Over this past weekend I caught myself saying "it sure is hot."  Immediately I shut up and remembered all those long cold, snowy winter days and the promise I made myself not to complain. So I sat back and enjoyed getting hot.  Thank heavens, Spring has sprung!.  I think we may have a little Easter snow but we can now get the gardens ready.

 

Speaking of gardens, I got the catalog of seeds from Italy that I mentioned in a past column.  It has some wonderful seeds available and it even had a few recipes.  I will be sharing some of these with you later.  I hope that you ordered the catalog.

 

After all the preparation, Easter is here. I hope that you were able to complete some of your Lenten sacrifices.  Easter bread seems to be the speciality to enjoy this time of year.  There is no better way to celebrate breakfast then with a piece of toasted Easter bread and a cup of coffee.  Easter bread keeps very well in the freezer, so if you have some extra, stick it in the freezer for future use.

 

It seems the Easter flowers are prettier than ever.  I have a begonia on my dining room table, a lovely purple set of petunias on the front porch and a basket of my favorite pansy's on the back patio table.  The only sad thing about these beautiful flowers is that I will miss John Mazzie delivering them.  It was always so special to have him to hand me a bouquet.

 

As we get older, friends are the diamonds in our crown.  This past week I received a call from Pam Johnson.  Pam is a personal trainer and I must have met her about twenty years ago.  I was going through that stage in my life when I was trying to adjust to a new way.  My therapist advised me that I should set some goals for myself.  One goal I set was to learn to swim and to overcome my fear of the water.  I went to  the YMCA and asked for the best swim teacher they had and one that could work with me early in the morning in the pool when we could get it to ourselves.  Along came Pam.  She worked with me for several months and although I will never replace Esther Williams, I am no longer afraid of water and I think that I could save myself if I had to.  But the best thing about this was the friendship I established with Pam. What a wonderful person she is and what a bright spot she was in my life and especially on that day last week when she called. If you have friends like this you are blessed and remember to cherish them and tell them how much they mean to you.

 

Let me share another little part of my Spain trip.  While in Madrid we visited the Prada Museum.  As I get older I appreciate fine art more and more. As young kids growing up in the forties and fifties in Clarksburg, we were not introduced to the fine arts.  About the best thing we had was tap dancing with teacher Lou Buttafusco. I never saw a ballet, went to a concert or appreciated the fine violins in a symphony.  As I got older I have had the chance to learn and appreciate these cultural experiences. The pictures I enjoyed at the Prada were by such famous artists as Rembrandt, Goya,Velazquez, Rafael, El Greco, Rubens and the list goes on. Two of the renderings that really made an impression on me was one that had a table in it and as you walked in front of the painting the table appears to move with you, unbelievable. The other was a painting of Jesus in the temple with the scholars.  I do not think that I have ever seen a painting of him at this young age and I was really impressed at the artists rendering.  This was a part of the tour that I wished I could have had more time to enjoy.

 

I hope that the revitalizing of the Rose Garden will help bring some cultural programs to this area.  I commend the Cultural Association for its efforts in the fine programs they present. I do not know how we introduce these programs to the youth and how we make them want to see them and enjoy them.

 

A Happy Easter to all my readers. Spend some time with your family and friends and if you are in the  neighborhood, as Mr. Rogers would say, "won't you be my neighbor?'  The front porch is ready and always open.

 

Take care and keep in touch.  Until next week "Now You Have Heard It through The Grapevine."