Ronda Matson: Blog

Spring!  It’s my favorite time of the year.  Green comes from brown and gray.  Dark, cold, rainy days yield brilliance.  
Spring = Hope. 
It’s the season of optimism, of new beginnings, of starting over. 
Starting over isn’t always easy. When you lose the words you’ve written because the power suddenly goes out or forget the last number you entered in the calculator, it’s inconvenient and frustrating, but simple. Other times, it isn’t.  Sometimes it’s a fight for life.  
As many know, I’ve faced the fight for life more than once.  My family and friends have been forced to face it with me.  Last April, we were swallowed up more intensely than ever before.  Each day brought new uncertainty and many times, fear had the upper hand.  My brilliant surgeon found the answer and saved my life—again.  As I think back, it was a kind of gauntlet we ran.  By the time May [...]

For once, I’m glad it’s raining.  The day is a mirror of my sadness as I consider the world without Georgia in it. 
“I met her on my lonesome day.”  It’s so true. 
A week after yet another brain surgery operation, in the Fall of 2006, I met Georgia Allen.  I was missing half of my hair & had covered my baldness & stitches with Erin’s wide knit American flag headband.  Somehow, I felt stronger with it on.  I was determined that the guitar-picking nails of my right hand would not be lost like my hair, like so many dreams I once had, in a blink.  I knew that I didn’t have the fine motor ability at that point to save them, so I braved potential embarrassment & went to the salon.  I didn’t talk to anyone or look at anyone.  It was a perfect misery.  Suddenly, there was Georgia—and she was talking to me!  Her energy and (eventually) her love of music came at me full force.  [...]

I wonder. We’re on the phone while we drive, on the computer while we’re on the phone, texting while we’re on the computer while we’re watching television. We’re Techno-Jugglers. Most agree that this is just the beginning.
“Multi-tasking” is a trendy word now. We’ve taken it to a new level. With everything at our fingertips, does the good outweigh the bad?  One study suggests we’re becoming dumber, not smarter. 
I find it hard to resist the temptation to reach into my pocket when I feel the hum of my muted phone during a movie, a dinner, a meeting—or anything. Can I be undistracted? Am I capable of having an undistracted conversation?  I can’t say that I’ve had one lately.  So, I wonder.  Is singular focus impossible?  (I might miss something!) There’s a bit of sadness in that thought.  What do you think?   
"The Juggler" by Michael Parkes, [...]

I got my football "fix" yesterday, but I'm still trying to get over my disappointment for Brett Favre.  When a guy gets knocked down that many times & still manages to stay in the game, well... I think better things should have happened for him.  So it goes in the Game of Football, though.  Come to think of it, so it goes in the Game of Life.  
 
I’m sitting at the computer as the wind makes ocean sounds & the rain smacks my windows.  It’s cold & dreary.  Lord knows, my mood is close to matching the day.  But, I’m thinking about Brett.  Although I haven’t heard an interview today, I would bet money that he’s not throwing blame for the loss somewhere else or wallowing in the “what ifs.”  I’m guessing that his disappointment cuts deep & that his body is killing him, but I also have a feeling he’s thankful.  His season was miraculous & inspiring.  He has [...]

We run.  Everything is so busy ALL THE TIME.  I'm starting to wonder if there is a slow button in Life.  I'm thinking, "No."  However, even as I say that & believe it, when I think back to Saturday night, I would answer, "Yes."
 
I was standing in my favorite corner at Rossi's & I was doing what I love to do.  I was playing music.  People wandered in.  I knew many of them & came to know many others.  Somehow, the rush of Life felt far away.  I was conscious of just those moments, of doing just that one thing. 
 
It's cold & snowy today, a good day for reflection.  More slow moments are what I hope the new decade will bring me.
 
Peace!