traveling up and down the blind highway

This past weekend, My brother Bob and my sister is law Peggy, visited and stayed overnight. They were traveling from Hamilton Ontario to the west side of Michigan. They were booked to take the ferry from Ludington to cross Lake Michigan to their home in Wisconsin. With the overnight visit, John and I had hours of conversation with Peggy and Bob.
I had not had the opportunity to have such an in depth conversation with Peggy for many years. While John and Bob sat in the kitchen, Peggy and I explored our early family back grounds and early education experiences. I found out that Peggy was shy, due in part to being the tallest girl in her class and being placed in the back of the classroom despite having difficulty reading the board.
I told her about the issues with getting eyedrops four times a day. My drawings in kindergarten had many drawing of a clock face with the hands pointing to five minutes to four. I had to receive an eye drop at four P.M in the middle of my afternoon play time.
Both of us looked and admired our brothers. Peggy’s brother was a straight A student. Peggy’s vision prevented her from doing the same. I was protected and insulated from bullies by my older brothers.
One neighborhood bully after pushing me down, causing my glasses to break, ended upside down in his trash can.
Hearing early stories from living inTexas and Boston filled in missing pages from her history. We found we had much in common with working to prove our worth. Peggy working as a librarian and myself as a Speech Pathologist teaching mentally impaired adults.
I found that we had many common values.
Retired now, we have reading and writing poetry in common. What a joy to find such a gem within my family. Being open helped that and requesting the men leave the room so I could concentrate on listening with all my ability. Conversation is an active skill.
*** poem
The Art of Conversation
listen respond question
little by little, unraveling
each other’s stories
discover a sister
I always wanted
closer than I could imagine
sisterhood
carolaspot@aol.com Copyrighted August 12 2024

This past week, I felt old. I become tired and slow with conversations but this week was a reality check. During of all things, housework.
I use a Swifter to clean and dust the wood floors in my house. I can’t reach under furniture to clean to the backboards. I decided to clean the floors on hands and knees. I could crawl around with old socks, one on each hand, I had to lay on my side to reach to the wall behind furniture. I was surprised that the metal in my hip replacements hurt when I was on my side. Since both hips have titanium parts, I didn’t think about pain. I was feeling the rubbing of the replacement rubbing against the part of hip still there. I had to find some cushioning for that hip when laying on my side.
I mentioned this to my husband John. He confessed that the same day, he climbed into the crawl space to spray for carpenter ants. He also had pain in his knees while working. He had to go to find knee cushions while crawling under the house.
I scoffed when John installed metal handrails on both sides of the stairs. I thought it looked tacky. This is coming from a blind woman. But in the last months, I have relied on the railings more.
Recently, I purchased a titanium white cane with a ball end. It is able to roll from side to side without leaving the ground. It is better to give feedback on uneven ground. The cane is able to support me is I take a misstep.
Both John and I walk slower with smaller steps. We have given up riding the tandem bike . Neither of us can trust our balance.
Before you feel sorry for us, remember, we are still out walking and working around our yard. Aging doesn’t curtail our activities, just the way we do them.
As for the biking, we use the stationary bike until our balance improves. Learning to adapt is the best mental health medicine.

*** poem
My garden of hanging pots decorate the deck
The birds in the woods are listening
night visitors are seen on the security cameras
an occasional butterfly visits my hand
my memories fill in the rest
carolaspot@aol.com

The first attempt to provide help for veterans and sailors disabled in the Revolution war was in 1777. The Federal Government had no ability to fund this help . They looked to the individual states to implement the provisions of the act.
Over the past two hundred years, laws have been created, implemented and challenged by sections of disable groups. Many of the laws restricted the rights of persons with disabilities. The so called Ugly laws, restricted individuals right to appear in public with a physical or mental impairment. Initially passed to curb begging, the laws were interpreted to restrict people’s ability for employment, travel and education. On August 26, 1990, The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law. But do we recall the protests of act 504?
This act provided employment to person to be employed regardless of their disability for federal funded programs. The Secretary of Health and Human Services didn’t endorse it as demanded by the April 4th deadline. Boycotts, sit ins, and protests were held nation wide. But the protest in San Francisco were different.
There, protester were organized and firm in their resolve to unite for all disabilities . Over one hundred fifty individuals stormed and occupied the federal building . A normal tactic to combat this type of protest is to cut the phone lines and not allow food, water or medicine for the protesters. The protesters were prepared for this. Members of the deaf community were able to use sign language to inform others outside the building of their needs. several other organizations such the Black Panthers, Grey Panthers, Salvation Army, and religious groups joined to deliver needed items as well as blankets to the buildings protesters. The sit in lasted until the end of the month. After two weeks members of the protesters traveled to Washington to meet with members of Congress and the news media to push for the adoption of Act 504. This enactment in 1978 lead to the disable Act of 1990 that we celebrated on last Friday.
Who were the individuals responsible? Many were leaders in disability rights. Others were at the rally and joined the walk to occupy the federal building. They were diverse. But the groups that continued to protest and support the sit in were a larger groups from many walks of life. They were in wheel chairs, blind, deaf and had illness such M S, mental and cognitive issues. Or their family members did. They were not asking for charity but an equal chance for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
In this time of differences may we remember the past and look to the future for a better life for all.
*** Poem

Future Generation
I see the future in my daughter’s eyes.
who doctors stated,”She won’t live a year.”
Outlasting their dire predictions.
A loving and accomplished woman, daughter and wife.
I thank God for the gift
of you in our lives.
Happy Birthday Ruth.
carolaspot@aol.com July 29, 2024

Last evening Lynda Lambert and I talked about our colloration of a poetry and art exchange. We have written a poem and made an art pice to send in the mail. We are in our seventh month of a year long project.

The art is discribed and poems are below.

January 7

The first art is a light green background with several black lines near the bottom of the card. The poem for January is in braille on the front of the card.

walking, I pause to watch

a sparrow wrestle a seed from the feeder

Success!

a black sunflower seed

in his beak

February 7

The picture is light pink and orange with a mat finish brush strokes visible. The colors are light to dark.

Settled

floor boards creak

aging, settling

like old bones

March art 7

the art is the cover from a bar of Lindt’s dark chocolate 85 percent coco Both Lynda and I share a love of this chocolate.

Poem 7

Last snow

In my little woods,

I see the outline of the dawn.

Hills and furrows, made by men.

Not the same as nature’s curves.

cozy homes for the birds.

Man looks, seeing empty space.

animals hide without a trace.

Mother Nature steals the show.

blanketed by fresh snow.

April’s 7

Cookie moon

The card has gold coin cover in shades of blues. It appears to be floating. The circle has green brown paint on one edge like a bite.

Cookie Moon

moon’s glow darkens

eerie quiet

bites,

disappearing

May 7

The art is a painting of a flag of green, white and red. stripes like an Italian . flag of Vertical sections of red, White and green. This is for my foster sister Adelia. She was an exchanged student and a part of our family for over 50 years.

May , poem 7

Brazil

accordion, guitar

sweet tenor croon

words of love

in Portuguese tongue

strong elixir

amor

June 7th

colors of pink and orange

drift into green with bits of periwinkle.

Brush strokes create the image of motion.

June Poem 7

Windy

tree tops dance

petals blown off stems

birds stay put

one young turkey

leans into the wind

to climb steps

quiet descends with dusk

mouse scampers across rocks

July 7

The art was inspired by a raccoon caught in a security camera

Painting is black, purples and grays.

July 7

Night visitor

Out of the shadows,

He walks the wall

To the dark watery pool

It calls

inviting him

stepping in enjoys a long drink

The recording of this exchange will be availible in the near future on the Behind Our Eyes website.

My writer’s group was given the word cone to write a six line story or poem using the word at least once. It started me thinking of some of the treats, snacks we enjoyed in the summer.
My Mon had a tupperware set of six popcycle shapes with holders and a tray to keep the popcycles upright in the freezer. They were either lemonade or orange juice. I would suck the juice or flavor out of the treat and enjoy crunching on the ice that was left. The forms and holders were returned to the dishes to be washed and reused over and over.
After my Dad had cooked hamburgers or hot dogs on our round grill, we would cut green sticks from the apple tree to toast large marshmallows over the coals. No grams or Hersheys chocolate just the hot melting marshmallow toasted to a golden brown. That was the goal. Mine were either burned to a black as the sugar caught fire or the marshmallow became so soft that the whole piece melted falling into the coals. After one or two attempts, I gave up popping the marshmallow uncooked into my mouth. During Girl Scout Camp, I finally perfected the toasting with the adding of a chocolate piece smashed between two graham crackers.
The freezer also held a box of frozen petit fours. They had been hidden in the far corner of the freezer from the holidays. Upon finding them, I would take one from the package and move the rest around so my taking the treat would not be noticed right away. I could hide a half dozen stolen candies before discovery.
The raspberry patch was a favorite place to hide and munch on the lowest berries. I would lay between the bush and the picket fence eating my way down the row. As we became experts in leaving some berries after the first picking of the day..
Green apples grew on the two old trees in the back yard. They were small and could be wormy. I would examine one or two before biting into one. They were tart . One had to check the bitten apple to see if there were worm holes or worse a half of worm.
Our neighbor on the corner had a large mulberry tree. We knew when the fruit was ripe when the sidewalk was spotted with purple from fallen berries. I would reach for the darkest berries to munch on on my way home. My lips and fingers betrayed what I had been up to.
Finally, Mom would allow me to go into the fridge to take a couple of cabbage leaves to munch in my tree. I would pretend that the tree was my personal island. The grass was water. I could live in the tree and eat my cabbage. If I had to leave the safety of the tree, I would pretend to swim to the back door of the house.
I hope that you have special memories of your own summer treats.

---

Today’s poem
Treats
Egged on by friends, we searched for frozen petit fours.
It was easier to pick berries from the patch.
Lemonade popcycles and toasted marshmallows were a rarity.
I was allowed to grab cabbage leaves any time.
carolaspot@aol.com July 15, 2024

July is set aside as National Disabilities Pride Month. Many events and activities will celebrate the diversity and accomplishments of people with disabilities. Many communities will be hosting crafts and food fairs shows. Music, theater and lectures are scheduled throughout the month. People have overcome despite their disabilities.

At the end of the month, there will be a street fair in Grand Rapids Michigan.

As part of the celebration of diversity in the arts, blind poets, artists Lynda Lambert and myself are half way through a year long project to exchange a postcard with original art and a poem for each day of postal delivery. Below is an example of such an exchange using the postal service.

&&***

July 1st Poem 1

The card is an example of a butterfly from the show. It is red and black on a flower stem. On the reverse side, the date July 1st and Poem 1is attached

Butterflies

jeweled visitors

dive, hover, soar

Gather nectar

from flower’s core

I can’t see

what they do

imagination

changes my

point of view

Lynda’s card for that day is an abstract with a piece of a flag embedded in the painting. Swirls of light blue and black with touches of red with white edge. On the reverse is side Lynda’s poem.

I write a poem on Monday

I write a list of 20 words

I write one name and one color

I pick up those words ,one here two there

Keep writing line, more lines

Until the poem is born.

When one is blind, you rely on your hearing to give you cues to your surroundings. What you hear may not be accurate.
My fellow writer, told a story about visiting a new doctor for a physical. Marleen was brought to an examination room to change for a mammogram. As she sat waiting, a wailing noise was heard. It ebbed, then grew louder. There was brief moment of silence before the pattern repeated, When the nurse returned, Marleen complained about the sound coming from one of the machines.
“O that is our new wave sound effect to relax our patients.”
“That doesn’t sound like waves to me,” remarked Marleen.
“I agree but the doctor’s spent a lot of money on it so we are to test it.”
Another friend with vision loss has difficulty discerning faces. She would identify a person by their haircut and color. With aging, both the color and style may change often.
On a ferry boat in the Scottish Highlands, I awoke in my lounger to hear bagpipe music playing.
I tapped my husband to ask if he could turn down the recording.
“Honey, you are hearing the creaking of a loose hatch.” My apologies to bagpipe lovers. Busy street crossings have auditory and visual signals. Voice countdowns, verbal commands to walk or beeping are common. One crossings had the sound of a bird call to signal when to cross. It was a nice idea but when the birds in the tree answered, I had no clue if it was safe to cross.
A local garden placed fountains to masks traffic noise when strolling the pathways. Recently, I was walking is circles as I tried to listen for cars in the parking lot entrance. Usually, I am with my husband or friends and the embarrassment is short lived.
My friend Allen wasn’t so lucky. He was in a men’s bathroom alone. He thought he could listen to the toilets flushing and running water to find the toilets and sinks. To his chagrin, after leaving a stall, he found himself washing his hands in the urinal.
When I am in doubt about my surroundings, I ask.

---

Today’s poem
Reality Hearing

Music or creaking
a bird or signal locating exits and entrances
A person can get his hand
in a urinal
carolaspot July 1, 2024 copyrighted

After a week of temperatures in the nineties and high humidity, I am looking forward to a cool wet start to the week. The west side of Michigan averages 30 to 40 inches yearly. A close by city of Grandville has recorded 38 inches of precipitation so far this year.
I noticed our front lawn had a large crop of toadstools popping up in the grass. Another local nearby town, Rockford, had one rainfall this past Wednesday and received 2 inches of rain in one hour. Farmers are late getting into their fields to plant, how and weed with the heavy equipment.
The west side of the lake is no better. A friend in Milwaukee reported she hasn’t watered her container garden more that once this season. My brother, who lives in Manitowoc Wisconsin on the lake shore has experienced more cool and rainy weather this year.
Fires in Canada have triggered air quality alerts in Minnesota and across to the Great Lakes.
The national weather service predicts 17 to 27 hurricanes in 2024 season, a larger than normal number.
We have seen flooding on the Texas coast and in Florida. high fluctuations in weather is seen in many states. On the west coast, though no wild fires are currently active, the potential for fires due is high wind until Tuesday.
Changes in climate and weather patterns will affect our lives now and in the future.
What can we do to help? The biggest, change our attitude. This is not a right wing or a left wing statement. It is a pro earth belief. What we choose to do today will affect the quality of our lives.
I have felt the difficulty of breathing on days with poor air quality. I want to work to decrease my footprints on this land. Walk softly and carry a large inhaler!!
Inhale
Inside, air is cooled, conditioning.
News reporters extremes in conditions.
How many times have we changed the channel?
Always it is someone else’s problem.
“Let’s take a walk in the sunshine.”
Each breath hurts our lungs, we slow the pace.
Climate change has caught up with us.

We celebrate the Summer Solstice this week. The longest day of the year will be on June 21. Here in Michigan, the day will have sixteen hours of sunlight from sunrise to sunset. In some cultures the mid-mummer’s day is filled with dancing, singing, building bonfires and wearing of costumes. Some people will choose to wear nothing at all. With our prediction of a high of 90 degrees, that may tempt some.
This year, my daughter Ruth will wed Aaron Gould in a ceremony at a waterfall in Sequoia National Park near the Summer Solstice. They will be celebrating this whole week.
The waterfalls in the park are expected to be flowing with more water due to the amount of rain and snow in the Sierra Nevada range. Weather will be sunny with a high of 69 degrees in the day and 49 degrees in the evening. My daughter will walk to be married at Bridal Veil Falls. She will be strolling in her gown and white hiking boots to the falls. John and I wish the newly wed couple well and look forward to hearing about their adventures.
They are following in the steps of our wedding plans 33 years ago. We flew to Los Vegas, were married at midnight at a small chapel named, “Graceland.” We honeymooned in Death Valley visiting many natural wonders such as the Salt Flats, Devils golf course and a colorful cliff named Artist Palette.
The longer daylight and the natural scenery will make this a memorable ceremony.
Whether you choose to celebrate with friends, quietly or not at all, Mid-summer’s eve is a time to enjoy the longer daylight hours.

Solstice

summer’s midpoint, inspires parties.
Others mark the day getting married.
Love and Magic abounds.
Several ways to enjoy the day.
Time to have bonfires and dance as the sun sets.
In some cultures, people wear costumes.
Carried away, a few wear nothing.
Each to his or her preference.
Carolaspot@aol.com June 17, 2024

Flag Day was first celebrated in 1877. The design created by Betsy Ross, was adapted by congress as The country's flag. Over the years the number of stars have been modified to show the current number of states. The red and white stripes remain constant for the original 13 colonies. It was approved by the Continatal Congress in 1777 as the flag of the new country. In 1885, to celebrate the one hundred anniversary of the flag adaption ,it became an official holiday

My family had a large 4 ft. by six ft. flag that was first displayed in front ot the Northville Electric Shop, that my Grandfather Clifford and my Father owned together. When the flag was changed to reflect the addition of the new states of Hawaii and Alaska, my mother, kept and used the old flag. She reasoned that no one would notice or count the number of stars. The flag was used for years until the dark blue had faded to a purple.
The flag, like people is to be disposed of with honor. The best way for disposal is cremation. Many Veterans of Foreign War Posts will take old flags, and preform a short ceremony before cremation.
First the flag is folded into a triangle for the last time. The flag is placed in the center of a roaring fire. until the flag is reduced to ashes. As the flag burns, the Pledge of Allegiance is spoken. A brief of silence is observed as the fire dies to ashes. After the ceremony, the ashes are collected and buried.
On Flag Day, Citizens may display flags in their yards. Flag raising ceremonies may include reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, singing or silence as the flag is raised and lowered. Larger flags are folded by two people, held at waist level as the flag is folded lengthwise ,towards the center. Starting at the striped edge the flag it is folded in triangles from the stars towards the stripe edge. Another lengthwise fold and the smaller triangle is folded from the stripes to the stars. Larger flags maybe folded twice this way. When the flag reaches the end of the folding, the edges are tucked in the back of the last fold. The folded flag will be carried to it’s storage place.
In our home, the flag was rolled around the pole. The flag was placed in a cardboard tube until the next use. It was attached to the pole and couldn’t be folded. Each fold in the flag represents a sacrifice by fellow countrymen.
Other activities for this day may include parades and community gatherings. In our family, my Aunt Kathy Brune’s birthday is on June 14th. We wish her and the Flag a Happy Birthday.

The Pledge
I walk, slowly, holding the flag high.
People watch , hands over hearts.
Men remove their hats.
My arms ache, but I must not drop the Stars and stripes.
carolaspot June 10, 2024 copyrighted