Counting Blessings

Seven days in November 2018 provided experiences to treasure, blessings worth counting.

1.  Thanksgiving dinner in Coral Gables: 22 people from six different countries. Sharing cultures is the true origin of this holiday. Leslie’s family covered Colombia; her sister’s father-in-law is from Peru; her mother’s cousin, from Venezuela. Another cousin from Brazil is married to a man from Lebanon. Steve and I are loving the diversity we find in Florida. The Peruvian-Russian potato salad and the Brazilian pear-parmesan salad were delicious. I enjoyed talking with the Lebanese architect about the trip Lilli and I took to Beirut in 2001 and with the guitarist next door about his new grand piano. It was especially nice to eat dinner around the table that once belonged to Steve’s grandmother Lillian, Margot and Nina’s Great-Great-Grandmother. Many thanks to Leslie and David for planning and carrying out a wonderful celebration with style and grace.

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   Pies. On Wednesday I made James Beard’s Sour Cream Pastry in my Cuisinart. Early Thursday morning, I baked two pies, topping the cherry pie with leaves. We took both pies to David’s house in sturdy boxes seat-belted into the back seat. After carefully placing the cherry pie on a pedestal, I returned to the car for the pumpkin pie. That’s when I heard a crash–the cherry pie had slipped off and landed on the floor. Following the 5-second rule, we scooped it up and put it on the dessert table. Actually, everyone liked it better than the pumpkin pie. It soon vanished and everyone has stayed healthy. The blessing? lots of laughs and comments about the “floor cobbler.”

   

   

   

   

3. Good times with Margot and Nina. We read books and played games together. We spent two hours at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, where the butterflies and the orchids were out in force. Then a stop at their favorite park. I love being around active, curious, sweet children.

   

   

   

4. Helping at Family Promise. On Monday before Thanksgiving, I brought chili for dinner and spent the night at the shelter that this organization maintains for homeless families. A four-year old girl who was there listened intently to Corduroy, then played catch with my friend Linda, while I talked with her brother. It’s a joy to help provide the means for families to get back on their feet. And meeting other children provides useful perspectives on my own grandchildren.
5. Reading Michelle Obama’s Becoming. Terrific book. I started it Thursday night and finished it Saturday morning. Her account of Southside Chicago reinforced what I had recently learned in Isabel Wilkerson’s The Warmth of Other Suns: the Epic Story of America’s Great Migration. In fact, Michelle’s grandfather was a part of that migration. The book also prepared me to lead a discussion of Debby Irving’s Waking Up White and Finding Myself in the Story of Race in early December. Obama’s chapters on her husband’s race for President reminded me of happy times campaigning for Democrats over the last ten years. I can only hope to write such a thoughtful memoir someday.
6. Seeing The Green Book, a movie that continues the theme of race relations. It is based on a true story about a 1962 tour by Don Shirley, a classically-trained pianist, and his Italian-American driver. I wasn’t aware of Shirley, but his recordings are still easily available and interesting to hear. Steve and I saw the movie Saturday with our friends, Angela and Henry. We all recommend it.

7. Sharing music with friends. To cap this week of blessings, on Sunday afternoon, violinist Barta Anderson joined me to present a musicale in my living room. We played a Bourée and a Gavotte by Bach, a Schubert Sonatina, two numbers from Fiddler on the Roof by Jerry Bock, John Williams’ Schindler’s List, and Dvorák’s Humoresque. As an interlude, I played Schumann’s Träumerei. It was Barta’s daughter, Sharon King, my massage therapist, who suggested last spring that we get together. What fun we have had since then! Sharon came to the musicale with her daughter Cassidy, who brought her friend Jenny. Barta brought a neighbor and I invited two couples. Steve helped with the refreshments. I feel very blessed to make music and share it with others.