Monday, February 1, 2010

OUR FRIENDLY DOOR

James Dean, "Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today." Meridel LeSueur, "It comes like this - the song - the gentle giant hum of earth, and its sons and daughters are not in canisters of bombs." Emma Goldman, "They (idealists) have advanced mankind and enriched the world."
Kitty came over last night. She and Ann did 20 minutes of PM yoga, I did about 10. I'd prepared a broccoli cheese pie which we all enjoyed for a late supper.
When I was about 12-yrs-old my mother got into the habit of inviting Taig W to our house for supper every other Sunday. Taig was an unwashed sort of person. He wore dirty clothes and had a bad smell about him. Mom always made me sit next to Taig and I always objected. One day I asked why I had to sit by him. She pushed back my hair, looked into my eyes and declared, "Because you are a nice girl. I know you would never say anything rude or unkind to our guest." Wow! She was counting on me to make the poor old man feel welcome at our table! I did not disappoint her. One day we moved to the far side of town and Taig came no more to our friendly door.
When I was much younger I was staying with my Grandma Vanoss on the second floor of a building on 4th Ave in Mpls. As we sat down to eat our dinner I said, "This is a lot of food for two people." She stared at me in amazement. Then she told me to eat nothing, she put on her sweater and left. Several minutes later she returned with an old man. He was tattered but clean. After we had all eaten she gave him his hat and he left. I didn't know his name and we never saw him again. Grandma said my words were like an angel giving her direction. She had gone immediately out to the street and invited a stranger to eat with us.
Mary O, "Don't worry, sooner or later I'll be home... my shoulders covered with stars."

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