V.J.’s Weekly Challenge #6 Mystery

July 9, 2018.Reading time 1 minute.

Don’t Hold Your Breath’s byline is “tripping the world, slowly”. The author, I.J. Khanewala, documents travels through images and delightful commentary. I have begun to look forward to these snippets from other worldly places. In a recent post: “Flowers of the Middle Heights” The Young Niece asks why a certain flower has five petals. Khanewala, […]

Weekly Challenge Wrap Up: Books

July 8, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

“I’m too old to change!” Father snapped at me when I suggested that some of the stress Mother was suffering might have to do with his behaviour. “Look in the mirror, Dad. If you see a reflection, it is not too late to change.” It was a line I borrowed from Alan Cohen, an author […]

A Photo A Week: Celebration

July 7, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

A year ago, as we sold off the rest of the contents of our house, I was both excited and wary about the path we had chosen. Two-and-a-half years confined to a bed had stripped me of the ability to dream, but my husband was not about to give up. “I will put wheels on […]

CFFC: Piles or Stack

July 5, 2018.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Nice to see these boards neatly stacked in piles, hopefully well secured… unlike these piles whose disarray is intended to allure customers… (Thanks Cee for another Fun Foto challenge.)

Learning From Bowls

July 4, 2018.Reading time 8 minutes.

“We’ll give him a few more minutes, shall we?” The kindly old man seated across from me crossed one leg over the other and sat back as if he had all the time in the world to wait. “The thing is…I mean…,” I hung my head in shame. “I don’t think he’s coming.” “Ah, yes.” […]

V.J.’s Weekly Challenge #5: Books

July 2, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

I can remember the exact moment that the words jumped off the page and hit me between the eyes with such an impact, my head snapped back. I was still married to my ex-husband, and had retired to the bedroom to read before sleep. The children were all finally asleep, and I had started the […]

Relationship Wrap Up

July 1, 2018.Reading time 1 minute.

Relationship, I realized after posting my weekly challenge, is too broad of a subject. We need a lifetime to examine and appreciate our interconnections, and then, likely, we’d need to begin again – such is the nature of relationship. It slips and slides, rewards and betrays, teaches and takes away. That said, I appreciate those […]

CB&W: Birds

June 30, 2018.Reading time less than 1 minute.

Mother Mallard and her babies have been the main attraction lately. Although I rather like the results of mucking about with this little bird’s photo: (Couldn’t resist one more challenge today as the subject was birds. Thanks Cee!)

Life With Father

June 29, 2018.Reading time 4 minutes.

“Whatever it is we need to learn from each other, I say let’s do it now, so we don’t have to come back and repeat it,” I told my father once during a period in which I was exploring the concept of reincarnation. I imagine he lowered his chin and looked over his spectacles at […]

In the Neighbourhood

June 28, 2018.Reading time 4 minutes.

It is the first official week of summer, although steamy weather set in last month. Today there is a break in the humidity, so Ric and I decide to explore local nature. We’ve come to the Strathroy Conservation Area, along the Sydenham River. Recent rains have flooded much of the grounds, so we stick to […]

Relevance of Story

Stories have power. Parents, teachers, public speakers, and therapists understand that the secret to engaging an audience or connecting with others is through illustration: storytelling. I see it in the eyes of the my grandchildren, who love to hear tales of family history. I’ve seen in the eyes of students, when recognition and understanding light […]

Is This War?

“War is hell. You can’t photograph a flying bullet, but you can capture genuine fear.”– unknown The bomb has droppedcontrol slips from our grasp We pray for a parachutefor someone to pull the cord numbers escalate,lives plummet We offer encouragementisolated voices faltering moment of impact imminentthe implosion inevitable impact reverberatesresponsibility moot. ( Image my own.)