Living and Dying

The year was 2006 and the annual pilgrimage to the Santuario de Chimayo would be extra special because a Fifty Year Wedding Anniversary would be celebrated on the trip. I contacted Fr. Lawrence Kaiser to be our priest for the journey and a guitarist to go with us also.

The first stop were the Stations of the Cross in San Luis, Colorado where we ate lunch at the parish center and then hiked up the mountain while praying the stations. The prayers were in English and Spanish and so was the music.

After leaving San Luis we arrived in Taos, New Mexico at the Kachina Lodge where a reception with wine and hors d'oeuvres was planned for Rudy and Mary Lopez, the two persons celebrating their anniversary. They were serenaded by the guitar player who sang beautiful love songs to them.

Rudy entertained us by telling us stories about their relationship and his family. I remember reading a poem about marriage. We spend a fun time at the reception before going in to the dining room for our dinner. After dinner we enjoyed watching the Native Americans dance typical tribal dances. At one point, we joined in the dancing!


The next morning we traveled to Chimayo where Fr. Kaiser celebrated the beautiful anniversary
mass in the quaint chapel with the colorful altar screens. Many family members joined the holy mass and Mary received a bouquet of red roses.  We ate a delicious lunch at The Ranchos de Chimyo before continuing to Santa Fe for the rest of the pilgrimage.

We enjoyed the Fiestas of Santa Fe, mass at the Cathedral and then a fabulous lunch at the world famous La Fonda Restaurant.

All of the pilgrimages to Chimayo are special but this one was extra special because of the celebration of fifty years of marriage for Rudy and Mary! 

Eight years later, on January 2, 2015, a funeral mass was celebrated for Joe (Rudy) Lopez at Holy Trinity Catholic Church and at his mass I found out the Fr. Lawrence Kaiser had passed away two days before Joe. Makes one think about leading a good life because we never know when we will be called to meet our maker!

Fancy Caskets and Scary Masks

Wandering through the Bowers
Museum we saw these caskets which I thought were very fancy. These were made for royalty of the era. Not sure if these were for Chinese, Japanese or some other
group. Which goes to show that all the explanations about the display should be read! And if read, remembered.

Entering the Spirits and Headhunters: Art of the Pacific Islands made me realize that I certainly would not like to be in these mysterious and dangerous looking islands depicted by Photographer Chris Rainier.

In this area I saw large masks, sea shell necklaces, teeth, feather, and weapon artifacts. An interesting display of how head hunters lived in the past and what they used for decorations. The human teeth necklace made me wonder if the teeth were removed before or after death!

 Though this area was fascinating to see, I found it to be on the violent side

and not my favorite type of museum art!

My daughter and I had to chuckle with the form on the left....she told me the explanation was: "I Gotta Go Right Now!"

On my visits to California, I enjoy going to the Bowers Museum because it is not so large to be overwhelming and the displays are presented in an interesting way. I also like that they allow photographs to be taken in certain areas!

"I Am Watching You From Heaven!"

On January 2, 2015, I attended a funeral mass for a friend of mine at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Westminster, Colorado. His name is Joe Lopez but I knew him as Rudy. He and his wife had traveled to New Mexico and the Santuario de Chimayo with me for ten consecutive years. Eight years ago, on our last trip together, they celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary. Today I was told that the priest, Fr. Lawrence Kaiser, who celebrated the mass in Chimayo for them, had passed away two days before Joe. This picture of my friend, is how I remember him. Full of mischievous fun yet kind and loving to all he met.


As I entered the church I could hear Mexican music in the background. I noticed many of the young men wore suspenders in honor of their grandfather who always wore suspenders! The large church slowly filled up with over 225 persons. My friend had many friends who had come to see him continue his journey on his way to heaven. Never had I been to a mass completely dedicated to the deceased. A
granddaughter read a poem in English and Spanish about her love for her grandfather. A son read a poem about how his father was a hero to him. One daughter read a special reading that reminded her of her Dad and Deacon Ross led the rosary. Another granddaughter spoke on seeing a vision of Mother Teresa that made her realize she needed to allow her grandfather to leave this earth and to stop trying to make him better. The music was beautiful and when Wind Below My Wings was sung I don't believe there was a dry eye in the church.


Father John and Father Rick seemed to know my friend intimately and everything they said about him I had to agree with their comments. The homily, by Fr. Rick, was so right on; spiritual, happy, and funny. Fr. Rick said, "Joe had a knack of making priests feel as if they were his favorite priest." Fr. Rick looked over at Fr. John and said, "Wouldn't you agree?" Fr. John's response was, "I was his favorite!" Which made the congregation laugh through their tears. Stories about Joe's life were interesting and full of love. Like when he drove a cab and a young girl was in trouble and came running to his cab. He did not think that he might be in danger when he picked her up and took her to her home. When her parents tried to pay him, he would not accept money because he was happy to have helped someone in need. Mention was made of the large rosaries that Joe made and gave to his friends. I felt honored that he had given me one of his large rosaries. The priest mentioned that he felt as if Joe was like a father figure to many of the priests. Joe had a generous heart with his time, money and hands, we were told. Joe suffered but it never got him down, instead it brought him closer to God and the Blessed Virgin. Losing a daughter was difficult for Joe and his wife and taking care of a handicapped son could not have been easy, but their faith saw them through many troubles.


The reception was wonderful because we got to speak to the family and to let them know how much Rudy was loved. Somehow, I had a feeling that even if he wasn't physically present with us he continued to evangelize.  I am sure, Rudy is looking down at us and thinking, "God watch over my family and friends."

A South African Idol

A few years ago, I saw a documentary about a guitar player who never made it in the United States, yet he was a huge success in South Africa. The interesting fact was that the singer never knew he was popular in South Africa and when his albums did not do well in the States in the 1970's, he just stopped performing.  Through Netflix I saw a movie (documentary) called Searching for Sugar Man about the singer, and decided to order it. Flabbergasted does not cover how I felt when I saw the one hour and twenty six minute movie.

The story begins in South Africa where the singer was more popular than Elvis Presley. In every home in South Africa one could find a copy of the album by Sixto Rodriguez. I found it interesting that my grandfather's name was Sisto (sometimes spelled Sixto) and my father's name was Rodriguez. This spurred me on to find out more about the singer who, some said, was just as good as Bob Dylan, if not better.

Record label owners in the U.S. and others who had heard him sing believed Rodriguez would make it big, but it never happened. He disappeared and it was rumored that he had played his last song and shot himself or that he had set himself on fire on stage and was dead. Luckily, a couple of his fans continued digging into the mysterious disappearance of Rodriguez.

Ads were placed in newspapers and on the Internet and one day a young woman claiming to be Rodriguez' daughter called the investigator. "My father is not dead," she said, "he is alive and well and lives in Detroit, Michigan." Once it was verified that Rodriguez was around, that he sometimes played in clubs and that he had no idea how popular he was in South Africa, it was arranged for him to travel to South Africa for a live concert. Arriving in South Africa in 1998 he was treated as a famous star with paparazzi surrounding him, limos waiting to drive him around and five separate concerts were filled to capacity to listen to him sing. He was surprised to see that many in the audience knew his songs and were singing along with him!

He has a gravelly sort of voice, he writes and sings about life as he knew it, about the depressed conditions in Detroit and the United States and many of his songs are quite sad yet tell a story.  I liked his music and will

try to find a CD of his through Amazon. His daughters talk lovingly about their father and how he continues being a blue collar laborer in construction. They talk about when he ran for mayor and lost, how he wants to right many wrongs he sees, how he is a bit of an activist and how he has always been a good provider for his family. He is not a handsome man, wears sunglasses, has long hair and when asked questions he appears to be shy, yet on stage he is transformed into a great star.

On the Netflix envelope I read: "The incredible true story of Rodriguez, the greatest '70's rock icon who never was. Decades after Detroit singer-songwriter Rodriguez disappeared following the failure of his two critically praised records in the 1970's, two fans from South Africa, where Rodriguez was a huge hit, try to track down their idol."  I would recommend seeing Searching for Sugar Man. An interesting story and I wonder if he never made it in the United States because his name was Rodriguez.

Just a song we shared, I'll hear

brings back memories when you were here,

of your smile, your easy laughter

of your kiss, those moments after. 

The beginning of the song

I Think of You

by Sixto Rodriguez.

The Happy New Year Bus

Yesterday, fifty five persons boarded the Pacesetter Bus to go to the Mardi Gras Casino to celebrate New Year's Eve in Blackhawk. Everyone was excited, everyone had hopes of winning, and every one seemed full of cheer. Two persons brought goodies to pass around and the bus was full of happy people chattering! We are fortunate to have an excellent bus driver who gets us to the casino and back home safely.

We were greeted by a Mardi Gras employee who gave us each a blue plastic bag filled with a voucher that would help with our lunch, beads, and once we played awhile we could collect $5.00. As usual, some win and some don't but all seemed to have a great time. I saw people talking to machines, some rubbing the buttons a certain way, and some just hitting the buttons as fast as they could. For once I was lucky and returned home with the money I had taken up which means I played with their money. Always a good feeling! I now have a favorite machine called El Tango de Oro and even if I do not win, I love the tango music! My second favorite is the Wheel of Fortune and seeing all the flashing lights and loud noises when I hit the right combinations!

At 12 Noon we were served champagne, given noise makers and sparkling hats and after lunch we continued playing. At 3:00 p.m. as we got on the bus to return home we were given a chocolate candy bar. Some people bring bags of pop corn to eat on the return trip home.

A sheet is passed around for the next visit to Blackhawk and already the January trip is filled up by those who signed up on the bus.

HAPPY NEW YEAR AND 

MAY 2015 BRING YOU 

MORE LUCK AT THE 

MARDI GRAS CASINO!

Do Horses Fly?

My California family, minus two teen-age granddaughters, decided to go to the Bowers Museum to see the  Heavenly Horse display. These horses are about prized war horses going back about 2000 years. The horses were powerful and legend is that they could fly. I have always liked horses and these are stout, strong and muscular looking samples of the horses.

I found the stirrups to be interesting and looked more comfortable than modern day stirrups. Shaped like a shoe the foot would fit right into the stirrup. The designs and any ornate tassels hanging from the saddle would explain the status of the warrior. Colors of saddle blankets determined where the warrior would fit into the castes.
 
On the Internet I read: "Thought of as dragons in disguise and celestial beings, horses were believed to be representatives of the soul and intermediaries between living and spiritual worlds in ancient Asian culture."

The horse on display with the faded blue saddle blanket plus the breast and hip straps (cruppers) with tassels show the high position of the owner. On the other hand, the horse with the green saddle seems to belong to someone in an even higher position!

I suppose each horse has its own story. It would be interesting to know those stories, but just like other history artifacts, we can only imagine the why and how of their coming to be in the museum.

A Paraguayan Harp

Alfredo Rolando Ortiz, South American Harp, shares with you the richness and meaning of the music of Hanukkah, Las Posadas, Christmas, Kwanzaa and the New Year in a festive, engaging multicultural concert for the entire family. On an advertisement sheet for the concert we would be seeing on December 28, 2014.
 
The concert featured Alfredo Rolando Ortiz, Harpist, and
I was surprised to find out that I really do enjoy harp music. Up until I heard Ortiz, I always pictured a large harp being played by a slender lady sitting in a flowing gown and playing in a symphony. Or I may have connected it with death, heaven or angels!

The intimate concert I attended in California was on a Paraguayan harp and I learned that the Paraguayan harp is the national instrument of Paraguay.  The harp is smaller than others I have seen and I was swayed from knowing nothing about harp music to loving the sharp, clear music as the strings are plucked or strummed. At times I thought it sounded like a piano, then possible a guitar and then the entrancing music of the precise notes of the harp.

On entering the auditorium, we were handed an information sheet about the artist. Born in Cuba, moved to Venezuela, supported himself with his music while attending medical school in Colombia, is married, performs professionally, moved to the United States, became an American Citizen and lives in Corona, California. I also learned that he is, "Internationally acclaimed by the critics, a composer, lecturer, author and recording artist."

He wore a colorful poncho and chatted with the audience in between playing Christmas, popular, Latin, waltz, and Hanukkah tunes. He told us about his exciting visit to the Holy Land and to Palestine where he dined with friends and gave concerts to music lovers. I enjoyed his talks informing us of his life inserted between the beautiful music!

My daughter purchased a CD, Forever Favorites, by Ortiz for me. The CD includes, among other tunes, Spanish Eyes, Cuando Calienta el Sol, Solamente Una Vez, Guantanamera, and O Solo Mio. I love listening to the relaxing music and hope I do not wear it out from constantly playing the CD over and over again!

 "Glorious is the Voice of Man

and sweet is the music of the harp.

Richard Llewellyn