Monday, October 8, 2012

I am Thankful

   It is Thanksgiving Day here in Canada, a day for celebration and reflection. Like many of my fellow Canadians, I cannot help but think of the blessings of friends and family,  shelter and provisions, health and happiness. Still, today, I think I would like to be a bit more specific in my thanks.

  I am thankful for quiet mornings and active days, sitting in front of a fire on a crisp night under a starry sky, dinners on the deck in the summer,  a decaf cappuccino or latte with a friend. 
  I am thankful for the feel of a good book in my hands and the time to read it, an afternoon in my favourite green chair in the world of that book,  a classic movie that brings me to tears or makes me laugh.
   I am thankful for music that leaves an ache within me, lyrics that speak truth,  stories that never grow old,  art in all its forms that adds colour and hope and encouragement to life.
   I am thankful for the sound of birds in my backyard, the howl of a wolf, the purring of a cat.
   I am thankful for the pressure of my dog Tara's head on my feet while I sleep.
   I am thankful for hot summer days, gentle rains, the way the world looks after a new-fallen snow. I am thankful for Kent's garden and its changing appearance through the seasons.
   I am thankful for a crisp white wine,  a gluten free fondue, something hot and comforting on a cold day.
    I am thankful for time spent just with my grown up girls, and for the opportunity of getting to know and love their chosen partners in life.
    I am thankful for time spent with Kent, my husband and chosen partner in life, enjoying the little things that come our way.

   And most of all, I am thankful for the never-changing mercy and love of God and His Truth, and the way it has forever changed my life.

Happy Thanksgiving Day, Canada! May today be a reminder to us to be thankful all year long.








Friday, October 5, 2012

Frost

   The ground has been covered in frost the last two mornings here in Edmonton and I am reminded that our short summer and even shorter autumn is almost at an end. I have lived here now for more than thirty years in total, 26 in a row last count, but I still have not gotten used to the fact that winter is quite selfish here, hoarding as much of spring and autumn as it can get away with,  leaving those seasons to fight it out with summer as  best they can. 
     I remember long autumns growing up in Montreal, sweater weather for several months, it seemed, until the snows took over. Sometimes there is no autumn here to speak of; we run from summer straight into winter, leaves blown or frozen off the trees before we even have time to consider their passing. This year, at least, we have enjoyed a beautiful September and I try to remember that, as I watch the quickly passing season. Autumn may not end until December on the calendar, but it says goodbye to Alberta long before that. 
     In spite of the frost, I am trying very hard right now to enjoy each of these days that still allow me to tramp around in shoes and a light coat, with the leaves still turning colour on the trees and the grass still green. One morning, perhaps sooner than later, I will wake up not to frost but to a blanket of new fallen snow.  I confess, I do not look forward to that....


Tuesday, September 25, 2012

A Perfect Peach Morning

What makes you smile?  For me,  Monday morning, it was a peach. A perfect peach I had bought at the Farmer's Market on Saturday. I cut it up onto my cereal and anticipated an epicurean delight! I was not disappointed.

Just as the "little things" can make life a bit tougher, so can they sometimes brighten it up and make life just a little bit more palatable. That perfect peach certainly brightened up my morning and my day, for that matter. Even a little moment of peace (or peach??) and pleasure can make a difference.

So, what makes you smile? A perfect peach, the sound of birds singing in your backyard, the colour of the leaves in autumn? Allow yourself to take a moment and just enjoy that one little thing!

Saturday, September 22, 2012

A Hot Sunny September Saturday!

    A hot sunny September Saturday is a rarity in Edmonton, Alberta and must, therefore, not be taken lightly. Today was such a day, and I knew that if I ignored it, I would just as surely live to regret it!  What  to do, then, on such a day?  In Vancouver, I would have been at Granville Island or at Kits Beach; in Montreal, Old Montreal would have beckoned. In Edmonton, it was Whyte Ave. and the Old Strathcona Farmer's Market that called my name, and I willingly answered!

    I am charmed by this area of my northern city. I love the feel of the Market itself  and the atmosphere along Whyte Ave. Wandering through the shops and the Market, I find myself  relaxing, enjoying the experience of walking, examining and, occasionally, purchasing goods.  It makes my life feel a bit simpler than it really is and I relish the illusion, at least for a time. 

   What makes your Saturdays special? Where do you head when you have the day and the time to make it worthwhile? We all need places that feel like homes away from home, that bring pleasure and solace into our lives.  I hope you have at least one place to "get away" to on a hot sunny September Saturday.

   
   

  
   
   
     

   


   



    









Thursday, September 20, 2012

I'm Back!

The implication of those words are likely lost on anyone reading this blog, but for me they are words of power, encouragement and determination! I have not really gone anywhere, no self-imposed exile or prolonged vacation, but I have certainly removed myself  to some extent from some of the dreams and plans I made reference to in earlier blogs.  Like so many of us, I was caught in the web of life, dealing with issues and problems in my day to day journey, not all of my own making. But, I have now decided it is time to reclaim that which is mine.
      
As a result, I am beginning again.  Not only writing in this blog, but seizing the adventure of living once more, whatever may come, for life is, indeed, an adventure, and that continues through times of rest and times of  furious activity, times of fulfillment and times of regret.  My life has been a roller coaster for as long as I can remember, but I know I am not alone in that experience. The question is not one of how to slow things down (although that would be nice!) but one of how to avoid falling off as we round the corners and brave the loops and fear-evoking hills.  I am determined to take every day as it comes, and to take out of every day whatever I can.  A part of me feels that there is no point, that it is too late to start once more, but I refuse to believe that is really the case. 
 It is never too late to learn. Isn't that really the biggest adventure of all?