It's been a little over a year since the coronovirus pandemic disrupted our lives. We look forward to a time when we can go back to a kind of normalcy. When see flowers bloom, we can't help but feel inspired and hopeful.  We will get through these times and Mother Nature will lend a helping hand. Flowers are her sign that everything will be okay.  

When seasons change in the tropics the change might not be so noticeable but we know it's there. In the air we can feel it and after a year of "pandemic" proportions we need the change.  Poetry is the best way of dealing with emotions and what better way to welcome Spring than with a light and cheery poem?  

Anger often causes us to behave in ways we cannot understand. I can relate to Jeremy Finch when his anger drives him to do something that startles even his sister. This chapter from the novel To Kill a Mockingbird stirs up deep emotions. A sensitive reader will feel for the children as well as the adults. It is fitting that it concludes the first part of the novel and sets the mood for the second half. 

There are always two sides to every situation or problem. It takes a willing and keen mind to understand all of them. You're not judging what's right or wrong. You just try to get a perspective and see the other's viewpoint to understand him (or her) just a little bit better. Listening is a skill to be continually practiced.

Selecting a favorite character from this novel is not easy. There are many unique characters to choose from. The students from the 10th grade English class had to answer two questions about the characters. The chosen favorites were between the Finch family members: Atticus, Jem and Scout. I'm still undecided. 

Some childhood memories surface from time to time. They leave an indelible mark on a human mind. Even though I was just a child at the time, the incident left a deep impact. What shocked me to the core was the fact that adults could be so unaware of how impressionable a child's mind could be. Have a childhood memory that haunts you? 

When tending to the garden I often ask myself: Do plants have feelings? Do they sense what is happening to them? I like to think that when I talk to them (and I do!) that they can hear me.  I whisper to each: How are you doing today? It might seem silly but we must treat Mother Nature's living beings with kindness. 

Ringing in a New Year is always bitter-sweet. We think fondly of what we've been through during a year and look hopefully to a brand new start. This particular past year has been exceptionally very bitter with only dots of sweetness. And is that so strange? We're still in the throes of a pandemic and expecting some sort of relief with a vaccine. Will this year be a promising one for the entire world? I look forward to a future where we can enjoy a semblance of normalcy. Don't you? Have a very happy New year 2021! 

How could a person be in two places at the same time? Is it possible? It could only be a supernatural event and beyond the scope of the human mind. Who knows why these things happen. Perhaps to give a person a second chance? 

Some mothers can whip up a solution to correct an adolescent's small "disaster. " These events form part of the memory collection stored not only in our minds but deep in our hearts.