Community of the spirit
"There is a community of the spirit
Join it, and feel the delight
of walking in the noisy street,
and being the noise." - Jelal ud-Din Rumi
What can I say? That I am blessed with abundance. Well, yes, I am. I have shelter and food, and warm clothes and...
And such friends. Last night, I didn't know whether to laugh or to cry from the joy of having such friends. Wow. I was recovering from a minor migraine, but really wanted to go to the usual gathering of friends and fibery folk because I knew someone special would be there, a friend from out West that only rarely heads this way now, a friend whom I miss already, even though it's only in the last couple months she's moved.
And I brought what I'd promised for her - yarn and a crochet hook and my time to teach her how to crochet. And everybody sat around and kibbitzed, which was a good thing, because the way I learned to hold the yarn when I was small was not going to work for her hands. And other friends crocheted squares from the big bag of wool I'd brought for anyone to use. And still others sat around and talked with us, as our fingers danced over the wool and hooks were passed around, and the 5 year old learned to chain stitch with her finger.
And some gifts were exchanged, including one that nearly brought on those tears. A friend of mine gave me the most beautiful scarf - chocolate brown with pistachio green edging (it looks like chocolate gelato rolled in pistachios and then cut.) that she had made for me. I wore it while crocheting all night. Not that it was cold in there, but that scarf made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
And most of that handwork went into the big bag that holds the squares for my dad's blanket. And some of the rest of the handwork has been promised to a local rest home, and I am so blessed to have these people in my life. Every last one.
And as we approach the end of the year, I'd like to thank everyone who has read and commented on this blog, and all those bloggers whose blogs I also read. This blog arose in part because I felt a restlessness to get my words out there where others might read them if they chose, and I feel that that restlessness has opened up a new world for me. Thank you all.
Join it, and feel the delight
of walking in the noisy street,
and being the noise." - Jelal ud-Din Rumi
What can I say? That I am blessed with abundance. Well, yes, I am. I have shelter and food, and warm clothes and...
And such friends. Last night, I didn't know whether to laugh or to cry from the joy of having such friends. Wow. I was recovering from a minor migraine, but really wanted to go to the usual gathering of friends and fibery folk because I knew someone special would be there, a friend from out West that only rarely heads this way now, a friend whom I miss already, even though it's only in the last couple months she's moved.
And I brought what I'd promised for her - yarn and a crochet hook and my time to teach her how to crochet. And everybody sat around and kibbitzed, which was a good thing, because the way I learned to hold the yarn when I was small was not going to work for her hands. And other friends crocheted squares from the big bag of wool I'd brought for anyone to use. And still others sat around and talked with us, as our fingers danced over the wool and hooks were passed around, and the 5 year old learned to chain stitch with her finger.
And some gifts were exchanged, including one that nearly brought on those tears. A friend of mine gave me the most beautiful scarf - chocolate brown with pistachio green edging (it looks like chocolate gelato rolled in pistachios and then cut.) that she had made for me. I wore it while crocheting all night. Not that it was cold in there, but that scarf made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
And most of that handwork went into the big bag that holds the squares for my dad's blanket. And some of the rest of the handwork has been promised to a local rest home, and I am so blessed to have these people in my life. Every last one.
And as we approach the end of the year, I'd like to thank everyone who has read and commented on this blog, and all those bloggers whose blogs I also read. This blog arose in part because I felt a restlessness to get my words out there where others might read them if they chose, and I feel that that restlessness has opened up a new world for me. Thank you all.
posted by Plain Foolish | 7:23 AM
4 Comments:
We spent "our" Christmas Eve (the 22) caroling with the f/Friends, which was sort of funny considering we never sing as a group and the woman leading us was probably the only true soprano in the congregation. We were a musically ragged bunch. But the kids all had their little glow-stick lanterns and the neighbors around the meeting house seemed to enjoy it. Then we went to dinner with a particular friend of ours, listening to her genuinely Dickensian life story. Makes me feel like a complete heel for griping about library school, which is probably a good reminder for me.
Spent the "real" Christmas Eve with my mother's kidney donor, her wife, and their friends and many pets. I'm glad to see that they can accumulate so many friends in spite of the general conservatism of the neighborhood. Besides, how often do we get both egg rolls and chili for Christmas Eve dinner?
Thanks for blogging.
Blessings in the new year! May yours be wrapped in the warmth of fFriendship and light. Thee is much more to me than points of light on a screen.
Thine in the light
lor
It was good to see you too, hun. And thanks for the teaching, and the pretty pretty yarn. :)
Oops--sorry! That first anonymous was me! I didn't realized I hadn't logged in.
Post a Comment
<< Home