Banana Down!
The weather continues to be fucking weird. Still warm today. The fallen banana plant you see above got nipped with a freeze about a month ago but as you can see, the stalk is still green so it wasn't frozen entirely. AND- look at what was growing (unbeknownst to me) at the top.
Now that is just crazy. And how I did not notice the bloom and the forming bunch, I do not know. Also, I have never seen a banana topple over, leaving roots exposed. That may not be a rare occurrence but I've never seen it.
I cut the stem up and hauled it away in pieces, heavy as it was with it's still very juicy stem. I couldn't bring myself to toss the baby bananas so right now they're just laying on my kitchen porch.
I cleaned the hen house again today. I say "again" as if that's not something I do regularly. Thirteen chickens can make a lot of poop. And they do. I also did a little weeding in the garden, sweating as I went. Right now we are getting sudden lashings of wind and I keep getting warned that there are tornado warnings somewhere near. In between the bouts of dancing leaves the air is still enough to also feel strange as if an orchestra had been playing furiously and then suddenly stopped. They keep saying we're going to get rain tonight and then the temperature will drop but "they" are so often wrong.
All day as I've gone about my business I've been thinking about a woman I knew so very long ago. I have only seen her once in many, many years, and then only briefly. But I thought of her a few days ago, and wondered how she was doing. I had seen her son the last time Lon and Lis played in Tallahassee which was probably almost two years ago. He's the same age as Hank and they were born in a short spate of time in which it seemed as if every hippie woman in Tallahassee was having a baby. This woman, whom I knew when she was Marcia Conn, was a singer and she sang in a band with her then-husband, his brother and HIS then-wife, and a few other people. It was truly one of the best bands to ever come out of Tallahassee, if not the best, and Marcia's voice was simply rare and amazing. She was a tiny little thing and the sound that came from that set of lungs blew everyone away.
I guess you can imagine what's coming here.
Yes. She died a few days ago and I found out about it from a friend's post on FaceBook. That woman, too, had a baby about a month after Hank was born- another one of the Tallahassee Hippie Mama's of 1976. Marcia's then husband has made a video and I'm going to post it here if anyone cares to watch it, listen to it. There are pictures that take me back to those days and Marcia's voice is just as I remembered it.
I guess you can imagine what's coming here.
Yes. She died a few days ago and I found out about it from a friend's post on FaceBook. That woman, too, had a baby about a month after Hank was born- another one of the Tallahassee Hippie Mama's of 1976. Marcia's then husband has made a video and I'm going to post it here if anyone cares to watch it, listen to it. There are pictures that take me back to those days and Marcia's voice is just as I remembered it.
The brother of the man who made the video, her former husband, still plays with Lon and Lis in one of their musical combinations and the bass player for the band they played in sits in with them sometimes now and is someone my history is also entangled with and is a friend.
My darling Sue-Sue and I always talked about writing a history of the early music scene in Tallahassee but we never did and then she died. I think it would still be a worthwhile project. There have been some very, very fine musicians who have called this area home.
Marcia was one of them.
Marcia was one of them.
All right. Let's just segue right on to camellias because, well- I want to. I picked some today. They are blooming so profusely and I do not think it hurts anything for me to bring a few in to enjoy.
Now that I think about it, these last camellias, the unnamed beauties, remind me a bit of Marsha. Their seeming fragility, so delicate that the light shines through them, all the while being so incredibly powerful in their beauty.
As my friend who posted the video on FB said, "None of us are getting out of here alive." Some of us, though, are going to be leaving a bit more light than others. I doubt Marcia knew she was one of those but she damn sure was. I should have told her that.
Love...Ms. Moon
Your camellias are so beautiful. You made me ponder Betty White, who died on new years eve at 99 years old, and everyone said she went too soon. Now that's another woman who brought her light.
ReplyDeleteYou are right about Betty! I have to say that 99 years sounds like a good number to me, especially with the full life she must have had.
DeleteThank you for sharing that beautiful voice.
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome, Paula.
DeleteWhat a beautiful voice your friend Marcia had!
ReplyDeleteYour camellias are just magnificent!
And live she was even more amazing.
DeleteThe camellias are lovely. And I've found that when someone's suddenly on my mind, I find they've just died. Some psychic connection I think. It's happened a number of times.
ReplyDeleteTo me too. Although sometimes it appears to indicate that the person will be getting in touch with me.
Deleteas Boud said, I truly believe in psychic connection..it's a floating and connecting spirit *thing*......there was a clear reason Marcia was on your mind. Sorry to hear of her passing but that lovely voice remains!
ReplyDeleteAnd your camelias......lordy. And the vases they are in........ I am speechless. Gorgeous, every one
Susan M
I think that we definitely have senses that science has not figured out how to define or test for yet but that they will. Meanwhile, I trust those "gut" feelings.
DeleteAll of my "vases" were thrifted. I do love a good vessel.
i am sorry for your loss.
ReplyDeletexxalainaxx
Well, I hadn't seen her in so long that her death will not really change my life much but the knowing that she is gone is an ache.
DeleteTranscendent camellias and thoughts about your friend. So sad for your loss, Mary.
ReplyDeleteI really feel bad for her son.
DeleteYes, what a voice. I have damp eyes to wipe. Too young, too young. Peace to her family.
ReplyDeleteShe sure could make you weep. I, too, hope peace for her family.
DeleteWhat a lovely human, great pipes and lovely baby wailing in her arms. You have known some amazing folks.
ReplyDeleteThe baby bananas made me want to lactate.
The flowers are ethereal , impossible beauty! This post will see me through so many thoughts- beauty ones and pensive existential ones. I am sad that your friend left so soon.
Let me know if I pop up in your thinking as that is a sure sign that I will depart soon. I want to have time to pack. LOVEXxx
I just love that picture of Daniel in her lap. She wasn't worried in the least that he was wailing, was she? Speaking of lactating, I actually baby-sat for that little baby a few times when Marsha had gigs and nursed him right along with Hank. People would probably call HRS now if someone did that. But I always feel a special bond with that boy. Now man, of course.
DeleteCamellias are ethereal, aren't they? In some ways they are more beautiful than roses, I think.
Honey, I think of you ALL THE TIME! So I'm not going to be the one who has early notice of your death. Besides, you'll outlive me.
I am so sorry for your loss and for her family.
ReplyDeleteThank you, e.
DeleteMarcia sure had a beautiful voice. What a lovely legacy! I'm sorry for the loss of your friend!
ReplyDeleteI found it very telling that her long-ago ex-husband made that video for her.
DeleteWhat a delightful thing...to know someone only briefly, but to compare her to a camellia. That's a beautiful life to have lived. Fare thee well, Dear Marcia. You had some damn good pipes.
ReplyDeleteShe sure as HELL had some damn good pipes, didn't she?
DeleteA heavy heart for you today. Fitting that you compare Marcia to a camellia as they symbolize love, affection, and admiration. x
ReplyDeleteAnd such strength that they can bloom in winter.
DeleteWhat a lovely voice that woman had. The flowers make me long for summer, open windows and sandals.
ReplyDeleteYou might need a Mexican island vacation this year, lady.
DeleteWhat an exceptional singer! And I loved the photos, too. Marcia's loss must feel a little shocking. "Who knows where the time goes?" as Sandy Denny sang.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've ever seen a banana just keel over either. I guess it was top-heavy from the fruit?
Well, you're right- I do wonder where the time goes. How did those young hippies become the old people we are now?
DeleteI, too, wondered if the fruit pulled that banana over. They don't have a very large root system.
Marcia had a lovely voice. I hope she lived a full and happy life. Sorry for her family and friends who will miss her.
ReplyDeleteWe need to celebrate what we have while we have it! Thanks for the lovely flowers.
I hope she was happy too. I really don't know. And that fact makes me sad.
DeleteWe absolutely need to celebrate what we have while we have it. I've thought of that a lot today.
Marcia had a sweet and plaintive voice. Pitch perfect. As I watched the video I thought - how very short these lives we are living really are. It's all over in a flash. Rest In Peace Marcia... the rest of us will soon be with you.
ReplyDeletePitch perfect indeed. I doubt she ever hit a bad note in her life.
DeleteAnd we will- we will all pass on from this stage of the game, won't we? Some of us sooner rather than later. But while we're here, we sure can remember those who have gone on before us.
What a gorgeous voice! I’m so sorry for your loss. Oh how I wish camellias grew this far south, every one of them so perfect.
ReplyDeleteXoxo
Barbara
Yes, but you can grow hibiscus and bougainvillea and all sorts of gorgeous flowers that we can't. But I surely would miss my camellias if I lived farther south.
DeleteYou have so many gorgeous camellias. that is weird that that banana tree fell over. The leaves got bit on mine last night but the trunks are solid. One more night below freezing but just barely here tonight. And no, none of us are getting out alive. Some of us just hang on longer to remember those that didn't.
ReplyDeleteWhat a clear, beautiful voice she had! I am sorry for your loss, Mary.
ReplyDeleteThat's a beautiful eulogy for a beautiful spirit. And that last shot of the camellias is stunning, too.
ReplyDeleteLovely Eulogy, so sorry about the loss. Also, sorry about your Banana Tree loss, I'd like to try to grow one of those, they do okay here in the Desert actually and do produce Fruit. Happy New Year.
ReplyDelete