Annie Anthias
Personal Success
Reflection
Because your father and the Korean War
treated you mercilessly
you swallowed the hate, anger and resentment
with tiny grains of rice and near-clear broth
You read books and taught yourself
math – the universal language
you patched holes in your shoes and clothes
sewed extra material to your pant legs
With marriage and children, hunger multiplied
your craving for recognition and love
were bottomless pits of self-doubt
and utter darkness
You lashed out and your fears
masqueraded as control and power
launched your family away
but your heart cried
come back
They Call Him Sir
Just emulating or channeling Roald Dahl’s illustrator, Sir Quentin Saxby Blake. I love his style and identify with it a lot.
Willey
This man. He is a dream come true. He flew with me from Arizona to Georgia. Packed up my mom’s belongings and loaded them on to the U-Haul. He drove for four days until we got home and get this: There was no cruise control in the truck!
And then he unloaded the truck and put the boxes in our garage. He returned it.
He’s nice to mom. He jokes with her, makes her feel welcome, and cheers her up when she’s sad about dad’s passing in July.
Today, he vacuumed and washed her car.
He is a generous spirit – with all of his family and friends. They know he would do anything for them. He is love personified.
Affection
We were completing her FAFSA (college financial aid) together last night. The 17-year old had to create answers to 5 security questions. The final one: Who is your best friend?
I wondered, will she say Bailee or Erin?
Her answer surprised me: “Ava.” Her sister.
Memphis
We stopped at a Starbucks in Memphis as we made our way home to Arizona. They had cut up cards into guitar picks. I was inspired to make a multimedia page in my journal.
Positive Influence
“There is no problem, there is a challenge”
“Doing what is right is rarely the same as doing what is safe.”
Dr. Edith Eva Eger, Holocaust Survivor, Psychologist, and Author of The Choice
If You’re Stressed…
Don’t just do something, sit there.
Dog!
For some reason, after a year of being left alone while we are at work and school, Opal has resorted to naughty behavior. The latest: Going to the pantry and tearing apart three individual packages of dried seaweed!
Kismet 