Just how much do we really know about the other?

My husband and I have been together for fourteen years now as we come up on our twelfth anniversary of marriage.  And while I like to think I know every bit about about him, I didn't know him until a little over fifteen years ago.  So there were a whole lot of years and experiences that grew him into the man he is today, causing him to think this way or that....same goes for me.

My closest friends, those rockin' awesome Four Musketeers, have been a part of my life for twenty-two to twenty-four years (depending on the Musketeer).  All these years later, they are my sisters, Aunties to my kidlets, and who know more about me than most.

Yet, just how much do any of us really know about another human being, no matter how tight the relationship is?

Nine point nine times out of ten, I can predict what my husband or any of those three women, my Musketeers, would do, say, or think in any given situation.  But, there are those moments that I whip my head back hard for a complete, "Say what?!" moment.

Logic tells me that that point one moment stems from some other event or interaction in their life which guides them to that unpredictable (to me) direction they've headed in.  And rational thinking reminds me of a moment in the last year when one of my Musketeers was painting my nails a requested black.  She said something to the effect of her knowing all there is to know about me, to which I replied, "You don't know everything."

Truth is, she does know most everything.  But, even as close as we are, I don't think anyone ever discloses their whole soul.

Do you?  Would there be any surprises lurking for even those closest to you?

This post is inspired by mystery thriller GONE GIRL by Gillian Flynn. They may not have the perfect marriage, but after Amy goes missing, Nick becomes the number one suspect. Can he discover what happened before it's too late? Join From Left to Write on June 12 as we discuss Gone Girl. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.

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Things I Need to Just.Be.Enough.

I need....

...time and motivation to create...with paint, with words, with a camera, with pencils, with whatever.  Creating something is like travelling down a winding path, deep in the woods, simply experiencing what's just around the corner.

...connections...with my husband, my children, my friends, with people known for many years, with new someones stepping into my life.

...anticipation...for what comes next, for who is to come, for what is just a few steps away, for what will take a long journey to reach.

...sights...images to plainly see, pictures to see by looking closer, the grand vista, the ittiest bittiest detail, what sights my eyes survey everyday, the images I'm lucky enough to glimpse when looking from another angle.

...imagination...to capture me and carry me off, to inspire me to create, to remind me to connect in new ways, to spark my anticipation, to cast new shadows and light to every sight waiting to be seen.

Sure, there are specifics like painting with my daughter, music to write with, country drives both solo and with my kidlets, but specifics change as I change.  And thinking through this simple little question, these broad categories are what hold me, in the past, in the present, and hopefully in my future as well.

What things do you need to just be enough?

Sending off Maurice Sendak

Maurice Sendak changed visual possibilities and perspective for children's books where dark illustrations and ideas were not off limits, regardless of the reader's age.  He's best known for Where the Wild Things Are.  And the world lost him today, at age 83, but he left so much of himself behind for generations to come to relish.

I found this quote by Sendak and think it speaks volumes.

“Live your Life.
 Live your Life.
  Live your Life.”

Thawing out from a blog freeze!

Saying that time is zipping by faster than a speeding bullet might be true, but leaves me to lay in a heaping pile o' cliches. So, I'm just going to leave that pile and start fresh.

After an extended blogging break, I'm trying to make my way back. Something that I started participating in last year that I was surprised to find great enjoyment in was Microfiction Mondays. And while that original meme is no longer, I'm going to hop back in here with a photo I took a few months ago and a wee bit o' microfiction.

I know we're all running towards summer in this hemisphere right now, but since my writing went into deep freeze for a bit, this seemed a fitting way to jump back in. Hope you like it!

 

Wicking icy webs over the window pane, enclosing their still breathing bodies in an icy tomb; they’re left listening to silence screech each aching moment by.

 

Life has been really good here - just crazy busy!  Where's life taking you these days?

100 Years of Girl Scouts

I'm celebrating today!  Why?  Girl Scouts is celebrating their 100th Birthday!

I was a Girl Scout from Brownies, all the way up to my early adult years.  I was in Girl Scouts on both the East & West coasts, in two states, and three towns.

With my troops, I've crafted, sang more songs that I can count, hiked, participated in community and environmental service projects, learned new skills, and camped.  Camping was a blast and definitely a staple to punctuate every year of Girl Scouting. I've slept on mountains, in tents, on hills, in cabins, in more tents, and even in a big barn.

It was in my last two troops that I took on the camp name Gizmo and still respond to that name today.  Quite honestly, I think my best friend, who was also a Girl Scout, calls me Giz or Gizie more than she calls me Karen!

And I've met some of the most wonderful girls, now women, in my life through Girl Scouts, including my Four Musketeers.  In Gravity, or Instinct, I Just Knew, I shared my first meeting with Snoopy...at her first Girl Scout meeting.  And I'm grateful that thanks to emails & Facebook, I'm able to continue to keep in contact with so many of the women to this day, twenty years later!

So what are Girl Scouts up to today?  Check out http://www.togetherthere.org/ to find out!

Happy 100th Birthday,
Girl Scouts!!!