Patriot Day Trilogy

Listen my children and you shall hear

of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,

on the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;

Hardly a man is now alive

Who remembers that famous day and year.

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Paul Revere's Ride

By the rude bridge that arched the flood

Here once th'embattled farmers stood.

Their flags to April's breeze unfurled

And fired the shot heard 'round the world.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, Concord Hymn

If you're a patriotic sports fan living in New England, there is almost nothing better than Patriots Day, a day, celebrated mostly in New England states, that honors the bravery of the colonial soldiers during the battles of Concord and Lexinton on April 18, 1775.  On any givenyear, if you do it right, you can go to the 11 a.m. Red Sox game, catch the end of the Boston Marathon(it's the 113th running today) sometime between 1:30 and 2 (depending on who's pitching), take a leisurely stroll across town, grab something tasty to eat in Quincy Market, and then catch either a Bruins or a Celtics play-off game that evening.

Crazy as it sounds, I actually did that once, a number of years ago now.  Then, it was a Bruins game.  Today, it will be a Celtics game vs. the Bulls if you're so inclined.  Several times, I've done the 1-2, Red Sox and Marathon.  On top of all this, if you're a real early bird, you can witness the re-enactment of the famous battles and then go downtown for the atletic events.  The re-enactment starts before dawn when "Paul" and his friend "Samuel Dawes" ride "sound the alarm to every Middlesex village and farm."  As the sun rises, the British march on the two towns and the patriots rise to the challenge while hundreds, perhaps even thousands, stand along the way to gawk and marvel at the antiquated warfare tactics that set this country on the road to the democracy we now enjoy and flourish in.  And yes, I've done that, too.  More than once

No matter the weather (and it's often cloudy, overcast and/or rainy), there's nothing like this day for community warmth and friendliness.  It's one of my favorite holidays.

We Gather Together

Yesterday, my family and extended family and a few friends gathered together for an afternoon of delicious food, interesting conversation, and beautiful music. This is something we've been doing for decades now, ever since my sisters and I were in college when it was a gathering of families of our friends. Some of those friends have since become in-laws, and so the tradition has continued over these many years.

This time was special because we were celebrating two major "decade" birthdays: the 90th birthday of the oldest of the group and the 80th of my mother. To honor them, we had a mini-concert of string, piano, harp, and vocal music. We closed it out by singing We Gather Together.

We gather together to ask the Lord's blessing.
He chastens and hastens to make His will known.
The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing
Sing praises to His name, He forgets not His own.

Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining;
Ordaining, maintaining His Kingdom divine;
So from the beginning the fight we were winning;
Thou, Lord, were on our side, all glory be Thine!

We all do extol Thee, Thou Leader Triumphant,
and pray that Thou still our Defender wilt be.
Let Thy congregation escape tribulation;
Thy name be ever praised! O Lord make us free!

I've sung that hymn many, many times throughout my life, but I never took the time to find out what it was all about until this morning when I looked it up. I was surprised to discovered that it was not an American hymn, but rather a Dutch hymn written about when they were fighting for independence from the Spanish in the 16th century. At the time, they were forbidden by the Catholic king to worship as they chose, so the words "gather together" were particularly meaningful for them.

The hymn appeared in American hymnals in 1903. It was the first hymn in the first hymnal of the Dutch Reformed Church in North Amerca, but it wasn't until it was chosen for inclusion in the national hymnal of the Methodist-Episcopal Church in 1935 that it became better known. During World War II, the words "the wicked oppressing" were connected with the Nazis and Japanese.

For Christians, we are always under siege from some evil force. Perhaps now, more than ever. I am thankful for the Leader Triumphant who is our Defender still.

Early Thanksgiving

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Thanksgiving Feast for eyes, ears, nose and throat =)

Our traditional family gathering was held in a new house this year. There are three core families who spend the day together at one of three homes. This time, we went to the new home of the sister-in-law of one of my sister's. There were a couple dozen of us, plus a dog, two cats and the new kitten (who was a big hit with everyone).

All the ladies are good cooks, so we had lots of good food. All the children and most of the adults are good musicians, so after we ate, we had good music. In between and all around, we had good conversation, as all of us are good talkers.

These famlies have known each other for ever and ever, going back to the college years of the oldest. All the middle agers (myself among them) went to college together as well, which is why the families remain connected and always gather together at Thanksgiving.

Music brings us together, too, as the oldest is also the director of the orchestra that all the middle-agers and collegiates have played with. My sister's husband and his sister are founding members of that orchestra, the internationally renown New England Youth Ensemble. It was only natural, then, that we indulged ourselves in music for awhile after we finished our food.

After the kids played, we prevailed upon the director to play. Now, this woman is a true musical genius, and really is known all over the world. She debuted in the Capetown, South Aftica City Hall when she was just 11 years old, and has been a prodigious force in the music world ever since. She is a pianist, a violinist, and a composer as well. Her oratorio debuted in Carnegie Hall a few years ago to rave reviews. It is an amazing privilege to know her, never mind perform with her. Her great gift to musical kids has been the travel. Oh, the places we've gone with her: China and the Far East, Israel, Jordan, Egypt, South Africa, Australia, Europe, Poland, Russia, Scandanavia, Brazil, Rwanda, Jamaica, the Virgin Islands...quite literally all over the world.

Anyway, we begged, and she sat down and played for us for about 20 minutes. We were mesmerized. She played Bach, Mozart, and then a composition of her own. All of which served to remind me of yet other blessings in my life: music and travel, and the person who made it possible for me to combine both.

Photos: the pie table, one of the table settings (there were three), Virginia-Gene Rittenhouse playing her own composition, the mesmerized audience of young and old alike.

Take Nothing for Granted

To educate yourself for the feeling of gratitude means to take nothing for granted, but to always seek out and value the kind that will stand behind the action. Nothing that is done for you is a matter of course. Everything originates in a will for the good, which is directed at you. Train yourself never to put off the word or action for the expression of gratitude.
~ Albert Schweitzer

Family Fun on the Fourth

4th of July has lately been spent at my sister's, about 10 minutes from my house. She has a beautiful backyard with a pool, so it's an ideal place for the family to gather. This year was no exception. We arrived around 1 and spent the majority of the day hanging out and talking. Our parents were there from Maine and our other sister and her family were there as well.

As the day turned into evening, it started to rain, so the party moved inside. The girls had thought about going into Boston to the Pops Concert & Fireworks, but the rain put a damper on those plans. Eventually some of us went to the lake down the hill to the fireworks there. For a small town, they weren't too bad (unlike my photo-taking).

At home, May was keeping company with the patriotic bears =)

Fourth of July Night
The little boat at anchor in black water sat murmuring to the tall black sky
A white sky bomb fizzed on a black line.
A rocket hissed it's red signature into the west.
Now a shower of Chinese fire alphabets,
A cry of flower pots broken in flames,
A long curve to a purple spray, three violet balloons---
Drips of seaweed tangled in gold, shimmering symbols of mixed numbers,
Tremulous arrangements of cream gold folds of a bride's wedding gown---
A few sky bombs spoke their pieces, then velvet dark.
The little boat at anchor in black water sat murmuring to the tall black sky.
~ Carl Sandburg