relationships | The Oasis at Four Queen Palms

Winter here at The Oasis at Four Queen Palms has been chilly longer than I remember. Usually, the cold weather lasts about a month – a period of time where jeans and a warm jacket or heavy sweater are part of the fashion. Not so this year, yet I did manage to wear shorts yesterday. So, it might finally be warming up.

We were working in our yard yesterday with the usual late winter clean up. The sun was shining brightly, and in the trees, birds were singing happily. It was quiet otherwise, except for Turban, a neighbor living nearby with The Wild One. She was yakking on her phone, but not wearing her trademark turban. Earlier that morning, The Wild One went somewhere on his motorcycle – vroom! vroom! vroom! They are a story for another essay. Maybe.

I noticed that some of our more tender plants died from the heavy frosts in December. I cut back many of them to about two or three inches because I could see they are still viable. Over the next few days, I will be researching replacement plants and making a list for a trip to the nursery. I have some ideas, but I need to research to make sure my ideas will work in the specific bare spots. The azaleas have buds, and one already popped open her red blooms.

The evenings now are warmer, but still cool. A snuggle next to the burning fireplace is a warm experience – add a cup of hot tea and a good old book, and there’s a night to enjoy!

Saint Valentine’s Day is only a few weeks away. I am planning something, but I am not sure of the “what” yet, except that it will be tailored to us. Oh, that reminds me: it’s time to address and send out a few Valentines to those I and/or we care about. I usually add a short note to update the recipients on what we’ve been up to since the Holidays. It’s a nice gesture to keep in touch with people and it goes both ways with the more caring and interested people.

I remember when I was in grade school, one of the art projects we did was to cover a shoe box with festive – and hopefully Valentine-y themed – wrapping paper. Mom or Dad would cut a small slit in the top, and these decorative shoe boxes were ready for the Valentine’s Day card exchange in the classroom. It was so much fun to see who gave us a card, and they were so much prettier than today’s cards. They usually were a single piece, covered in silver glitter, and with a fun sentiment so appropriate for youngsters. They came in a box of twenty or so, complete with white envelopes.

Though the evenings might be cool here at The Oasis at Four Queen Palms, warm hearts still prevail.

As ever,

Lady Susan Marie Molloy

When I read the news, I nearly gasped, and my stomach did some sort of weird flip with a fleeting feeling of a flock of butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

My hometown church was finally and forever closing, and the property was sold to the village’s police department for their new headquarters.

This put the final death knell on my home parish. The parochial school closed about a decade ago. In fact, about twenty years ago, the name of the school changed, and a new order of nuns took over, and it was that reincarnation that closed a decade ago. But no matter. The school is gone, as well as the church.

This is something that one really never expects to see in one’s lifetime. Yes, things do change, places come and go, but that is supposed to happen many decades down the road when we are long gone.

And then I thought about death. Nearly everything on Earth dies. Civilizations come and go. Countries that once existed are no longer. The same with languages, cults, fads, and buildings. And sure, some buildings still remain – take the Egyptian pyramids, for example – but they are not used for their original purpose, are they?

Last year ended with the tiniest bit of hope for the mending and renewing of certain relationships, but as the lid closed on 2022 and a bright new 2023 began, that hope is fading – and quickly. It is time to realize that some connections die off. In truth, most never really began.

Time marches on, they say. I just don’t like that some pieces of my parade are gone.

As ever,

Lady Susan Marie Molloy

The Oasis at Four Queen Palms

Gracious Living at The Oasis.

Tag Archives: relationships

Cool Nights, Warm Hearts.

On Death.