When It's Family...You Include the Neighborhood

It is impossible for me to reflect on childhood memories without recalling the neighborhood. How fortunate to grow up during a time when the neighborhood was a vital part of the community.

I remember bike rides, pool parties, picnics, clubhouses, kickball games and enjoying popsicles in the summer evenings. There were hot days spent at the picnic table under the tree with my coloring book & 64 Crayola crayon box, creating pot holders with my loom, or playing with my little wooden people- yes, real wood, how did I survive! Rainy days playing board games such as Sorry, Monopoly or Password. Resting in the afternoon on the hammock with a Nancy Drew book, or- do I dare say- Tiger Beat Magazine.

A place that meant block parties, old couples sitting on the porch waving to children on their bicycles, lawnmowers playing a song in unison, and laundry hanging from clotheslines. Pleasant interruptions to sign for a neighbors package, visit with the Avon lady or let the waterman in the house to read the meter. Children reprimanded by neighbors for misbehaving and children obeyed; there was no blury boundary for inappropriate behavior.

The neighborhood felt as safe as your own backyard. Neighbors became extended family to help nuture the necessary life skills of compassion, respect and kindness. Compassion to accept people's differences. Respect towards all ages, ethnicities and race. Kindness in our actions & communications with members of the community. 

“Where there is not community- trust, respect, ethical behavior are difficult for the young to learn and for the old to maintain.”
― Robert K. Greenleaf, Servant As Leader

Maggie's Thought for the Week: Keep Your Blanket Close

While preparing to bring home Maggie for the first time, I visited a retail store to purchase a few items. The best advice I received from a co-worker was to buy a baby blanket for the puppy. The blankets are soft, small and the puppy would be able to pull the blanket around the house. I selected a Winnie-the-Pooh blanket.

The first week with Maggie, I would place the blanket on her, kiss her goodnight and she would snuggle with the blanket in her bed. One evening, another blanket was close by, so I placed that on her and kissed her goodnight. As I walked towards the stairs, Maggie got out of her bed and followed me. I told her it was time for bed, but she gave me a confused look. I noticed the Winnie-the-Pooh blanket by her toys and picked it up. She immediately walked back towards her bed. I placed this blanket on her, kissed her goodnight and walked towards the stairs again. I glanced quickly at her and she laid in her bed, snuggling with her blanket.

Maggie kept her blanket close when I wasn't near her. The blanket and this night-time routine were comforting for her. We all have an item that either makes us feel safe or invokes sweet memories.We all have little routines or habits that bring security to our daily lives.

The Winnie-the-Pooh blanket tattered & thinned during Maggie's five years of life. The security and comfort she received from it never frayed.

America the Beautiful...Groom, Texas

I love to travel. People often ask if I have traveled outside of the United States. My answer- Why? America is beautiful, diverse and offers a myriad of culture.

One summer, while driving across I-40 in Texas, I came upon a cross. At the time, it was advertised as the largest cross in the Western Hemisphere. I learned the cross was built by a man from Pampa, Texas. He was disgusted by all the advertising on I-40 to Amarillo (former Route 66). The cross stands nineteen stories high, an arm span of 110 feet, and weighs 1,250 tons. On a clear day, it can be seen twenty miles away from where it stands in Groom, Texas; 42 miles east of Amarillo.

In July of 1995, life-size statues of the fourteen stations of the cross were added. Ten million people visit the cross and gift shop every year. God Bless America.

When It's Family...You're Just a Branch

Everyone can relate to looking at family photos or attending family reunions and asking amusingly- 'How am I related to these people?'  As families expand to grandchildren, great grandchildren, second & third cousins- our paths create more distance and differences, but our roots remain the same.

There is a special comfort of having a 'family tree'. A group of such diverse people sharing a commonality. A foundation providing inner strength when the world becomes too big or life begins to shake our branches. How fortunate to all be guided and supported by the same root. A root which grew from unconditional love, devotion to family and the awareness of a higher power.


When it's family, we spread our branches and strive for our own sunshine. When it's family, we never hesitate to bend our branch, and allow another to feel the sunshine, too.

Maggie's Thought for the Week: Take Time to Smell the Flowers

Where is everybody going? It must be somewhere important, because everyone is trying to get 'there' as quickly as possible. Everyone, that is, except me.

I don't rush. I don't speed walk. I don't answer my phone every time it rings. I don't check my email the moment my i-phone goes swish. It's not because I'm busy getting somewhere. Sometimes, I'm not going anywhere.

When people respond 'You're odd...that's not the norm', I respond- 'You never walked a dog.'  When I walked Maggie on the trails, she would stop at every flower, gaze at every insect and watch the ducks in the pond for hours. I would observe other hikers listening to their i-pods, pulling on their dog's leash to keep their fast pace, or chatting with a friend without hearing the music of the waterfalls.

Take a moment to stop and look at the beauty that surrounds you, hear the sounds of everything living and enjoy the moment that will never be breathed again.  'Our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.' Don Williams, Jr.

Book Update

I know a few of my friends don't participate on Facebook or Twitter. So, until I can call each of  you, let me post on my website an update for 'Legacy of Grandpa's Grapevine'. I have signed a contract with Helping Hands Press. The book should be available in six months. Thank you for the words of encouragement this past year.

When It's Family...Dinner Is Best Together

Remember the public service announcement- 'It is five o'clock, do you know where your child is?' Maybe we should start another one- 'It is five o'clock, are you eating with your family?'

I'm not sure exactly when it started, but in my opinion, the demise of family dinner time is a shame. Since when did we prioritize soccer games, gymnastic meets or business clients above our own children?  How can parents justify the elimination of family dinners will not hinder their child's social and emotional development?

The skills of conversation, manners, dining etiquette and social cues are not innate. How can one expect a child to become a respectful and contributing adult to society, if they were never provided a proper role-model.  Let's not forget self-esteem. When a family eats together, they talk together. Parents are inadvertently letting their child know what he/she has to stay is important and of value.

Will there be challenges and unexpected obstacles at times? Yes. Is family dinner possible for every night for every family. No. What should we remember? Every day, we need to spend time with our family; they are the greatest gift God has given us. 

Maggie's Thought for the Week: One Paw at a Time

Sometimes the most difficult tasks are accomplished by taking just one step forward. That one step diminishes any original fear of the unknown. It's that first step which allows you to tackle the remaining steps- the toughest ones of all.

These remaining steps have an unknown number. You must persevere blindly and, at times, have a 'deaf ear' to the nay sayers.  Remain confident. When confidence lacks, find a soul who is willing to share their light- without taking yours away.

I remember the first time Maggie went to the beach. She was timid about getting close to the water. She would look at me and then look at the approaching waves. I would smile at her and she would put one paw in the water, and quickly take it out. Once she became comfortable with one paw in the water, she put both of her front paws in the water. Eventually, she walked confidently thru the waves as we walked on the beach.

My first step amongst the waves started in 2006. I began to write a story called 'Grandpa's Grapevine'. In the midst of attempting the self-publishing track, I signed with an agent in February of 2008. During the next few years, my 'remaining steps' involved a myriad of highs and lows. Looking back, each step had a purpose and not one step could have been skipped.

'The Manciano Family Series: Legacy of Grandpa's Grapevine' has found a publisher. How did it all happen? One step at a time.

When It's Family... I Think of the Walton's

For most of the seventies and early eighties, families gathered around the television set and heard the instrumental theme song for The Walton's. It was a time to sit back, relax and enjoy the mischief the Walton children would encounter, the wisdom Grandpa & Grandma would share, and the continuous fretting from Ma & Pa to pay the bills, during the Great Depression.

As a child, I watched the show and envied how much fun the children always had playing together. As an adult, I reflect on how some things haven't changed very much. When it's family- you are going to fight with your siblings, mom & dad will always worry about paying the bills, and grandma & grandpa will always make you feel better; with words of wisdom or a chocolate chip cookie.

I guess The Walton's is still a popular television show, because some things have changed. A country where many children spend more time at daycare or 'enrichment activities' then home, a house has become a status symbol and your zip code decides your 'place' in society, and marriages are said with an 'I do' and a prenuptial agreement.  I never recall Mrs. Walton forgetting she had a child and left Ike Godsey's Mercantile without Elizabeth, or Mr. Walton blaming the teacher for Jim Bob day-dreaming in school because he wasn't challenged enough.


Were things perfect back then? No. Are things perfect now? No. What makes the Walton family still popular today? They argue, celebrate, cry, worry, persevere, question, wonder, fail and succeed- TOGETHER.  
                     'A family is only as strong as its commitment to togetherness.' Wes Fessler

Maggie's Thought for the Week: It's Okay to Just Sit

My little buddy, Maggie, passed away this month. Many of you followed her 'Thought of the Day' on Facebook.  I pondered ceasing the posting of her thoughts. Then, I realized the many lessons learned from her, and the importance to continue sharing with all of you. So, Maggie will continue to share a thought every week. I hope she continues to capture your heart, as much as she captured mine.

After Maggie passed, I found it difficult to just sit on my deck or, while hiking some of our favorite trails, just stop and sit on a rock by the stream. I wondered what people might think: That lady is just being lazy?  How can someone just sit and do nothing? She must be bored? Is something wrong with her?

Maggie taught me it's okay to just sit. Sometimes, we would sit on the lawn together and just watch a bunny in the distance. During this time, I would often reflect on my day or plan what to possibly accomplish tomorrow. However, most of the time, I would just sit.  I found my breathing to slow down and my body to completely relax. I wasn't doing anything, except enjoying that very moment.

The other night, I sat on my deck and put my feet up. I took a deep breath of the cool night air. I watched the chicken hawk swoop from one pine tree to the next. I enjoyed the pleasure of just sitting on a lovely summer evening. And then, a neighbor approached from the side of my yard. 'Hi there!' he said. 'I was walking and saw you just sitting.'

Yes, I was just sitting... and there is nothing wrong with that.