in. Zach, Jonny, and I will be seeing it at the Cobb Theatre in Leesburg. Come join us if you are nearby...if not, look to where you see it in a theatre near by going to  www.fathomevents.com
Capiche?
Papa Tripp

Bare trees with a new day dawning....

Day 107 post Barbara:  First time in thirty years, I don't have a  Sweetheart to show an appreciation  of love to... but I do have my family and friends whom I consider all of you to be. The purpose of  St.Valentine's Day has always been to let those we care about know that we love them....something we should be doing every day as was exhibited in the life of St. Valentine...see his brief history below:

Valentinus, a priest in Rome and a physician, was beheaded there under
Claudius the Goth on February 14 and buried on the Flaminian Way, where a
basilica was erected in 350. On the same day in the Roman Martyrology
is celebrated another Valentine who was bishop of Interamna (Terni)
about sixty miles from Rome and who was scourged, imprisoned, and then
beheaded there by order of Placidus, prefect of Interamna. Tradition has
it that the two are the same, ------that the bishop of Interamna had
been a Roman priest who became bishop and was sentenced there and
brought to Rome for his execution. The custom of sending Valentines on
February 14 stems from a medieval belief that birds began to pair on
that day.

Claudius had ordered all Romans to worship 12 gods. To be a Christian
was a crime punishable by death, but the threat of death did not
frighten Valentinus who was imprisoned. During his last weeks the jailer
asked him if he would teach his daughter Julia: she hadbeen blind since
birth. Valentinus agreed and described to her the beauty of God's
creation, and taught her how to pray. Julia believed what the Saint
taught her and asked God to cure her blindness. As Valentinus and Julia
prayed for this, a bright light shown in the jail and she was healed.

On the eve of his death, Valentinus wrote a last note to Julia
telling her to always stay close to God. He was Martyred the next day,
February 14, 270 A.D. It is thought that she planted a pink-blossomed
almond tree near his grave.

Though I love and care for my family and all of you.....my real love this Valentine's Day is for our Heavenly Father who has so loved and cared for me and my family. For some of us the grief is still real and raw and there will always be difficult days for that's what happens when you lose someone you loved.....But through the bare trees of grief and mourning I catch glimpses of His Love in my heart rising like a new day dawning.

In His grip,
Papa Tripp
Here's my Valentine song for all of you..My love to you all....

Can't find the words to say...

My heart has been like an open wound since last night....not
just for me and my family and our sphere of relationships, but burdened for all
those grieving the world over..  Though
in reality my own grief has become in many ways more raw and real...there is so
much loss beyond my own. So many families dealing with disease, life changing
events, children suffering and dying....and so many that don't have Our Father
in Heaven to comfort them.

Most of you know that when Barbara and I married, we did not
know God, even though He knew us. We were searching in all the wrong places as
you've heard,(those stories are in the archives.) Our first four years were
without a real foundation except for the ideals of two dysfunctional misfits
that were trying to make a marriage and family work. Consequently... to say
they were stormy is an understatement...thunderbolts were flying
constantly.  Our best intentions didn't
amount to much especially on my side. Barbara knew what she wanted and was very
clear about it. About the only thing I had on my side of the table was a stubbornness
that didn't allow for divorce for the sake of the children.  Truth to tell....and unbeknownst to me, she was
going to divorce me anyway.  Being we
were in California and it's divorce laws, she could have done it except God
intervened and arrested us both.  What I
am trying share is the importance of having God at the  center of not just our marriages, but all our
relationships....at least from our side of the street. "Unless the Lord
builds the house, those who build it labor in vain." In our case, He had
to tear down and rebuild.

Today I started to go through all of the letters, cards, and
correspondence from me over the years that Barbara had kept at the side of our
bed.  It has been something I've been
very reluctant to do and couldn't get past the first thing I picked up, which happened to be four years into our life together. Here it
is below. I share it with you so you can see how Our Father changes our
hearts...the smudge is from her tears that were falling then...as mine were
falling today...and continuing tonight. Our God can do great things through our lives when our hearts are turned
toward Him.

                 

God changed history in both our family and in each of us as His individual
children...and He can continue to do it in yours if you will  put your trust in Him. You won't be exempt
from pain and life's suffering, but you will have the comfort of His love for
you and yours.  I leave you with an old
song that has taken on meaning from a new perspective of loss and knowing that
one I loved  is at Peace with her Father even as I struggle and miss her in our lives. I'm sorry if this is too personal for some of you, please forgive me....but I know this is what she would be doing if it had been me that had gone on..Love and Truth extend beyond the grave.... She finished and crossed her finish line with "Kudos" and a "job well done" from her "Real" Father....we still have a few miles to go together....Let's finish the Race by helping and encouraging each other as she tried to do for those she knew, and in truth... all of Us....

In His grip and asking Our Father to continue the blooming of His roses for her namesake,

Papa Tripp

Day 93 and tracking my new life running solo....

                                         Last one on the bus this morning.

I remember seeing a picture when I was a young boy of 8-9 from the exhibition, "Family of Man."  It depicted a mother alone in dire straits with her children clutching her.  The caption said, "She is a tree of life to them."  My own Mother became a single Mom when I was 13, and I gained a greater understanding of the pathos in that picture that had impacted me as a boy.  Seems ironic now that when I met and married Barbara she was a single Mom with Samantha and Jazz, (see below) in the nest of her tree. Now she's gone and I'm a single Dad with four crippled birds still in my nest, and a whole flock of others in flight....some reaching for the sky, and others building their own nests , and all looking back to the tree where they learned to fly.

My perspective is so different now. My day starts and ends in the laundry room....where I pray, cry, and sometimes laugh. I thank God for the responsibilities that keep me moving forward and the understanding that this is what we both committed to in our covenant with God and each other. Every day brings new trials and concerns, but I've found that I'm seeing things and making decisions with her insight and wisdom in mind. And so I shall be that tree that is planted by the rivers of water where they each learned how to fly and know that not only their father's heart is there, but also through God's grace... their mother's.
In His grip,
Papa Tripp,

The Ties that Bind.....

Maddy and Zach came home to visit this weekend and cheer me up.  It's such a blessing with Barbara gone that she left me with the legacy of our children. We went to see the Hobbit, which I found delightful....and then Zach treated us to dinner at Longhorn, a family favorite.

It's interesting because everything we do now is in the shadow of Barbara not being there. I can understand now the pain that a man or a woman is dealing with after their spouse has died and why they give up the will to live.  My mother died on 8/30/2002, the day I sent my own family east to Virginia. I had to stay behind to finalize the sale of our business,(Mr. Trees) which didn't close until 10/31, (Halloween) of that year.  For that three months I lived with Dave, my step father in my mother's house....and we grieved together.  I commuted back and forth across the country during that time...but most of it was spent with him.  They were married and he had been my step father for 33 years, but those last three months we were together, bound us together. After the closing, and I left him alone to go east with my family....Dave died two days later. The day of his death, he had lunch with a loyal friend and showed him where he wanted his ashes put when he died.  A place close to where he had put Mom's ashes, but as he said in his instruction, "not so close to her that he would bother her, but close enough to visit."
God knits us together with others.....whether family or friends....these are the ties that bind. I am grateful for my ties to her....and the ties that hold me here.  Leave you tonight with a song our  children shared a few years back..
                            Always remember, there was nothing worth sharing
                                 
Like the love that let us share our name...
In His grip,
Papa Tripp

Flash Mob....Italian style

One of the most wonderful attributes of the internet is the ability to
share the beautiful things people do and have done that can uplift the
human spirit and give us hope. Barbara and I shared a love for music of
almost every genre which we passed onto our children.  Below is one of
our favorites pieces taken from Beethoven's 9th Symphony, "Ode to Joy." 
Enjoy this as you share it with your families and friends. I have translated the lyrics for better understanding.
In His grip,
Papa Tripp
HT Leona

O friends, no more these sounds!Let us sing more cheerful songs,More full of joy!

Joy,
bright spark of divinity,Daughter of Elysium, Fire-inspired we tread
Thy sanctuary.Thy magic power re-unites All that custom has divided, All
men become brothers, Under the sway of thy gentle wings.

Whoever
has created An abiding friendship, Or has won A true and loving wife,
All who can call at least one soul theirs, Join our song of praise; But
those who cannot must creep tearfully Away from our circle.

All
creatures drink of joy At natures breast. Just and unjust Alike taste of
her gift; She gave us kisses and the fruit of the vine, A tried friend
to the end. Even the worm can feel contentment, And the cherub stands
before God!

Gladly, like the heavenly bodies Which He sent on
their courses Through the splendor of the firmament; Thus, brothers, you
should run your race, like a hero going to victory!

You
millions, I embrace you. This kiss is for all the world! Brothers, above
the starry canopy There must dwell a loving father.

Do you fall in worship, you millions? World, do you know your creator? Seek Him in the heavens; Above the stars must he dwell.

Perspective of staying on compass...

An old friend sent me a picture today that reminded me of how God works
in our lives through the process of time, relationships, and
circumstances. Even though we may think we have a sense of direction and
purpose...Our Father in Heaven is truly the only one who stays on
compass.  How many times in our lives have each of us lost our heading,
only to have Him bring us back on course and into safe harbor.  These new
tides of grief and mourning I have been sailing through are as constant as the ocean's waves breaking on the
shore. It could be a storm or a beautiful day....but it's always there. I'm at sea, waiting for my next heading.
I've
shared with you our beginnings...passionate, turbulent, momentous times
for what our future together would become.....with both of us acting
out of character. All things being normal, we should have blown out of
each others lives within a couple of months...From the beginning when
everyone except Danny and Debbie, (our marriage
witnesses) were objecting..... to her dying...we had conflict and contention from within and
without. The reason being of course, that we always would stand and step
forward for what we thought was right.  Reality being that if you don't stand for anything,
you don't have conflict until you eventually get run over. This became
even more a part of our lives when going through a crisis together in
1987 we came face to face together with the God who had been keeping
each of us afloat through the years.
From then on, our life was
filled with a new daily insight and understanding of what we should be
doing and standing for.... backed with a sense of grace, love, courage,
and strength to carry it forward. It was shortly after this time when
Barbara came to me one Sunday morning and  in a very quiet voice said, "When I was in
high school, Sister Isabelle said I had a gift for writing; I've been
thinking about writing a book." I looked at her and said, "Wow Honey,
you never told me that before. Let's enroll you in a writer's
conference and see what you need to do to make that happen. I'll handle
the children while you go." The rest is history.....she became a pen for
all that God holds dear, especially children, mothers, families, and
the culture of our society.
Reflection: Looking at the two wild and
crazy typhoons below and what their lives became...Barbara and I
encourage and exhort you to stay the course. Don't deviate from the
compass heading He gives you, regardless of the many diversions that may
come your way on your voyage. I tell you truth...we were both
unfaithful before we first went out....but never since. Be stubborn for what is right and be true to your love.  If you are
willing, He will assure you to stay on compass.


               
            For a girl that started out with a lousy hand, she left us with a full house.

You probably know by now that, "my one weakness" is music... I leave you with this cover of an old Dylan tune that meant one thing to Barbara and I when we started with everyone against us......and since time has passed means something entirely different to me as we've weathered many storms....and will now be voyaging on alone...
In His grip,
Papa Tripp

Maria Stuarda Live in HD in theatres tomorrow!

                                            Donizetti's Maria Stuarda

 

             January 19, 2013, 12:55 pm ET in selected theaters near you!

 Joyce DiDonato's performance in the title role of Mary,
Queen of Scots, "will be pointed to as a model of singing," full of
"plush richness and aching beauty," in David McVicar's Met premiere
production. Elza van den Heever is "a vocally burnished and emotionally
tempestuous" Elizabeth (New York Times). "A luminous
performance" (AP). Matthew Polenzani sings Leicester and Maurizio Benini
conducts.

Maddy, Jonny, and I will be going to The Cobb Theater in Leesburg to see this incredible opera based on the historical tragedy surrounding Mary, Queen of Scots during the reign of Queen Elizabeth.
Hope you too can get out tomorrow and experience this marvelous cultural event. As Barbara always said, "Enjoy the Arts!"

Papa Tripp

Bare trees at the dimming of the day...

Awoke at O dark thirty this morning to get the Boyz ready for school after having a very vivid dream of Barbara. She came into the room where I was, looking like she did when I first met her.... only dressed in a 1920's floor length evening gown of white with her hair cut as it is on her blog pic,(think "Downton Abbey.)  She asked me,"Aren't you going to offer me a drink?' to which I could only reply, "you're here?"  She replied, "Of course, where else would I be?"....and then the alarm went off and she wasn't there.... Those of you who have walked in my shoes know that this is part of the season of grief......for those of you who may have to drink this bittersweet cup, I share with you, to prepare you. Here I am at 78 days since she left us and I long for her more than ever while knowing she's in the presence of the King.




Sweetheart, I know you are topside, doing our Father's work, but I miss you....I long for the day I will truly see you again...
 In His grip,
 Papa Tripp

A New Chapter in our lives...

                                  Maddy heading back for her future...

As a family we begin a new year without our family's matriarch and my beloved Barbara. For her grandchildren, with God's grace her memory for some will just be fragmented and others more vivid.  For her children...it is stark and real....all have realities and memories that will always be there. Each and everyone of them know what she felt and thought about their lives and where they were going....She loved each one exactly where they were.  I know that her only regrets would have been that she didn't have a few more minutes and words with each one.
I lost my mother in 2002....the realization of lost relationship with her was overwhelming even though we were very close. In the reality of life, I had missed what was really important.  The reality is...that when we come to the end of this life, all we really have to carry into Eternity are our relationships and our character. 

Though we are seeing the fading lights of those passing before us...we can still see the constancy of God's hand in the truth of His sunrise and sunset....Love each other fully through the days you have....
In His grip,
Papa Tripp