Saturday, April 12, 2008

Rainy Day Blues

Rain

I opened my eyes
And looked up at the rain,
And it dripped in my head
And flowed into my brain,
And all that I hear as I lie in my bed
Is the slishity-slosh of the rain in my head.

I step very softly,
I walk very slow,
I can't do a handstand--
I might overflow,
So pardon the wild crazy thing I just said,
I'm just not the same since there's rain in my head.

---Shel Silverstein


The muse has left me.
I have been blogging for a month now, and I have nothing new to say.

Earlier this week I posted a blog about all the green beginning to emerge in my garden. Excited by the promise of spring blooms and encouraged by the warm, sunny weather, I spent two days raking, cleaning up my large porch planter, and transporting several loads of leaves and dirt to the compost pile. But then my body said, "Enough!" I retreated to my couch the rest of the day, feeling sorry for myself that my youthful spirit and mind are housed in this tired, middle-aged body.


Then the rains came. The wind blew. And blew.

I became preoccupied with other necessary chores--running errands, long-overdue cleaning projects, and even working at a "real" job for a day. Somewhere in the midst of all this my muse retreated into unknown regions. I began surfing blogsites, vicariously enjoying the blossoms and wildlife others were seeing outside their windows. I enjoyed virtual travel to far-off places, from Guatemala to Italy to the United Kingdom (my personal favorite for a visit outside the U.S.).

I looked outside my window for an inspiration, something I could share with my new blogging friends. The daffodils were already blooming, but several were bowed over from the struggle to survive the strong winds. The hyacinths were emerging from their nesting places, but the rain kept me from photographing them. The lilac bush and the crabapple trees were beginning to bud, but freezing temperatures are predicted this weekend. And so I began to worry--will they survive the freeze or will they fail to bloom like last year? And another worry--my front yard is littered with shingles, the result of the storms and winds the last few days. Sigh. Looks like I'll be getting a new roof soon instead of the new carpeting I have been waiting for so long.

And still there is nothing new to say.

Please forgive my sounds of self-pity: it must be the rain inside my head. I think I'll just wait it out and go take a nap instead.



Sasha pleads, "Won't you let me in out of the rain?" (I did.)

12 comments:

  1. Aaahh come on Rose, this time will soon pass and be a distant memory. Things get us all down at times, but hey we are here to live another day. If you look hard enough there is always something to make you smile.
    Tks re UK we will always welcome our American buddies.
    Know what you mean about money. We took this old house on (400 years old), and after seven years she still isn't finished. I try to look at it that she has history and charm although she crumbles around the edges.lol.
    Life is full of ups and downs, that is life, so if you are a little down, they way now is up. Wait and see.

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  2. Thanks for the encouraging words, Cheryl. I really didn't mean to sound depressed, because I'm not. Just not feeling very creative.
    I know that in a couple months I will be complaining about the heat and the lack of rain, and I am so thankful that we didn't get the tornadoes that were originally forecast last week.
    A 400-year-old house? How fascinating! We used to live in a 100-year-old house, which is old by American standards. It had history and charm but also many challenges.

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  3. Rose that was a great post.You have so much to say. I have a picture of your garden and you as a person now. I also like that poem, I have never come across it before (lovely cat too!)
    I don't really have much to write today either but blogs are diaries aren't they? and most of us probably lead pretty boring lives really dispite the frivalry!
    If it helps it's pooring with rain here now too!!
    Don't stop blogging, I'll miss you.

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  4. I am sure you will have plenty to say in the days to come. spring will come and with it many blooms which I will look forward to seeing.

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  5. Rose, I just love Shel Silverstein. I read his books to my daughters all the time when they were small.

    I understand how you feel. There are times when I don't feel I have much to say on my blog too, especially during weather like you've been having! During times like that, I catch up on reading others' blogs, or catch up on stuff I should have been doing instead of blogging and reading blogs.

    I'm in the south suburbs of Chicago, and I think the weather forecast is looking up this week, hopefully for you too. I'm so tired of this cold, dreary spring, after the cold dreary winter! I suspect your muse will return with a bit of warmth and sunshine. And then, you might be too busy playing in the garden to write about it, or too tired after playing in the garden to write about it! :)

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  6. A fun, creative post, Rose ... love Shel Silverstein! Reminds me of many precious moments reading to my children (now grandchildren). Posting is hard for me since rainy days are filled caring for my now legally blind sister after surviving horrific illness this past year. Both of us are challenged beyond belief! But the sun always shines meeting lovely posters like you. Thank you for sharing encouraging words on my site.

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  7. Rose - you say you haven't anything to say, but you said tons in that post. That's the sign of a good writer.

    So glad you enjoy your visits over the pond :)

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  8. Suburbia,
    Thanks for the kind comments! You're right; my life seemed pretty boring last week--I didn't think anyone wanted to hear about my vacuuming or cleaning the litterbox.
    But don't worry; I won't quit blogging--I've gotten addicted to this!

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  9. Starnitesky, Thanks for dropping by. I am enjoying your photos.

    Garden girl, I think the muse is coming back. Last week I had little time for quiet contemplation, which I need for writing. And you are right--the warm weather predicted for this week will surely help!

    Joey, Thank you for such kind comments! I really didn't mean to sound so pitful. I have so much to be thankful for, especially when I know people like yourself are struggling with tremendous challenges every day. I wish you the best.

    VP, I can't afford a plane ticket right now, but I fly over the "pond" for a visit almost every day--such fun!

    And a note to all who enjoy Shel Silverstein: Although his poetry was intended for children, my high school students would often bring in one of his poems when I asked them to read a favorite poem of theirs. He may never make it into a book of great literature, but his poetry has a way of appealing to all children, young and old.

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  10. hello rose, its lovely to meet you ... I loved this post, because there are so many days like this and you capture the mood beautifully.

    I don't know anything about writing at all, but I guess its easy to write about big exciting things - a really great writer to me is someone who can describe the subtle and sometimes humdrum parts of life. And they are the things that really connect with other people?

    BTW we have a lilac tree outside our kitchen window and its new buds had heavy snow on them a week or so back.. and they're fine, they're bouncing back .. hope yours does too :-)

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  11. Rose, Love this post! The sun is out today, so you will get your muse back. I have awarded you the "E" for excellent. See my post for instructions.

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  12. Well, I'm glad you let Sasha in out of the rain! I love that poem! I know the feeling well.

    We all have our down days - except possibly me where blogging's concerned! I'm very quiet naturally so I think all the junk in my brain just flows out when I get near my blog. Much better to have an occasional good post than lots of rubbishy ones.

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