Chocolate Delight
I can’t get desserts off of my mind when it’s cold outside, and especially when I’m trying (kind of) to cut back. But chocolate keeps calling my name!
“View from my Window”
I’m a member of an encouraging FB group, “View from My Window,” originated to uplift us worldwide, to know that we aren’t alone during this strenuous pandemic time of isolation.
“Roses are Red”….Cheer me Up Please, My Heart “is Blue”
Don’t you just love receiving flowers, especially roses from your special someone or someones? Valentine’s Day is the arbitrary day to do so, and this day reminds me to tend to my own roses.
Seedlings of Hope and Desire
I was listening to one of my gardening podcasts while sewing, which I’m apt to do. The topic of the week was appropriate for this time of year when gardeners are yearning to dig their hands in that sweet, tangy winter composted dirt, ready to plant seeds ordered from the beautifully illustrated mail-in catalogues.
Fresh Berry Trifle, A Scotland Delight
I enjoy watching the British mystery shows on PBS. I wax nostalgic over the short, rough hewn walls fencing in the rolling emerald green pastures dotted with bright yellow buttercups pictured in almost every village scene. When I hear the crunch, crunch of feet on pebbled walkways on these shows, I flash back to the entrance of my grandparents’ home in Oban, Scotland. I open the squeaky gate and run up the pebbled walkway to my Granny and Grandad’s humble home, a second floor apartment of a four-unit walk-up on the outer edge of the town.
Bare Brittle Branches
I was startled this morning by the hectic bird activity in my backyard when gazing out of my study window as I sipped my jasmine tea. Watching their intricate lives with all their glorious colors and personalities flitting in and out of the bare brittle winter branches was quite a show! When I say “startled,” I don’t mean frightened, but I mean “stopped in my tracks!”
Snickerdoodles
It’s a scientific fact that smells are connected to specific memories. Cinnamon is like that for me.
A Constant Companion, Chronic Disease
With chronic disease, the one aflicted begins in the dark, fumbling through protracted bouts of insomnia, depression, and pain until finally a lab comes back or an endless infection is abated before a diagnosis is pronounced. Only after a faltering diagnosis does a vague clarity or validation dawn.
My Garden’s Unique Language
After strolling through my bare, brown, leaf and mulch blanketed winter garden, my friend said to me, “your garden is a sanctuary. I felt so at peace after I left there yesterday.” I had shared with her some freshly cut broccoli and a take away bowl of swiss chard (from the garden) and lentil soup.
Bravely Excavate
How many of us have learned to look inwardly with courage? I have recently been challenged to do just that, not in a didactic confrontational way, but within a the confines of a painful conversation.Painful conversations are inevitable with people about whom we care the most. If we didn’t care so much, we wouldn’t bother to ache!