SQUEE STAH A LO HE

Days gone by...

Riding on a streetcar in New Orleans
  remembering days gone by
A stranger's face looked familiar.

"Did we go to school together," I ask the man.
  He studied my face and smiled.
"Miami," I say, "Class of '65."

"Yes, we did," he laughed. "I'm Steve G, and
  your dad was the golf pro, wasn't he?"
"Yes, he was." I smiled with pride. "I'm Letty."

SQUEE STAH A LO HE

Becky, whose heritage includes Cherokee,

It's a small world,  afterall

  is a walking anthology
Of people, places, and events.

A neighbor, and I discovered we both 
  knew Becky from different experiences, and
Becky knew another neighbor, Jay.

Our dog, Lucy,  knows our neighbors by sniffs and 
  dogs who bark behind the fences. 
We knew Jay because of his dog Cooper.

SQUEE STAH A LO HE

One evening walking we saw Jay.
  "Are you Jay, Cooper's dad?" He nodded, "Yes."
"We have friends in common," I continued. 

Back and forth the dialogue flowed,
  as we discovered common ground.
Goodbyes were said, then Jay turned and spoke.

"Squee stah a lo he." 
   I stopped, listening to the flow of his deep voice.
"Small World," he replied in Cherokee.

SQUEE STAH A LO HE,

Letty and Melissa Young, Jefferson Dragons

On a rooftop in Columbus, Ohio
  Among strangers, we toasted to a Sooner victory.
Then a familiar smile appeared through the crowd.

Jumping up I ran calling, "Melissa, Melissa." 
  The teacher hugs were felt from deep inside.
Memories made it feel like yesterday, minus twenty years. 


In only minutes we shared our common threads: 
  My move to Kansas and teaching middle school,
Her move to Temecula, Ca. teaching elementary.

SQUEE STAH A LO HE 

Knocking on a stranger's door to say, 
  "Your Halloween pumpkins are delightful."
Can lead to old friends uniting.

Spinning Pumpkins, attention grabbers

In a crowd of thousands dressed
  in Sooner reds or Texas burnt oranges
A voice calls out, "Ms Watt, Ms Watt." 

The teacher in me yearns to make connections,
  whether in 6 degrees of separation
Or right night door.

SQUEE STAH A LO HE
  as the Cherokee people say,
"Small World." 



What is your Squee Stah A Lo He story?

Goals from the Heart

We were there,
the top of the Empire State Bldg.

Sometimes I have to look back to see where I want to go or what I want to do.  Setting a goal for the New Year involves the same steps.  Looking back at 2015 and the decades before, I find my need for friendship and relationships with others tops my lists. For the last week in December the morning shows share ideas on how to set goals and keep them.  The lists often seem the same--lose 10 pounds; travel; exercise; eat healthy; give up sugar; organize the closets, and more.  These I label as paper goals, certainly achievable with willpower and a plan. When I'm faced with these issues, I find books like Willpower  by John Tiernay very helpful. 

These days I'm looking inward, searching  for a goal that resides in my heart, and resonates in my core.  Last year I wrote a simple mantra, as a goal, and posted it to my calendar. Every two weeks these words pop up:  See the Beauty and Grace in Everyone, rather than being judgmental. Believe it or not this simple mantra lifted my heart and brought a smile to my face each time I read it.  It also achieved the goal of tempering my words.  I'm still harsh, and blunt from time to time, but I hope that every year I'm less harsh and show more grace. So I thought, if something that simple lifts my spirits why not dig deeper and discover other beauties of the heart. 

After many hours of reading and reflecting I recalled a phone conversation several years ago from my friend

Manon Bradbury and Letty in the desert.

Manon.  Lamenting that her girls were constantly texting and chatting without ever listening or hearing the voice of their friends, she said, "I much prefer to hear from my friends by phone!"  She's right.  I thoroughly enjoy our few conversations during the year because I get to hear her French Canadian accent and the zeal with which she lives and breathes.  I can't hear that in a text. 

With a zig and a zag, my mind flashed back to that November three years ago when I began calling classmates I had not seen in nearly 50 years.  What joy to hear

Lynn Farrier, Letty  MHS Class of 65

their voices and stories.  Thanks to those phone calls I've personally reconnected with my childhood friends. Now I know their spouses and a few glimpses at how they've lived over these decades. 

This year my goal is simple but sincere.  Pick up the phone and call a friend once a week. A phone call connects us to the heart of the person, much like using a puppet to communicate. My joy of being a puppeteer came

from observing the eyes and hearts of the children as they gazed in wonder and belief at "Book Dog", "Squirty", or

Book Dog

"Frisky".  Every now and then a child would say, "That puppet's not real.  You have your hand inside of it!"  I smiled and responded gently,  "Sometimes we all need a little help. This puppet is no different than I am because it speaks and listens with its heart."

So this year, I will use the arm of a puppeteer and call someone weekly. Yes, I will continue to text and email, and oh, how thankful I am that we can use technology for staying connected. My Facebook friends know I love to chat online, and my Instagram followers see that I like photographs that offer a moment to ponder.  I will continue to send postcards from afar, because I know from experience that they remind us that someone is thinking about us.  

What will you do?

What goal from your heart could make a difference in your life or someone around you?

How will you act on this goal?