Mural musings

Today was such a great day! Heather and I went to the Grand Canyon today for the unveiling of the mural my friend Julie Greer painted at the Shrine of the Ages building. She was the artist-in-residence there, and this was the culmination of all of her hard work. It's a beautiful mural-a Native American grandmother and granddaughter standing at the edge of the Canyon, wrapped in blankets. The detail is marvelous, and there is a lot of meaning in the items around them, wildflowers, rocks, it was so cool to hear her explain it for us. The Shrine of the Ages is not in the main traffic-pattern of the tourist areas, but it's not far from the Marketplace Plaza, so if you plan a trip to the canyon, take time to stop by there too. Shrine of the Ages is the building used for orchestras, gatherings and church services, and she wanted to use that area as her canvas.

This is the first time I've been at the Grand Canyon in the winter, and with all the snow we've had this year, it is really beautiful! The weather was clear, and warmed up to the high 40's I think. It wasn't very crowded, so that was nice too. We were there last May for a wedding, and took the rim trail west along the canyon, it's an easy and beautiful hike, I want to go back and spend a little more time along there. I've talked David into a trip to the far western end of the canyon, where the local Tribe has built a walkway over the canyon with plexiglass, so when you walk out over the edge, there's nothing much between you and the bottom! I planned to go last summer, but had to put that on hold for a while. It's about 3-4 hours up there from here, and I want to feel good enough to really enjoy the trip. Plus I better have my heart in good shape before I stroll out onto the see-through walkway, don't want to shake it up again.

Swinging hearts and hobbies

Have you seen an action movie where the hero is on a high-rise construction site, and grabs onto an I-beam, falls, catches him/herself by one hand? Then we watch them swing around as the beam jerks- the hero scrambles, trying to hang on and get his other arm or a leg up onto the beam. Well, that's what happens to my heart when I roll over onto my right side. Now, I love to sleep on my side, but when I move to the right, my poor naked heart flippity-flops around. There is no security blanket/pericardium to keep it cozy and in place, so suddenly its only the, what- valves and blood vessels, that hold it into place. Nature hates a vaccuum, so hopefully other organs will shift enough to cushion my old ticker, but for now it sure gets excited when I try to nap to the right. It's not nearly as exciting as being a movie hero, swinging around in midair, but it's one of the few excercises my heart gets right now!

I have read 8-10 books the past few weeks, one of them is Eat, Pray, Love- which is a great book. The others are a series called Mrs. Pollifax adventures, easy to read and enough mystery to be engaging. She learns karate in her late 50's or early 60's and becomes a CIA spy. I love that, it gives me hope that I can figure out a new era in my life that is as much fun as the past eras I've had. Right now I'm getting antsy to get moving again, but in the meantime I've finished knitting sweaters, scarves and other unfinished projects. I'm still working on a nice warm sweater that I want to wear this winter- it's a big one, so wish me luck.

Life is good! I love my family, my friends, my life in general is wonderful. I am so grateful to everyone that has kept my in their thoughts and prayers over the past year, and that's a fact. Now, if I can just get my naked heart to let me nap on my right side.......