Marking a New Year (with Sea Glass)

A New Year is upon us. Time for new hopes, new dreams, and new calendars to mark your resolutions on. I was lucky enough to receive the Pure Sea Glass 2020 Calendar from Schiffer Publishing and have gladly hung it up for inspiration where I can see it first thing in the morning (at eye level to where the coffee maker lives—perfect spot).

Pure Sea Glass 2020 Calendar

What does 2020 look like from the near side of the year? If the pretty cobalt and cornflower blue sea glass images serve as inspiration for January, then do I look forward to a year of infinite possibilities of blue?

Far more cobalt-blue bottles were produced than cornflower-blue vessels, making the latter twice as hard to find. ~ Richard LaMotte

The sea molds whatever is thrown into it, just as life is molded by whatever waves crash into us. Perhaps we need to look harder to see the beauty created by those experiences, just as so many of us are drawn to the colourful shards of smoothed glass that wash up on beaches all over the world. Look beyond the colours to see how the experiences smooth sharp edges. We might start the same or similar colours, but it is the experiences that leave their marks on us and make us all unique and beautiful.

Color usually is the most significant emotional factor to excite the sea glass enthusiast.  ~ Richard LaMotte  

While blues rule the winter months, with their icy shades, things start to warm up with the arrival of March. I can't help but thinking of maple syrup when I see these pretty pieces of sea glass. Perhaps as winter wanes, we should sweeten the pot and embrace the warmth that promises to be on the way.

A very limited amount of red glass has been mass-produced in the last 50 years, so one can make assumptions about its age.    ~ Richard LaMotte

By May, a trip to the beach might not seem like such a bad idea again. Time to search for some sea glass of your own! I have found plenty of pieces at local nearby beaches at Port Stanley, Grand Bend, Bayfield, Goderich, and Sauble Beach. Being surrounded by the Great Lakes might make for wilder weather sometimes, but doesn't that make for more unique sea glass to be found? My eyes constantly search out for little pieces of colourful glass found along the shores of wherever I go.

The beach lures us to witness its infinite energy, constant motion, and change. We listen to its music for advice and solace. Each day is different. ~ Robert LaMotte

By July, we have hit the mid-point of the year, the weather is hot, and my birthday arrives! I love the summer months, for the long hot days and warm nights that invite as much time spent outside as possible. There are festivals to attend, campfires to spark, and lakes to cool off in just because. It has always been a time for renewal for me and reconnecting with my family. We shed the busy months, and slow down to be part of the natural world once more. Lots more time to unearth more unique sea glass at any number of beaches across southwestern Ontario and often further afield.

Tales of healing through collecting sea glass are just part of the story. ~ Richard LaMotte

After renewal comes the time to embrace our busy lives once more. The calendar gets marked with activities galore, but we still try to get outside to enjoy as much colour as we can. Leaves lose their greens in favour of yellows, reds, and oranges, in preparation for hibernation. Not without a vibrant goodbye though!

Reds, yellows, and oranges conjure up sunlight and fire, while the blues and blue greens evoke snow and ice, sea, sky, and moonlight.   ~ Anonymous

As the year winds to a close, it always seems miraculous how the time has flown. In between the holiday rush, I take time to reflect on where I've come throughout the year; the heartache, loss, success, failures, love, and joys along the way. It really is amazing how fast time flies and how all those moments add up to change who you were from the beginning of the year.

It is not merely the time in the water that creates great sea glass. Much of it remains embedded in the sand and shifts from its resting place several times. ~ Richard LaMotte

What I think I like most about this calendar though is the fact that sea glass is often hard to find, but brings so much joy to you when you do find it. The search forces you to slow down, be more mindful and observant of life around you, and offers the reminder to spend more time by the water! It changes you, but helps to smooth your edges and bring out your shine and beauty. How can you not smile at that? 

The Pure Sea Glass calendar is a delightful compilation of images of sea glass photographed by Tommy Allen, featuring quotes by Richard LaMotte. I received the calendar from Schiffer Publishing in exchange for a review, but had to make it my own. A little nod to the calendar, images, and quotes, with a bit more reflection on my part to keep it real and me. But I love beach glass and the calendar speaks to me. It truly does put a smile on my face when I look at it every morning and hopefully will remind me to be more present in my daily life, looking for the colours and seeing the beauty in how life molds us. 

A Summer Night

The dark surrounds me. A gentle hum from the air conditioner precludes a cricket's chirp tonight. The heat is enough for me to believe that it's summer, but nocturnal noises don't hold many natural vibes tonight. 


The dog's bark only suggests a tussle with his increasing shadows in yonder yard. I ignore the cat's meowl to join me for a nightcap. 


A hint of a breeze stirs the wind chime overhead and I lift my gaze to the sky. A new moon won't hide the stars, as they slowly peek out from behind the sun's skirt. It has left me for the day. The sun that is. Now my moments are filled with a calm that only the night provides. No running is necessary anymore. 


The faint indigo is almost gone from the western edge of the world and I am quiet with my thoughts once more.


This moment of quiet, this moment of me, is a gift that I recognize today. Only a few years past, I would have rued these empty hours, afraid of the thoughts they would have spawned. Those thoughts have made me who I am though. What I am is still evolving and changing, but there is a quiet strength there that allows me to believe in me and the powers that be. Faith brought me tomorrow, when I couldn't fathom how to spell the word. Perseverance pushed me to see the next sunrise. Optimism reminded me that I would see a rainbow once again. 


And so it has.


Tonight, I sit in idle reverie awaiting my night-time prince on horse of thunder (the new beau rides a motorcycle my dears). Irritatingly small wisps of bugs fly up my nose, into my hair and nibble at my ankles, but I refuse to give up the warm air of the first night of summer. Just a touch more breeze and all my worries will be blown away! 


And so it is...


Brilliant.

Saturday's Email of the Week: A Look Back

Saturday's Email of the Week

Goodness, a little late this week! The week has come and gone and now its Saturday already. It has been a busy, strange kind of week with much new goings on. For starters, the children started back to school. I held up much better this year, as compared to last. To be honest, I had a harder time letting go of the fact that we were saying goodbye to the daycare that we had been attending for the last six years. The ladies there were all warm and loving individuals that not only physically took care of my children, but made me feel like a part of all of their families. I tried not to break down too much, but there were more than a few tears shed in anticipation of the last time we would walk out their doors. I was not the only one with tears in my eyes though. It reaffirmed our connection, getting those teary hugs from many staff who were just as sad to see us go.

My writing and crafty self could not help but get involved in our goodbyes either (surprise). I made up a collage of snippets with what the girls had to say about individual teachers and mack-tacked it together to offer it to them. Here are just a few examples of the love that the girls poured forth;

“Cindy is a special person because she makes my life feel better sometimes. Cus she gives me a hug and she helped my do a nice craft today (Ie. Making books)” - words from my 4-year old

“I like her because she helps me exercise. And I like her because she tries to tickle me and sometimes does. ” - just one of the nice things that my 6-year old had to say about her teachers

And you know that I couldn't resist getting a few words in edgewise. I am pretty sure that I made a number of the teachers cry with my heartfelt missive of what they meant to me.

"Over the years, I have seen both of my girls grow and mature. I believe watching their father die has made them more sensitive and compassionate souls, and many times the E--- staff has pointed that out to me. The staff has always treated my girls as nothing short of normal and when I felt so far from that myself, that was a godsend. I constantly had staff ask about my days, weekends and family life. She might not have realized it at the time, but every time that K- remarked on a new haircut I got, I wanted to hug her, kiss her and/or cry. There was no one else to even notice if I did anything to my appearance. You were my family. B- encouraged T’s creativity and C- encouraged R’s sense of self. K-, M- and C- are always at the ready with tickles and both my girls always screech in delight at the sight of you. While some of you I have not gotten to know as well as others, you have all been an integral part of my family. You let me tinker in your garden every year and gave me thumbs up for the effort, when really it was one of the few ways I could think of to give back. Having R- at my side was a special moment for me that first year with my fingers in the dirt. Years later having L- approach me as the “Gardening Mom” and asking my advice made me feel special and kind of proud. You all have truly helped me grow back into me. Whether it was insisting that I stop, eat and talk, the week following my cousin’s death, or sensitively asking how to handle Father’s Day, I have always felt respected, cared for and loved. It was always offered so genuinely, that I could not help but absorb every ounce of it."

Now I get teary at the memory of it again. No time though as the girls are starting a Rolling & Tumbling Class today. We started back to swimming lessons and I have started back into a more active lifestyle by exercising myself while they are in the pool or at school. So now, time to go, go, go! I wish you all a fabulous weekend and hope that your first week back to school and September went well. I leave you with a little funny that showed up in my mailbox last week from one of my regular contributors to my laugh track. Peace!

Older Love Making

Maude and Claude, both 91, lived in The Villages, in Florida . They met at the singles club meeting and discovered over time that they enjoyed each other's company. After several weeks of meeting for coffee, Claude asked Maude out for dinner and, much to his delight, she accepted.

They had a lovely evening. They dined at the most romantic restaurant in town. Despite his age, they ended up at his place for an after-dinner drink.

Things continued along a natural course and age being no inhibitor, Maude soon joined Claude for a most enjoyable roll in the hay.

As they were basking in the glow of the magic moments they'd shared, each was lost for a time in their own thoughts.....

Claude was thinking:

'If I'd known she was a virgin,

I'd have been gentler.'

Maude was thinking:

'If I'd known he could still do it,

I'd have taken off my pantyhose.'

Working for a Living

Life on the truck was still an uncertainty. I had been shown some paperwork, but wasn’t exactly feeling the love from Kylie and Angus. We were in Dar es Salaam and I had the dubious pleasure of sanding and painting equipment for the truck. All of our passengers had trundled off to Zanzibar. I would have loved to go, but was reminded that this was a working trip. There would be time in the future for fun again, but for right now, I was earning my keep.

Yes, I had the fun pleasure of varnishing a table in Chitemba, while the passengers went to climb Livingstonia. I scraped sand mats with a wire brush in Karonga, and painted truck pieces and stools. While it felt good to actually physically work, it also added to a feeling of loneliness that I couldn’t shake. No matter how much black and white paint I slopped around, I could not forget my former travelling companion Brett’s smiling face. Despite singing a little fast on my beleaguered walkman, Bob Marley’s crooning voice in my ear didn’t help either. My labours  left me  with too much time to reflect.

Before we arrived in Dar es Salaam, we got to see the beauty of the Tanzanian countryside though. As soon as we left the Malawian border behind, the scenery changed. We went from the lush beaches of Lake Malawi, to tea plantations that stretched to mountainous backgrounds. They were generously interspersed with stately banana palms. It made for gorgeous green valleys  that filled my vision as far as I could see.  

Shortly after entering Tanzania, we made our first bush camp of the five-week tour. It was mild enough to sleep outside and I woke to the stars. While it was wondrous to look up at them and watch the sky lighten, I could not stop the tear that slid off my cheek. Brett had been the one to appreciate sunrises. Without him by my side I felt adrift and oh so lonesome. My dream of living and working on the African continent seemed hollow without a friend in the world to share it with. My birthday steadily approached and a tiny flame of hope burned that perhaps I would bump into Brett again. The reality of the path I had taken made it unlikely though.

Our second day on the road in Tanzania, the landscape changed from vibrant green to dry yellow. Mealie patches and dry grasses dominated the landscape now and despite our proximity to the equator, you could tell that it was winter. The changing leaves were nothing in comparison to the brilliance of Canada’s Autumn displays, but we did not have the mud huts that leant the reminder that I was far from home. I was definitely in Africa.

The excitement of reaching Dar es Salaam, while great for the group, was less so for me. Once the gang was gone, we gathered supplies for the truck and ourselves, then set out for a camp outside of town called Silver Sands. Melancholy followed me, as a sad song by UB40 and the loss of a lover of a character in my book, left me in tears. I allowed the tears to come, as I missed friends and family, and even finally allowed some tears for my long-lost relationship from the beginning of my trip. There was no one to talk to about my loneliness though, so I shook it off and returned to the present. The present held more truck maintenance that saw me scraping paint off of cupboards till break time. I was then left to catch up in my journal and read.

The hours became painful though, and intermixed with a desire to explore the city of Dar es Salaam, I wished to see the only friendly faces I knew, that of our passengers. They would return in a few days. Our reunion would be short-lived though, as we would only explore the city for a day, before it would be time to head off to Arusha. From there, they would go to the Serengeti. I would be headed for Nairobi though and the end of my training trip.  The word was that I had a trip lined up for another 5-week Overland from Nairobi to Harare. I still had to get my evaluation though. That would happen in Nairobi. 

Contemplation

In these long, dark days of January

the world spins slower

more pointedly

facing us in

directions

of soul-

ful

C

O

N

T

E

M

PLA

TION

~

Birds of a Feather

"Like birds of a feather, we flock together"

Here is a refrain that resonates in the heart of blogland. We come together to listen, share and offer support. While we all have questioned why we are here at times, and why we stay, the answer resonates on the very next page that pops up. It seems like when we have a need, that niche is filled by someone's page or another. I cannot tell you how many times I have found the exact words I have needed to hear, just when I needed them most. They are there in this lovely community that reaches out to support us all.

Yes, for you see, we are all kin come together to bond. We see ourselves through other's eyes and process. I have given hugs, gotten more and found understanding in a world that exists only in the ethers. I have laughed and cried, and sat back to ponder what it all means. True, some days it has a WTF quality, but the places that don't fit can be abandoned, to be replaced by sites that fit our needs better. As we are all unique individuals, the wealth of blogs available to any one person, should be enough to fill anybody's needs.

And then You arrive. To let you in on a little secret, You are why I come back every day. For I need to write, but with you I can thrive. My words are rounder, fuller, more robust and I know it is because I write for you. Yes, my words are my babies and I love and nurture them from my heart, but you are there too. Thank you. 

I have spied awards on people's pages and have certainly received a few of my own. I had it in my mind to make some such thing, but I realized I don't need to. For those that stop by and read these words, know this is for you. Thank you for visiting and listening to my mind's inner workings. Scary thought some days, but I thank you none-the-less. I wish you peace and strength in all your characters to always find a way.  For as birds of a feather, we flock together. You are part of my flock and I wish you well for the general health of you and consequently me. 

Sunday Reflective Moments

Sometimes we are where we need to be.

Where are you at in your life right now? Have you just come through crisis, change or a period of inactivity? Is life looking rosy, full of questions, bleak or too challenging to go on? We all have days like that. Sometimes these periods last days, weeks months or just seem to never end. Everything that we go through is a process meant to teach us something though. I am learning how to stand on my own two feet right now. I am learning how to reach out to the world around me. I am learning that in reaching out, I am not weak, but rather stronger for the asking. This is a hard lesson that seems to be long in process. The lessons remind me that I am fallible, but that does not mean that I am a bad person. I remarked last week that in failure, we learn our lessons best. It is humbling, but holds a truth that I struggle with. This is where I need to be right now though. I am processing where I have walked, the steps of the journey and the possibilities of where I am heading.  I need to know these things. Overall, I need to remember that tomorrow is a new day.