Retiring in Maryland Finally - A Tranquil
Life
Life is a passing phase. I thought I was capable of holding on the phase
of being a loving grandmother, a full-time super Nanny, of my grandson, Forest
for at least a year. I found out that it’s simply not possible! My
back – lumbar 4 would not hold up. It gave out on me at the end of April.
A
little more than six months in southern California – Ventura, I never thought I
would be raising kid at my age. All of that was supposed to be behind
me. My work was always the center of my life for the past 38 years
in America. I left behind dreams of leisurely living after the
announcement my formal retirement on January 1, 2014. I regret for not
taking “grand parenting class 101” before my California adventure. The
basic issue of maintaining my own health and well-being physically and
emotionally did not meet challenges and demands of parenting.
Finally I am back home in Maryland. The overwhelmed feelings of stress,
worry, anger, resentment, guilt and grief and mourning for my daughter’s
mother-in-law, grandson Forest’s grandmother passing away on May 19, 2014 were
all buried in the past.
One day of this week, I looked out the kitchen window when I was on the
computer. The deer with short antlers came by in the backyard enjoying
the free feed from the mulberry tree. He is part of our Chang family
member now. I thought there used to be three – Ma, Pa, and the little one
in our backyard. Where are they now? It’s only six month I was
away. I planted the mulberry tree about 20 years ago. It’s only ½
foot tall then. It’s so tall now that 30 feet ladder has no use for
getting the fruits.
I
took the camera shooting the pictures of DEER CHANG, who seemed to be basking
in my company, looking right into my camera lens. There was one cute
squirrel crawling so slowly up the cherry tree. That fuzzy little fellow
was having a nice mid-morning snack of cherries. Not like that Big Chang,
showing no signs of nervousness and scare, the squirrel got away from me.
There was one thing I found out I missed dearly - that was the chirping garden
songbirds eating the cherries. I remember Eric, my son used to complain
in his bedroom, “those darn noisy birds woke me up 5:00 O’clock in the
morning!” Now, he is also away from his old house where he was
born! His room now uninhabited and converted to Forest’s nursery when he
spent four days with us visiting in June. He said jokingly and fondly to
him, "you little rascal, you took over my room!" Am I longing
to hear his booming voices echo through the house? Yes or No.
What a tranquil scenes of my home. I could easily collect about two pints
of mulberries each day this week picking them up from the ground. Those
red tart cherries are not bing cherries you see from the supermarkets.
They are for pie baking or jam and jelly. I used the ladder, fighting
with gnats biting me crazy, picked up some to share with old friends, neighbors
and choir members. My walking partners had a little fun with my summer
fruits as well. One of them, a good cook, will show me how to make cherry
and mulberry jams next year for Forest, my grandson.
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