Stop the insanity!

March 15, 2022 by Leave a Comment

download

STOP!  A forceful word which embodies our every thought at this moment in time. 

How can anyone hold back from wanting to scream this out as we witness the absolute devastation in Ukraine?  With each newscast, we’re witness to a cold-blooded murderous rampage, instrumented by a madman intent only on his objective to eradicate all vestiges of Ukrainian identity while condemning the country to a grim future as a military dictatorship locked firmly inside a new Russian Empire. 

As armchair witnesses to this horror, we express our prayers for the countless innocents lost in the assault on this sovereign democracy.  We donate to support groups who are in the forefront of rescuing children and families.  Prayers seem not enough, just a futile attempt to garner help for a situation now totally out of control.  It hits us the hardest when we see lives that once were, unceremoniously dumped into mass grave sites; when a maternity hospital is reduced to rubble, along with new lives that will never have a chance to blossom and make any difference in this troubled world.  The Russian barbarism is tearfully overwhelming.

We want it to stop.  Not just for the citizens of Ukraine but also because we are facing the likelihood of a significant war.  The challenges presented by this threat are far beyond the capabilities of the current administration of our country.  Somehow, it reminds me of that scene from “The Godfather” where Tom Hagen is belittled by Sonny who states that “he’s not a wartime consigliere”, being focused more on some peaceful mediation after the assassination attempt on Vito Corleone.

Personally, I’m not supporting any idea of war, but we stand at the crossroad of either being assertive, in some fashion, as a world power…or continuing with a pacifist demeanor as Russia implements its plans for subjugation of Ukraine.  

 

workshop-button-1From Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop…. Write a blog post inspired by the word: stop.   Зупиніть безумство!….Stop the insanity!

Signature
Filed Under: Uncategorized, Writing Prompts Tagged With: , , ,

Mummy to the rescue…

October 18, 2021 by 4 Comments

 

e0579bec85aebfcf8a66078bc1a0cfe5

The moon peered through the clouds and looked down with a sinister grin.  It was a cold and stormy night with a biting wind whistling through the trees on our street, ripping leaves and branches onto the sidewalk as we made our way. 

Nah.  It wasn’t, just wanted to grab your attention.

Actually, it was a pleasant Halloween night as we ventured out and headed to each home that looked promising for trick or treat goodies.  In tow was our oldest daughter, dressed as a scarecrow and her sister, all decked out as a mummy.  That costume took quite a while to put together as it involved cutting white sheets into strips that would be wound around her impatient and wiggly six-year-old body.  I must admit that I was quite proud of myself when all was done and wrapped. 

boys-mummy-costume

My handiwork lasted until halfway down our street and slowly turned into un-mummification and a very unhappy, and unraveled, youngster.  What to do, what to do?  My attempt to share a silly mummy joke crashed and burned so we headed back home, tripping over the disintegrating costume with each step.  

Let’s face it, I think most mothers have a backup plan for costume emergencies and Halloween candy can be a great mediator while they work some frantic magic.  Fortunately, I still had an unused white sheet in reserve and quickly created…a Ghost.  Within fifteen minutes, we started the candy trek all over again and our daughter ended up with an admirable haul of treats.  For her, the best part was revisiting homes she previously stopped at…and no one recognized the little Ghost doing an encore candy run.

images (1)

All in all, a fun memory of simpler times when kids could be just that…kids!  And…the adults were in charge of the goody bag candy inspections, especially the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Twix Candy Bars.   

 

workshop-button-1From Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop… A memorable Halloween costume.

Signature
Filed Under: Uncategorized, Writing Prompts Tagged With: , , ,

A haunted timepiece…

March 23, 2021 by Leave a Comment

thumbnail_IMG_6546

Suddenly, it has started to chime.

For years now, the piece has kept perfect time.  Except when the battery needed changing.  But, the chiming, another story.

I found it sitting on a shelf in a vintage shop, around 22 years ago, looking neglected and quite dusty. Still, it had some charm and I had the perfect spot for it in my home.  And the price was perfect.

Once cleaned, the personality of this old timepiece started to emerge.  I waited for each hour to turn and with that the musical sound from inside the clock.  Nothing.  Oddly enough, the clock did chime, not on the hour, and only once or twice in its years in our home.  I passed it off to the crankiness of an old piece, verified by a lot of research on vintage clocks. 

Last week, I heard chimes coming from our living room and thought it was one more random pealing.  Realizing that I had neglected to turn the time ahead for Daylight Savings Time, I did so, and walked away.  From that point on, the clock has been chiming, every hour on the hour.

Some new research was now called for to help determine if this is just a wonky clock…or something more, and what I’ve found has been interesting. 

A simple web search about chiming clocks brought up page after page of somewhat paranormal experiences, most involving the passing of someone in the home where the clock lived.  People have reported owning clocks which had stopped working, suddenly chiming at the time a loved one died.  Or, chiming just before a call comes in when a family member was in some type of accident. 

Okay, I’m a realist.  Kind of.  Clocks do what they want and stop working, no matter who owns them.  And, most repair shops will tell you it’s about cleaning them and how dust and atmospherics affect them.  Yes, yes.  Abnormal, paranormal, or someone looking down from the heavens and saying hello.  That’s what I choose to believe.

It’s 10:00 a.m. at this moment.  And our clock is chiming once again.

 

 

Signature
Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »