Kathleen Botsford

Easter Baby

We are humbly grateful dear Lord

for Holiday celebrations

filled with love and laughter

of friends and family

And most of all

this precious little baby boy

Amen

 

As Time Goes By

 

This week was my son's 23 birthday.

It seems like only yesterday I saw this cute little face

peering up at me.

Where

has

the

      
   time

gone?

I have been blessed with

the opportunity to be a stay at home mother.

Thank you Steve.  Thank you God. 

For all of the blessings in my life.

Dear friends and Family.

 

**daughter #2 who is noticably absent from this photo is

at school.  But not to worry....

Stevie drove into South Bend the next day

to celebrate

his birthday with her and his buddies.

I tried to get a couple of photos from FB

but was not sucessful :(

Saturday Night

 

Another weekend at Notre Dame.  This time with no sporting events attended.  Victoria sings in the Choir at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on Saturday evenings.  This past Saturday was her first time and she was a touch nervous.  They sang in Hebrew and Latin and she had only a few days to practice.   The girls sounded like angels, each and everyone. 

 

After Mass we celebrated one of our favorite "son's" birthday with a dinner at our usual restaurant before the kids went out to celebrate Saturday night as only college kids can.  Oh, to be young and frivolous again!  Actually, I am more than happy with my current age even with my sometimes lapses in good sense and glass or two of wine too many.

 

 He who knows he has enough is rich.

Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching

Everything is Sacred

The nutcrackers have retired to their sleeping quarters, preparing for their next holiday assignment.  The sugar plums and candied jewels are snugly wrapped in tissue and put away also.  As I wander around my home this morning and choose which elements of the holidays to re-pack and which pieces will keep us company until spring, I am suddenly aware of a shift in consciousness.  I can choose to look at my tasks as chores that need to be done in a hurry to move on to the next thing on my to-do list.  Or I can take my time and with gentle hands caress each object with gratitude for their part in our family holiday traditions.

Each and every nutcracker has a story to tell as they have been collected one by one, over the last thirty years.  Our collection started in Germany on my first trip to Europe when I was 25.  I bought a nutcracker for myself and my mother in the medieval walled village said to be the home of the earliest nutcrackers.  My collection was handed down to my son when he was young and magically enchanted with these small and wondrous works of art.  Every year he receives another for his growing collection and all the children wait in anticipation to welcome the newest into our family.  A Chicago Bear nutcracker, a toymaker, a pirate and a blue and gold horseman (from the 4 horsemen ND football legend) are among the narrators that tell the story of his changing interests over the years.

This year a Wine-maker joined the ranks.  Stevie has grown into a young man who is learning to appreciate wine and cigars as he and his father retire to our deck after dinner anytime the weather permits in our midwestern evenings.  They don their jackets and boots and gather the cushions from the basement.  Snow and bitter cold are the only determents to their ritual.  They invite me to join them but I am happy to watch from inside a warm house as they share their stories and laughter.

Now is the time to remember that all you do is sacred

Hafiz

Time Passages

In Passing

How swiftly the strained honey
of afternoon light
flows into darkness

and the closed bud shrugs off
its special mystery
in order to break into blossom:

as if what exists, exists
so that it can be lost
and become precious

~ Lisel Mueller ~

 

Christmas Card Decisions

We recently found an afternoon to take our family Christmas card photo.  It was not an easy thing to maneuver this year.  Tori is away at school, Alex is working full time and Stevie was coaching high school football which starts in the afternoon and goes way into the evening most nights.  Not to mention our "other" football schedule and a wedding in the beautiful mountains of northern Georgia for Steve and I.

There was much grumbling from everyone, espeicially our photographer, but we found a date and proceed to carry on our 25 year ritual which is a continuation of my husband's family tradition.

Now the hard part begins.  The two "boys" are in South Africa for a month working in an aids clinic.  Tori is back at school happy as a lark in her new routine.  Alex is busy, busy, busy with work, friends and working out.  The hard part is selecting a photo that everyone likes.  I only have 40 or so to go through this year so that should make it easier.   Any family members who read this post will remember our "blue" card a few years back.  I am still getting grief for that one.  Wish me luck!

Football Frenzy

 

Some of my friends may have noticed my absence of late.  There is only one excuse....

FOOTBALL!!!

New Chapters All Around

Victoria is safely ensconced in college.  She is very busy meeting new friends, attending new classes and  making a new life.   And she seems very happy with hardly a moment to spare for homesickness of any sort. 

We seem to have an abundance of new chapters for each family member this fall.  My son is still looking for a job but also helping coach his high school football team.  My daughter is in the process of re-accessing her life choices and a possible move to the west coast.  My husband has an exciting project to work on which may not be altogether new, but is entering a brand new phase of intensity and focus. 

As for me, while not yet an official "empty nester" because said son is still home, (thank you God!) I am busy cleaning and getting my home back into some sort of order.   Performing my ordinary home-keeping tasks is especially comforting to me right now.  Laundry and folding clothes, organizing clutter and grocery shopping.  All things I can easily take for granted have taken on a new level of importance.  When things are up in the air as they seem to be at this moment, grounding myself in my daily chores makes me feel centered and content.  Each day will unfold in it's own way with it's own rhythm.  While my head may try and convince me I need a new "plan" for my life, I think I will spend as much time as I can happily humming along until the next adventure presents itself.  All in God's good time.

Savor the Day

 

It has finally arrived.  The melancholic ache for my family.   Six days to oneself seems to be the magic number.  The afternoons and evenings full of free time to do as I please after leisurely mornings spent doing absolutely nothing have suddenly shifted.  Anxiety and unease have set in.  My breath comes short and my chest aches.  I should have known it was about to commence.  Yesterday, every movie I watched or book I picked up brought tears.   I awoke this morning after tossing and turning with unsettling  dreams and found my holiday to have ended and loneliness seeping into every corner.

As I sat with the feelings and tried not to push them away as I am inclined to do, I realized just how dear they really were.  Tomorrow evening my family returns home.  And here I will be, fresh and eager to welcome them.  Ready to wash numerous loads of laundry and prepare proper meals.   Once again, an integral part of a household and all that it takes to smoothly sail through the final week of our official summer. 

We leave on Thursday for Freshman Orientation.  A new phase of life is upon us, ready or not.  Being alone this last week, savoring my quiet time, has reminded me of the many stops and turns our busy lives take and how often we take them granted, wishing for quiet when there is chaos and chaos when there is quiet.

Lord, help me stay present to each moment, each day, just as they appear.  Bless me with your abundant Grace as I begin this next stage in my life.   Amen

Caught in the Middle

This is what my dining room looks like.  Alexandra created a shrine for the graduates.  It is still there.  I don't know when they will want to put their possessions away.  And I don't care.  Every time I enter the house I am greeted by the photos and memories of the last four years.  I love it.  Every minute of it.

This is the scene which greets me on the other side of the entry.  Victoria is getting ready for her next four years.  We are buying towels and sheets, pillows and caddies.  All the little things that will make her dorm room a cozy home for her and her new friends.  Everyone I know keeps asking me about how it feels to be an empty nester.  I don't know.  It hasn't happened as yet.  I know I will do my best to stay centered in every precious moment as my youngest prepares to fly the nest.  That's all I can do.  And pray.  Lots of prayers.