Skip to main content

Memento Mori

I am driving into the sunset.  The colors of the sky are brilliant; as pinks, oranges and reds dominate the skyline.  The sun continues to set and the palate changes into the darker hues.  It feels as if I'm driving into heaven itself as I make my way down some random country lane.

Change and loss have been on my mind a lot this October.  We celebrated the second anniversary of our move from Florida quietly.  We remembered the passing of my mother quietly and are dealing with the loss of Susan's father the best we can.   Her father passed earlier this evening.

It's only a matter of time for my father as well. Death and change have been on my mind as of late.  

How do you deal with the passing of a parent?  How do you deal with the the realization of our own mortality?  Because like it or not we are next in line.  

The coming days will be filled with grief as Susan’s family members say goodbye to their Dad.  I will be there beside them to provide what comfort I can.  One of the biggest regrets I have in my life was not being there to provide comfort for another important woman in my life when her mother died.  I will not fail this one.

We have spoken briefly about her beliefs.  She feels that there is more to this world as well although she cannot define what that is.  I understand that.  It is like an early morning fog that obscures our view of the valley below.  We know it’s there, we know it’s beautiful but we cannot see it yet.

So we wait for the fog to lift and we enter the valley. 

 

When I talk about wanting to plant fruit trees on my property and leave behind a yard full of edible and medicinal plants for the next generation, that will be my legacy.  I'm basically trying to help the next generation along.  I'm doing my small part to fight climate change.  It's my hope that some wandering souls in the wasteland that my generation helped create will take refuge here and give thanks.   

 I am not going to bore you, gentle reader, with philosophical or religious texts.  Although I will say this, that I do believe is something greater than this world...although what it is defies any rational or logical thought.  This world is too beautiful and mysterious.The fact that the leaves change from green to red and gold only to fall upon the ground and provide food and nutrients to the tree is the providence of science.   The fact that we can take comfort in and recognize the beauty of those falling leaves in another thing entirely.

While I am in no hurry to die, I do not fear death.  For I will return to the natural world. 

If anything scares me...it is the fact that I will stop "living".  That the joys of this world - the kiss and touch of a wonderful woman, the subtle joys of a good wine or tasteful dish...the ability of music to shake our very souls...will simply cease to be experienced.  That is what I fear.

Remember that you to are mortal.

Labels:
Location: Stoneboro, PA 16153, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

What all the cool kids are reading.

Getting things done. Small victories add up.

In the new TV show Fallout there is a great line.  " The Golden Rule of the wasteland is thou shalt be distracted by bullshit every single time." I've never played the game it is based on but the picture shows the two newest distractions in my life.  We have taken care of our former neighbors barn cats since he moved out nearly a year ago.   Long story short the mama cat gave birth in his barn that we we given access to.  We found four little black long hair kittens and decided to take them, as it would probably be the only time we would be able to catch them.   Much to our surprise after a day or so the mama came over and started to milk them laying on our kitchen floor.  She's comes in, feeds them and then goes back outside.  Once they are mature enough to have them fixed we are planning on doing so and then they will go to a good home.   That's the plan...but plans have a tendency to change as one or two of them are findi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Calling in the professionals

 I come from a long line of guys that call in professionals.    Part of that reason is my own lazy nature, part of that reason is that I would rather have it down right the first time.  Everyone has their own skills and abilities, so why not call in an expert to have it done right the first time? In this case; why not seek advice in the battles against the invasives that have not only invaded my yard, but also a nearby piece of property that my neighbor simply refuses to take care of?  I find myself in a bind of my own design. I let part of my property "go wild" in the first place because that area had a lot of exposed roots, stumps and rocks.  At the time, I was not expecting a bunch of invasives, of which Mulitfora Rosa  is the worse of the bunch, to be a problem.  Yet, here we are. I decided to let parts of my yard "go wild" back in July of 2021.  It has proven to be a mistake, and in order for me to ensure that the invasive plants st...
Post a Comment
Read more

Rain and tears and those damned deer. Gardening can be painful.

“ None of us understand what we're doing, but we do beautiful things anyway.” ― Allen Ginsberg   The weatherman stated that we have not had any significant rainfall in over two weeks.  Nor did he see any relief in site. We are not in drought conditions yet, we are just unusually dry.  Interestingly enough, Pennsylvania should be getting warmer and wetter in the future if the climate models hold true.  If we narrow that down even more to my home town , the picture becomes even more interesting.   Solar Punk Pittsburgh For now though, I was worried about my garden.   It is not that big, I basically have a variety of containers around where I am maintaining lettuce, leeks, tomato's, peppers, strawberries, grapes, sunchokes (which I was really interested in growing) and a few other things.     Every garden needs to be watered and I played around with the idea of a r ain water collection systems before, we even had a simple one i...
2 comments
Read more