what a difference!

It is so great that a day can make so much difference!

Fresh starts!  The crocuses bloom so quickly!

My healing is so rapid!

Already off pains meds, even Tylenol & Advil.

Hour-long walk today made me believe again that the trip

is really do-able & will be fantastic.

Michale Franti And Spearhead (Everybody Ona Move)

Stranger in a Strange Land, or Inhabitant of a Gorgeous Planet?

 World  Trip  ITINERARY:

• Start in New Zealand; Auckland & north end of the South Island (visit MacDonalds!)  then head around the world to a bit of Asia then to Europe!

I tell you this to invite you!  I am sure that by most news accounts the world at large can seem strange and terrifying.  On the other hand, look around and you find beauty & hospitality everywhere, too!  The differences are really intriguing. If you are planning a trip this summer that could possibly intersect with mine, please let me know.  What fun it would be to share parts of the world with you!  We will find we are not aliens!  We will be woven into the community of the planet!  So join me in real time + real space or via the blogs!  Ciao!

Whole Lot o' World!

That's What Friends Are For - Dionne Warwick & Friends HQ

My mother goes with me!

"He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways." Psalm 91:11

I was thinking of how scholars & artisans, the schooled & the unschooled alike have been comforted by this promise.  Today I know that Holy healing is at work in my body, my hand & wrist.  There is a time for each thing.  Without surgery now, then I may have had a terrible crisis of pain on my world trip!


This last week I was reminded of one of the last things my mother said to me as I curled up next to her on one of the final days of her life: "Listen to your sisters and let them help you."
My mother was able to give such a gift.  Of course she also meant for me to rely on my brother, but my sisters live close by.  They were the ones who could be with me last week, like sparkly gifts sent from my Mom when I needed help & cheer!

My mother loved to travel, too.  She has been a great inspiration for my trip planning.  She went to Australia by herself when she had mobility trouble & loved it!  She took a train to Indiana to see my brother, only to have to spend part of that visit in the hospital!  She went to a grandaughter's wedding in Santiago very weak & with an oxygen tank, for goodness sakes!  I know she is cheering me on & that she will be with me on this trip!  When I write for you in this blog, remember I am first writing to her.

Nelly Furtado - Crazy-Gnarls Barkley cover