Rain, Bones, Grass

For the last few days it seems to me that all it has done is rain. Of course, the only real proof I have of that fact is what I hear on the roof and what I see on the news. This has been one of those weeks when I haven't been out since an appointment that I had on Monday. You are saying, well, she could have looked out the window, and you are absolutely right, except that I really didn't even feel like doing that. Enough about me and my aches and pains.

Completely changing the flow of this post, we have the absolutely best neighbors. Except for one family, we've had the same neighbors for about 8 years. Considering we live in what is considered to be a starter community, that is pretty amazing. Our neighbors to the left bought their lot at about the same time we did. In fact, we bought the biggest lot in the sub-division and "D" wanted the lot for herself. Of course, we had no idea she did and we bought it 45 minutes before she made the bid on her second choice. It probably wouldn't have made any difference if we had known at that point. However, as good as they have been to us, if we were in that situation now we just might have let them have it.

Our neighbors across the cul-de-sac have lived here almost as long as we have. They are super people, have kids about the ages of our grandkids that have lived with us, and don't mind last minute requests for assistance such as dog sitting, newspaper collecting and mail grabbing.

The neighbor two doors to our right is an adorable lady who gets around much better than I do in spite of the fact that she is my elder by more than just a few years. She will call, out of the blue, just to see how I am and if we need anything. If she sees us out and about she always stops to chat and sometimes just comes by the house to visit. Those neighborhood charms are just about gone from our.

In the house just to our right we have new neighbors. This house is now rental property and we have been getting new neighbors about every two years or so. That's OK with us. It just means we get to meet more good people. If everyone who moves in next door is like our newest neighbors, we may have to bolt their doors and slash the moving van tires if they try to move. They have been here for less than a month and the Mr. has already mowed our grass without our asking. Of course, he just got a new riding mower and he may have wanted to try it out on a yard without a fence. However, I kind of doubt that.

Speaking of neighbors, I sometimes hear people complaining about how close our neighborhoods are becoming and how you can just about reach out and touch your neighbor's house while touching your own. To those who complain and speak of this as if it were something new, I have some information for you. My grandparents' house was originally a "shotgun" house and is now over 100 years old. I can remember my grandmother and her neighbor standing at their individual kitchen windows and talking to each other while they did dishes. They could have handed each other things if it weren't for the screen windows.

Another one of my fondest memories of that house is sitting on the front porch steps while Daddy, Mama, Granny and Grandpa all occupied the porch furniture in the evening after supper dishes were done. The "old folks" would talk about the day and Daddy and Mama would catch my grandparents up on the news from our house since our last visit. My sister and I would sit and listen. Sometimes we would be playing a game and I'm sure they didn't know we were taking in as much as we were. We learned a lot about life and about what it is to be a good person from those conversations. As people strolled by during their evening walk they would often continue their stroll up the sidewalk to the front porch and join us for a while, lending an even more diverse blend to the evening's discussions. When we would get sleepy, we would crawl up in the swing or on the glider snuggling with whoever happened to be sitting there, and go fast asleep. There is not a thing in this world that I would take for these memories.

Now, back to the rain...

God Bless you with sunshine,
Mimmy



Spring Rains, Aching Bones, Growing Grasses

Rain, Rain, go away
Don’t come around for several days.
My fingers really ache and creak
My knees and legs feel very weak.

Sometimes folks say
We need the rain,
But as I hear it
We’ve nothing to gain.

The pouring torrents
Just stand in puddles.
Really makes me
All befuddled.

There’s one more thing
Before I go,
The rain sure makes
Our grasses grow.

Then we must find
Someone to mow.
Usually a grandson,
Don’t you know?

Sometimes they do it
With hearts of glee,
Other times they’re gloomy
Don’t you see?

So if you have
A mower handy,
Come by and mow
That would be quite dandy.

Mimmy
May 5, 2009