Deadlines Not Met

My Car In Repair Shop

Happened in a flash

a crash

bad gash

into repair

is it fair

month four

then more

gone too far

without my car

Jan to May

not okay

too long

and wrong

crew drags feet

deadlines to meet

mechanic antics

away time ticks

makes me blue

need car like new 

should be laws

about repair's claws

promises

not kept

deadlines not met

in a dark abyss

hoping it is

finished soon

at least

before June

E. Moscoso

April 30, 2015

 

A Craving

Last evening I wanted to eat something, but nothing sounded good. I opened the refrigerator door and saw veggies, milk, cheese, peanut butter, jelly, yogurt, bread and eggs. None appealed to me. I went to the pantry and there were boxes of cereal, canned good, potatoes, chocolate, pasta stuff, sardines, tuna packages, pizza makings and then my eyes focused on a box: Trader Joe's Cornbread Mix. That sounded good. I pictured a square of cornbread with melting butter or with jelly or just plain. Yes, I would bake me some cornbread.

I mixed the egg, oil and milk together. Added the cornbread mix and wondered about the chunks in the mix. Huhmm....kernels of corn. That was odd, I had never seen cornbread with corn before so I called a friend who loves to cook and asked her if she had ever seen corn kernels in cornbread. "Oh yes," she said, "sometimes I add a can of creamed corn and I believe it is called corn pudding. It is very good."

The cornbread was finished in about an hour. Then it had to cool. By the time I cut a piece to satisfy my craving, it was nearing nine o'clock. Even though I know that is too late to be eating, I ate a small square of the cornbread. I did not like the chewy kernels but the bread was tasty. I had another square. I got some jelly and tried to smear some on the cornbread, but the cornbread fell into pieces. So I plopped the jelly on top of the pieces of cornbread and satisfied my cravings. I ate more than I should have, yet, when I ended up going to bed, my cravings had disappeared!

"The North thinks it knows how to make cornbread,

but that is a gross superstition. Perhaps no bread in the

world is quite as good as Southern cornbread, and 

perhaps, no bread in the world is quite as bad as the

Northern imitation of it."

Mark Twain (Samuel Longhorne Clemens)

Pope Francis

On Saturday, April 25, 2015, I attended a meeting for the Small Church Communities of Spirit of Christ Catholic Community. Close to one hundred persons were gathered in the East Spirit Center for a pot luck breakfast and to hear Jesuit Jim Broderick King speak about Pope Francis. He told us that he was thrilled when the Pope chose the name of Francis because he thought that the Pope, being a Jesuit, had picked the name of one of the originators of the Jesuit order, Francis Xavier.  Then, he realized it was St. Francis of Assisi who Pope Francis had in mind. "Sell what you have and follow me," a quote from St. Francis that the Pope tries to follow.

One thing that impressed me about the Pope was that he wore his own shoes and did not wear the traditional red shoes of the papacy. He lived in community and not in the palatial dwellings of past Popes. He went to prisons to talk to prisoners, he mingled with the poor, he refused the bullet proof Pope-mobile, he did not want barriers between him and the people, he seemed open to radical thinking and he did not follow the norm. Yet, even though he seems to be liberal he also is conservative in his thinking.

This Jubilee Year is the Year of Mercy and the Pope's motto (which was told to us in Latin) is about an act of compassion by being merciful. We must decide to show mercy and that mercy, to Pope Francis, is used as a verb and not a noun. He has absolute love for his faith and wants to bring faith to others. When the group was asked for words defining the new Pope, even though there is no easy way to define him. Words tossed out were: Compassionate, liberal, approachable, radical, progressive, traditional, loving, non-judging and also a hard-line conservative.

I learned something I probably should have know, but didn't. Disciple means student and apostle is one sent out into the world to evangelize. One of the questions asked was how would we think "discipleship" would be explained to us by the Pope. It seems that St. Francis' words of love is shown in deeds and not in words would be his answer.


Thanks to Barb Howard who heads the Small Church Communities and to her son, Jeff Howard, for providing the music. The morning was filled with friendship, good food, music and learning about the Cardinal from Argentina named Jorge Mario Bergoglio who is now Pope Francis.

 

"A little bit of mercy

makes the world less

cold and more just."

Pope Francis

42nd Street

A few years back, I was visiting my brother on Long Island, New York. One of our outings was to see 42nd Street on Broadway. I loved the story, dancers and singing. The show glittered with the fancy costumes. After the show I purchased a CD and a red sweat shirt with a large 42nd Street on the front. I wore that shirt for three years until one day, on a hot day, I tied the shirt around my waist and it must have slipped off because I never saw my sweat shirt again.

I have seen a few shows of 42nd Street and none has come near to that Broadway production.  Today, at the Lakewood Culture Center I saw amazing dancing and singing in their production of 42nd Street.

Twenty-two persons from Young At Heart of Spirit of Christ Catholic Community attended the fun musical. I liked that there is indoor parking and elevators to the theater. When the play began the one thing I noticed was the lack of elaborate backdrops. The props were kept to a minimum but it did not distract from the tap dancing, the singing or the plot. The auditorium which seats over 300 persons is plush with a red velvet curtain, red comfortable seats, and seating in four side boxes for about six persons in each box. The music comes from the live musicians sitting below the front of the stage. What a workout those singers and dancers get as they perform for the audience!  Some of the songs I recognized: I Only Have Eyes For You, We're in the Money, Shuffle Off to Buffalo and my favorite, Lullaby of Broadway! The show ends with Forty-Second Street. I loved seeing the bows of the actors and hearing the clapping of the audience as the final curtain was pulled to bring the musical to a close.

A Book Signing

Yesterday, April 25, 2015, I went to a book signing at the Broadway Book Mall.  A friend and I entered the bookstore and were confronted with a narrow path between thousands of books, leading us to where the book signing would take place. Everywhere I looked there were books -- on tables, in floor to ceiling shelves and in racks. The place smelled as if at one time people had smoked cigarettes and now only the subtle smell remained. A small table with a blue tablecloth holding books by the author was in front of a bookcase. Large posters of different authors hung around the room. A few metal chairs were placed in front of the table and my friend and I sat down to wait for the author to appear.

The author was Manuel Ramos, an attorney and now a writer, who I had worked with in the past. When I saw him he looked so different from the black haired, dark mustached man I remembered. (See photo at end of this blog.) He is now clean shaven and his hair is white. After greeting him and his wife, who had not changed at all, other people began arriving for the signing.

I found out the two of the persons waiting for the signing to begin were also writers. One was a man by the name of Mario Acevedo, who when I asked which of his books I should read, suggested The Nymphos of Rocky Flats. El Paso Times had written: "A witty, fast-paced, detective tale that also manages to update vampire lore in creative and imaginative ways." I bought the book.

Juliana Aragon Fatula corrected me when I said her name in English as Jewliana and she said, "It's Hooliana." She writes poetry but is thinking of delving into trying a novel.

Manuel Ramos then read a short story from his new book, The Skull of Pancho Villa and Other Short Stories. I have six of his books on my shelf and a couple on my Kindle and now I am ready to read his latest book of short stories. His wife remembered that I took Manuel's photograph that was used in a couple of his first published works.

I enjoy writing also and it was very exciting to be around published writers. I will now open my autographed copy of The Skull of Pancho Villa and enter a world of somebody else's mind!

Is Sex That Important?

One of the ads for some kind of gel that helps in keeping a woman from experiencing pain during intercourse after menopause was being advertised on television. I thought, well that sounds like a good thing. Then, I heard the side effects. Premarin Vaginal Cream can cause stroke, blood clots, heart and liver problems, gall bladder disease, pancreatitis, headaches, pelvic and breast pain, vaginal bleeding, cancer or dementia.

I don't care how easy the gel would make having sex less painful, but the small print turned me off. I would rather be sexless than have the potential of suffering from one or all of those side effects. My belief is that if one can have sex without any artificial help then sex is worthwhile, but if something that might cause more harm is needed for pleasurable sex, then who needs sex! Then I recall what someone once said, " Even bad sex is good sex!"

An old woman was sipping a glass of wine while sitting in the patio with her husband.

She says, "I love you so much, I don't know how I could live without you"

Her husband asks, "Is that you or the wine talking?"

She replies, "It's me, talking to the wine."

A television show once mentioned that people that had sex, lived longer. The documentary showed an eighty-nine year old woman and a ninety year old man talking about how important sex is in a couple's life. They thought that having sex had kept them young. That could be true but those side effects are pretty scary! It certainly makes me wonder if sex is that important if one has to use something with so many side effects!

"The great secret that all old people

share is that you really haven't

changed at seventy or eighty years.

Your body changes but you don't

change at all and that, of course,

causes great confusion"

Doris Lessing

Minus One Molar

A few days ago, one of my molars fell out. It's a good think I did not swallow it because when I felt it in my mouth I thought it might be an ice cube. It wasn't. Underneath the pretty gold tooth it had decayed causing the tooth to fall out. It's hard to believe that even when a tooth looks good on the outside, the inside of the tooth may be rotting away. The gold filling on the tooth had been with me for over thirty years!

Three years ago, the dentist had told me that he would have to take care of the tooth, but I thought I knew better and did not return to the dentist. Big mistake. Now I have to either get an implant, bridge or have a large gap in my mouth!

When my molar fell out, there were pieces of my tooth still in the gum. The dentist, behind his white mask, had to pull the tiny pieces out and he struggled to get those pieces out. He dug and dug at those small pieces and two hours and ten minutes later, they were out! Then he stitched up the hole.  I held my mouth open and listened to the drilling, felt the tugging and had my mouth vacuumed so I wouldn't swallow any of the residue. The dentist is very patient and chatters with his assistants while he works. He even joined in singing Happy Birthday to one of the workers while working inside my mouth.

When I had to cough I said, "My throat feels dry and it's making me cough." He responded with, "Yes, it's the dry humor in this office."'

I was given instructions to follow when I came home. I shouldn't spit, rinse, use a straw, drink alcohol, smoke, or eat hard/crisp food like potato chips. I was told that following the instructions would help me from developing a dry socket, which I was told,  is very painful. I was given some gauze to make a small pillow and place it in the hole. It quickly got saturated with blood so I ended up changing the gauze four times. When I went to bed I was afraid I might swallow the gauze once I fell asleep, but in the morning it was exactly where I had put it the night before.

Today it's been 40 hours since the extraction of those pieces and luckily I do not have any pain. My mouth has a horrible taste but after 48 hours I can rinse. My advice, which I have not followed, is to go to the dentist regularly and have your teeth looked at because having a tooth pulled (or pieces) is no fun!

Dentist: Looking at the ex-rays, in 2012 I wanted to look at that tooth.

Me: I know but I thought I knew more than my dentist.

Dentist: You are not alone in thinking that way.

Me: Live and learn.

March 27, 1997

 
It pains me to see my daughter in pain. She looked like such a little girl this morning. She is thirty-two years old and no longer a baby, but to me, she will always be my baby! It's difficult to believe that my little girl is going to be a mother. She had bad contractions last night and it wasn't until the Epidural that she seemed to relax. She was on her side and told the nurse that her back hurt. She wiped her eyes. Was she crying?

I am in a waiting area that is cool, almost cold. I feel chilled. I wish I could be upstairs with my daughter but I also feel as if I would be intruding. I understand they want to do this themselves. Their first baby! I would love to be rubbing her hand, back, head, etc. But, instead I'll play the waiting game. My daughter is a very independent girl. She has always been, so why should I expect any different in this phase of her life? It is 8:30 in the morning, cloudy and it looks cool outside.  The hospital seems to be on the chilly side and I am cold. I want to know everything that is happening in the birthing room so when she comes home I'll quiz her on what went on.

8:55 a.m. I went up to the room. My son-in-law told me things were moving. She had almost dilated to a five. My daughter was on her side, breathing deep breaths. When I said I'd leave and go back down to the waiting room, she nodded. I patted her head and hand but I sense she wants to get it over with. Earlier I had asked her if she wanted me to be in the room when she gave birth and she had said no. It is so difficult seeing my baby in pain. Childbirth is the most painful pain of all pain and it looks as if she's having a hard time. Maybe there will be a quick birth soon. My son-in-law called his parents and they are on their way.

That's all I had written in a tablet I found while cleaning out a drawer. I remember sitting in a waiting room at St. Jude hospital with the other grandparents and wondering when the baby would be born. This would be my second grandchild and I could hardly wait. As we waited, we talked about many things but our thoughts were on how my daughter was doing and what was going on in that hospital room!

When the baby made her appearance and after she had been cleaned up, we entered the room. From what I can remember, it was one happy and exciting day!

                                                             

Never Ending Saga

On April 10, 2015, I wrote about coming to the end of a tunnel. Well, it seems as if the tunnel continues to go into infinity and beyond! My car is still at the AutoNation Collision Repair and every time I hear from the repair shop it's to let me know the car is not quite finished being repaired. I find it difficult to understand why it is taking three months to fix my car. The message I received on Friday was that there was a possibility that my car would be done by April 20. Yesterday on April 20, the message was: Your Honda is now painted and the insides are being put in. Things like the glass and other small things need to be replaced. Don't worry about the rental because we will continue paying for your rental until Friday, April 24. Maybe this time they mean it and I will have my car by Friday!


I have been given many dates for the completion date! The first date was around the beginning of March, moved to the first week in April, then mid-April and now almost the end of April. They told me that my deductible would be used to pay for the car rental and then yesterday I received a letter from my insurance company letting me know another check had been sent for $1,354.20 to the collision place.

My suspicious mind tells me that the third amount charged to my insurance is covering my car rental along with other minor repairs needed to finish my car. It's interesting that the repairs were estimated to be a certain amount and I received a check for that amount. After having my car in the shop for over a month, I was told more damage was found and another estimate plus another check. Now, another estimate and a third check! I am hoping the information I received yesterday is the last amount that will be charged to fix my car.

If my car comes back as new, as the repair shop tells me it will, I will be satisfied. If it doesn't come back like new, I wonder what recourse I have? I have a headache just thinking about my car and all it has gone through after being attacked by that red Mazda pickup!

Across the road I slide

when hit on the side.

Car broken

metal pokin'

in repair

is it fair?

Too long, you see

after month three.

A car rental 

making me mental

when will my Jazzy

be returned to me?

E. Moscoso

April 22, 2015

Viva Cristo Rey

When I worked at Centro San Juan Diego, the Hispanic Office of the Archdiocese of Denver, we had many visiting priests from Mexico. One thing I noticed about them was that they never wore a priest collar. They dressed in casual clothes and did not look like priests. I asked why and was told it was a fall back to the Cristero days. A time when the Mexican government, under President Callis, wanted to do away with anyone who believed in God. Priests would wear secular clothing so that soldiers would not know they were priests and they could perform their priestly duties secretly.

Callis' attacks began by deporting foreign religious persons, moved to putting priests in prison, and ended up by murdering many persons who believed in God. The people rebelled and fought back. Rebels fought the government soldiers and one source maintains that over 90,000 to 250,000 persons were killed during the years of 1926 to 1929. A movie, For Greater Glory, came out in 2012 about this sad period in Mexico.

Today at Mass during the homily, the priest talked about the revolution and in particular of a young man by the name of Jose Luis Sanchez Del Rio. He was tortured and killed because he would not renounce Christ. "They cut the bottoms of his feet and made him walk to where they gave him one more chance to give up his religion. He refused and he was killed. As he fell to the ground he drew a cross in the dirt and kissed it while shouting Viva Cristo Rey!" The young boy was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005.

"Long Live Christ the King should be our cry also," the priest said. He mentioned all the persecution going on in the world today against Christians and that we should pray for those dying for their faith. How we should be good soldiers in defending our faith.

I wonder how many of us would be willing to die for our faith?

Russia Surpasses The United States

This blog probably won't mean anything to anyone, but the majority of  people who read my blog come from the United States. A few days ago I noticed that Russia had more readers of my blog and I wondered why.
For a few days there were more Russian viewers, but today the United States again had the most readers. I find it odd that there are persons viewing my blogs in Russia.

As curious as I am,  I will probably never know the reason, but I do find it interesting!

The countries viewing my blog are United States, Russia, France, Germany, Ukraine, Latvia, United Kingdom, Poland, Canada, Turkey and Mexico.

 "99 percent of all statistics

 only tell 49 percent of the story."

Ron DeLegge II

Until We Meet Again

Last night I attended an emotional rosary for someone who loved so many people and somebody said, "She never met a stranger." I know how seeing her and talking with her made me feel better because of the happiness and joy that seemed to burst out of her as she smiled. I learned that she had a special way of hugging so that her heart, and the receiver of the hug, embraced heart to heart. Which meant my left side and her right side would be near.

I liked when Deacon Ross said that we can never judge anyone, because God is the final judge. Also, to not speak of Retta in the past tense because she is still with us in spirit.

About ten persons got up to eulogize her and most ended sobbing. Her mother broke my heart as she talked about her daughter, and her granddaughter's "I love you Grandma," was heart wrenching. Sisters, brother, in-laws, and friends got up to remember the sweet person who was now gone.

Today, April 17, 2015 the funeral mass was co-celebrated with Fr. David and Fr. Jacob. Deacons Steve and Dick assisted. Fr. Jacob spoke on time spent with Retta as they traveled to the Holy Land, India and at Spirit of Christ as she learned more about her faith. "It's as if she could not get enough religion." A good friend, Melba, spoke about time spent with Retta. I noticed she kept her hands moving over her speech on the podium and found out she used Braille to "read" her remembrance.

I did not go to Mt. Olivet with the family but saw them when they returned to Spirit of Christ. A video of Retta and her family and friends was shown over and over again and each time someone remembered a special time spent with Retta.

The Touch Committee of Spirit of Christ Catholic Community put out the food and everyone enjoyed the friendship and remembering Retta. Her husband, Brian, seemed like a lost soul. I ached for him because it looked as if he was in deep suffering and Retta was not around to console him.

A display of some of her pictures and articles were in the gathering space. I took a few pictures and will put them at the end of this blog. Sweet Retta is gone and those left will continue to miss her but time and God will eventually heal the sense of loss. Retta will never be forgotten yet, the pain of her being gone will slowly subside.

The Rosary

The Mass

 Her Belongings
 She collected coins she found and often mentioned the "In God We Trust" on each penny.

 





The Reception   
Retta's parents and siblings.                                                                  

This is not the end of a beautiful life 

that only she knew what was in her heart, 

but the beginning of a life closer 

to the God she loved.

E. Moscoso
April 17, 2015

Something I Do Not Like To Do

Driving at night is not one of my favorite things to do. Somehow, my vision seems to fade away once the sun goes down and I am in the car. I have problems seeing the yellow lines to stay in my lane. If an area is well lit, I do not have qualms about driving but if it is dark, I slow down to try and see better. After making my comments about not liking to drive at night, I still do it. There are times when I need to go someplace so I venture out at night.

Last night was one of those nights. After leaving a rosary for a friend who had passed away, it was dark and on top of it being dark, it was snowing! With a prayer in my heart, I started home. The windshield wiper could barely keep the window clear of the large, fluffy looking balls of snow hitting the windshield. Not only could I not see the yellow lines, I had no idea if I was in the right lane. Luckily, other cars seemed to give me a wide berth by making their own lanes.

If I had not been so worried, I would have enjoyed the beautiful night. The snow falling down seemed to bounce off my car and I felt as if I was driving through a tunnel of white. Luckily, I pulled into my driveway with a big thank you! Then, my passenger side window had ice crystals stuck to it. I got my camera and took a picture which looked like couples dancing or horses rearing up. I put the picture on Facebook and a friend thought it looked like breaking waves and I could see that also! It reminded me of learning about Rorschach charts and trying to figure out what was in the blobs of ink!

Even though I am not a fan of driving at night, I am glad I was out last night or I would have missed seeing such an unusual ice crystal display of art stuck on my car window!

It Can't Be True

Yesterday I read something on Facebook that I could not believe. A friend was dead. I saw her six days ago and she was laughing and happy as she worked on decorations for a luncheon. And now she is gone? How could that be, I kept asking.

About three years ago after one of the nine o'clock masses, a petite, beautiful young woman approached me. "How would you like to cook a meal for the priests," she asked. I told her I did not cook and not to put me on her list to prepare meals for the priests. She smiled and moved on to ask someone else. She seemed to have a special kind of beauty in the way she smiled and talked. I did not see her again until a year later when I joined a few persons for coffee at McDonald's. She sat across from me and if I said anything, she seemed genuinely interested. She and I talked and I was impressed at her goodness, kindness and holiness. She told me about losing her daughter in 2011 and how God was seeing her through the painful experience.

I mentioned that  because of a broken ankle, I had been unable to take pictures at the Young At Heart dinner in October. She said, "Oh I took lots of pictures and I can send them to you."  We exchanged e-mail addresses and she sent the pictures to me. I had a feeling that she would help anyone in need.  We became friends on Facebook. She posted many items and the responses mentioned how she was loved. She mentioned her daughter, an angel in heaven, many times. All her postings were about trusting God, loving God, God's angels, how she prayed for many, and the fun times she had with her granddaughter. If anyone was in God's hands, I believe she surely was a person in God's grace.

She took a trip to India and I lived vicariously through her posts on Facebook. How I enjoyed reading about who she met and what she was doing. Her riding a elephant was a fun picture I liked. Her posts were like a travel log on India. She went on a cruise and spent time in Arizona, yet kept us in the loop with her Facebook comments.

She seemed to have a lot of energy: I would see her at various functions at church and one time I saw her at a migrant mass in Brighton. She also worked  in the yard, doing thorough house cleaning, polishing the wood in her house, cleaning out the refrigerator, taking walks, helping in church, sorting out donated clothes, and probably many other things I knew nothing about. I silently wished I had her energy.

She posted snow pictures, clouds, sunsets, trees, flowers and people she loved. She commented on the beauty of God and everyday she thanked Him. When we would see each other, we always hugged and would briefly discuss what was happening in our lives. On April 7, 2015 I saw her working on decorations. We hugged and I asked, "How are things with you." Her response was, "Everything is fine and I give thanks to God." And then a few days later she was gone.

Yesterday when I read she had gone to meet her daughter Ashley in heaven, I could not believe the news. It can't be true, I thought. My heart is heavy as I mourn a beautiful woman who did not look her age and who when I saw her, would lift my spirit. Talking to her and seeing her happy disposition always made me feel better. She was so positive and full of love.

On the internet, on You-Tube, I found a Public Service Announcement where she talks about the dangers of carbon monoxide. Her message was to have everyone install a carbon monoxide detector in their homes so they would not have to go through a tragic death of a family member. It was nice seeing her one more time, even though it was just on the screen.

I struggle to understand why things happen in such mysterious ways! All I can do is join her family and her many friends in a heartfelt, Henrietta "Retta" Masloff,  Rest In Peace.

"May you know the

peace and comfort 

this heartfelt thought

imparts; the ones we

love are never gone,

for they live within

our hearts."

Anonymous

One Week After Easter

Today is the day that has been designated for Divine Mercy Sunday. I have seen the picture of Christ with rays coming from his heart and know many persons with a deep devotion to the Divine Mercy of Christ.

A polish nun, born in 1905 and died in 1938 was canonized in the year 2000. She is now known as Saint Mary Faustina Kowalska. It is said that she had visions of Christ where he asked her to pray and to ask others to pray to his Divine Mercy. The nine day novena states that each day needs to be for a certain group.

Day one: Pray for all mankind. Day two: Pray for priests and religious. Day three: Pray for souls of  the devout and faithful. Day 4: Pray for non-believers. Day 5: Pray for heretics. Day 6: Pray for the meek and humble. Day 7: Pray for souls who glorify Christ's mercy. Day 8: Pray for the souls in purgatory. Day 9: Pray for souls who are lukewarm or indifferent.

During the homily at today's mass, the image of the Divine Mercy was up on the large screens. The Deacon explained that the white ray represented water and the red ray represented the blood of Our Lord. Saint Faustina's diary entry, #299 explains: Jesus clothed in white, one hand raised as if giving a blessing, the other hand touched his breast. Two large rays, one red (blood) and the other pale (water). These two rays issued forth from the very depths of My tender mercy when my agonized heart was opened by a lance on the cross.

Other than the novena, there is the Chaplet that can be prayed on a regular rosary and one way to remember how we should pray is ABC. A, ask for mercy; B, be merciful, and C,completely trust in Jesus. I can now understand why some of my friends have such a deep devotion to Christ's Divine Mercy.

"God loves us --all of us, 

and wants us to recognize 

that his mercy is greater 

than our sins."

Divine Mercy

At Mother Cabrini Shrine

Sweet Little Bird

This morning on Facebook a friend posted this saying about birds which reminded me of a poem I wrote years ago. If I haven't already shared it, I will post it again because I find the saying to be quite true!

Sweet Little Bird

Out of the blue

his hand grasped

the innocent creature.

Desperately fluttering her wings,

her heart rapidly beating,

crying so loud

as she frantically tried to escape

from the hand holding

her like a shroud.

Firmly, yet gently,

the hand held the shaking body.

Caressing the frightened bird

trying to calm the quaking one

by whispering soft words.

“My sweet, my love.

sweet little bird

listen to my word,

I love you.”

She would not hear,

she could not feel.

She longed for freedom

that had been hers.

Daily he fed the little bird.

Rubbing its resisting body,

stroking its fighting spirit,

touching the smooth feathers.

One day, the hand opened.

The bird smelled the freshness,

the openness,

the contentment of being free

and she flew to a tall tree.

What she had yearned for,

what she wanted so badly

was now hers to enjoy.

Up, up, up and away she flew.

Her heart trying to sing,

her eyes wanting to see,

her wings attempting to fly,

as she flew up high.

But, she missed the warm hand,

the gentle touch

the soft words

the love.

Returning, she flew into his heart.

She knew what she had looked for in the past

she had finally found, at last.

E. Moscoso

April 4, 1990

Coming To the End of the Tunnel

Seventy-four days of my car being in a repair tunnel it now appears that I can see some light at the end of the tunnel. I will not hold my breath but the latest news on repairing my car by Auto Nation Collision seems to be winding down. It has been a five, single spaced, paper trail of my conversations with the collision people, insurance and rental company. My frustration with the repair company comes from having two persons giving me updates and sometimes their comments did not match. I ended up writing to the BBB, the CEO of Auto Nation, The Colorado insurance agency under DORA and to Electric Insurance Company.

Yesterday I heard from Leah, from the Auto Nation Collision Repair Shop and was told that they will pay for a car rental for me from April 3 - 13, 2015. Even though the day before I had been told by Marcus that "absolutely we do not have a car you can use." Leah mentioned that they may deduct it from my deductible
of $500. I am very thankful and grateful that they will help me out with a rental because I have already paid around $750 out of my own pocket. I am hoping that my car will be ready by the 13th. "We are putting more manpower on fixing your car," I was told and I wonder why it couldn't have been done earlier!

Today I spoke with Martha from the Colorado Insurance Agency and just talking to her made me feel better. After I told her that my car looked like a pile of junk, she brought up the fact that it sounded as if the collision shop was doing a good job of repairing my car. "Another repair shop might have fluffed it over and not dug into the depth of the problem which could give you problems later." She also explained that my insurance, by what I told her, had done everything covered under my policy. She listened patiently to my tale of woe and I thanked her for letting me spout off. She agreed that I had every reason to be frustrated but it sounded, by what I told her, that I might be getting my car soon.  She did say that if I knew the repair shop was fraudulently keeping the car or not doing the repairs they said they were doing, at that point, there might be something she could do.

The collision place just called and Leah told me that $250 will be deducted from my deductible. I get the
feeling it is taking from Peter to pay Paul because I will still need to pay for the rental. I was told that the car is looking good and once the insides are replaced and it is road tested, it should be ready to go! "We will help you out even more, if need be," is what she said.


One day at time is a good slogan for me during these days while waiting for my car to be repaired. I am trying to think positive and I have a good feeling that sometime next week I will have a healthy Jazzy back!

"The secret of life

is to fall 

seven times

and to get up 

eight times."

Paul Coelho