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 […]

The Gift of Friendship

June 25, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

I am the one who put forth the relationship challenge this week, and I have to confess, I am struggling with how to articulate my feelings. Fast approaching my sixtieth birthday, I find I am sentimental, or maybe, it’s that after years of isolation due to illness, I now treasure relationship more than ever. […]

V.J.’s Weekly Challenge #4: Relationships

June 25, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

“The people we are in relationships with are always a mirror, reflecting our own beliefs, and simultaneously we are mirrors, reflecting their beliefs.” – Shakti Gawain A friend of mine used to say (and I paraphrase). “May you experience as many relationships […]

VJWC #3: Muskoka Wonder

June 23, 2018.Reading time 1 minute.

It is the combination of trees and rocks and water that holds such allure for me. Here in Muskoka, it is easy to understand how artists such as the Group of Seven were inspired to capture such beauty. The weather has been perfect for our visit on Sparrow Lake, and my body has graciously […]

Muskoka

June 22, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

North of Toronto, Canada, there is an area of lakes known as Muskoka. Having traveled extensively over the winter, and marvelled at many new and exotic landscapes, we return to the places of our youth with a new appreciation and respect for what we have here at home. Muskoka and the Haliburtons are vacation destinations, […]

VJWC#3: Nurturing Wonder

June 20, 2018.Reading time 4 minutes.

On the road, everyday is defined by a sense of adventure and discovery – an attitude I feared I’d lose on returning home. In truth, these past six weeks of settling back in have focused on family and friends and doctors visits. All good, and yet, already, I notice that carving time for writing is […]

V.J.s Weekly Challenge #3: Nurturing Wonder

June 18, 2018.Reading time 1 minute.

“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our sense to grow sharper.” – W.B. Yeats Travelling across North America and back this past winter, every day was filled with discovery, awakening new passion for life. The challenge, I recognized, as our trip wound down, would be to keep this sense of wonder […]

Reflections on Synchronicity

June 17, 2018.Reading time 2 minutes.

First, a thank you to all who participated in this week’s challenge, and to those who took the time to comment. This interaction means so much to me – maybe more than I can ever articulate. Up until 2004 – when I returned to university to become a teacher – I practiced an examined life: […]