Happy 4th of July! Feeling Grateful in 2011

American Flag Flying High

Feeling Grateful in 2011

by Cindy Morawski

Military Tatoo in Washington DC

Thinking about the 4th of July can include picnics, parades, and fireworks.  But, thinking about the 4th might also include some gratitude for the American Dream.  If you have ever talked to someone who has recently become a citizen of the United States or someone who has lived apart from the U.S. for awhile, you might see some common threads~~Appreciation for what we're doing right.  I'm not saying America is fault-free.  Just like its citizens, Americans are a blend of good and bad, right and wrong.  However, I still see our country as a place founded on solid and shining values and common sense. 

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Our Capitol

What other place has "the pursuit of happiness" in its constitution?  When I stayed for a month in Turkey over a decade ago, I kept getting asked, "Where is your husband?"  Traveling as a woman alone is definitely frowned upon in some countries.  When I returned to the United States and pursued more traveling later, I couldn't help but notice that that question was no longer asked.  Freedom to move around, freedom to pursue happiness, and freedom to write this.  All that and more moves me to say "yes" . . . yes, I want to celebrate the birth of our country!  Red, white, and blue . . . stars and stripes forever . . . I pledge allegiance to the flag . . . I have a holiday, and it reminds me to be grateful.  What a country!

Lovin' America!



Paul, the Patriot, pictured in Colonial Williamsburg

Colorful Patriotic American Home

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!

~~ Cindy

www.cindymorawski.com



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Photo Essay~~June 2011~~Road Trip Travels and Inspiration ~~ Mackinac Island

Rocky Island Coastline

Off the Bike Path

Clouds and Sky on our Road Trip

Lake Michigan Lighthouse

Arch Rock, 146 Feet above the water

Patriotic and Colorful Waterfront Home

No Cars Allowed!

Light and Shadow

Lovely Lilacs, Lilac Festival 2011

View of the Bay

Red Geraniums on a Victorian Porch

Shoreline Landscape

Mackinac's Garden Flowers

Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, City Park

Seagull Friend at First Rest Stop

British Landing on Mackinac Island

Tall Towering Trees on the Island

Coastline's Wild Flowers

Quaint Mackinac Home on Shoreline Blvd.

Inviting Rest Stop

Trinity Church

Tulips along the way . . .

Starline Ferry--Jet Power!

A View of Fort Street

Checking Out the Fort

Dave and Karen

Uncle Arthur and Aunt Nancy

Paul and Cindy

Say Cheese!

Grand Hotel

Smilin' Saber

Waiting for the Ferry

Wisconsin Countryside

Red Barns of Wisconsin

Photo Inspiration and Essay, My Summer Happiness Project 2011

 by Cindy Morawski

Every now and then I get lucky.  This past trip to Wisconsin and Michigan made me feel that way.  I took my camera with me in the hope that I'd capture some of the countryside and landscapes along the journey.  I hoped too that I'd gain some inspiration for my pastel paintings later on as well.  When I first arrived in Wisconsin, the intensity of all those rain-fed greens almost made my eyes hurt.  I had been used to seeing mostly browns in San Antonio due to the third biggest drought in Texan history this past year.  However, I knew a 'Kodac Moment' when I saw one.  Paul and I started out the first day in Wisconsin by hiking through a city park that borders my aunt and uncle's place.  The light and shadows, wildflowers, grass pathways, and wildlife all contributed to a win-win walk through an outdoor wonderland.  We even saw a napping muskrat along the bank of the local creek.  Other sitings included a groundhog, butterflies, a squirrel, chipmunks, and a variety of birds. 

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After a visit in Marinette in Northern Wisconsin at my Cousin David and his wife Karen's lovely home, we took to the road once more and traveled North onto the Upper Peninsula in Michigan.  Lake Michigan was on our right as we advanced toward our goal-- Mackinac Island, another four hours away.  When we arrived,  we hopped a ferry and then 20 minutes later we stepped foot onto Mackinac.  Horse-drawn carriages, fudge shops galore, and Victorian homes lined Shoreline Boulevard as we made our way toward our hotel, the Harbor View Inn, in order to check in and freshen up.  After that, some of us rented bicycles and then we toured around the island, stopping for views and picture taking.  The bicycling trip was definitely one of my personal highlights.  The island's fresh air and great views along with our group's spirited energy all combined to make it seem like a perfect moment in time! 

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Day two led us to Fort Mackinac and some fascinating living history.  We all toured the fort and then extended our history trip by walking and visiting the historic places along Market Street, site for the early fur trading in Mackinac's resourceful past.  Our final stop before we caught the 3 o'clock ferry back to the mainland was the Grand Hotel.  Several pictures later, we walked back to Main Street and the nearby visitor's center and ferry boat dock.  Rechecking to make sure we had all our luggage and bags, we made our way onto the ferry, looking back one more time to say good-bye to the island paradise known as Mackinac.



My Happiness Project-- the Lilac Festival on Mackinac Island

The Lightness of Being with Lilacs and Leisure

--by Cindy Morawski

I've been reading a book by Gretchen Rubin called THE HAPPINESS PROJECT. Or, Why I spent a year trying to sing in the morning, clean out my closets, fight right, read Artistotle, and generally have more fun. I was searching for balance in my life. I needed a guide to give me permission to "generally have more fun." (If that makes any sense.) Getting introspective does no good at all if you're not willing to put helpful advice into practice. Therefore, I decided that it was high time that Paul and I put two of Gretchen's principles into play-- Be serious about Play and Make time for friends (and family). One item on both of our Bucket Lists was to travel more and to check out Mackinac Island in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. We also wanted to spend some time with family, my aunt and uncle, plus my cousin and his wife. Bingo! Both could be accomplished since they all lived in Wisconsin, near Michigan, and they all were interested in going on vacation to Mackinac Island for the Lilac Festival too. It seemed too good to be true!

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Island Ferry, a fun way to get to the island

Samuel Johnson once noted this about happiness, "As the Spanish proverb says, 'He, who would bring home the wealth of the Indies, must carry the wealth of the Indies with him.'"  Just remembering the exhilarating fragrance of lilacs from my childhood days in Pennsylvania, I instinctively recognized the value of celebrating anything to do with the Lilac. I figured that I could bring home not only happiness, but enough good times to wash over into my life for many months in the future.  That alone could make me a card-carrying person with improvements.  My favorite color also just happens to be purple, and guess what color this particular flower happens to be?  Sha-zizzle!  I was ready for a road trip, a reunion, and an adventure. 

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Haldimand Bay off Mackinac

Paul and I ended up in Milwaukee.  He took the train because his lung collapsed on May 16th due to a biking accident at a nearby park.  His doctor told him not to fly.  Of course, I had booked our flights to Wisconsin months in advance with Orbitz.  However, they wouldn't refund our money so I couldn't afford spending more money on train travel.  In the end, we both used different modes of transportation.  Although, the important thing was that we arrived around the same time in Wisconsin for our road trip and visit with the relatives.  And, we did just that.  My Uncle Arthur and Aunt Nancy picked us up in Milwaukee, and we then headed to Fort Atkinson where they live part of the year.  The next day we started on our road trip to Marinette, home of my Cousin David and his wife Karen, which is north of Green Bay on Lake Michigan.  Enjoying the luxury of not having to drive while experiencing a cooler climate and a beautiful landscape of fir trees and water along the way, we felt like we'd died and gone to heaven!

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Paul and Cousin Dave getting ready for a bike ride

I had learned a long time ago while riding horses as a kid, the importance of jumping back on after you've taken a toss from your mount.  However, it's one thing to do it as a child who is more Gumby than human, and then quite another as a more fragile adult in late mid-life, who's recovering from a collapsed lung and five broken ribs.  I wasn't sure after Paul spent almost an entire week in the hospital in May after his bicycle accident that he'd be jumping back on a bike anytime soon.  In fact, during his first follow-up doctor's appointment, his doctor asked Paul if he had any questions.  Paul replied, "Sure do.  When can I return to normal activities?  In other words, when can I go back to bike riding?"  Without missing a beat, the physician returned, "You can go ahead with bicycling right away.  But if you fall, you'll re-break your ribs and possibly hurt your lung again.  You haven't finished healing; it's going to take six months for those ribs to completely heal."   So, I was surprised when Paul agreed to rent bikes on the first day at the island.  Dave, Karen, Paul, and I selected our cruisers and then glided down the street for a complete tour around Mackinac.  Our first adventure! 

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Fort Mackinac, firing off the cannon

On the second day of touring the island, my Uncle Arthur and Aunt Nancy joined us for some sightseeing at Fort Mackinac.  This fort  served as a military outpost for British, and later, American soldiers from 1780 to 1895.  What delighted me most of all was the escape into the past with the living history all around us.  Folks acted the parts of soldiers, wives, blacksmiths, and merchants in order to bring the past to life.  The two soldiers in the photo asked us to plug our ears while they shot off the cannon.  Later, four soldiers marched past and re-enacted a rifle demonstration in the green common area inside the fort's walls.  On Market Street, we watched Robert Benjamin, the blacksmith, work on a design in metal and a daughter of the long-ago Biddle family cook stew over the fire in the fireplace.   I took a plunge into the past while learning about the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in early Michigan.  For me, happiness is not just reading about history; it's also seeing it come to life!

Victorian costume of an historic interpreter

Biddle House's Kitchen

My Family Touring the Fort

 

Uncle Arthur and Aunt Nancy

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Horse-Power, No Cars Allowed

Another aspect of my happiness project was to experience a slower pace of life, in other words, I needed to relax.  While researching about Mackinac Island, I discovered that the island banned motorized vehicles in 1898--  transportation is on foot, by bicycle, or by horse-drawn carriage or wagon.  Horses rule!  Imagine settling into your bed at night with no horns honking, engines racing, or tires screeching.  It's quiet, unless you count the clip-clop of horses' hooves on the narrow village streets.  I grew up with ponies and horses.  My all-time favorite animal is the horse.  I knew I wanted to be on an island surrounded by horses.  The health as well as happiness benefits of an exhaust-free atmosphere without car noise can be quite attractive.  Getting around for me meant getting happy. 

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Purple Power!

Early on in Gretchen's book she lists her Twelve Commandments.  Number Four on her list is "Do it now."  Well, I took her to heart.  I not only made time for my family, but I also took time for a vacation.  It was all good.  I came back from that trip with a lightness in my step and a smile on my lips.  My perspective shifted.  Change had happened.  I felt happy!

        

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~~Hope you have a happy summer!  Please write and tell me of your adventures.~~

----Cindy

Cindy Morawski

www.cindymorawski.com

cski02@sbcglobal.net

Pond Warriors~~A Short Story and a Painting by Cindy Morawski

Pond Warriors

by Cindy Morawski

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I could hear the frogs’ croaking song over the “American Idol” wannabe singing stars from our living room TV set. Could the neighbors hear it? Wondering to myself, I headed to the guest bedroom window to view the front ‘homemade’ pond that we’d installed a couple of years ago. The pond’s lights illuminated two frogs swimming jerky laps around the rocks and splashing central fountain. Looking downward at the water feature, I recalled standing on a Holiday Inn balcony, spying on fellow guests at the summer courtside pool. I thought about past vacations and late night swimming at different hotel pools. Now our pond was the neighborhood frogs’ version of a Holiday Inn retreat. Boy, what I would give to be one of those frogs right now. They looked like they were having a blast!

A week later, I put two and two together. Apparently, the frogs did have some fun. There were tiny tadpoles darting in and out of our pond’s rocks; and, there seemed to be millions of them hanging tightly onto anything that was horizontal. With no frog parents in sight, I concluded that these were abandoned children! Talk about irresponsible amphibian behavior! Although, my husband Paul and I were impressed that the frogs bestowed upon us the gift of their young. But, how should we care for them? We didn’t have any fish in the pond, so we weren’t treating the water for fish-life. What did tadpoles need to grow up to be big, healthy frogs? We googled on the internet and found out what to do next. After buying water conditioning products, we only added treated water so the tadpoles would not die from chlorine poisoning. Next, we used an old, torn screen from one of our windows to place around the water pump so they wouldn’t get sucked in and recycled into something else on the food chain. We added romaine lettuce leaves. Our informative tadpole guide told us that they liked lettuce. We thought we were on a roll. Proud of ourselves, we stood next to the pond with hands on hips, watching the little guys swim back and forth from the big rock to the small rock near the front of the pond. A couple hundred other tadpoles seemed to lack ambition. They opted for just lazying about on the shallow end without making any waves. Maybe they were really busy eating the green shadow of algae at the pond’s bottom. We worried that the still tadpoles might not be as healthy as the swimming ones on the other side.

The worries continued. The next afternoon when adding more conditioned water to the pond which happened to be down a couple of inches due to hotter weather and evaporation, I wondered if the tadpoles were hiding under the rocks. Where did all those millions of little swimmers go? I saw some clinging to a couple of algae-tinted rocks, but where was the big gathering? Were they hiding or camouflaged? My eyes darted back and forth trying in vain to see some sign of life. Finally, I gave up and went inside. That evening I trekked back out to the pond hoping to see the magic of a pond resurrected with teeming life forms, reassuring me that we humans had taken the right precautions for the frogs’ babies. The aquatic spotlights featured even fewer tadpoles. My stomach tightened. Ok, were they being body-snatched? Would I awaken to find myself inside a science-fiction-like dream? Star Trek’s “The Trouble with Tribbles” in reverse? Shaking my head and trying to clear my vision, I suddenly noticed a large, brown, roach-like waterbug crouched near the unsuspecting tadpoles. It sat motionless on a submerged, nearby rock. I had a funny feeling about this bug. Was it an alien in our underwater paradise? Without any time to kill, I pivoted and quickly sped inside to google myself into the world of waterbugs. Foe or Friend?? With our high-speed internet connection, in hardly any time at all, I found myself sullenly staring at a deadly creature nick-named “toe-biter”. It sucked the life force out of its prey. It resembled scary aliens I’d read about in sci-fi anthologies. It was the ENEMY! One of its favorite food items was tadpoles. It ranged all over North and South America. It flew, it swam, and it could even leave a human with a poisonous bite when cornered. These giant waterbugs could get as big as three inches in length. I noticed as I read on that I felt warmer. I could feel myself getting angry. Those poor, innocent tadpoles were the main course for lord-only-knows how many water-thugs. Justice needed to be served. But how?

After drafting my husband into my personal army of two, we headed outdoors in the dark, armed with a poled net and a long, sharp stick. We had a focused mission. Destroy all aquatic enemies! Regain enemy territory. Return it to the few, remaining tadpoles! Armed and dangerous, flashlight in hand, we readied for battle. The pond’s enemy seemed to have multiplied before our very eyes. Giant, menacing waterbugs were everywhere. On, under, and over rocks, the bugs fearlessly waited. We stood as one, gathering our military intelligence and a working battle strategy.
“Ok, you hold the flashlight, Paul. I’ll swoosh them out with the net. Then you smash them with the stick.”
“No, you hold the flashlight. I want to stab them with the stick in the water. Forget the clumsy net.”
We went back and forth. The battle was way-laid. Finally, we came to an armistice. I held the flashlight. Paul would do the smashing.
“Dang-it! I missed!” I could hear the frustration in Paul’s voice.
“All right, then. Let me have a crack at ‘em,” I volleyed back.
After several attempts at killing the giants, we still weren’t having any luck. Finally, I heard a deadly splash and a war hoop of delight. “Killed the sucker!” Paul sounded victorious.
I reached in with the net and retrieved the dead bug. It would be a specimen in a jar-memento of the battle effort, worthy of study later.
Genocide. Were we messing with Mother Nature? Well, we didn’t have to worry about wiping the giant waterbugs off the map. We were able to kill only a few. There were plenty more the following night. Armed and not-so-dangerous, we tried again. Feeling foolish, flashlights in hand, we wondered what the neighbors would think if we were caught red-handed in battle. Throwing caution to the wind, we just kept on plugging away with our guerilla tactics. We possessed a grim resolve, but the end was nowhere in sight. Eliminating those slippery, sneaky bugs was a lot harder than you could ever imagine. Finally, we shrugged and retreated to the house. Feeling defeated, we thought we had let the tadpoles down. In fact, we saw only a limited few that had survived the evil clutches of the toe-biters.

The next night, I didn’t have the heart to go out to stand by the pond. But, I did glance out the bedroom window, hoping to see the tadpoles reappear. Maybe, they had been safely hiding under some water plants. I sat in the window’s alcove dreaming of how they would continue to grow, in fact, evolve, back legs first, then the front legs. They would need air to breathe. Then, we’d see the transformation. There would be new-found frogs sitting on top of the rocks, jumping into the water by choice only. Mission accomplished! Rivet!!!

A splash in the corner of the pond distracted me from my nighttime reverie. I looked up. There was a large adult frog jumping deftly off a rock in the pond. It quickly surfaced. In its mouth was a three-inch waterbug. I looked again. Gulp. The bug disappeared into the frog’s mouth.

Back-up! The troops arrived just in the nick of time. Now we have a larger and fiercer army. “Colonel Frog at your command!” The Green Marines. Vindication comes in all sorts of packaging. It’s the Circle of Life.