Sunday, November 8, 2009

103 Years- That's Alot of Living!

Happy Birthday dear LouLou, Happy Birthday to you!

I feel like LouLou is one of the great inspirational forces in my life; she loves God, people and good conversation with the same gusto I do. Most of you know I dance with the daffodils because of her. She was born on November 8, 1906. It stretches my mind to reflect on the staggering changes she's witnessed in her lifetime.

Today, as I reflected on what to tell you about her that I haven't already shared, hundreds of memories flitted through my mind. I must get them on paper and that is among my more pressing goals.

In these last few months as her hold on this world has become more tenuous, there are two things that have consistently penetrated the fog enveloping her. One thing is the hymns that she has loved for a hundred years. The other thing is the words of her favorite poems, like L'Envoi by Rudyard Kipling. Up until September, she could recite these words with very little prompting:

When Earth's last picture is painted, and the tubes are twisted and dried
When the oldest colors have faded, and the youngest critic has died
We shall rest, and, faith we shall need it--lie down for an aeon or two,
'Til the Master of All Good Workmen shall set us to work anew!


And those that were good will be happy: they shall sit in a golden chair;They shall splash at a ten-league canvas with brushes of comet's hair;They shall find real saints to draw from--Magdalene, Peter and Paul;They shall work for an age at a sitting and never be tired at all!

And only the Master shall praise us, and only the Master shall blame;And no one shall work for money, and no one shall work for fame;But each for the joy of the working, and each, in his separate star,Shall draw the Thing as he sees It for the God of Things as They Are!


I love you LouLou.

5 comments:

Shelly Wildman said...

I have tears in my eyes, Beverly. This is beautiful. And the last verse of that poem is so wonderful. Keeping that one!

Merrie said...

Beautiful and beautifully shared. Thanks for sharing your LouLou with us. We are all blessed because of her life and your love for her.

sara said...

that is beautiful! Happy Birthday to LouLou!!!

Edie said...

Happy Birthday Lou Lou! Now I'm late.

I was thinking as I read, that even though she may not be able to recite it as before, I would bet that she has an incredible picture of it in her mind.

Sylane Mack said...

Oh, Beverly!! I just now got back to your blog!! How blessed I am as I read about your Lou Lou (once again!) Tell her Happy Birthday from me!! I love her too!!!! AND! Thank you for putting in the Dances with Daffodils link! I had never read it before! Beautiful, tender and wise! May we all recognize beauty! May we all dance! And may we all be thankful! Beverly, I am thankful for you!
my love, my heart and my prayers always through Jesus,
Sylane