Necklace

Today's treasure: the charms of Herself's necklace.

First, her mother's mother's wedding ring, to remind her of family roots;
Second, a silver pacifier, which she bought on Martha's Vineyard as a teenager, to remind her of childhood;
Third, a white and silver charm bearing the word "sister," to remind her of the comfort, understanding and love that her sister brings;
Fourth, a column bearing five tiny amber blocks in a range of beautiful colors, to remind her of the simultaneous commonality and uniqueness of the members of her nuclear family;
Fifth, a Celtic knot charm, to remind her of anam cara; and
Sixth, a Tibetan prayer wheel, to remind her to let go, and to find the middle path.

Lesson

One of Herself's internet friends is an artistic and tremendously loving soul who fills her Facebook feed with beautiful photos, interesting articles, and philosophical and witty commentary. There is always food for thought among her posts. Recently, she posed the following query:

Posed for the sake of debate, this posit: the essence of who we are, our spirit, is transcendent, and we take corporeal form here on this earth, only gradually coming to our material senses (if ever) to learn something. Based on your experiences thus far, what is your lesson?

This is a magnificent question.

It requires a great deal of contemplation.

It took us a day and a half, but we have found our reply.

This is the one overarching lesson I have had to learn, over and over again, in so many different ways: People are the way they are. I cannot, through my own actions or through mentally willing things, change how others behave. I have to accept that they may not do as I would do under a particular set of circumstances, no matter how clear a choice of action would be to *me*. I must remember always, that what most people do, is the best they can do. 

It's a hard lesson. 

And I haven't finished learning it.

Dishes

Today's treasure, while not a small item, is nevertheless an important one:  grandmother's dishes.

These once belonged to Herself's paternal grandmother. Herself  loves the pattern. She does not use the dishes terribly often, because they are almost too exceptional to hold mere ordinary food. Perhaps she should generate more special occasions to use them.

Broadchurch

Yesterday we finished watching the first season of the BBC show, Broadchurch.  It really was outstanding. Beautifully acted and suspenseful, it is a well-wrought description of the intertwining of the lives of the residents of a small community, and a wrenching display of how things unravel in the face of a terrible crime.  Nearly all of the characters have their own hidden sorrows and mistakes which are slowly and painfully dragged into the light by the investigation. While at times the tiny details are nearly overwhelming, in the overall arch of the story, they all eventually fall into place quietly and naturally. In the end, we are heartbroken for so many of the characters, and yet we see how the characters manage to move forward even in the face of betrayal and loss and terrible heartache.  It is the most human of shows we have watched in a long time. Well done. 

This photograph was found here: 

http://www.bbcamerica.com/broadchurch/guide/season-1/episode-1/

Wombat

Today's treasure: wombat.

When Herself attended childbirth preparation class before Offspring the First was hatched, one of the many suggestions -- in addition to the ultimately rather useless breathing exercises -- was to have a focal point on which to concentrate during contractions.  For reasons that Herself cannot remember, they chose a small stuffed wombat that had been a souvenir from Herself's parents' trip to Australia.  

Wombat attended the labor and births for all three Offspring (although he was not in the immediate room at the time of the emergency C-section for Offspring the third). He was indeed helpful.

Good job, wombat.

Binkie

As we were tidying, we came across various small items dispersed throughout the house, and thought that we should perhaps return to treasures.

Today's treasure:  Herself's childhood blanket.  It is translucent in its threadbare thinness, and the pastel kittens and flowers are so faded as to be barely visible.  Ah, binkie.

Blue October

A little musical interlude for you: let us listen to some Blue October.  A lot of Blue October's lyrics are a bit heartbreaking, and the lead singer's frank revelations about his struggles with drug addiction and failed relationships provide some bittersweet context to his songs. Ultimately, there's peace and love within the raw emotions. Bravo, Blue October, for channeling pain and difficulty into music that can speak what others cannot say. 

Here are three of our favorites for you:

First, Hate Me, which is the first song we heard from Blue October.

While I was busy waging wars on myself, 

you were trying to stop the fight.

Second, Congratulations. 

My words they don't come out right
But I'll try to say I'm happy for you

And third, Not Broken Anymore.

You're the touchstone my complete
You're the ship that kept me afloat.

We hope you enjoy.