Mommy Is Here

I am sure all of us need a little something charming today.

THANK YOU

I would like to thank Hilary from "Positive Letters " who guided me to enable my blog to be able to receive comments.
I would also like to thank everyone for being patient with my comment window.  My daughter (thanks!thanks! thanks!) helped me get the comment window to open. I have had trouble leaving a comment on some of the great blogs. If you are not receiving comments you may need to set up a comment window on your blog. If you go on your "Settings" page of your blog and check on "open comment window"  it sets up a comment window for you.
Have a Safe Memorial Day everyone.
Purple Heart Hall of fame is just around the bend from our home. West Point is just a hop, skip, and jump distance from 9W here. Tomorrow will be a very sober day for our town.

Correction

In my blog yesterday, I did not mean to make a concrete statement about natural disasters. I meant to say that most of the natural disasters are not the fault of human beings. I was not clear as I was emotional. It is true that a lot of natural disasters could have been prevented if we did not disturb the natural rhythm by messing with nature. I have to thank one of the readers who pointed out this fact. I do not intend to show disrespect to my elders by blaming things on nature alone.

I understand that psychology is not a perfect science, but at the same time I think we can still strive to know our kids so we can do parenting the best we can.

Get to Know Your Kids - And Kids in Your Life

Natural disasters, as nerve chilling and as devastating as they are, are not caused by human beings. Whenever lives are lost because of murders, suicides, or even an accident, we feel the hurt within our souls.
This morning news channels all over the television were saying that the suspect of the Arizona shooting from earlier this year is not fit for a trial because he is schizophrenic. His doctor says that he could see signs. I am wondering what kind of signs? Writings, or other kinds of behaviour or simply not being a young person he is? While I am not accusing anyone of not being close to their son, I am simply requesting every parent or every person who is supposed to be responsible for young people to keep a check on their kids. I do not mean that they should police them or not trust them. What I mean is that try and be close to your kids as much as possible. Trust them and allow them to trust you enough to open up and talk to you. If you find that they are somewhat sad or tense ask them in detail. Do not hesitate to take professional help if needed.
In the movie "Donnie Darko " a young man who is diagnosed with schizophrenia almost chuckles as he says "Ooo, me too," when his girlfriend tells him that her stepfather has emotional problems. He is not at all ashamed because he is getting treatment. The movie also touches other sensitive issues that effect young people and shows the sad side of society.

We need Hope - - - All of Us

When we throw a tiny pebble in the calm and serene waters of Lake Taghkanic we enjoy the circular ripples of the water but we do not realize that the tiny fish and tadpoles under the water could be scared thinking that they are in for a storm. So, why do people scare people saying that the end of the world is near?  I am not saying that I believed that it was happening. It got me thinking. I mean we all have to die one day and if we knew when exactly we are going to die, we probably pick out the ways we want to spend the rest of our days. So, on Saturday I was having a crisis with my memory. I do not see too many good actions in the mental video I had of my life. I mean common, the good things to do list that was meant for me to do by age twenty still is waiting to be finished. There are hardly any scratched out accomplishments and I am sixty. So where did the time go? and resources? First it is the car, then the house, then the furniture, then college funds for kids and now retirement. When do we really get a brake from ourselves that we can give time and energy to others? I guess, we just shouldn't wait. We should do the "helping others part" along with doing "the life chores part".
We have been listening to the news and watching the disaster in Missouri and wondering what their emotional condition must be. At this stage in our lives we cannot do much more than send a check and pray. I admire those people who go and give on hands help. I wanted to post a youtube video to share but I was not able to do that as the embed part was disabled. My husband says that they need hope and all of us need hope.
I will ask some young people in my family to post  "We Care and Hope for Good" messages on their facebook pages.

Straight From The Heart Blogger Award

Every one is talking about the world coming to an end today - they are not serious but what if it really happens? I do not want to leave this world before I offer this "Award" to some awesome people. Every one is good in their own way. Some of us write what people like to read, some of us write about celebs and national sports and what is going on  in the political world, but some people are so open that I sometimes wonder as to why they are not journalists? Or are they?

Belle  for Tales from a loser who sometimes is a winner.
Michael for SCL Kismet
Tracy for My Thoughtful Spot
Foot Print Of Peace for Step Parents Cove
Doris for Hold My Hand
Hilary for Positive Letters
Monalisa for MonaLisa Gone Wild
NormaltoeatPB for Normal to Eat Peanut Butter

There are no rules attached to receive this award. I hope this came out OK.

Serenity Prayer

I know that AA uses this prayer. However I have a slot in my brain where this prayer fits just so.

My desire to be productive and to help this place called earth to be a good place for everyone makes me say things that might offend people.

Loved ones are offended because they think that it was not my place to blog about a stranger who yelled at his son. They say that I do not know the complexities of being a father, the hardships that fathers go through at work and the troubles they go through to make a buck. Once in a while it does happen that they take their frustrations out at their kids.
I would not know the complexities of being a father, this is true. It is also true that a father may be frustrated and take the anger out on a child. A lot of us mothers have taken out our frustrations on kids and I am sure they are still doing that. I am not denying that I could have done it without realizing it. My point is that let us try not to hurt our kids because they are going through hard times anyway.  If we do not admit our wrong doings and change ourselves, where is this world going to go?
I know that about myself and unpleasant times with my kids I can only say "If I could turn back time." (God Bless Cher)

Mother's Day -- Not just for Mothers

 While reminiscing about my grandmother's house and my parents' house I recall being told not to do silly things, like reaching in the chicken coop and picking a chick then getting pecked. I know that for every little thing, we would go to my grandma and she always had nice words for us. Now, I do not remember if I was told that I was silly or stupid, or if it were my actions that were called stupid because it is an entirely different language, you know Hindi. I do not feel being hurt because we got the comfort right away.
However, when I moved to the US I realized that it is not nice to call kids names or make them feel bad when they are already feeling bad for their actions. I also noticed that a lot of couples live with little kids without their grandparents. So the family setup was different. My kids got the same setup as well. I came to understand that my kids are my world. Then  I became very careful about scolding and getting mad at kids because who would they go to if parents get mad at them? So to me, being a mother was being a friend to my kids. Now do friends call their friends stupid? I don't think so.
Last Sunday, my son took his five year old  and two year old kids and us to the zoo so my daughter-in-law could get some rest. It was a great gift. My two year old grandson fell asleep so I sat on a bench with him in my arms and everyone else walked around. I was watching people go by. There were kids getting their faces painted. I was having fun. Then I heard a man scolding his son. "How can you be so stupid? I just paid five dollars for that and you're messing up your face paint?"
The poor boy must have been hardly seven. He just started crying. His mother did not say anything, you know parents having uniformity in discipline and all. I felt like going and giving the little boy a hug. They just walked away and I had the baby in my arms. I was just thankful that my five year old grandson did not have to see that. It got me thinking, if  Mother's day is just about a mother?  I don't mean to make a big deal but times are changing. Kids are having it harder, so please don't hurt a kid's self-esteem.

A Very Special Mother

Last month when we went to check what is new in Mac and PC at the computer place in Palisades Shopping Center, a very nice salesgirl came up to ask us if we needed any help. My husband and me were just browsing so we let her know that. Then we just started having a loose talk with her, as she was very pleasant. She was studying nursing and was working to get some spending money. She said that her parents are from Haiti and they worked really hard to give her a good life and good education so the least she can do is not ask them for spending money. Then both my husband and me said at the same time that we hope there was no one from her family that got hurt in the disaster. To our dismay she said that a couple of her distant relatives lost their loved ones and that is what gave her the desire to be a nurse. She also said that being a nurse will actually give her the capacity to work with people who get hurt. She would not be satisfied just by sending money. She said that a lot of people in Rockland County, New York lost their loved ones in Haiti. Then she asked us if we have time to listen to how special a young mother was. We said that we did and she told us how the roofs and walls and doors were falling everywhere even as people were trying to come out of their houses. Sometimes the door would just get blocked by fallen debris and people would just get entrapped. So when a door collapsed and closed up the way out of a building a mother just hugged her five year old and doubled up her body over him. When the roof started falling she was the one to get a big heavy beam on her head and started bleeding. Later on when the rescue teams came, they found the little boy under his dead mother. He was alive. Hurt but alive.

Happy Mother's Day !

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

Happy Mother's Day to every mother.

May God Bless All

                                                                         

Thanks again Doris

I am sorry I took so long to complete following the Rules of the KREATIV Blogger Award.

So, here are five facts about myself.
I have a great family.
I am an aries.
My favourite colour is pink.
My favourite movie is March of the Penguins
My favourite authors are Beverly Cleary, Judy Blume, Roald Dahl, Dr.Suess. (They got my kids into reading). Don't get me wrong, I still like my grown up book's writers. It is just that my mind has become child like.
Oops, did I write too much? Oh well.

Now these are the people I would like to pass this award on to, for their beautiful Blogs.

Vanilla Mama for Vanilla Mama's Stuff.

Ann for Ink pots and Quill

Inger the Canyon Girl for Desert Canyon Girl

Hope for Poetry by Hope

Grand Snyder for Incidental Comics

Lyndsey Lydecker for Something Clever

If I am allowed to give this award a second time I would have liked  to give it to :
Hillary for Positive Letters. 

Thanks every one for sharing your work and thanks again Doris.

Appreciation Day

My husband is (somewhat) listening to the doctor's orders.
My daughter comes and checks the windows for drafts if she hears me cough even in the middle of the night.
Both my sons sent me beautiful flowers for Mother's Day.
We might be able to see our grand kids on Sunday.
Today is also Appreciate A Nurse Day. I appreciate all of the nurses that took care of all my family members, took care of me when I had my three babies (now adults) and are taking care of patients as we speak. Nurses are there when a life comes in this world. Nurses are there when you are hurt or ill in spite of the dangers of contagious diseases and they work all kinds of hours, weekends and holidays. So I salute and appreciate a NURSE.
Today is also Appreciate an Army Spouse Day. My brother is a retired US Navy chief. I know before he retired, my sister-in-law went through a lot of hard times (especially with her two girls when they were little) whenever he was sent away to another country.We live not too far from West Point and I have spoken to a couple of women who are married to men in the army. They say it is not easy, but they respect what their husbands do. So I appreciate an army spouse.