Growing with gratitude for life's challenges
“What’s in this box?” “Good question. To be honest every time I look at the contents, I just…” “… glaze over?” “Exactly.” Turns out there were pens and lightbulbs and notepads, and something Ric’s been looking for. Likely the contents of a junk drawer – you know, the stuff you put out of sight because […]
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It was a neighbour girl that started it. We played together one day – a rare occurrence, as she seldom came outside. “How do you know you’re not adopted?” she hissed at me, as if to say: You don’t know everything. I started to answer, but then, the words got stuck. How did I know? […]
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The meeting was both exciting and a letdown. Exciting because it was my first attempt at a social event in over three years, having been bed bound all that time. A letdown as soon as the participants talked about early morning walks as the best way to spot birds. Mornings were still tough for me, […]
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“Tell me a favourite memory from your travels,” my golden-haired nurse asked me as she scoured my bruised arms for an accessible vein. I’d blown another IV and options were limited. Rachel Sunshine I called her, this wisp of a young woman who, at first hospital-glazed glance, glowed a with a yellow aura. So I […]
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Make sure you have lists for us when we come, my daughter messages me. Checklists with a gong to hit every time we complete a task, my son-in-law adds. We have no shortages of lists, in fact, every day or so, we are rewriting our lists: things to do, things to buy… Nowhere in those […]
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An apology, dear readers, if this week’s challenge came across as glib. By “stuff“, I was referring to the incidental: a broken foot, a set of stitches, a temporary setback. In no way did I intend to imply that trauma or loss is “stuff”. Some things, with a bit of grit, can be overcome. I […]
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“Just hang in till after the move,” I kept pleading with my body. Unrealistic in hindsight. Six o’clock, the morning before the move, I wake Ric with a request to drive me to the hospital. Turns out you can’t just pack chronic illness in a box and unpack it when convenient. While they pumped fluids […]
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“How long do you boil the corn?” “I don’t know.” “What do you mean, you don’t know?” “It’s done when it smells right.” This is why I can never replicate a recipe. I literally follow my nose. What is your relationship to smell? (Don’t tell me you didn’t know this was coming, lol.) Look forward […]
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Needing a break from moving house, I took my camera and drove along the river road looking for birds. Always hoping for that one shot to brag about later. The river seldom disappoints. A family of wild turkeys crossing the road welcomed me. Ripples in the calm water revealed a female merganser – a thrill […]
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Relax. I’m not into beef or grass. Keep chewing. **Our weekly focus was taste. I’m ashamed to say we’ve been eating terribly all week – convenience over taste. One of the downsides of packing for moving. Fortunately, the rest of you have been as creative and inspiring as always. Thanks to all who participated: Trippin’, […]
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One Woman's Quest II 