Petals of Friendship

Never go to an accordion lesson impaired. We had just achieved a huge goal at work and my director invited us to celebrate at a local restaurant at the end of the day. I didn't think two glasses of wine would really affect my ability to concentrate during my lesson, but it did. I had two challenges at this lesson. First, was my inability to concentrate. Second, was realizing that I had been playing a chord I learned last week incorrectly. Hmmm. Whatever I was playing sounded pretty good to me, but my instructor picked up on my error. Needless to say, my lesson was not very productive. Acutally, it was horrible. I was thankful it was over, although, now came the hard part. I had to unlearn the wrong chord, and train myself to play the right one. A habit is hard to break. That's how it is in life, too. It's been a week now, and I've been playing the right chord (I think) and it sounds right. It's a symbol to me that I can get rid of bad behaviors and replace them ...

Who says God doesn't answer prayers? There is a scripture that says, "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." (Ps 37:4). Since I was a little girl, I have wanted to play the accordion. When Joe surprised me with the accordion, I was excited and afraid at the same time. My first lesson was interesting and challenging. I had to put my intimidations aside, and put my brain into action. Both of those, hard to do!! I warned Liz, my instructor, that I would take twice as long to learn since I did't know how to read music. She assured me that I would learn. She was very patient with me. There's another psalm that reads almost like the first. It says, "May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed ." (Ps 20:4). That's my prayer now. I don't have lofty goals, but I do want to get to a point where I'll be able to play at least one song without a single mistake. We...

It was my turn to choose a video. I shuffled through the Netflix titles and found "Bread and Tulips". I read the description and when I learned that it was set in Italy, I was immediately drawn to it. In one of the scenes, Rosalba, the main character is on a picnic with friends. There is food, and relaxation, which in and of itself drew me in. The dreamy moment for me, though, was watching her play the accordion for her friends. Joe just looked at me and said, "You're in your element, aren't you?" Of course I was. Actually, I was wishing I was in my element. Ever since I was about four years old I had wanted to play the accordion. Ok, I admit it! It's one of my favorite instruments. My husband knew this about me, and bless his heart, he was inspired. Fast forward a few months. I was snuggled under my covers when Joe burst into the room. He was carrying a large suitcase and delicately set it on the floor. Irritated, I asked him what he was doing and c...

I often knew when the request was coming. It was when my mother started making her gravy (pasta sauce to those of you who are not Italian). She would ask me to run to the garden and pick some basil for her. The basil was planted next to the parsley, and I could never tell the difference between the two. So, I always had to ask the question, “is it the one that smells?” That was how I could tell the difference between the two herbs. The basil had a strong aroma, and if I poked my nose close to it, I could tell which one to pick. Looking back, I remember how I hated going back to the garden to pick the basil. I had to fight off the grasshoppers and bees that came way too close to me, and caused me to move about in spastic motions just to avoid a dangerous encounter. It was a cautious walk to the garden, and a mad dash out of there. Sometimes I would not pick enough and my mom would send me back to gather more. Anxiety! Today, I grow my own basil, and the smell brings me back and fills me...