this way to Charming

Clay Morrow keeps popping into my dreams. His presence shakes me awake and makes me wonder why my choices of entertainment have become rather odd these days. The relaxed, zen-like me disappeared somewhere during season 4.

 

In any given week, I've spent too much time with the Sons, and then veered totally from that path and enjoyed a Hallmark romantic movie. I've changed eras, gone back and forth in time, jumped when startled, cringed when necessary, and giggled at the nonsensical. I also admit, that I've done a lot of talking to myself while watching this wide array of 'entertainment'.

You too might be surprising yourself of late. I met with a friend the other day who used some colourful @#4% language that I've never heard her use before. She said that she noticed that her vocabulary had changed too, and was quite enjoying saying these words, usually behind her mask while grocery shopping.

I have given in to reading my book in the middle of the day, something I used to reserve for the last hour while unwinding before falling asleep. And have even taken a tea back to my bed, to sit and read on a few mornings. A much more graceful entry into a new day, what with being up with Clay so frequently. (Tweet This) 

Honestly folks, I don't like his character one tiny bit.

No one really cares, do they? We've each found some silly thing to succumb to that brings us a little pleasure. (Tweet This) Or deflects from our sense of frustration. And these days, that's what counts.

Next time, about the book I've just finished by Saleema Nawaz.

Now tell me, have you discovered something new or old that gives you your zen?

 

Stay well, stay safe.

 

 

* Clay Morrow is from Sons of Anarchy, located in Charming - not a show I thought I would binge.

Making Peace With the Storm

Making Peace With the Storm

The medical expert on today's radio show talked about the aftermath of this prolonged period of isolation.

He reminded the listeners that although we're all in this together and that this event is global, that we each face this storm in different boats.


His comment made me realize how we've each entered this storm from a different place, each with his/her own coping ways and varying amounts of daily anxiety. 

So, is it any wonder that we are reacting differently?

We are all making peace with the storm. (Tweet This) 

We are questioning our daily activities and beliefs.

Some folks may feel well-equipped with the safety precautions they have in place, which include their emotional and financial security.

• They might have money in the bank and a stable income. And though the situation might be turbulent right now, they will land safely on shore. 
• Their ride might be focused on an internal journey. They might discover that they don't 'need' as many luxuries as they were used to.
• I see them sharing to help others, through music, with their words, and in other kinds of I'm here for you support.
• Even if their lives look unaffected, they are still feeling a shift in their understanding of previous plans and future dreams. 

Others we know, might have been teetering on the ledge of a change.

• They might have stayed in a work role they disliked because the pay was regular, they might have been wrung out with the expectations of others and counting down the days for a summer break or retirement.
• They might have been clinging to an unhappy relationship hoping things would work out.
• They might be overwhelmed with the uncertainty of everything.
• They might have no one.

The boat each of us is riding is definitely different. (Tweet This)

We've all realized that our lives 
can be changed in a few short weeks. 

The uncomfortable task of keeping our distance and wearing a mask, are more of a habit now.

We meet with friends in a parking lot for a quick coffee as we sit in our cars. And show our latest project, held out our car windows. We celebrate together.

Today at the store, although we couldn't see each other's smile, someone complemented another at their beautiful hair. 

On the way home, I saw a teenager dancing in a parking lot while her mother held up her phone, catching all the girl's moves. 

Would these things have happened earlier? Maybe.

We humans are adaptable.

Making Peace With the Storm

We might complain about our circumstances but we know that we need to accommodate our expectations if we are to survive. We might need to put aside our long-held ideas and see that this time is about finding out something new about ourselves. 

It takes effort to navigate our new paths, especially when we don't see the end of the journey or which shore we will land on. It also takes courage.

And although this world has shown us difficult times, we need to draw strength from the kindness around us, in the smiles behind the masks, in the patience shown by a stranger to let us pass ahead of them. 

I know it is not the same everywhere but let's choose to remember the good things. And to do something about what  no longer defines us.

So, I ask you today to take care of your own needs and to look for the good in people. If you have something you can give, do it. If you need a hand, be brave, ask for it. If you need to make a big change in your life, this is the time to decide on it.

Make peace with the storm.

Although the storm is the same, we are all in different boats. 

Stay well, stay kind.

At Home Retreat

Life is the past,  the present and the perhaps.

Bette Davis

If you read any of the same articles I do, you too might be drawn to the Retreat. But once again if you and I are at all similar, you haven't yet ventured on a bona fide Retreat.

You haven't packed a bag and road-tripped to a condo overlooking the bay. Or jetted to an ocean-side cottage to write your novel.

You don't have the means, the time, the energy or the courage to meet a bunch of strangers to share your passion. People that likely you will not see again.

Here's an alternative for you.

Today my husband left early for a long road-bike trip with some friends which wouldn't bring him home until late in the day.

Today would be mine, my At Home Retreat.

Saturday mornings are usually rushed, you might have read about our yoga class earlier. But today was different, I made my tea and returned to bed to read Annie Proulx's Barkskins: A Novel.

It is a heavy 700 pages and needs to be propped on an extra pillow. Ah, today I could concentrate on the tangled story that spans several decades. It allowed me to think of the various kinds of families in the world, how each has the potential to create or destroy the members. Retreat equals drink tea in bed and relax.

Distracted into thinking, my unfinished jewelry pieces caught my eye. What would they look like with mixed colour beads? Bending and twisting with ease. No rush. Retreat equals time to be creative.

Hunger. Baking. Blueberries.  
Yumm! A favourite recipe given by a colleague from a long time ago, Ann B. No fail, she told my 22-year-old self. 

And she was right. Not once over the decades in between has this muffin recipe failed. Blueberries, chocolate chips or almonds and poppy seeds. You can add whatever you like! No fail. Thank you Ann B. wherever you settled on Vancouver Island. Retreat equals reminiscing. 

Retreat does not mean not doing for me as you can tell. It doesn't mean sitting for endless hours in front of a television or swiping on Pinterest. Retreat means pausing, feeling the thoughts I put aside on Monday, Tuesday and during the rest of the week. Retreat means moving slower, picking up, cleaning up, wiping down. Slowly.

Retreat means turning on the fan, pointing it towards you because you notice all of a sudden that it is hot and stuffy and mid-afternoon. 

You are quiet, and you can hear your heartbeat, you remember You.

You re-charge, you re-call, you release. You make peace.

You know more about less. And less than you thought you knew.

You hear the fan and it sounds like an ocean, you smell the muffins and you could be at a Paris bistro, you heft the book you are reading and you are on the cliffs in Acadia.

Your At Home Retreat has taken you everywhere and brought you to the center of Alone. It has returned you to your heart.

If you give an At Home Retreat a try, let me know what you find out. (Tweet This)

This is what my At Home Retreat gave me. (Tweet This)

Death - Touched by His Uncomplicated Life

Fair warning, this post is about death. I hope that you will stick with me though because it is a story that we don't often tell.

A better place, passed away, the other side, we call death so many things. None of them, however, can take away the sting. We are afraid of the Unknown, and death is in my thinking the Ultimate Unknown. We avoid discussing it when we have the ability to do so, we live our lives behaving that we and our loved ones will be the exception.

I drive by a funeral home each day. The signs asking drivers to slow down and be respectful are placed at intervals. I wonder how many people driving by even notice the words. Sometimes the parking lot is empty, often enough it is not. A sprinkling of mourners and sometimes overflowing. Who is it, I wonder. Thank you for your contribution to this world. I hope you did little harm.

We have just recently heard of a trio of climbers who were swept away by an avalanche. They did not carry avalanche beacons/transceivers, they knew that in the event of being buried that they had little chance of being saved. How hollow would the words "they died doing what they loved" echo for their loved ones?

There are those who live to flirt with the line facing their death. But have they made peace with the days they have lived?

The other day someone was killed crossing a street going home from work not far from where I live. He carried a backpack that was torn from his body, perhaps it held the remnants of his uneaten lunch or something he found that day to show his children. He probably wasn't expecting his life to end steps away from his front door.

We are frequently reminded at the swiftness of life by folks like Humble the Poet. Death is just one moment away he often says. We hear it, we see it around us, but does it change the way we live?

Don't cry because it's over.

  Smile because it happened.

Dr. Seuss

DJW in stripes circa 1952

Today, I write about someone who was not known by more than a handful of people in his lifetime. His circle was small. He died last week. He had never read a book and was plagued with poor health. All he ever wanted was a decent cup of coffee. I wrote about him previously as the man of few possessions.

Peace

Peace in Waterton

I know that it will be a busy week ahead. A week filled with new beginnings and some farewells as students and parents face some unchartered territory. For many, the days ahead will be stressful and exciting, scary and demanding. Schedules, drop-off times, forgotten lunches and appointments. New outfits, new classmates, new staff, new bosses.

It is a time to let go of our beliefs of what we expect things to be and just Be in the Moment. All things will pass no matter how frightening and how busy. You will get used to your September, in bits and pieces, and have the chance to create a new You. 

Look at it as a start-up that you are in charge of, because you are the one that matters. 

You will be a bigger, better person at the end of this week. Allow it to happen.

Peace to you my fellow traveller.

You will be a bigger, better person at the end of this week. Allow it to happen. (Click to Tweet)

In bits and pieces you will have a chance to create a new You. (Click to Tweet)