Click Yourself Into The Moment

Every Day Is A Parade

Today I took my youngest children to see the movie “Click”. I thought the plot of the movie was entertaining, but it could have had less sexual innuendos and still kept an older audiences attention, let me tell you why I think this. The movie had me reflecting once again about how precious time is and a reminder to live in the moment. I know life can get busy and sometimes it’s hard to slow down. Been there, done it. I think as we age we prioritize the most important things in life such as family first and foremost. Then of course we want to take good care of our health and we try not let things get the better of us; life is too short. At least these three things are my principals for living these days. I’m not going to paint a rosy picture; I’ve had my share of life’s downers. I just see the whole picture better with age; it’s clicked. So today I want to share a poem with you that I wrote. It is a reminder for us adults to slow down, breathe, enjoy the day and remember what it was like when we didn’t have big concerns. Your children or grandchildren would probably love it if you partake in what is said here:

Bring out your imagination
Take a stroll down memory lane
Spend the day as if you were a child
Hop aboard the youthful train

Run through a bunch of puddles
Jump in them till your heart’s content
Don’t worry what the neighbor’s think
What matters is the day will be well spent

Look for a colorful and shiny stone
Put it in your pocket and admire it all day
Place the stone under your pillow tonight
Maybe sweet dreams will come your way

Grab a blanket and lie in the grass
Look at the clouds in the heavenly skies
Visions of elephants to dragons can be seen
The wonder is there if you open your eyes

Climb a tree and sit there awhile
Gaze at the scenery from a different view
The beauty and splendor will come alive
You will find yourself renewed

Go ahead and spend the day like a child
There’s nothing to be ashamed of
Believe in the magic of your younger days
And spread the joy and love

© 2004 Debra Kitzman


Ok, now play with your children and/or grandchildren, play till you’re exhausted. Let the reason for living click on and stay on. Family is really all that matters. Have fun!

For The Love Of Golf

Every Day Is A Parade

I think I might have the next golf pro living in my home. My youngest son loves to play golf and he is really good at it. It all started back about four years ago. My husband, our two youngest children and I were visiting friends in northern Wisconsin. The men went fishing and the women went to a flea market. It was my youngest son’s birthday and since there wasn’t much for the kids to do at our friend’s home I decided to keep my eyes open for something fun. Well I spotted a golf club and used golf balls and figured what the heck why not buy them. I gave him the used gift and he thoroughly enjoyed it. We go back home a couple days later and he’s out in the backyard playing away. His interest in the sport continues off and on for quite some time. About a year of so later my husband wins a set of golf clubs at his union meeting and our son soon becomes their new owner. He’s in his glory. My husband and I realized last Christmas that it was time to get him a set that suited his age and size. So we bought him a youth/teen set. Well thank goodness we had a mild winter with not much snow so he was able to use those clubs now and then, otherwise he might have gone stir crazy not being able to play the game. Let me tell you my son drive a golf ball. Thank goodness we have enough land because now my husband and son have planted grass for a golf hole, it will be complete with a cup and flag. My son is outside everyday checking on the growth process. His young face just lights up when he talks about golf. This spring we took a cruise and there was a golf simulator. The golf pro on the ship said we would be surprised on how good he will do at a golf course. Oh, was he right. Last month I was reading our local paper and in it was a golf ad for a junior league forming at a nearby course. I showed it to my son and there was no hesitation, “yes I want to join!” Now my son is not competitive and joining team sports is not on his agenda, so this was big!! I signed him up right away. Then on the Friday before the league started, he and I tried out the course so he was familiar with it before the league started on that Monday. The instructor on the cruise ship was right, my son was really doing great his first time on a course. That whole weekend before the league started my son washed and polished his golf clubs and golf balls. My husband took him to the sports store and bought him a pull golf cart. My son prepared for the big day all weekend long. Well Monday came and he had no problem jumping right out of bed. I took pictures of him as he drove his golf ball to the first hole. The kids on his league were impressed. He said he got a lot of “nice hit”, “great drive” “WOW”. His league instructor at the end of the game told me “you’re right, he is really good at the game”. You can imagine the talk at the dinner table that night. Right now my husband and son are at the driving range. My husband is not a golfer, but he enjoys seeing our son’s enthusiasm as much as I do. And of course on Father’s Day our son insisted we give Daddy a brand new driver so that he can wallop the golf balls in the backyard too. The only problem is the competing of sports between my son and husband. My husband loves to fish and take our son along, but my son finds it hard to break away from golfing. The cure for that today was that my husband got up at 5am to fish and came back just as our son was ready to head to the driving range. Men and their sports, what are women to do - - oh yeah, go shopping. My daughter and I love that sport.

A Fistful Of Love

Every Day Is A Parade

Have you ever witnessed someone’s child acting out, you know, the child that’s a bit mad because they can’t have their way? Last month, I witnessed what first appeared to be a tiff between a mother and daughter, but soon it became an adorable act of love by a child. I was in the school parking lot waiting in my car for my son at the end of the day for our trip back home. I watched a mother and her preschool daughter walking on the sidewalk in front of me. The little girl broke lose of her mother’s grip and ran over to a tulip that was on the school’s grounds. She had her hand on the stem of the tulip and I could tell she was asking her mom if she could pick it. Her mom shook her head “no” and then proceeded to walk towards the school’s front door. The little girl immediately crossed her arms and appeared upset as she followed her mom. Then the unexpected happened. The young girl went off the sidewalk again and went into the grass, reached down, pulled up a dandelion and held it behind her back without her mom knowing what she had just done. She then ran to her mom and presented her mother with this beautiful dandelion. I didn’t get to see the mother’s reaction because she had her back facing me, plus at this point the school bell went off and a ton of kids were eagerly heading to the buses or to their mom or dad. All I know is I was grinning ear to ear having seen this sweet little girl wanting nothing more than to please her mom. She wasn’t able to give her mom the first flower she saw on that walk into the school, but she did give her the most popular flower given to moms worldwide for years and years – the precious dandelion. Some people don’t like to see those yellow weeds in their yard. I say, let the dandelions runneth all over my green grass, I need a bouquet!

Grandma's Here, Grandma's Here Hooray-Hooray

Every Day Is A Parade

Monday - June 19, 2006

Is there someone in your life who makes you feel absolutely loved and admired? Does this person radiate onto you their spirit, joy, passion and charm? When you’re with this person do you act out of the ordinary, maybe a little silly or giddy? When this remarkable person sees you do they run toward you to give you a squeeze so tight that it nearly knocks you off your feet? And does this special someone come in the form of a bundle of sweetness that’s around three feet tall? Then chances are you’ve been blessed and you are the grandparent of a preschooler, just like I am. I think being a grandparent is one of life’s greatest rewards. I found my life renewed when I became a grandma; a chance to relive all the pure delights children can bring into the world. Grandparents know how fast a child grows up because looking back on our own children’s childhood it all seems like a fast moving blur. Yet, back when our kids were young and we were dealing with life’s challenges of being a parent we sometimes thought we would never get through a single day. Now we realize it was just a day, not a lifetime.

It occurred to me recently that in my two and a half year old grandson’s mind I am a breath of fresh air. I can provide him with a change of pace, because as much as my grandson loves his dad and mom, I am a new adventure with every visit. On a beautiful spring day about a month or so ago I drove to his house for a lunch date. As I was about to pull into my son’s and daughter-in-law’s driveway I saw him standing at the front door. I can still picture our eyes locking together. The opened screen on the storm door was letting in the welcomed breeze and it allowed me to hear the following loud shrills of excitement, “Grandma’s here, grandma’s here, hooray hooray!!!!” He was jumping up and down, while my heart was skipping a beat. I knew I was someone special that day, so as soon as I stepped out of the car I started jumping up and down too. We were two cheerful souls rejoicing in each other’s company. Yes, there have been quite a few other times he has been thrilled to see me, but on this particular day I realized he has reached the age to express himself verbally and he is becoming his own unique little person. I’ve been thinking about all the wonder and amusement that will be added to our relationship now that he can communicate his feelings through word and action.

Believe me I know there is a relatively short time before he discovers he has better things to do than wait at the front door for me with an adorable smile and his hands reaching for me to pick him up. His sister, my granddaughter, is ten months old and it won’t be long till I get more hugs and more priceless moments like “Grandma’s here, grandma’s here, hooray hooray!” You know us grandmas, we like to brag about our perfect and precious grandkids. It’s good to know that he is the first of many grandchildren to come and I have much to look forward to. So at my house I keep the freezer stocked with popsicles, the sandbox filled with toys, a favorite music CD in the stereo, a few bucks stashed away for McDonalds, and an creative idea or two in my head to keep the grandkids coming back. Hey, a whole lot of love and a little bribery never hurt anyone!