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Don’t Worry!

My life has been filled with terrible misfortunes;

most of which never happened.

__ Michel de Montaigne

I have been through some terrible things in my life,

some of which actually happened.

__Mark Twain

There will be an answer…let it be!

__Paul McCartney

Don’t worry…be happy!

__Bobby McFerrin

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🙂 Good News! 🙂

Robert has undergone a new treatment and is doing well enough that his surgery was cancelled. Yay! The doctor said he could reschedule the surgery if symptoms recur.

My son’s rent had nearly doubled in the last two years and is going up again. There was very little available in Florida that he could afford. He was approved for an apartment, and he and his service dog, BABY will be moving in August to Louisiana, where rents are more affordable. I had hoped that he would be able to live near me, but it is good that where he is moving is within a couple of hours of his sisters. My son will be stopping by for a few days on his way to his new home. I will be happy to spend a little time with him.

❤ Thank You! ❤

A heartfelt thank you to all of my fellow bloggers for your concern and support during this difficult time. Robert and I will always remember your kindness.

Cheryl Batavia

A Halloween Sonnet Fantasy

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Pact with the Prince of Darkness:

A Halloween Sonnet Fantasy

Forlorn, undead on dying planet earth,

humanity extinct, I curse my birth.

Alas! I sold my soul and cannot die!

For eons, I have roamed the earth and sky

by noxious seas that drowned the firmament,

beneath vile haze that cloaked earth like a tent,

all now restored to lucid sea and sky.

Though void of life, the new-formed land is dry.

Millennia have wiped all stains away.

How slowly life evolves until the day

when humans walk this precious world again!

I dread the evil deeds I must do then,

to serve the Fiend who bought my worthless life.

O Gods, please pardon me and let me die!

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Copyright © 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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Satan, Beelzebub, the Fiend, the Devil, Lucifer, the Prince of Darkness…There are numerous names for the personification of evil. Many classic myths and stories portray a character who promises to serve the Devil in exchange for granting them a favor. In this case, the character sells his soul to live on after all other human beings become extinct. The poem also tells a tale of the destruction and regeneration of the earth.

At approximately age five, I remember marching in a Halloween parade wearing a Devil costume, red with horns and a tail, and carrying a pitchfork! My siblings subsequently grew into the costume.

“He who hesitates is lost!” / “Look before you leap!”

Somewhere between the two proverbs is the advice to calm your fears.

Happy Halloween!

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No Time for Fears

[

I Choose

to assess risks and act judiciously.

I choose never to live in fear, to live joyously,

sleep soundly, and focus on my goals.

I have no time for fears.

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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Security Guards at the Masquerade Ball

At masked balls, Mack, the guests all look a fright!

Look sharp for party-crashing thieves tonight.

A movie star! We can’t arrest Charlie Chaplain!

Now, Sherlock Holmes has seen us watching him.

It’s hard to tell about the yeti; he smells okay!

There’s Cleopatra, wearing a wig, I’d say.

I’m sure Dracula’s no genuine vampire;

he’s with the Queen of Hearts beside the fire.

King Kong, right there, is getting pretty tipsy.

Look how he’s dancing with that buxom gypsy!

Saint Nicholas may be our man, eh Jack?

Let’s go and see what’s in that great big sack.

He’s pinched some fruit and wine off the buffet.

Ho, ho, ho, Santa! No crime in that, I say!

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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This is my attempt at a Halloween Sonnet suggested by Ingrid at experimentsinfiction. Ingrid is sponsoring a Halloween Sonnet Festival. Sonnets are not my forte, but I thought it would be fun to participate. Thank you, Ingrid, for a bit of Halloween fun. 🙂

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Thank you to all of those who kindly responded to that test post from WordPress! ❤ It was intended to track down an email of a post that WordPress sent me. The test post was not supposed to be visible. I am sorry for the inconvenience.

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To My WordPress Family

I am often tired these days, I admit.

It’s become impossible to ignore.

I can’t push through it,

don’t have the strength anymore.

Mental clarity waxes and wanes.

Energy fluctuates unpredictably.

Well-being punctuated by pain…

I look forward to a return to normalcy.

I am sorting it all out…

A series of tests is underway.

For now, I have to slow down,

I’ll do the best I can, day by day.

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Copyright© 2021 by Cheryl Batavia

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For the last couple of months, I have been having increasingly severe cardiovascular symptoms. I am not sure of the cause, but suspect so-called “long covid.” I had a mild heart attack in 2007 and have two stents in my heart. Maybe one is blocked.

I will let you know when I find out about what is happening. Until then, I will carry on the best I can. I would rather talk about ideas, emotions, family, the environment, nature, culture… and not my health! I just wanted you to know that if I don’t read as many posts as usual, it is not because I don’t want to.

HOT & COLD, Poured acrylic painting by Cheryl Batavia

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What a Strange Creature is Man!

A satyr rescued a freezing man and took him to his cave. The man began to blow on his fingers. The satyr inquired why the man was blowing on his fingers. “My hands are cold and I want to warm them up,” said the man.

The satyr prepared the man a bowl of steaming soup, and was surprised when the man began to blow on the soup. “Why are you blowing on the soup? “asked the satyr. “I am trying to cool the soup,” the man replied.

“What a strange creature is man!” the satyr remarked. “He blows hot and cold with the same breath!”

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Retelling of an ancient Greek/ Roman myth. A satyr is a drunken, lustful woodland god with the lower body of a horse or goat and the upper body of a man. I read this myth in Illustrated Classics when I was about eight or nine years old. I have always remembered this story and gradually came to understand the meaning as I grew older.

What does the saying, “What a strange creature is man! He blows hot and cold with the same breath.” mean to you?

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Stories from a Retired Teacher

A new page is available on this website. It is a collection of brief anecdotes from my teaching career.

Chapters: The Golden Rule, Larceny, Heartwarming Stories, Outrageous!, Teacher Education, Mayhem, Brushes with the Law, Outside Encroachment, More Heartwarming Stories

To access Stories from a Retired Teacher, please click the title on the menu to the left.