A Rare Autumn Day

I’d been told that one street over from our house, behind the nursing home, there is a nature trail.  Ric has been busy working – driving back and forth between the city – and I have been homebound, moaning about the dull weather, so I haven’t had a chance to see it for myself. Then […]

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CFFC: Things People Grow

Here in southwest Ontario, we grow corn.  By August we’ve also a grown an appetite for the taste of peaches and cream corn, buttered and salted, right off the cob. My mother comes from farming roots, but these days all she grows is older. We are all farmers, in a sense – planting our seeds, […]

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Lens-Artists: Action

Oh, to jump without fear – a skill long passed, although leaps of faith, I still take – never too aged for those. I remember when speed equated with freedom – a constant race – now I walk with careful measure, fresh air still accompanying pace. Never could accomplish a cartwheel – coordination not amongst […]

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The Questions That Follow Us

“Sometimes I just wish I could roll back the years and start over.” “Hard to imagine it.  Life would have been very different.” Our what if’s are wistful, laced with regrets.  Not that we had any power over what happened – we were only children when decisions that would affect us forever after were made. […]

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When We Meet In Heaven, Daughter (A Response)

I’ll be waiting for you in Heaven, daughter, although the roles we played in life have no bearing here – only souls congregating in spiritual reflection. Still the ties that bound us will be vivid, your mind, no doubt reeling in transition, the turmoil of earthly incarnation still buzzing in emotional swirls. I’ve had the […]

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Self-Talk

What I liked about starting a new school as a kid, was the opportunity to change my approach to life.  In the early years, I was known as a tough girl, a fighter.  I decided to leave her behind when I moved schools in 5th grade, and focus on being smart.  Instead, I learned to […]

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Celebrating the Gifts of Life

At 10, I ruled the world – hard peddling up steep roads and letting go on the other side thrilling to speed and risk. At 20, I felt the pressure to define my life, marry, and be somebody – driven without much compassion At 30, I relaxed a bit, celebrated having birthed three children, confident […]

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VJWC: Driven to Succeed

Children understand the mechanics of accomplishment:  take a risk, try and try again, and bask in the accolades that follow. As I grow older, I wonder at what point in life I lost that simple understanding.  Now, as I watch my granddaughters, I feel compelled to regain some of that old spunk:  tackle the new, […]

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July Blues

Summer bursts with activities and plans, and I am already wondering at the folly of trying to move in the midst of it all.  I put out a group text yesterday to solicit help from our kids, and the response was as expected: We are away that weekend. Can we help with the pre-move prep? […]

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The Petty Details

“If it would help, I could get you a bacon press.” I am poised over the hot frying pan, waiting to flip a quesadilla.   Waving the spatula at him, I give him my best stink eye. “What?” “I thought you said you wanted to keep up the minimalist lifestyle?” “I do, and having a […]

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