BLOGOPHILIA WEEK 12.7 ~ WE ARE GATHERED HERE
TODAY…AGAIN.
BONUS POINTS:
(Hard, 2 points) Include the word “aprosexia”
(Easy, 1 point)
Incorporate a gypsy proverb or saying
WE ARE GATHERED HERE TODAY…
It IS something that we do, we human beings, isn’t it?
At times of great joy and happiness,
And in times of heartbreaking sorrow, we gather
together with others. We are (somehow),
I believe, wired to share our joy and our grief.
During times of tragedy, we seek support and
a shoulder (or even a few) to cry on, and in times of
great happiness, we want to share
our joy with others, maybe not so much to make them
happy, as to amplify our joy
by numbers. I guess that is where that saying comes
from, about seeing people in our
our families, or best friends, only at weddings and
funerals?
I don’t believe humans were meant to be solitary
creatures. We are not “pack animals” like
Dogs or wolves, and we don’t herd, like horses and
cows…but we “gather” together in
Numbers to celebrate and to grieve, and we are the
better for doing so.
The last time I heard those words…”we are gathered
here today”, was last year, 2013.
I found myself shivering on a cold beach in Chicago,
Illinois, on the 27th of November,
A Wednesday…not just “any” Wednesday but the one right
before Thanksgiving Thursday.
I did not stand shivering alone…oh no! I was in the (good) company of a smattering
of family
and close friends, of my niece Catherine and her
partner Allyson. Both women have
nicknames
--so from here on in. I shall call them “Cat and Ally”
(easy to remember, just think of “Alley Cat” and
reverse it)!
“We” who had “gathered” on that day, came by planes,
trains, buses, and automobiles…
Those lucky enough to live close by, had walked
through the bitter cold, to that beautiful
Beach, on that bitter cold day. We came (as invited guests) to witness the
union of
Cat and Ally and hear them (and see them) pledge their
(undying) love to each other.
Most of us present, knew that these two had gone
through quite a number of trials and
Tribulations, before coming to this (happier) point in
time.
We, who loved and cared for them, were overjoyed that
these two had finally found
Happiness together and were “here”, where we were
“gathered” to make it “official”.
The young couple could not have chosen a more perfect
day, above our heads a blue
Sky stretched endlessly over the ocean before us. The sun danced upon the water,
Making it appear that an infinite number of diamonds
had been tossed in and sparkled
And glittered each time a wave crashed to the shore,
ending in white foam on the
Shoreline.
We were serenaded by the cry of seagulls as they flew
above and around us, wondering,
perhaps… what such a large number of humans were doing
on THEIR beach in the dead
of winter?
My niece, Cat, stood slim and tall in her three
quarter length (but much too thin), moss green
Double-breasted coat. Her strawberry blonde hair, cur
short and stylish, glimmered in the sun,
And the thick black woolen scarf tied around her neck,
did nothing to warm her ears. The ears
were cold and red and probably pretty close to
frostbitten…though I doubt, in her state of
happiness, that she noticed at all.
Ally, her partner, wore a coat of a different, and
brighter green, that ended just above her knees.
Thin silk stockings could not warm her pink and
potentially frostbitten legs. Her bright blue shoes,
with tiny heels, gave little warmth, I’m sure…but
again…I doubt she noticed the cold.
In one hand Ally clutched a bouquet of beautiful,
bright Shasta daisies, and with the other hand
She held onto her wide brimmed black hat. The hat
definitely made a fashion statement, even if
It did little to warm Ally’s ears.
Meiver, (a good friend the couple had asked to
“officiate”), stood wrapped in a her huge down jacket,
With her hood up and her long black hair trying
desperately to escape the cold whiplashes of wind.
She spoke beautifully and read words she had written,
that brought tears to the eyes and a lump
To the throat…words that described and defined what
“love” between two people should be.
Cat and Ally spoke the vows they had written to each
other, and the wind suspended them up
In the air, where they stayed private and special
between the two lovers.
An attempt was then made, to light a glass sheltered
candle, to symbolize their eternal love and
It took quite a few attempts, before the famed “Hawk”
of Chicago allowed that flickering flame
To burn steady…but it did…even if only for a very
short while…and that was good.
“We”, who were gathered, stood with our (not warm
enough) woolen and puffy down coats,
With our hats and our hoods pulled down to protect as
much of our faces as possible. We held
Scarves and gloved/mittened hands to our mouths, so
that it would not hurt so much to breathe
In the frigid air. That “Hawk” of Chicago showed us no
mercy, but those who live in that windy city
Know its’ strength and power all too well. I myself,
was wearing layers of under armor, tights and
Fleece-lined gloves, and still that wind blew through
me like I was standing on the beach
Wearing my birthday suit!
I could tell the others around me were faring the
same. I sympathized with those who had been
“chosen” to read bible passages or to deliver some
sort of reading…for they stood clutching
Bits of paper in hands clenched and frozen in
position…hands that would take some time
To return to normal once they were again gloved and
warmed.
A kind of “aprosexia”
took hold of me, as I tried really hard to focus on the proceeding.
I felt my body succumbing to the cold, just as surely
as my mind began drifting into a state
Of “daydream believer”.
An old gypsy proverb came to me then:
“We are all
wonders on this earth, our hearts are full of wonder and our souls are deep
with dreams”.
Sometimes, I thought, we find someone special to share
all that “wonder” with. Sometimes our
Souls so “deep with dreams” open up to another person and
we share our similar dreams. Together…
hand in hand we walk into our futures, following those
dreams of ours,
separate and yet combined…hoping that
we can experience the joy of having our dreams come
true.
Sometimes we find such a soul mate, and we know we are
blessed and pray that our love will last.
We all need someone, and if not a “special someone”,
then just each other to warm us and
to put “wood” on our fire…
For “without wood, the fire would die”.
We were lined up, after the “ceremony” and
photographed…many times over, in many different
Groups and couplings…our smiles did not need to be
coaxed, for they were frozen on our faces by
“The Hawk”.
When every possible angle and setting had been explored and forever
captured by
The talented photographer (another friend of Cat and
Ally), we were “released” and allowed to
Leave the beach and head for some food, spirits and
…heat!!!
As we (all) trudged back from the beach, frozen and
windblown, we headed to one of Chicago’s famous
“stuffed pizza” eateries. We arrived about 15 minutes
later, a surprisingly joyful group, pink cheeked and
teary eyed from the wind, chattering and singing away.
The restaurant was warm and cozy and filled with
delicious and mouthwatering aromas…not to mention they
had an excellent selection of wines as well!
After we (gratefully) peeled layer upon layer of
winter clothing off, we sat down to a delicious
dinner and the wine flowed freely as we laughed and
sang songs …”bad people don’t sing
songs”—
another gypsy proverb says-- was that true, I
wondered? But then again, the gypsies
didn’t know
everything, now did they? Their advice to “stay where there are songs” we took to heart and
partied and sang till the streetlights had long come
on…we stayed where there was music, and laughter
and love.
Love? It was
all around us that day, and we ALL felt the magic…for it was very real!
It continued the following day, as we were all invited
to partake in a Thanksgiving feast.
The first “feast” prepared by the new couple, in their
apartment…turkey with all the trimmings
and houseguests crammed in every nook and cranny of
the newly joined couple’s apartment.
But no one minded…no one at all. The meal was a
delicious success, right down to the dessert pies!!!
“A tear in the
eye is a wound in the heart”?—There go those damn gypsies again…
There are such things as ‘fake truths and honest lies’…and I suppose there are also
exceptions to
to every rule that exists. BUT…there is NO wound in
the heart… when that “tear” is one of joy!
Then that tear multiplies and fills the heart to
overflowing with love.
Miracles? They DO happen every single day! Some people
don’t believe that, but if you keep your
Eyes open and focused to see them and your heart tuned
in to believe…then you TOO will be blessed
With an abundance of (small and large, special and
everyday) wonderful miracles!
“We” were “gathered” together, on that freezing cold
day in November, and we (all of us) witnessed a miracle…
A bond between two people, who, against all odds had
found each other, who loved each other and who
Were determined to make their union last.
“We” who were “there” were forever changed by the beauty
and honesty shared by
these two soul-mates, beneath a canopy of blue,
highlighted
by a dazzling sun, accompanied by an orchestra of
crashing waves, a choir of happy seagulls and
joined by friends and family who echoed every beat of
Cat & Ally’s love, inside their own hearts.
Miracles? They just don’t get any better than that.
