Cristina Jill

Late Ripeness “Not soon, as late as the approach of my ninetieth year, I felt a door opening in me and I entered the clarity of early morning. One after another my former lives were departing, like ships, together with their sorrow. And the countries, cities, gardens, the bays of seas assigned to my brush came closer, ready now to be described better than they were before. I was not separated from people, grief and pity joined us. We forget - I kept saying - that we are all children of the King. For where we come from there is no division into Yes and No, into is, was, and will be. We were miserable, we used no more than a hundredth part of the gift we received for our long journey. Moments from yesterday and from centuries ago - a sword blow, the painting of eyelashes before a mirror of polished metal, a lethal musket shot, a caravel staving its hull against a reef - they dwell in us, waiting for a fulfillment. I knew, always, that I would be a worker in the vineyard, as are all men and women living at the same time, whether they are aware of it or not.” ~ Czeslaw Milosz ~ My name is Cristina Jill Mosqueda Cooper. I pause looking at my name, and think about how much there is to explain with those words alone. My mother gave me a name to use in each of my worlds, Cristina for my Cuban life, and Jill for the American life. I suppose it is there were the paradoxes of my life began. I have been many things in my life, from a housekeeper to a high school history teacher; but no matter what else I did, I was always a writer. I love words and the power and passion which they can be used to create. I love reading words, writing words, speaking words, and listening to words – especially words from people that I love and respect. It is my desire to live life on my own terms, and willingly or not, I have paid the price demanded, by the world, to be myself. I share my life with Kate, with whom I have lived for the last 23 years, and Miss Merry Margaret, our little mutt who really is the world’s most perfect dog. I also travel, cook, garden, sculpt, and make large messes doing all of the above. Welcome to my world, that is all for now.

Web Site: http://thatisallfornow.com


From the Editor

March 1, 2021

The Earrings   I know I have been thinking about how this month we mark the year anniversary, of our lives being impacted by the pandemic.  But even though there is a lot to say, I do not want to focus on covid-19 anymore.  I know we cannot truly avoid thinking about it, and...
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Poet’s Corner

March 1, 2021

Do You Remember     Do you remember the day we met? Everything seemed so ordinary, I could not have imagined what that encounter would mean. It was your earrings which drew me to you. They did not match. I figured it was with intent; But was not sufficiently sophisticated to know that was...
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A View from the Road

March 1, 2021

Bears Indeed!     Driving through Lake Tahoe, California, I spotted this View, and had to stop to snap a picture.  I am sorry I cannot adequately credit the business; but I so appreciate their whimsy! Whimsy will return one day soon.
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Holiday’s

February 14, 2021

Happy Valentine’s Day     I know the cynical amongst us are convinced that this is a holiday created to promote the greeting cards and chocolate industry; and I do not believe there is anything which I could say that will change your mind. But my memories of Valentine’s Day go back to being...
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Nature

February 9, 2021

Not So Fast     I tend to wait a rather long time before giving up on a plant, even a weed.  I often think a plant in distress is just going through a rough period, and will get better, or at least might get better.  That might is usually enough of an incentive...
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Art

February 5, 2021

To love a painting is to feel that this presence is… not an object but a voice. ~ Andre Malraux ~   The Bedroom by Vincent Van Gogh The artist has three paintings with the same name, this is the second version, housed at the Chicago Art Institute. I am drawn to the colors...
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From the Editor

February 1, 2021

The Train is in Motion   A year ago we were on the way to Florida.  We had been trying to time our trip around birthdays. I was upset about the fact that I would be late for Christine’s birthday, but was looking forward to celebrating Joy’s in Maine.  Though we were aware of...
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Reflections

January 27, 2021

The International Holocaust Remembrance Day     Holocaust Memorial By Ofra Friedland   There are various days, around the world, which are set aside to remember the six million Jewish people who were murdered in the Holocaust between 1933 and 1945. The International Holocaust Remembrance Day, as designated by the United Nations is January...
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Action

January 19, 2021

A Voice for the Moderates “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for sums up the Law and the Prophets.” ~ Matthew 7:12 ~ I am a middle child.  I do not think that is why I am a moderate, though I do fall in between two...
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Nature

January 14, 2021

The Hawaiian Room   Bear with me; this post does belong in Nature, I promise. Before going to visit my Aunt Helen, in Florida, I had not heard the term “Florida Room”.  It is another way of saying solarium, sun room or sun porch; the idea of an additional living space, which helps to...
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Art


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