To my beloved Aunt

This is homage, tribute, song and verse
For someone kind, someone gentle
Someone who always put everyone else first
Through life immemorial, she’s been near
Loving, caring, giving, calling, being there

She loves selflessly
She gives generously
She has lived a life of service
To you and me and God

She bore no children, but had kids
She was rich and gave it all away
She could have been free and left us
She stayed and loved in spite of us
She is our nucleus, our path back, our way

Our lives are thus enriched,
Our paths are enlightened with her glow
Her life to us she has given,
To love, to family and God.

Would that you be so blessed,
Would that you be so loved,
Would that you have angel
Like our Mina, touch your soul.

I have to come clean with all of you. I bought Christmas cards and even presents, but I am so distracted and air-headed that I totally forgot to send them. It’s almost Valentines and I am still tripping over envelopes and birthday cards from last year. It isn’t that I don’t remember, I just forget to do something about remembering. The internet has helped me a lot. I am able to reach out to a lot of people and let them know that I love them and how very important they are for me. If I had to do it through snail mail, well, I would be tripping over a lot more boxes and a lot more cards.

I have always admired people that send their presents out on time and that always send the perfect card and that always have it all together like that. Is it that they care more?? I wouldn’t say that, I would say they cared differently.

In a numerous family as mine, it is almost impossible to remember everyone’s birthday and to reach out and let them know they are loved. It is almost impossible to try to reach every corner where we have gone to and let you know that you are remembered and that you are loved, especially if you don’t have internet. It is almost impossible to get a little something for everyone and to share what you have and divide it so much so that it reaches every one, at least a little bit. Almost…

My aunt is an emissary of goodness and love hereon earth. She is the quintessential light worker and reaches out with love and generosity, offering a prayer and passing the treasures that come to her onto everyone who surrounds her. She is the staunchest believer in people and is fiercely loyal to her belief in goodness, forgiveness and acceptance.

People that share her faith know that her conviction is admirable, her faith unshakable and the love that she feels for her creator are her light and salvation. She believed in God when it was cool to be religious and even now that it is not so cool. She carries her bible and has remained true through the decades of love, apathy, cynicism and awakening. Through the changes in the world and the evolutions of spirit she still labors the same way, showing love, sharing grace and living life with integrity and for the sake of others.

One day, we will have to imagine what will become of us when she is no longer with us. However that day is not upon us and we still have the opportunity and the grace to reach out to her and tell her that she is loved, that she is cared for and appreciated for the wonderful things she has filled our lives with. We can still tell her that she touched our lives and that somehow we are a little better, a little wiser because of her actions, because of her example.

I wish for everyone to have a Mina, I wish for everyone to be blessed with that grace that she bestows upon us. If you have your own Mina, reach out to her and tell her how she has changed your life and tell her how much her life has impacted yours. Tell her she has made a difference and how you are blessed with her love.

Tomorrow is her birthday and I will celebrate her presence in my life. I will cheer the love that has reached throughout the years and the miles and pray that we are blessed with yet another year of her miraculous touch.

Happy Birthday Beloved Mina
With all of our love,
China
Victoria, Damian, Tony and la Flaca…


Tengo que confesarles algo. Yo compre tarjetas y regalos de navidad, pero soy tan distraida y tan alocada, que no los mande. Ya es casi dia de San Valentin y todavia me estoy tropezando con cajas de regalos y tarjetas de cumpleaños de el año pasado. No es que no me acuerde, pero siempre me olvido de hacer algo con lo que me acuerdo.
La internet me ha ayudado. Ahora tengo la oportunidad de compartir y conversar con diferentes personas y decirles lo mucho que los quiero y cuan importante son para mi. SI tuviera que usar el correo regular, bueno, necesitaria otra casa para las tarjetas y los regalos.

Yo siempre he admirado a las personas que envian sus regalos a tiempo y siempre mandan la tarjeta perfecta. Es porque a ellos les importa mas, ellos quieren mas?? Yo creo que para ellos es diferente.

En una familia tan numerosa como la mia, es casi imposible acordarse de los cumpleaños de todos y dejarles saber de que son recordados. Es casi imposible alcanzara todas las esquinas y los caminos donde nos ha llevado la vida y recordarte lo mucho que eres querido y apreciado. Es casi imposible comprar regalitos y detalles a todos y compartir con todos lo que tienes, dividirlo cien y mil veces para que todos tengan, para que todos estemos bien.
Digo casi porque hay una persona que si se acuerda, que si se preocupa, no solamente en tu cumpleaños y navidad, sino siempre y por todos. Alguien que a pesar de que no tiene es millonaria, reparte sus tesoros, su tiempo y su amor entre todos nosotros. Mi tia Mina es unica.
Mi tia es una emisaria de la bondad y el amor en la tierra. Ella es un ser iluminado que toca a todos con su amor y su generosidad, ofreciendo una plegaria y compartiendo sus momentos, sus manjares, sus tesoros. Ella cree en la gente, en el bien, el perdon y la comprension hacia todos.
La gente que comparte su fe saben que su conviccion es admirable, su fe es inquebrantable y el amor que ella siente por su creador son su luz y su salvacion. Ella creia en Dios cuando creer en Dios estaba de moda, y aun ahora que no esta tan de moda. Ella lleva su biblia y ofrece a todos su mensaje amor y salvacion y se mantiene firme en sus creeencias a pesar del recorrido de los años. En los tiempos de amor libre, apatia, cinismo y despertar. A pesar de los cambios del mundo y la evolucion de el espiritu ella todavia tiene su mismo mensaje, demostrando su amor incondicional, compartiendo su fe, y viviendo su vida con integridad por ella y por todos nosotros.
Algun dia, Dios la llevara nuevamente a su lado y nosotros sufriremos la perdida. Pero aun la tenemos con nosotros. Aun tenemos la oportunidad de decirle cuanto la queremos y cuanto ella significa para nosotros, dejarle saber que ella en algun momento toco nuestras vidas y somos mejores personas por la fe que ella tiene en nosotros y el ejemplo que ella ha sido en nuestras vidas.
Quisiera que todos tuvieran una Mina, que todos se sientan bendecidos con el amor y la comprension que ella nos regala. Si tienes tu propia Mina, llamala y dile lo mucho que ella ha significado y significa para ti, y como ha impactado tu vida y como tu vida es tanto major por ella.
Mañana es cumpleaños de mi Mina y yo voy a celebrar su presencia en mi vida. Que las 1146 millas que estan entre su casa y la mia no sean obstaculo para yo dejarle saber lo mucho que ella significa para mi y cuanto la quiero y aprecio. Voy a celebrar por otro año que ella nos regala donde su amor no conoce tiempo ni distancias, un año mas de su amor incondicional.
Feliz Cumpleaños Minita!!!
Con todo nuestro amor,
China,
Victoria, Damian, Tony y la Flaca

Lost in a cup of coffee

Hmmm!!! The smell of coffee fills the air and that is just one of the not-so-subtle reminders that it is time to wake up and that there is plenty to do for today!
I get out of bed and wait for the coffee to circulate through my body. Piece of toast and coffee, that has been my breakfast for the past decades. At least I don’t eat it like my mom, standing over the countertop. The day will be filled with plenty of hard work, I am going to sit down and enjoy my coffee.
Today is not that bad actually. I have to go out there and make sure that the garden area has been prepared. I have to stir the soil to make sure that everything has gotten plenty of exposure to oxygen before we begin planting. I am waiting for my shipment to arrive for all of the seeds that I have ordered. We will have tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, strawberries and all of the other berries. I still have to get the apples from the man next door, but my apple trees should be ready next year. Still haven’t decided what I am going to do in the perimeter… pumpkins are great and not expensive but what to do with all of those pumpkins.
This morning I also have to work on the layout for the new site for the chicken coop. I want it to be larger so that the ladies have more room to roam around and I have to see about the ducks that Tony wants, although I would prefer just turkeys or quail…. Hey, there is an idea; maybe if I can convince him of the quail we can avoid the whole duck thing… I just don’t like ducks, they seem slimy!!!
The mini Drexels have to be milked and I have to let that milk set out for the cheese. Also, it’s almost time to make more butter again. Have to find where all my glass jars went. Time to clean out the barn and move that to the compost pile, but the kids can do that when we get done with school.
Once that has been worked with this morning, we have to do school and I have to look at what Damian is missing from the rest of his curriculum, maybe this morning we can focus more on the math so he can finish that objective once and for all. Homeschooling lets him do things at his own pace but his own pace is too slow sometimes. Oh well!!
Then he has to go out there and feed the animals and then he can go try his new fishing pole in the creek. Gabriela on the other hand has to finish that essay she was doing for me. I know she has been distracted with her other projects but that has to be done for the school board.
Then I have to work on dinner, I think I will get some roast out of the freezer and get some herbs from the greenhouse and just throw it all in the crock pot. That way I can work on my articles this evening and submit them way before the deadline this time.
I have to email Victoria back and tell her of course she can come home this weekend and get some blueberries out of the chest freezer so that I can make her some blueberry delight and I think Tony is taking the weekend off so I have to see if he wants something special for dinner or what I can do for him too, maybe if I butter him up he will help me fix that spot on the fence and then I can let the animals roam on that other section.
Oops, thank God for the toaster dinging, coffee cup is done and it is time to get out there. Too much planning and not enough doing…..