Author: Kay Foley

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Table Apple Penny

Oh yeah, I beat that old man in the Senior Games Racewalk!

Oh God, it’s that time of year again. Time for my Old Lady Exam. As you’re reading this, I will be at my doctor’s office for another Medicare Wellness Visit.

I have to say, that first visit to my doctor after I went on Medicare really took me by surprise. I was given a form to fill out in the waiting room. “Please check the appropriate box, below. Can you perform the following activities: a) on your own, b) with help, or c) not at all? Use a Telephone, Bathe Myself, Get Groceries, Feed Myself, etc.”

What the hell?? I was shocked and indignant.

My son pointed out that I had, ironically, posted this same photo twice, on Instagram.

Inside the exam room, I was using my cell phone when the doctor walked in. “Look!” I said. “I’m using my phone all by myself!” Okay, that was a bit unkind. She had a puzzled look so I mentioned the Old Lady Form I’d just been asked to fill out. She admitted she would be asking me a few “silly” questions, since it was a Medicare visit. But first there were three words I would need to remember: table, apple, penny. She said them slowly so I’d have time to let them sink in. Then there were the questions. What year is it? Who is the President? In what city are we? Etc. And after that, What are those three words? Hmm . . . let me think.

Now I’d caught on. I waited for her to ask me to spell WORLD backwards, like they’d asked my mother when she first had one of those exams. She nailed it, so I’ve been practicing ever since. But no. Rats.

I went home and reported this whole episode on Facebook. The next day, when I walked into the gym for pickleball, a friend yelled out, “TABLE APPLE PENNY!!”

I’ll let you ponder why this photo.

The following year my doctor asked me to remember those same three words. When she tested me on them, I said, “Table apple penny. You asked me those last year.” Aha! Who needs to have their memory checked now?

Oh sure, my memory isn’t what it used to be. My sons point out every little lapse and every little thing I tell more than once. But just look at all the things I have to remember, keep track of, take care of, and do! I teach piano. I write these letters. I have a card business and two websites. I take care of a house, a car, a load of bills, two elderly dogs and all their meds. I’m learning Mah Jongg, for God’s sake. I have 71 years of memories, books, facts, movies, jokes, quotes, and recipes floating around in my brain. I can’t be expected to remember who died in The Snap in whatever the hell Marvel movie I watched with Oliver. Those movies all run into each other, anyway. There’s always an evil guy who wants to take over the world (spelled backwards, that’s DLROW) and the heroes have to wreck the vicinity in order to stop him.

Bring it on, doctors! I’m ready. We Old Ladies are ready! TABLE! APPLE!! PENNY!!!

Forgetfulness – Billy Collins

The name of the author is the first to go
followed obediently by the title, the plot,
the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel
which suddenly becomes one you have never read, never even heard of,

as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor
decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain,
to a little fishing village where there are no phones.

Long ago you kissed the names of the nine muses goodbye
and watched the quadratic equation pack its bag,
and even now as you memorize the order of the planets,

something else is slipping away, a state flower perhaps,
the address of an uncle, the capital of Paraguay.

Whatever it is you are struggling to remember,
it is not poised on the tip of your tongue
or even lurking in some obscure corner of your spleen.

It has floated away down a dark mythological river
whose name begins with an L as far as you can recall

well on your own way to oblivion where you will join those
who have even forgotten how to swim and how to ride a bicycle.

No wonder you rise in the middle of the night
to look up the date of a famous battle in a book on war.
No wonder the moon in the window seems to have drifted
out of a love poem that you used to know by heart.
If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”
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Keeping Body & Soul Together

Oh, for a red marker! Or some white paint! Or both!

Twenty-five years ago at this time, Ampersand Cards was just a baby. I was going to be doing other things to pay the bills for a long time to come. For awhile, I worked as a freelance editor.

I have always been a proofreader. Out and about, I often long for a red pen so I can provide a few instructive marks on signs, menus, billboards, etc. I know I’m not alone in this. Let me say that we do not appreciate the term “grammar police.” But I know what I know. I remember attending Parents’ Night in the cafeteria of the junior high school my son was about to attend. The sign above the speakers’ heads read: Today’s Lunch – Hamburger’s and Fryes. Really? Oh my.

Anyway, I miraculously found the perfect extra income–editing courses for the Center for Distance and Independent Study at the University of Missouri. The courses were written for high school and college students. I could do it at home, on my own schedule, and it was interesting, sometimes frustrating but at times hilarious work. I edited cultural anthropology, modern French literature, intro to educational statistics, and world geography, among others.

But the apex of my career as an editor was Latin. The director had just said she didn’t have much for me at the moment. She was casting about for someone who could edit a high school Latin course. Well! It just so happened that I had taken four years of Latin in high school! She was flabbergasted. Yes, two years of Latin were required at my aforementioned, highly disliked all girls Catholic high school, followed by two additional years of language.

Because I’d found Latin so difficult but had enjoyed the quirky nun who taught it, I’d opted for two more years of Latin. Yes, Kathleen, why make the smart choice of studying useful Spanish or gorgeous French? Why not, instead, choose the thing you already know you dislike? Mon dieu! Now there’s a mistake I’ve always regretted! To my deep disappointment, the quirky little nun did not even teach Advanced Latin! C’est dommage. I soothe myself with the thought that Latin was good for my vocabulary. And Semper ubi sub ubi is always a fun Latin joke. In case you didn’t know, it is translated as, “Always wear underwear.”

So there you have it. While figuring out the intricacies of launching a greeting card and art business, I kept body and soul together by editing courses aimed at the edification of people in various situations who were prevented from attending a class. Now that is something worthwhile.

I taught piano at that time, too. I was well aware that if I hadn’t had these skills, I would never have been able to leave my job and strike out on my own as I did. Ampersand Cards might just have been a blip on the screen, rather than the vast conglomerate it is today. Lucky. I’ve just been lucky.

“Some editors are failed writers, but so are most writers.” ― T.S. Eliot

“The first draft reveals the art; revision reveals the artist.” ― Michael Lee

“A person who wrote badly did better than a person who does not write at all. A bad writing can be corrected. An empty page remains an empty page.” ― Israelmore Ayivor, How You Can Write Your Dream Book

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”

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The Birth of Ampersand Cards

This year marks the 25th birthday of Ampersand Cards!! As I always used to say in the early days, I haven’t lost the house!

I can hardly believe all these years have gone by and I’m still at it, still have energy for it, and am planning some exciting changes this year. I started the business after reading Julia Cameron’s book, The Artist’s Way, with my sister. The book broke me wide open! I was working then at an incredibly difficult job as a therapist with alcoholic and drug-addicted women. The good thing about the job was that it made me feel very grateful for the upbringing and life I’d had. The bad thing was that I was ill-prepared for the soul-crushing stories I heard every day from clients. And with almost no support on the job, it did not take long for me to realize that being a therapist was not my true calling.

My earliest handmade cards, using sponge prints

I left the job. My sister, who lived in Tucson at the time, suggested we start a card business. I thought that sounded good, so I got going. Pretty quickly we both realized that we couldn’t do it long distance. so I went ahead on my own. She remained my well-loved moral support.

Anyway, I sat in my yard one lovely day and wrote a bunch of verses. Then I played around with how to make the cards, settling on sponge prints like I’d taught my sons to make for their boxes of school Valentines. I cut shapes out of sponges, painted them with watercolors and pressed them onto cards, embellishing with glitter glue. Then I glued the words on. I spent an inordinate amount of time searching for glue that would not make the cards curl up, and in that search, befriended two wonderful local cardmakers.

Tired of all those sponge prints and glitter glue, especially for wholesale, I tried this for awhile.

I still have the notebook in which I tried out names and logos. 3 Boys & a Dog. Imagine Cards. Real Dog Cards. 2Trees Cards. Tea & Chocolate Cards. Us Girls Cards. In June of 1998 I registered the fictitious name (I thought this was a funny term) of Ampersand Cards. It turns out that, to sell handmade greeting cards, I had to undergo a criminal background check!

In August I obtained a business license and the rest, as they say, is history. Okay, it’s not a particularly well-known history. Neither I nor Ampersand Cards appears in Wikipedia, for example, or even, I would guess, any local history. I do have a friend here who calls me LAKF, which stands for Local Artist Kay Foley. I am grateful for that.

The first store to carry my cards was Poppy, right here in beautiful downtown Columbia MO. I stood nervously in front of Barbara McCormick, then owner, who very graciously looked at my cards and said, “So you’re a poet!” She agreed right then to try out my cards in her beautiful shop. To this day, my cards grace the shelves at Poppy.

I’ll be continuing the story of our 25th birthday throughout this year, a year of change for me and for Ampersand Cards. Stay tuned.

“Whatever you think you can do or believe you can do, begin it. Action has magic, grace, and power in it.” ― Julia Cameron, The Artist’s Way

“I decided that the world of work is not conducive to JOY–and so I became a dreamer of dreams that come true. I’m much happier now.” – Kay Foley!

“No matter what your age or your life path, whether making art is your career or your hobby or your dream, it is not too late or too egotistical or too selfish or too silly to work on your creativity.” ― Julia Cameron, The Artist’s Way

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”

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The Little Orphan: A Woodland Dilemma

You just never know what you’ll find in the woods!

Yesterday I took a long walk with a dear friend at one of my most beloved places–Gans Creek Wilderness Area. This is my favorite wild place in Columbia, meaning that, amazingly, we have several to choose from! We are incredibly lucky. I had looked forward to having another of our usual wide-ranging, heartfelt and thoughtful conversations as we walked–and I was not disappointed.

Gans Creeks is full of gifts for those who love to wander. There are woods, there’s a big old creek, there are gorgeous blufftop views, there are maple groves. This is all year round, of course. Right now, there are the wildflowers. Oh my! They have just gone crazy out there. I’ve never ever seen so many trout lilies or Dutchmen’s breeches in bloom in one spot! That was amazing.

Now to the titular little orphan. Luckily, I had not brought Miles, because walks of that length are now too hard on him. He would not have behaved well towards the little squirrel that was seemingly looking to be adopted. (I’m saying “he” just because my first inclination was that he was a little fellow.) He ran right up to us, oblivious of any possible danger, including my friend’s exceptionally shy, considerate dog. He got right on Lynn’s shoe and stayed awhile. He appeared to want to climb up her pants leg! He was completely unafraid of shy, considerate Olivia.

So tiny, so friendly, so adorable! I wanted to pick him up.

I didn’t. But should I have done? We thought it best to leave him, in the hope that his real family would find him. But oh, that was a hard decision! At any moment there in the woods some ferocious animal (like Miles) might race up and grab him. Game over. But he so wanted to be with us! He even chased us down the path, as he had done with a family of humans walking ahead of us. Desperate for somebody to go home with. Oh oh oh. Did we do the right thing? I don’t know. He would not have fared well at my house, I do know that. We naively hoped his own family would come for him.

Right or wrong, it felt like a huge privilege to have that encounter.

Later that evening I saw the two barred owls that frequent my backyard, together on a branch, grooming each other, while six deer cavorted beyond the fence. The young ones dashed back and forth across the creek, over fences, clearly having fun. That, too, was beautiful to see, and right in my backyard.

Golly! How I could ever complain about anything or not be thankful for everything I have? It boggles the mind.

“Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful.” — Buddha

“Silent gratitude isn’t very much to anyone.” — Gertrude Stein

“I suspect that it was simply that I had admired the earth, and the universe. The more I say and think that I admire it, and love it, the more it gives me what I admire, or strange coincidences that leave me in more awe than I was before.” ― Michael Whone, Winter Lyric

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”

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Dancing Daffodils

Our daffodils have taken a real beating this spring.

We had some unseasonably warm weather this winter and in their optimistic way daffodils began popping up as early as late February. Some of mine bloomed shortly thereafter. Inevitably, temperatures dropped into the twenties a few nights in a row and at two or three different times. The poor things, shivering in the cold, covered with frost! Then there was the wild wind. And rain. Try as they might to stay upright, their heads bowed to the ground. The pretty faces they’d turned to the sky leaned down to contemplate the earth.

One of my cards, now retired, from many years ago

Stalwart daffodils offer many lessons. One could think: a) don’t be reckless; b) be patient and wait for spring; and c) everything is not a competition. But I prefer to take these lessons: a) persevere despite hardship; b) remain optimistic regardless of your circumstances; and c) never let your resilience flag. They do almost always pop back up, just as we can and (usually) do. Sure, some of them look pretty bedraggled and might be passed over for a spot in the living room vase. But doesn’t that just give them more time to turn their faces back up to the sun, more days to breathe in the cool spring air? Would you rather be bobbing in the spring breeze (okay, wind) or standing perfectly still in somebody’s house?

I began this in a bit of a low mood today. The moneylenders have gotten me down. But I have decided to take my inspiration from all the bouncy, vivacious daffodils. And what about the wildflowers?? It’s prime time for going on a wildflower hunt. And it’s completely free! You don’t need a thin dime to do it. You don’t even have to drive anywhere to find them. If you can’t get into the woods, you’ll still find wildflowers popping up in the yards and along sidewalks.So. Take a page from the Book of Daffodils. Bounce along. Turn your gaze to the earth and search for wildflowers. Seek out beauty. Pop back up if you’ve been knocked down. Nurture your resilience. And take a lesson from William Wordsworth (below). Life is good.

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed–and gazed–but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
― William Wordsworth, I Wander’d Lonely as a Cloud
If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”
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All the Places

Taroko Gorge, Taroko National Park, Hualien Taiwan

This morning as I thought about what I’d write to you, I was sad to consider leaving Taiwan. Again. Now I’d be leaving behind my writing of it, having left the actual place over a month ago. I’m not sure I’m ready to do that. This got me to thinking about how certain places continue to live inside us long after we’ve left them.

I’m reminded of the lovely Beatles song, “In My Life.” Listening to this song now is bittersweet. I suppose it’s always meant to have been. I love so many of the places I’ve been, both humble and grand, and the people who were with me. I’ve continued to keep Akumal and Taipei in my phone’s list of weather forecasts, along with places my sons and siblings live. More importantly, I keep them in my heart.

There are places I remember . . .

The farmhouse at Jughandle Creek Farm and Nature Center

I remember Jughandle Creek Farm and Nature Center on the California coast near Mendocino, where my sister and I once stayed for a couple of nights. Great big old house with huge common areas, a rickety upright piano, and cozy bedrooms; tiny cabins on the property if you’re willing to walk up to the house for the bathroom. The best thing is, it’s across the road from the ocean! Beautiful beach at hand, breathtaking views from the headlands above. We picnicked at both spots.

I remember the Grand Canyon and Phantom Ranch, where another sister and I stayed. That’s a very hard trek with a great big fat reward. I remember us doubled over with laughter on the way back up, just as some miserable looking backpackers carrying God knows how many pounds came trudging by. And I can still picture the crescent moon hanging above the ridge as we started out early in the morning.

I remember green, gorgeous Scotland. My son Peter lived there for fifteen years and I managed to visit him there twice. Of course I fell in love with Scotland and every last thing about it, too. I adored the kilts, the bagpipes, peaty single malt scotch whiskey, millionaire’s shortbread, the Isle of Skye, the Highlands, neeps and tatties, the charming accent, and of course the local idioms. Och! It’s a bonnie land!

I remember New York City, the Met, Central Park. I remember Pt. Reyes. Yosemite with my sisters. Yosemite with my boys. Ogunquit, Maine. Acadia National Park.

San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge. Paris! Florence, Rome, Lake Como. Roundup Montana, my father’s birthplace.

Acadia National Park in Maine

All the places. I’m amazed that I’ve traveled as much as I have, and that all these places now live inside me. Now Taiwan tugs at my heart, even moreso as it’s so far away and getting there is so not fun (although I’d do it again) and I might never be there again–but most especially because it was with my son and he arranged the whole trip for me.

So the places are beautiful, grand, evocative, amazing and humble . . . And then there are the people. Almost all of the places in my sentimental wanderings come with people who are dear to me. Sure, there were a very few sojourns I’ve taken that have given me something else completely that I’ve treasured; and I do love wandering our woods alone with my thoughts or commenting on this or that to my dog Miles. (Or singing. He loves that.) But for the big trips, I want to be with people I love. All the places. And all the people.

I know I’ll often stop and think about them.

“Haud yer wheesht!” (Hold your tongue!) – Scottish saying

“A place belongs forever to whoever claims it hardest, remembers it most obsessively, wrenches it from itself, shapes it, renders it, loves it so radically that he remakes it in his own image.” ― Joan Didion

“Regular maps have few surprises: their contour lines reveal where the Andes are, and are reasonably clear. More precious, though, are the unpublished maps we make ourselves, of our city, our place, our daily world, our life; those maps of our private world we use every day; here I was happy, in that place I left my coat behind after a party, that is where I met my love; I cried there once, I was heartsore; but felt better round the corner once I saw the hills of Fife across the Forth, things of that sort, our personal memories, that make the private tapestry of our lives.”

― Alexander McCall Smith, Love Over Scotland

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”

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Bike Paths

Bicycling is the national pastime in Taiwan and there are miles and miles of beautiful, dedicated, paved bike paths all over the country. This made all the difference for me on my recent trip there. My decision about even saying yes to the trip turned on this dime. Still, I had no idea just how great the bike paths would be. Just look at these! Not only beautifully maintained but just plain beautiful!

I got to thinking about paths, in general, as I began to write this. Life paths and bike paths. The qualities of the path affect each person differently and might or might not fit with who we are now and what we can reasonably do.

At certain points in last month’s bike journey with my son, the path we were on affected each of us very differently. The long beautiful ones, above, were of course pure joy to ride on. But below, you can see that we encountered a section that was steep enough to inspire the building of shallow steps on either side of a slightly stepped ramp, rather than having people go careening wildly down a very steep path. For Cole, it was fun to ride the ramp, but I was more comfortable (duh) walking my bike down the middle while using the steps. It accommodated both of us, but in different ways, since we are completely different riders. Experienced/inexperienced. Fearless/fearful. Young guy/Old Lady.

At another point, we rode for 1.75 miles in a tunnel I had described as having had no bike path. In truth, there was a raised sidewalk for bikes, with a curb (but no guardrail) and the curved tunnel wall on the other side. I could not ride on it. It was just as wide as a regular sidewalk but psychologically, I could not do it. The wall felt far too confining, even though I could see that there was room. I could also see that Cole had no problem with it. (He can also ride hands free, hands in pockets, arms jigging back and forth, etc.) I felt like I could easily fall off the curb and fly wildly into a passing car. I felt that I would be giving myself over to chance. I chose, instead, to ride carefully with traffic, pulling over whenever I heard a car coming. I guess I trusted the drivers to see me more than I trusted my own ability to ride in a straight line. And so, that path was not for me.

Right after the tunnel, we took a shortcut through a jungly area with a very steep, narrow road that was wet and a little slick underfoot. Again, I could see Cole riding it but could not make myself get on my bike until it flattened out a bit. The old “Afraid of Falling and Breaking a Hip” shtick. Purely psychological, because I could just as easily have fallen while walking my bike.

But it’s good to know what is and isn’t for you and not get too tangled up in it. Right? Sure, sometimes it’s also good to push your limits. I’d love to be as fearless and carefree as my son–and I remember when I was. I remember wiping out completely on my bike, years before he was born. I was goofing around on the way back to camp after a day of mountain biking (a thing I would not do now to begin with). Laughing and being silly, I took a big fall. Giant nasty scrape on my leg . . . the guys shooting the dirt and gravel off with their water bottles . . . still laughing. No fear, no regrets, just fun. Sigh.

Every path isn’t for every person at every stage of life. That’s all there is to it. That’s what I’m saying and I’m sticking with it. Done.

“Let each {one} take the path according to his capacity, understanding and temperament. His true guru will meet him along that path.” ― Sivananda

“If you don’t know where you want to go, then it doesn’t matter which path you take.” ― Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

“There are two paths of which one may choose in the walk of life; one we are born with, and the one we consciously blaze. One is naturally true, while the other is a perceptive illusion. Choose wisely at each fork in the road.”― T.F. Hodge, From Within I Rise

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”

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Color & Light, Revisited

The Taiwan Lantern Festival, most fully realized in Taipei (and boy, is it ever!) is a grand, amazing, two-week long celebration of color and light! And my brain and I were lucky enough to see it in person last month. I’m still marveling.

I adore bright colors and lights. Creativity. Humor. My biggest goal with art is to bring joy through color. So the Festival was right up my alley. Plus, this year the Festival honored the Lunar Year of the Rabbit, my Chinese zodiac sign. Rabbits all over the place! Rabbits, tigers, dragons, dogs, birds, people, Minions, Alice in Wonderland, the Coronavirus–all rendered in fabric and framing–lit up the Festival night after night, to my own and everyone else’s delight.

One whole big area of the Festival was mostly just lights, on the ground, in the trees, beamed onto buildings, and dangling overhead as hoops and orbs. Taipei 101, the huge tower that looms over the city, was lit up, too, with colorful projected images, both still and video.

I went three times. Twice at night and once on a cloudy day, when the lantern sculptures were still amazing and beautiful.

But do color and light make us happy, as I like to think? I’ve done a tiny bit of research on this.

Researchers have determined that there are non-visual effects of color on the brain. Red light raises heart rate, while blue light lowers it. In Tokyo, blue lights were installed at the ends of railway platforms to reduce suicides. The suicide rate at those stations fell by 74%! Clearly, something important is happening. They concluded, “It is clear that light, and colour specifically, can affect us in ways that go far beyond regular colour vision.” The call is for more research to discover the effects of color and light on sleep, mood, and well-being, among other things.

I could almost say that the vivid colors and lights of the Lantern Festival had a long-range effect on my mood. I love looking back at my photos of the entries by children in middle school and above, inmates of prisons and detention facilities, and by businesses and even other countries. I can easily go back there in my mind. I just know that I feel very lucky that I was able to see it and I will never forget it. My eyes and brain had a feast.

“I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don’t notice it.” ― alice walker, The Color Purple

“I don’t fancy colors of the face, I’m always attracted to colors of the brain.” ― Michael Bassey Johnson

“After a lifetime of darkness, I want to leave something behind that is made of light.” ― Marie Lu, The Midnight Star

“The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love color the most.”― John Ruskin, The Stones of Venice

“Mere color, unspoiled by meaning, and unallied with definite form, can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways. ”― Oscar Wilde

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”

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Beautiful Isle

Why in the world did a Portugese ship travel past Taiwan, back in the 15th century??

The ship captain’s log aptly named Taiwan “Ilha Formosa,” meaning “Beautiful Isle.” Well, it certainly is a gorgeous land. Wow. On my recent trip there, I was stunned by the many, many ways in which Taiwan is so very beautiful. Long, pristine pebble beaches line the East shore, the water of which can be every bit as bright a turquoise as the Caribbean or as dark and wild as the Pacific gets. And somehow, the clouds above were especially voluptuous, making combined vistas that were just amazing. How many hours could I spend there, just looking? To borrow from Joni Mitchell, “I could drink a case of you, darling, and I would still be on my feet.”

Oh, then there are the forests and woodlands, the trees, so very many trees, almost all of which you don’t see here in the Midwest. Around 58% of Taiwan is covered with trees or bamboo! Palm trees with coconuts, acacias, camphor, red and yellow cypress. I especially loved the remarkable banyan trees that conjured up a song my mother taught us kids, “We’ll Build a Bungalow,” which I then sang over and over again as I rode my bike along those Taiwan roads. Okay, it now appears that the bungalow is “underneath a bamboo tree,” rather than banyan, as I thought, but I had fun singing, anyway. Besides, banyan makes more sense. Bamboo is not even a tree! I like my version better.

Then there’s all the tropical jungle vegetation, almost all of which I could not name. Bananas! Bananas grow right by the road, along with other fruits and all sorts of things I did not recognize. I saw orchids growing on the trunks of trees! We passed tea and coffee plantations on our bikes, and so many shimmering rice paddies. I felt like 90% of what I saw on that trip was new to me and that, alone, was enchanting. It was so green there that I’ve been guilty of begrudging our trees their bareness, since I’m home. Soon, I tell myself, soon . . .

Taiwan is nearly two thirds mountains. Mountains, mostly covered with trees, rise up next to or not far from the beaches, clouds resting contentedly on them much of the time we were there.

I had no idea that Taiwan was such a beautiful, beautiful country. Is it me or do we just not hear that much about its natural beauty? We hardly saw any other Westerners on our entire trip. Why are we not beckoned to visit lovely Taiwan, I wonder? Everyone and their monkey goes to Thailand and Vietnam, it seems. Taiwan doesn’t seem to be a destination for us Westerners. I would love to go back. I’d like to see more of the stunning Taroko Gorge and visit lovely Sun Moon Lake and get all the way down to the southern tip and see what’s there. So much gorgeousness in such a small place!

I have looked for quotes about Taiwan and almost everything I’ve found is political, rather than about the beauty of the place. Astounding.

“The world is simple and beautiful.” – Female Taiwanese Pew Research Center respondent, age 72 (asked what makes life meaningful)

“This wasn’t a strange place; it was a new one.” ― Paolo Coehlo

“Blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures.” ― Lovelle Drachman

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”

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. . . and I Am Brave

I am home from all my travels, home from California, home from Taiwan. I could tell and tell about it but in some ways, I haven’t the words.

I wrote before I left about my fears around this trip. I had many. I was afraid the long flight would be awful and that I wouldn’t be able to sleep. I wasn’t. I was afraid I wasn’t in shape enough for the bike trip. I was! I was afraid something dreadful would happen, in a country where I had zero ability to speak or read the language. It didn’t.

So when we came upon this sculpture, with this title, during our first amazing day of the bike journey, I was enchanted. “I am brave.” I hadn’t been feeling brave. I had balked at riding city bikes in the busy streets of Taipei and Taichung, with throngs of scooters, cars, trucks, and people. I did not feel brave, but I did it. I had moments of “I can’t do it” when we picked up our rental bikes and I found my “extra small” e-bike too big to get comfortably on and off of. I was afraid of falling in traffic or anywhere, and breaking a hip, like an old lady. And then I panicked when I read a couple of comments online about how scary the coastal route–our route–could be.

But I knew I could trust my son. He had made all the plans. He is a skilled traveler and cyclist. He was my guide. We set off, in this gorgeous land where all those drivers of scooters, cars and trucks really do watch out for cyclists, where there are miles and miles of beautiful dedicated bikeways, where bike lanes accompany practically every street and highway, where the many bicycle routes for traversing Taiwan are well-marked, where cyclists are warmly welcomed nearly everywhere. Bicycling is the national pastime in Taiwan and that is very apparent.

I would like to write more about the country and the trip in my next letter. It has been so much for me to absorb. I’ll let this one express my gratitude that my son made this happen for me and gave me the chance to be brave. This was much more than travel for me. It was transformative. I’ve learned that I can be fearful of a thing–anxious, worried, even envisioning terrible things–and yet still go ahead and do it, ultimately finding it utterly exhilarating. I once was better friends with that concept than I have been of late. It has been wonderful for me to revisit it.

Thank you, Cole.

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” – Nelson Mandela

“Courage conquers all things: it even gives strength to the body.” – Ovid

“In all realms of life it takes courage to stretch your limits, express your power, and fulfill your potential.” – Suze Orman

If you’re looking for my cards or art, you’ll find all of that on my website. If you enjoy these letters, feel free to forward this one to anyone you think might like it. And if someone forwarded this one to you, you can sign up here to receive the letters right in your Inbox. Finally, you’ll find past letters and poems here.

Thanks for listening,
Kay

P.S. MerryThoughts is the name of my first book, out of print at the moment. The word is a British one, referring both to a wishbone and to the ritual of breaking the wishbone with the intention of either having a wish granted or being the one who marries first, thus the “merry thoughts.”