You Really Don't Know a Person

Someone once told me, “You don’t really know a person.” I have thought about that a lot. Once I didn’t believe that statement but circumstances and life changes have made me realize that my friend was right.

I truly believe everyone hides a part of what makes them who they are. I think people carry and hide certain feelings, beliefs, and secrets deep down inside of them.

People don’t always express their true feelings. To be honest, I don’t. I try not to. I have kept certain secrets and thoughts private. On the outside I am a nice person and will do anything that I can to help my family and friends, even when it is hard or inconvenient. Even in my conversations, I don’t express totally how and what I really feel. I keep those thoughts in my journal and eventually, I throw that journal away. So, when people say – “I know the real you,” I just smile and think - No you don’t.

It’s okay not to reveal everything about yourself. There are some things a person keeps private and they don’t want to share. I know that is how I feel and what I do.

Shopping for a Prom Dress

It’s April…and that means proms and prom dress shopping!

I remember going prom dress shopping with my daughters. With my oldest daughter, it would be a trip to the mall to look for dresses. I also thought that it would be a nice bonding experience but it never turned out that way. We would go to the mall and look in every store, at every dress, at least twice. One can never be too picky. Add bridal shops as well. The dress was either too big, too little, not the right shade or color, too cheap or whatever. But it was never too expensive! The oddity of it all is that it would always be the first dress or second dress that we would see and eventually buy, but only after two or three times around the mall. I don’t remember if we bought the accessories as well because I was too tired and traumatized by this bonding experience. Oh, I had to be careful not to like the dress because if I did, my daughter wouldn’t. I just was verbal if it was too revealing.

I don’t remember if I had the same experience with my two younger daughters but I am leaning toward the fact that I didn’t or I am in the beginning of dementia.

But this Friday, my granddaughter called and said that instead of Sunday, she and her mother and my youngest daughter were headed to the Mall to look for prom dresses. The prom was next week and she needed that dress.

There wasn’t that many stores but we started at Penney’s (they didn’t have any prom dresses), then it was Sears, Cache, Macy’s and Nordstrom’s. My granddaughter found her dress at the second store, where she tried on a few dresses and set aside the one she liked. Then we went to the other three stores. Let’s just say, she was easy to shop with but I did have a de ja vu moment. It was a flash back to the old days with my daughter. I guess she was right…you have to look at every store and every dress before you make that decision. This time, I found that it was more fun without the drama and stress.

We ended the evening at Mad Mex. I have to say that frozen Margarita hit the spot! But I can’t wait to see my granddaughter when she dresses up to go to her prom next week!

Congratulations to North Allegheny students!

Last night, I attended an awards recognition ceremony held before the North Allegheny District Board Meeting. My granddaughter, Hannah, was one of the recipients of an award for Art. The past few years, she has had her art work on display and has won a number of silver keys and honorable mentions for her work.

I was amazed at all the number of students who received recognition in Academics, Art, Music, Writing, and Sports. It’s really nice to see  students from the middle school and the high school, along with their families that attended the awards ceremony. I loved watching the young students who excelled and had received the recognition that they deserved for all their hard work. After the evening, I felt better about their future. Hard work does pay off and these young people will be successful in whatever they attempt.

Kudos to the parents, to the North Allegheny 2015 students, and especially to my granddaughter, Hannah. Thanks for including me in your special night. I am so proud of you!

Things I Love

1.      My family and friends

2.      Writing

3.      Working at the Greenhouse

4.      Spring with all its newness

5.      Adventures that I can write about

6.      Sharing special times with my grandchildren

7.      The Cleveland Browns, despite breaking my heart

8.      Ohio State University, Cleveland Indians, and the New York Yankees

9.      Watching a good movie and reading a good book

10.  My Kindle/IPad/IPod, and computer

Confirmation

Thursday night, I spent the evening at St. Sebastian’s Church, where my oldest grandson, Matthew, was being confirmed, along with 86 other 7^th graders. I felt honored that my grandson had asked me to be his sponsor on this special evening.

The ceremony was beautiful. Bishop David Zubik, Bishop of the Pittsburgh Diocese, confirmed the students. He started out with a religion lesson about the sacrament of Confirmation and the Holy Spirit. This small lesson brought back memories to me when I taught Confirmation at my parish CCD classes. I loved the fact that I remembered all the answers to the Bishop’s questions. For a while, I felt like my faith, which had been in a dormant stage, came alive tonight. Maybe that was a gift to me by the Holy Spirit.

Despite the ceremony being long, it ran smoothly. The music was beautiful and upbeat, thanks to the five women who sang and the four men who played the instruments. I actually participated in the singing.

I felt something special was happening in the church that night. Maybe it was because I was a Confirmation sponsor, or maybe I actually felt the presence of God in the packed church, on a special night, sitting beside my grandson.