Of all the photos that I took last week at the gardens with bright, beautiful flowers, this is the one that caught my eye the most.
The shamrocks were located in one of the shaded areas of the gardens, where they formed a blanket of green around rocks, a creek, a pond and many other shade-loving plants.
These shamrocks in the photo are Oxalis also known as sorrel, not the “clover” that is common in grassy areas, which are from the Trifolium family. According to my research they are easy to grow, and perfect for gardens like mine — mostly shaded with rocks.
Today I have nothing scheduled. I might just go find some shamrocks to plant!
“Every flower in this bouquet is edible”. “We picked them ourselves”. We had just finished our first in-person choir concert since December 2019. These two siblngs joined us only a few months ago, so it was their first concert ever. They were so excited to sing for their parents and all the other families, and just as excited to present me this lovely edible bouquet.
The bouquet brought back so many memories from when I was a teen. My dream in life was to live in a small log cabin in the woods, and be self-sufficient, living off the wild. I prepared by making edible (mostly) foods and drinks from plants around the yard, such as moss soup and dandelion tea. I read books on nature and how to survive. One of my favourites was “The Edible Wild”.
Life did not turn out that way for me. That’s probably a good thing, but maybe in some way I am still hoping for that dream.
I have been blessed with a couple of action-packed days with a visit from a daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter. Yesterday we walked around the Legislature, smelling the roses. Literally smelling as many roses as we could!
Watching an innocent child discover things that we just seem to take for granted was a reminder for me to slow down, and keep reshaping my priorities. This lovely rose garden is less than 5 minutes walk from my home, yet I rarely experience the beauty of it, and this is the first time in the 8 years since I moved here that I have taken the time to smell the roses.
This afternoon we will spend some time at a world-famous garden, with more rose-sniffing.
I wonder what it was like to live here when these buildings were first built. How big were these trees? Were the streets filled with tourists like they are now? Were people kind to each other?
The last stone was put in place in the year 1898. To the left of this tree is the short-cut I take when walking through the grounds on my way downtown. It is one of those kinds of short-cuts that saves me only about 30 seconds, but helps me to avoid the crowded sidewalks.
Tourists used to fill the streets and the grounds around this building. Slowly, after pandemic lockdowns and travel restrictions have lifted, the tourists are finding their way back. Eight years ago the time it took me to walk from downtown home again doubled during the summer, as I would stop and wait for people to take photos in front of all the tourist attractions. They paid thousands of dollars to see these places while I walked past daily, almost ignoring the beauty. The second year I would walk around the photo-takers, hoping to not get in their way. The third year I tired of accommodating everyone, and just kept walking (mostly politely!) but no longer concerned that I might have photo-bombed any of their bragging rights.
I have enjoyed the relative peace and quiet of the past couple of years and I know it is selfish to wish for another reason for discouraging tourism. When I start to travel again, I will be mindful of how I interrupt the environment of the host city or country.
Yesterday I went for a walk. I used to walk every single day. I used to have a dog. When my life got far too busy this past year, and especially this spring, I stopped going for walks. Now that I have time, I haven’t felt the energy to get out of the house more than absolutely necessary, but with gas prices rising continually I have decided to walk whenever errands take me within 1 or 2 kilometres from home.
Yesterday I was walking past a property that I am quite familiar with and saw this strange creature/machine. A worker was standing close by, monitoring its every move. Then I noticed that this young man was also discretely handling a remote control.
Am I the only person who does not know about this possibility of a remote control lawn mower?
How many other things have I missed while hibernating at home, trying to avoid crowds?
Saturday evening I was doing a bit of weeding out in the backyard. When I glanced up I saw this curious hen about 2 feet from my face. The neighbours sometimes let a few of them roam through their backyard, eating weeds and bugs. Once in a while the hens venture into my area and peck at the beautiful leaves of the tasty hostas.
Shortly after I moved to this place the fence between our yards was so rotten it needed to be taken down. Because it was hidden from most of the strata units, no funding was approved to rebuild the fence. More important issues were given priority. The neighbours are a young family struggling to get through each day and month. At that time I didn’t know them at all, and was annoyed at the mess of their backyard which I had to look at every time I went outside.
Then I started teaching piano to their children. I got to know the mother quite well; the father is quiet, shy and distant yet very quick to help in an emergency. The young boy was absolutely terrified of Toffee when he started lessons, and I had to put Toffee in his crate during the lesson…gradually introducing the two of them. It was a true breakthrough the first time he reached to pet Toffee, and eventually begged to be able to take him out on walks! His younger sister is very bright and eager to learn whatever I present to her.
The rhododendrons that were transplanted to create more of a “hedge” between our yards are fuller now and act as a bit of a screen. I have grown to appreciate the mess of their yard which attracts so much wildlife.
No longer am I annoyed at the way they keep their yard. I no longer judge them for what goes on, because they are friends and very much a part of my life. I quickly come to their defence when any of the other strata members start to criticize. Empathy and understanding have totally changed how I view the yard next door.
If you judge people, you have no time to love them.
For two years now I have been a part of “The Isolation Journals” community. We are sent regular prompts to encourage creativity, meet monthly when available on the Hatch, for an hour of journaling, or being otherwise creative, and following Suleika’s journey through illness and healing.
Sometimes the prompts don’t help, and I can’t find anything in my experience to write about, and sometimes the prompts bring up such deep emotions within me that I can’t write.
Today’s prompt is to “make a list of things to look forward to. Include big things if you’d like, but also the small everyday things that buoy your spirits, make you laugh, make you feel alive.” That’s something I can do.
Calls from family
random FaceTime calls from my granddaughter because she has located her mother’s phone and wants to say hi to “gramma”. She likes to boop my nose with her finger, kiss my image on the phone, and yesterday bent toward it to smell the roses in my bouquet
calls from my son just to see how I’m doing
calls from my youngest to check in on me, talk about life in general, and update me on her plans
new photos and videos of my grandchildren
that first cup of coffee in the morning
birds chirping when I open the patio door to let in some fresh air
randomly looking at my phone to find it is 8:23….the minute my first child was born.
going for a drive. Anywhere. Just driving
visits from the neighbourhood cats, raccoons and squirrels, and sometimes one of the hens from next door
children’s choir rehearsals, and the growth I am privileged to watch and facilitate
free time
daffodils in the spring
watching dolphins and orcas from the ferry
solitary walks
That is just the beginning. There are so many things to look forward to.
Yesterday morning these flowers were delivered to my door. Every month I receive a bouquet — a birthday gift from my children that lasts all year. Two years to be exact!
Each month I look forward to receiving a bouquet, eager to be reminded of the love of family, and excited to see what the florist has chosen to display.
This month they cut back on the greens (yay!!) to showcase the beautiful shades of pink roses, peonies and Gerbera daisy. Additional flowers hiding in the background are lilies and chrysanthemums.
It took me a while to really appreciate this on-going gift that started almost 2 years ago. I hadn’t really done anything to deserve the attention except grown older, and since the flowers fade and die within two or three weeks it hardly seemed worth it. I am looking at things differently now, and am starting to see the value in accepting kindness and the thoughtfulness of my children.
Yesterday I took this photo of a mini-excavator in front of the construction a few houses away. I have been on the look-out for things that would interest my grandsons. They love trucks of all sorts, farm equipment and anything similar to tractors. On a previous visit to their home I remember having to schedule our day around the garbage pick-up. My oldest grandson, then not quite 2 years old, was fascinated by the garbage truck, and needed to go outside to wave at the worker!
Their mother at a very young age was fascinated by anything to do with music, especially cellos, which ended up defining her career. I wonder how often what young children are intrigued by is a prediction of their life work. If that is the case, my granddaughter will be either a ballerina or orchestra conductor, or gardener, or reader of many books! And at least one of my grandsons will drive a garbage truck or perhaps a tractor or emergency vehicle. Or maybe he will follow in his father’s footsteps and fall in love with race cars.
It’s not always the case, but I know it frequently happens. After all, my daughter who thrived on discussing history and politics has a masters in political studies; the other who loved money (cash registers) and wanted to be a cashier worked at a bank for years. My son who loved to eat out at fancy restaurants ever since he was very young (didn’t always get his way!) has owned a restaurant for many years.
I am a strong believer of letting children explore what interests them. As parents we succeed when we open up possibilities to our children, and allow them to choose the activities that they enjoy the most. Whatever they gravitate towards might be a prediction of which path they choose in the future.
One of the best ways to spend time with my children is to enjoy a quiet cup of coffee together. My “coffee breaks” began in college when I would sneak away to the cafeteria, sitting at a small quiet table enjoying a few moments of peace, with my cup of ordinary coffee and granola bar.
Over the years, before my children were old enough to enjoy quiet cups of coffee, it would be a way to escape the chaos for a few moments between lessons or appointments.
Now I reserve those quiet moments for occasions when I have time to enjoy spending time with one or more of my children. We don’t even have to say much to each other — just experience the escape from our busy lives, enjoying perfection.
Reflections 