Saturday, April 18, 2009

Shoeshine Day

Earth's crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God: But only he who sees takes off his shoes. - Elizabeth Barrett Browning





On Golden Pond





Two of our Very Own were in this production of On Golden Pond at the Circle Arts Theater in New Braunfels.
Pat Hoppe portrayed Ethel Thayer (the Katharine Hepburn role in the movie). Profile of Pat:
Retired kindergarten teacher . . . favorite shows for Seguin Art Center: My Fair Lady, Oklahoma, Steel Magnolias, Barefoot in the Park . . . favorites for Circle Arts: Into the Woods, Equus, Belles, and Octette Bridge Club . . . active in the Seguin community, volunteering at the Christian Cupboard, where she is also a member of the board of directors . . . On the board of directors of the Seguin Art Center . . . vice president of Emanuel's Lutheran Church congregation council . . . favorite activities: making trips to Boston and Corpus Christi to visit children and grandchildren . . . played the part of Ethel in On Golden Pond in Seguin last year and loved it so much she just had to audition in hopes of doing it again, and we're certainly glad she did!
Frank Follis (Judge) in the part of Bill Ray (Doug McKeon in the movie). Profile of Frank: B.A. from Stephen F. Austin and Juris Doctor from University of Houston . . . currently a Judge at County Court of Law in Seguin . . . favorite roles include Bill Ray in On Golden Pond and Judge Taylor in To Kill A Mockingbird, both at Seguin Arts Center . . . hobbies include cowboy action shooting, target shooting, hiking, and travel . . . would like to one day do the one man show, Clarence Darrow . . . this is Frank's first time at Circle Arts, and we can't wait for the next one.

The light deep inside

Four sentences from Little Bee by Chris Cleave (page 185)

The sun was lighting up the kitchen. It was thick yellow--a warm light, but not a show-off light. It did not want the glory for the illumination of the room. It made each object look as if it was glowing with a light from deep inside itself.


A Poem of Ending - from Sharon Olds

To See My Mother

It was like witnessing the earth being formed,
to see my mother die, like seeing
the dry lands be separated
from the oceans, and all the mists bear up
on one side, and all the solids
be borne down, on the other, until
the body was all there, all bronze and
petrified redwood opal, and the soul all
gone. If she hadn't looked so exalted, so
beast-exalted and refreshed and suddenly
hopeful, more than hopeful—beyond
hope, relieved—if she had not been suffering so
much, since I had met her, I do not
know how I would have stood it, without
fighting someone, though no one was there
to fight, death was not there except
as her, my task was to hold her tiny
crown in one cupped hand, and her near
birdbone shoulder. Lakes, clouds,
nests. Winds, stems, tongues.
Embryo, zygote, blastocele, atom,
my mother's dying was like an end
of life on earth, some end of water
and moisture salt and sweet, and vapor,
till only that still, ocher moon
shone, in the room, mouth open, no song.

Huisache Grill






When we first moved to Seguin and explored and visited neighboring New Braunfels, I had no clue as to how to pronounce HUISACHE. Then when I heard about the restaurant, I had no idea how to spell the word I was hearing [WEE-sach].

I've since learned - among other things - what a great restaurant this is. Great food. Great service. Great ambiance. (I love that word: am-bi-ance.)

The French call the Huisache tree "Cassie" and grow it extensively for the perfume industry. The blooms of the tree are numerous, bright yellow, in heads, and very fragrant. The dried blossoms are often packed in lovely pillows (available for purchase), promising a good night's fragrant sleep. They are called 'dream pillows.'