Thursday, March 31, 2005

Couldn’t hear it today

I awoke this morning to the sound of the wind howling around the house. Windows rattled and gates creaked, drowning out any of the faint sound I was waiting for today. I listened for it all day too, but no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t pick up even a hint of it. I am sure you were listening for it in your corner of the world too.

The clouds rolled in and the clouds rolled out, and the winds grew stronger and stronger as the day progressed, but not a drop of rain fell and not a peep was heard from the woolly creature.

All I had ringing in my ears today was the roar of the lion and the thwap and thud of his furry paw as he swatted the house. I had to go out to an appointment this afternoon and as soon as I poked my head out the door he pounced on me and gave my head a ferocious whack with his paw. Yikes what a number he did on my hairdo. Sigh! Talk about Pumpkinhead!

So, no bleating of the lamb was heard today only the roar of the lion. Maybe tomorrow the tame little guy will show up. We can always hope.

Not as young as I used to be…

That really is a silly statement, but it does sum up exactly how I have been feeling for the past little while. Things that I used to take in my stride and do without thinking now require lots of thought and more energy than I have. When did my body get older? How did this happen without me knowing about it? I am still only 18 in my head, but my body is sliding faster and faster towards 60. Yikes! I am not as young as I used to be!

We had a wonderful weekend with both girls and their partners home for my birthday and Easter, but the late nights and early mornings just about did me in.

Daughter #1 (Butterfly) arrived home around 1am Wednesday night (Thursday morning), and we stayed up until almost 3am talking and visiting. We had redecorated the guest room, her old room, and surprised her with it. It is now done in pale blue and white which is quite the change from black and white and red!!!!! Anyway, we talked and laughed and visited into the wee small hours of the morning. I was still up early the next morning to prepare for the arrival of Daughter #2 (still haven’t decided on a blog name for her, but she is thinking about it) that day. We enjoyed visiting with Butterfly and her hubby all day and then she went off to visit friends for the evening while we went to pick up Daughter #2 and her partner at the bus station. This involved a two-hour round trip for us. We got home around 9pm and stayed up talking till about 2am. At this point I was beyond tired and fell into bed exhausted. I am normally in bed around 10pm and sleep soundly till 8 or 9 in the morning. Yes I need lots of sleep.

We were up early again the next morning and so it went for the whole weekend. We tried to jam pack it and make the most of every minute. I sure didn’t want to go to bed and miss a minute of visiting. We did have a wonderful visit and made lots of wonderful memories, but when Daughter #1 left on Monday I tidied up the kitchen and then toddled off to bed for a nap!!!! When I got up a couple of hours later I thought I would check blogs and maybe do some writing, but I couldn’t think straight. It was a struggle to put two words together so I gave up and did things that didn’t require much thinking. Time to wash bedding, get the house tidied up, grocery shop, do errands, ride the bike, go for walks and oh yes – sleep!!!!!

Here it is Thursday and I think I am finally getting back into the swing of things. I spent a glorious morning reading blogs, catching up on email and now I am trying to prime the pump and write. I still don’t have much sparking in the old grey matter, but at least I have written something and am getting back into the groove.

The wind is howling around the house this morning and the sky is clouding over so I think we are in for a dandy storm. Yahoo! I love spring thunderstorms. The tornado watches that come our way from time to time in the spring aren’t fun, but I do love a good thunder and lightening storm.

Well, it is almost noon, so I will end this little note here and post it and then go meet AC in the kitchen for lunch. Maybe we will even be able to squeeze in a walk before the rain hits.

I hope you all enjoy whatever Mother Nature brings your way today. Sunshine or raindrops; soak then both in and enjoy.

Were all the year one constant sunshine, we should have no flowers. All would be drought and leanness; not a tree would make us bowers; beauty consists in colours; and that's best which is not fixed, but flies and flowers.
Henry Vaughan

Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Thank you

Just a quick note to say thank you for all the birthday greetings and happy wishes for our family time this weekend. Warms my heart to hear from so many of you. Thanks!

Daughter #1 arrives tonight and daughter #2 will make her appearance tomorrow night. AC will be busy cooking up a storm while I put finishing touches on guest rooms and run errands today.

We made time to get out on our bikes yesterday, and that was such a treat. Glad we did take advantage of the sunshine during its brief visit, because today we should be treated to snow and freezing rain. Good grief.

Well, I must run. Thanks again for all the warm greetings. Hope you all have a good weekend. Talk to you again next week.

Saturday, March 19, 2005

Toil and Spin

Well, I have been walking clockwise and counter-clockwise all week and not making much progress no matter which way I head. Some weeks are like that aren't they?

We had company last weekend, overnight company arrives today, next week daughter #1 comes for a five day visit, and daughter #2 comes for the weekend, so the old laptop might not get much lap time in the next little while.

I haven't had both girls home for a visit at the same time in a looooong while and am really looking forward to it. Our little house bursts at the seams, and our quiet world gets turned upside down for a few days when they are home together. Laughter reigns supreme! We have late night cups of tea and chats, games of TP and Wizard, the phone rings off the hook and the front door might as well be a revolving one with people coming and going at all hours. What fun! It is also my birthday next weekend, so we will have birthday cake and presents and maybe even a balloon or two. Total fun indeed!

I hope you all have a good week and a warm holiday with family and friends next weekend too. I will talk to you all when things get back to normal around here.

Happiness, that grand mistress of the ceremonies in the dance of life, impels us through all its mazes and meanderings, but leads none of us by the same route.
Charles Colton

Clockwise or counter-clockwise, enjoy the route you walk this week!

Tuesday, March 15, 2005

Counter clockwise

It is snowing again today, but it was bright and sunny on Sunday, so we headed to the park by the lake to go for our walk. It is so much nicer to walk there than around the city streets by our home. It is only a ten minute drive to get there, so we choose that location for our walks quite often.

Inside the park there is a small lake/pond that freezers over completely, and a path circles it, which takes us twenty minutes to half an hour to walk around. The path winds through wooded areas but we are always in sight of the water. Very nice!

Being creatures of habit, we park in the same spot each time and start our walk around the lake at the same point. We have done this walk hundreds of times and enjoy it no matter how familiar it has become. In spring and summer, ducks, geese, herons and many other birds, visit the lake/pond. In winter we see groups of children and adults skating on the frozen surface. It is beautiful in every season.

This Sunday we got out of the car and I said to AC, let’s walk in the other direction around the lake today. Yikes! You mean counter clockwise? Yes, let’s throw caution to the wind and just do it. Feeling all off balance but wildly adventurous we set off in a counter clockwise direction. What fun.

We got a totally different view of all the familiar areas and I felt like I was seeing them for the first time. Birch trees posed and stood out against the back-drop of the water like they had never done before. All of the old uphill parts of the walk were now much easier! Amazing how that works. Who knew that we just had to turn around and look at things from a different perspective and the old world would take on new life and meaning. It was fantastic.

Ever since I got home from the walk I have been thinking of how that simple act of walking the other way for a change, made such a difference in how I saw the world around me. It only took a moment of thought to do it, but it did take that moment, and the conscious effort to do something differently. It added beauty and vitality to the otherwise old and familiar.

Stop and think about what you do by rote each day, and how a little change might add beauty and a new way of seeing things to your life. Go ahead, walk counter clockwise today and see how exciting it can be.

Saturday, March 12, 2005

And so it continues…

I woke up a little after 7 this morning and listened for the bird that visited my window yesterday. Nope, he wasn’t there today. Not a chirp or a peep to be heard, no matter how intensely I listened for it. I rolled out of bed and was shocked to look out the window and see old man winter stomping his feet again and dumping tons of the white stuff on us. Yikes! And when I say tons, I mean tons. We don’t just have a light dusting of snow, we have a thick blanket of it on everything. Now, I absolutely love a snow-storm when we are up at Riverwood in January and February and even March, but not when we are here in the city. Up north, the snow turns the world into a magic place and we can get out and snowshoe through the beauty of it in the woods, the neighbour comes to plough out the drive so we don’t have to shovel an inch of it, and the snow stays white and clean and beautiful. Not so down here in the city. Sigh! This is March 12th isn’t it? What is going on? I wanted all this white stuff in January up and Riverwood. Not here in the city in March.

Oh well, enough complaining. The snow is pretty and I don’t have go out and drive in it today, so I will enjoy the beauty of it even if I can’t see the pine trees and open fields of Riverwood.

We have company coming for dinner tonight, so we will be able to enjoy visiting over steaming mugs of something yummy, while we sit around the fireplace warming our toes on this wintry evening. MMMMM, that sounds great doesn’t it? Yes, I will enjoy this snowstorm too.

Oh, there goes the doorbell…I’ll be right back. Glory be, my angels in yellow coats paid me a visit again and they are now busy shovelling us out. Yahoo! Being in the city during a snowstorm does have its good points after all. Angels in yellow coats have a chance to visit and bring joy. That is a good thing.

I hope you have something warm and cozy to do today and you enjoy the snow too. Maybe even get a visit from angels wearing coats of many different colours. Keep your eyes open for them, they are all around you.

Take care and enjoy your day

Every morning is a fresh beginning. Every day is the world made new. Today is a new day. Today is my world made new. I have lived all my life up to this moment, to come to this day. This moment - this day- is as good as any moment in all eternity. I shall make of this day - each moment of this day - a heaven on earth. This is my day of opportunity.
Dan Custer

Friday, March 11, 2005

The real trouble with the old guy is…

I awoke early this morning and heard a lone bird chirping in the tree just outside my bedroom window. Ahh, I haven’t heard that cheery call in a long time, and it was such a welcome sound in the early morning air. I rolled over so I could hear the song more clearly, and my heart rejoice. Spring is coming, the seasons will change and winter will end. It will!

The trouble with old man winter is that he always overstays his welcome. He does! No other season is so rude, or unfeeling and cranky. Why does he do this? I love him so much when he first comes to my door with that wintry blast and fresh white snow storm, but come mid-March, his song and dance is getting a bit old and he needs to take off his winter boots, get off the stage of life and go to bed for a nice long nap.

“Don’t be such a bully!” I want to say to him. “Let the spring flowers and warm breezes come out and play for a while. They have been waiting in the wings long enough. It is their turn now. It is time for you to wash your face, brush your teeth, and go to bed!!!!”

He just doesn’t listen though. Ornery old guy! It makes you mad when people don’t listen doesn’t it? He is tired and cranky and needs to go to bed. Just go to bed already!

We went out for a walk last night and his tired temper tantrum blew wet snow in our faces and chilled us to the bone as we walked along slippery streets. The car is covered in icy snow this morning and gusts of wind continue to blow snow all around the house and garden. Yet I did hear that lonely bird chirping in the middle of the storm this morning. Ah, the hope of Spring! It is coming. It is!

What wonderful life-lessons of Mother Nature has to teach us. We all need to learn when it is time for a change in our lives and move into the different seasons gracefully. Not be a cranky old bully and make life miserable for those around us when we stay up past our bedtime. When we feel ourselves getting ornery maybe we need to take nap. Simple as that! Step back and rest. Just listen to our bodies and rest when we need to, work when we have to, laugh, love, and enjoy what is when it is and move along into the different seasons of our life gracefully.

Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit.
Thoreau

Sunday, March 06, 2005

Sugar Bowl Notes

I purchased this book, To Our Children’s Children. Preserving Family Histories for Generations to Come by Bob Greene, many years ago. It is a book of questions to guide you or start your thought processes as you record your personal history for your children.

Some questions were straight forward –
What is your full name?
What is your favourite colour?


Others sparked my imagination and set my pen to dancing –
Do you remember the first time you saw your brother or sister.
Do you remember any stories your grandparents told you?
Did you sit on their lap or side by side, or walk hand in hand when you heard these stories?
Do you tell these stories to your grandchildren?
How big was your grandparents kitchen?
What did their couch feel like?
Did your dad shave with a straight razor or electric razor?
Who sat where at the family dinner table?
What did your father’s handwriting look like?
What did you see when you looked out of your bedroom window?


So, you get the idea. Each chapter is full of hundreds of questions and I could pick and chose which ones to answer to paint a picture of my personal history. It is really fun, and I have been working on this project, on and off, for years. It is something I pick up and play with for a little while and then put down when my writing takes me in another direction. I like having something like that to go back to when thoughts and ideas aren’t flowing freely. I read the questions until one grabs me and then start to write. Pretty soon thoughts and ideas are flowing again and I am clipping right along.

Anyway, what does all this have to do with Sugar Bowl Notes and what the heck are they?

At the end of the book the author asks this question-

If you had to write a note – one note – and leave it propped against the sugar bowl on your kitchen table for future generations to read, what would you say in that note?

It might be a bit of philosophy you’ve learned over the years; it might be a helpful tip or piece of guidance. It might be a thought about the meaning of your life; it might be your most heartfelt wishes for the people who read it. Intimate or humourous, it can be anything you want.

One note – one note to leave in the kitchen, for your children’s children and theirs, and all of ours.


Since reading that, I put some thought into what my Sugar Bowl Note would be, and make it a point to ask people what they would put in their Sugar Bowl Note?

I have collected many of them over the years, and consider them a rich treasure. So, let me ask you today to think about what you would write on your Sugar Bowl Note for future generations to read. Please share them with me, and that way we can lean them against the sugar bowl on our kitchen table in cyberspace for our blog family to read now and in the future.

I will start things off by sharing mine, AC’s and daughter #2’s.

There are other people in this world, and there are more to come. Think about what you are doing. Don’t forget to walk the dog tonight.Daughter #2 (16 at the time)

We seem to be programmed for everything to balance out. If you are having a great day today, then you stand a good chance of having a bad one tomorrow. Once you understand this seldom known fact, you can determine in your heart to do what it takes to have a good day tomorrow. And the best way to start tomorrow is with a song. Always hum, sing, or whistle in the morning because no one else is going to start the music for you. Greet the day with a song, and you will be in tune for the whole day. Anvilcloud

Always be kinder than you need to be. Cuppa

Wednesday, March 02, 2005

ROARRRRRRRRRR

Yes, I can still hear the echoes of that roar today. March sure came in like a lion didn’t it? My goodness what a storm we had here yesterday and are still having actually. School buses are cancelled in some of the areas near the lake, so you know it is quite a storm when that happens.

I went out to do some errands mid-morning yesterday and had to shovel snow just so I could open the side gate. I was only gone about an hour and I had to force my way in the gate again when I got home. Sheesh! I took time to clear a path to the front door and was soon feeling my back yell at me because the snow was so heavy. Good enough I said and retreated inside the house.

I looked out around suppertime and was discouraged to see the drifts once again piled against the gate and the drive completely snowed in. Huge piles of snow left there by the ploughs blocked the end of the drive, and it was still snowing! Yikes! How in the world would we dig out? I started to make supper, when I heard a knock at the door. I opened the door and there stood two angels in yellow coats. Yes, nothing less than angels in yellow coats. They were also wearing wool toques, but I could see the halos shining through the snow covered wool. These angels were housed in the bodies of twelve-year-old boys holding shovels. They asked me if I wanted my driveway shovelled? Oh I could have hugged and kissed them both.

"Yes," I said enthusiastically. "How much?" The one boy who was doing all the talking looked surprised that I said yes and answered in a shocked voice, “I don’t know.” I told them to get started and I would go look in my purse. I use a debit card all the time, so I don’t usually have much cash on hand. I thanked the heavens above for sending these angels my way as I went scurrying to find my purse to search for money. I found ten dollars, and went back to the front door and said to Angel #1, who was working on the porch, “How about five dollars each to do the drive and the porch?” His eyes lit up and said that would be fine. I also gave him a handful of chocolate Easter bunnies to give them energy as he and his partner worked away in the cold. As I closed the door I heard him call to Angel #2, who was working at the mountain at the end of the driveway, “She gave us five dollars each and some candy too!” His voice was full of excitement and both angels seemed pleased. Not nearly as pleased as I was though, they came straight from heaven to my door that day.

I worked away at making dinner, and just before we sat down to eat the doorbell rang again. The boys were all done and wanted to know if the job was ok. The heavenly beings even did the front sidewalk too. I told them how wonderful I thought they were and the job was great. I asked them to please come back tomorrow if it continued to snow and I would pay them to do it again.

Well it is still snowing this morning, so I hope they do come back, but maybe I will only get one visit from Angels wearng yellow coats this year. I will be thankful for that though and keep my eyes open for what other exciting gifts life sends to my door when I need them.

When life ROARS at you and brings unexpected storms your way I hope you recognize the angels that come into your life during these times and they bring you as much joy as my angels in yellow coats and wool togues brought me yesterday.

I can still hear the echoes of the ROAR today, and the reality of the storm is cold and chilling, but if I listen carefully, on the other side of the roar I can hear the bleating of the Lamb not far off, and know that the storms will pass soon. Listen for those sounds of hope in your storm too. Sometimes you really have to struggle to hear them, but they are there. Shhhhhhh! Listen! Listen!