Friday, March 15, 2024

Friday Pleasantries




"I know the world is filled with troubles
and many injustices, but reality is as beautiful
as it is ugly. I think it is just as important to sing
about beautiful mornings as it is to talk about the slums.
I just couldn't write anything without hope in it."
OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN



While spring shakes off the vestiges of winter in the great outdoors, I'm still inside sorting my current material possessions, deciding what to keep, what to give away, what needs to be tossed. Time has slipped away, and here it's time for a new blog post. Yesterday I set up my draft, searched for a suitable photo (above), and whispered a prayer for a spark of inspiration to get me started. I hoped it might arrive in the night hours while I slept.

I follow Austin Kleon, artist/author from Texas, and this morning his weekly newsletter popped in my inbox. On reading his heading "Basic Pleasantries", I felt the spark of interest and began working on my own simple and hopefully pleasant Friday post. 


ONE. Spring is in the air

The snow is melting fast. The house finches are singing to beat the band. And Rick spotted the first Canada Geese flying overhead towards the storm pond. It's still frozen but these early birds are eager to find the best spots for raising this season's batch of goslings. If that's not a cheering sight, I don't know what is.


TWO. So is love

My sister sent a charming news article of a young woman who met her future husband at the Honolulu airport. Awww, it was a lovely read. If you're interested, you'll find the article HERE. Pssst. We think there's a love story unfolding nearer to home in the family. It's an exciting time of year for young love.


THREE. Tea samples

A lovely friend who'd been vacationing in Victoria, BC, sent me a small package in the mail. It included samples of the teas she purchased at the well known Murchie's Fine Tea & Coffee shop: Publisher's Blend ("a chocolatey, nutty and malty blend of black teas, best accompanied by stacks of manuscripts that need reviewing.")—I'll be sipping that with my latest book; and Russian Caravan ("a blend of black teas and smoky Lapsang Souchong (to) recreate the campfires and brisk, starry nights experienced by the caravans carrying tea to the Russian Czar.")—maybe I'll pull out some Tolstoy to read with that tea. Also included was a fragrant bag of Lavender Cream ("A beautifully balanced lavender black tea with creamy vanilla.")—I love lavender tea. Looking forward to trying them.


FOUR. Basic pleasantries

We were ordering cups of tea and coffees from the clerk at the order counter - for four. The polite middle-aged woman was patient as we decided what beverage, the size we wanted, and whether we needed milk, cream, or sugar. Was that everything? Yes, said Rick, getting out his card to tap. But then she spotted me still eyeing the muffins in the showcase so she waited a nanosecond until I decided on a Bran Muffin. For some reason, I felt this woman noticed the little things, she paid attention to her customers, and I felt that slight connect of the heart. I smiled and thanked her warmly for serving us. It's a day later and the warmth of the tiny exchange still resonates. I appreciated her awareness of me as a customer. I felt seen. I hope she felt the same in our brief exchange of pleasantries. 


FIVE. A quote that caught my eye

 "Grace is like a blanket of hope
that covers you at night when you
don't think you have what it takes to
get up in the morning."
CAROLINE MYSS

Thank God for that grace every morning!




Wishing you a beautiful weekend,
Brenda

Photo Credit:
Image by vinsky2002 from Pixabay



Friday, March 08, 2024

Emily Dickinson: A Literary Hero (Part 3)




"I dwell in possibility..."
EMILY DICKINSON


Emily Dickinson and her poetry left its mark on my heart, and I didn't realize how much until I began working on this post. I don't exactly recall how I came to know Emily or her poems. I don't remember learning about her in school. Perhaps I first saw her poems quoted in women's magazines my mom used to read. Or, maybe an aunty or school teacher penned a well-intentioned few lines in a girlhood autograph book: "If I can stop one heart from breaking . . . If I can ease one life the aching / Or cool one pain / Or help one fainting robin / Unto his nest again / I shall not live in vain".

I do know my imagination felt a buoyancy when I first read: " 'Hope' is the thing with feathers / That perches in the soul...". And then there were these lines: 

"I'll tell you how the Sun rose –
A Ribbon at a time –"

Who can forget such a phrase! I don't understand some of Emily's poetry, but some pieces, some lines truly are unforgettable... and gorgeous. Emily wrote nearly 1,800 poems; only a handful were published in her lifetime. People knew she wrote poems, for she often included them in letters when writing to friends and correspondents. And she created small handmade books of them. But no one knew until after her death how prolific—or brilliant—she was.

What fascinated me about Emily was her decision to live as a recluse. For reasons unknown to anyone, from an early age she chose to restrict her social involvement and activities, preferring to live in the heart of her family home. I never desired to be a recluse the way she was—yes, I'm an introvert but I also have a bit of social butterfly in me—but I think I get it. For I can be quite content with my own thoughts, happy with my own company and books, at my desk by the window writing... being in the heart of my home, happily pottering about.

I imagine Emily sitting at her desk near a window probably overlooking the garden or her neighbourhood, and from that place, writing her 'letter to the world'. Even as a recluse she left her mark on the literary world. Though her world was small, she had a keen poet's eye for description. I often wondered how she was so insightful. Surely a curious mind and a sense of wonderment sharpened her ability to pay attention to what went on around her. In retrospect, I also wanted to sharpen my own sense of curiosity and wonderment - I wanted to be able to express what I saw and felt so others could see and feel it too.

According to letters and documents from her family estate, Emily also enjoyed gardening and was an accomplished cook, taking pride in making cakes, cookies, and candies, both for her family and as gifts for friends. I especially loved the story of Emily carrying a basket filled with freshly baked cookies or gingerbread to an upstairs window in the rear of the house and lowering it to the neighborhood children who'd been playing 'pirates' or 'circus performers' in the Dickinson orchards. The kids must have loved her kind generosity, and she obviously took delight in handing out yummy treats to them. Years ago, I contacted the Emily Dickinson Museum in Amhurst, Massachusetts, asking if I could obtain a copy of Emily's gingerbread recipe. Unfortunately the recipe wasn't available for public distribution at the time. I was disappointed. Perhaps I envisioned myself imitating Emily handing out gingerbread to kids in my own neighbourhood (although maybe not using baskets from an upper window).

I was happy to discover, while searching out some information for this post, that the recipe is online in an article written by Burleigh Mutén, a children's author and tour guide at the Emily Dickinson Museum (they do have a lovely online store). The recipe looks delicious—I'm going to try it and, if it turns out, share some with my neighbours. You'll find the recipe HERE.


Like Emily, I sit at my desk, look out into the snow-clad garden, and gaze past my neighbour's roof top into the blue skies. I muse and watch and write my own letter to the world. And so today, I honour Miss Emily Dickinson. In her small world, she found her life and lived it beautifully. I'm inspired by that. As with my other literary heroes, I fervently hope I will one day meet her in the next life to say thank you for her gentle, poetic influence in my life. We just never know, do we, who or what our lives are touching! 

On that note, I close with a few other favourite quotes of Emily's which I hope you will enjoy.



A few quotes by Emily Dickinson


"One step at a time is all
it takes to get you there."


"Tell all the truth but tell it slant..."
(That's a good line for when we're trying to
remember our stories but the details are vague)


"The Heart wants what it wants – 
or else it does not care"
(There's no use telling it to smarten
up, for the heart will yearn.)


"If you take care of the small things, 
the big things take care of themselves. You
can gain more control over your life by paying
closer attention to the little things."


"Saying nothing...
sometimes says the most."


"If I feel physically as if the top of my head
were taken off, I know that is poetry."
(For me, it's as if my skin wants to burst
like an overripe tomato.)


"They might not need me; but they might.
I'll let my head be just in sight; a smile as small
as mine might be precisely their necessity."




Links to My Earlier Literary Heroes Posts




On that note, I'm wishing you a beautiful weekend—and don't
forget, it could be your smile that fits precisely someone's necessity today.

Heart hugs,
Brenda
Photo credit:
Images by Brenda @ It's A Beautiful Life



Friday, March 01, 2024

Five on Friday: Tulips, Thrift Store Finds, and Other Thoughts



"There is so much peace that comes with
learning to live comfortably with what we have,
with feeling a sense of enoughness..."
@the lukhouse on Instagram


Happy Friday... and the First Day of March! Even with the extra day in February, the month has flown by in a hurry. We've had a quiet week, hunkering indoors during a snowstorm. Have been sorting through my materials possessions, of which I seem to have quite a few. I sure am a lucky/blessed girl!

Of late, Rick and I have been pondering our future plans for the next few years—my 70th and his 80th are approaching although they are a ways off but the days are ticking—as we begin thinking about downsizing and eventually moving to a smaller place. Although plans are in the embryonic stage, afar off, yet still I feel equipped to consider what I should do with my things, and especially what I can at last let go of because I have a foreseeable, tangible path ahead. I truly want to be the caretaker of fewer items. To have more time for loved ones instead of things. More time for my writing and self-care as health issues start to creep in. To keep only what still makes my heart happy and continues to make daily life for us comfortable and cheering. Already it gets easier in my mind to start letting go. And I begin to feel at peace, as the quote above says, to live comfortably with what we have, with that very real sense of 'enoughness'. I love that word. To recognize our own sense of enoughness in this stage of life. We start small... clearing out one small pile, one drawer, a single cupboard... revisiting the equipment and tools we no longer use or need, realizing our memorabilia doesn't need to be held so tightly, that maybe we don't need all the touchstones we once thought we couldn't live without.

Enough pondering on that for now... here is this week's edition of Five on Friday. I hope you enjoy.
   


One. Outside My Window

I peer out my study window into sunless skies awash in pearl grey. Tree branches stand in stark contrast while shrubs bounce with the flurry of birds eager for nourishment. Blustering north winds shape small snowdrifts on the neighbour's roof. And there's talk of more snow this afternoon. Although I think they jest, for isn't that a wee glimmer over there that feels like maybe the sun could peek out? (Note added later... forget the sunshine, it's getting grimmer and greyer and blusterier as we type.)



Two. Inside My House

Rick and I just had a mid-morning break. He's been painting the closet in his den, and I'm working on today's post. We enjoyed a small cup of coffee (my first of the day) with a toasted hot cross bun and a bit of Havarti cheese. It was yum; I feel sated. My inner world feels brighter.

And I'm admiring the wee picture (above) I found at the thrift store for three dollars. I fell in love and my fingers reached for it without a second thought. Methinks Madam Bunny is pleased too.



Three. Thrift Store Book Haul

First, I dropped off a bag of items for donation at the thrift shop. Then I went round into their shop to check out the book section. In less than 15 minutes, my arms were loaded with these finds (I should have stopped for a shopping basket):
- Mrs. McGinty's Dead by Agatha Christie (Poirot mystery)
- Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie (I read all the Miss Marple novels last year, now I thought I'd read through some of the Poirot mysteries.)
- Agent in Place by Helen MacInnes (espionage novel set in the 1970s. I read something of hers last autumn 'While We Still Live' which I found beautifully written, thrilling, and thoughtful. Look forward to reading this one.)
- Gaudy Night and Busman's Honeymoon by Dorothy L. Sayers (These were on my 'to find' list. I've been reading about the author's life lately and so I want to reread her Wimsey novels); 
- Romancing Miss Brontë by Juliet Gael (historical fiction novel about Charlotte Brontë); 
- A Long Shadow by Charles Todd (Inspector Rutledge mystery set in post-World War I);
- The Best of James Herriot (a lovely collection of excerpts from his books that he 'almost never wrote' along with other material about him and some lovely photographs of the Yorkshire Dales).
Undoubtedly you will recognize, as I have done, the thrilling sensation Kate Morton describes so aptly in her novel Homecoming: "As Jess stepped out of the shop and onto the pavement, she was filled with the lightness of spirit and free-floating sense of possibility that always claimed her when she had a brown paper bag containing new books under her arm." E.x.a.c.t.l.y !



Four. Tulips on the Dining Table 

A breath of spring on this dullish day. How these tulips cheer the place up and make me smile every time I walk past them. Tulips bulbs are still worth their weight in gold; thankfully they are within easy reach of my much slimmer purse. 😉



Five. Wise Thought from Susan Branch

"Try and fall in love with as many things as possible, every day things like the dawn, the moon, the way your flannel shirt feels, clothes warm from the dryer, singing in the car, the first words to a delicious new book, hot brownies and cold milk . . . take nothing for granted; that way all your days will feel like miracles." 



On that sparkling note, I'm wishing you a beautiful weekend,
Brenda
Photo credit:
Today's photos are mine




Sunday, February 25, 2024

Creating A Book List: Would You Share Some Favourites?




"That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover
that your longings are universal longings, that you're
not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong."
F. SCOTT FITZGERALD


On this snowy afternoon, I'm thinking about making a book list. I enjoy reading book lists—whether they are created by publishing houses, the New York Times, the local bookstore, or fellow bibliophiles. I cast my eye down the lists to see what's making someone's chart. I feel the delight when I recognize titles and maybe have read one or two, but mostly I'm looking for new books that sound promising.

A couple of years ago, I read a novel by Sarah Nisha Adams called The Reading List. A delightful tale of an aging widower and a lonely teenage girl who form an unlikely friendship through books. It starts with a mysterious list found by someone at the library. . . 'one lonely folded scrap of paper sitting on the desk . . . the lettering is neat, looping, warm, inviting' :


Just in case you need it :

To Kill A Mockingbird

Rebecca

The Kite Runner

Life of Pi

Pride and Prejudice

Little Women

Beloved

A Suitable Boy


Who made the list? Who left it at the library? And so begins this wonderful, heartwarming tale. I've  now collected the books on the list—some I had already, some I needed to find. Although I've read a few in the past, I wanted to read them in the order of the list and follow along as I reread Sarah's novel.

On a slightly different note, today I'm also interested in starting another book list—one with you, my blogging friends, in mind. If you are interested in joining in, this is what I'm looking for: favourite title(s) you enjoy in each of the following categories. They can be current favourites or books from long ago, fiction or nonfiction, current or classics, bestsellers or little known gems. Share your list in the comments section or on your own blog, whatever works for you.

I'll start:

1. A favourite (or two or three) from your childhood. Heidi, Anne of Green Gables, Pippi Longstocking, Mr. Popper's Penguins, The Elephant's Child (Kipling), Little Women, Pollyanna, Nancy Drew series, The Secret Garden, Little House on the Prairie, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Little Engine that Could, Egermeier's Illustrated Bible Story Book, Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen.  


2. A book you once read that you couldn't stop thinking about. I read Gone with the Wind when I was around eleven or twelve. I was so sad for Scarlett O'Hara when she became a very young widow and then had to act like an old woman—wearing horrid dark 'widow's weeds', no more pretty dresses, no more flirting with handsome young men, no dancing at parties. I was haunted at how awful she must have felt and still so young. Maybe it was one of my first experiences of feeling the pain of someone I met in a book. 


3. One book that shaped your life. Living A Beautiful Life by Alexandra Stoddard. I came across this book back in the early 1990s. It grabbed my heart when I read how we could live our lives more beautifully. This book and the original Victoria magazines were a godsend - they fed something deep in my soul.


4. A book you couldn't put down. The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister; A Time for Mercy by John Grisham; All the Devils are Here by Louise Penny; A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. 


5. A book that deepened your thinking. Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald; C.S. Lewis's writings; From the Father's Heart by Charles Slagle; Life of the Beloved by Henri Nouwen.


6. A book with a favourite heroine. Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott. I read this book decades ago and loved watching young Rose growing up in this coming of age story. She holds a tender place in my affection.


7. A book that creates a safe place when you need rest in your soul. Jan Karon's Father Tim novels set it Mitford. 


8. A book that lifts your spirits and makes you feel happy.  Susan Branch's memoirs, The Isle of Dreams and The Fairy Tale Girl.


9. Something you want to read but haven't got to it yet. 1984 by George Orwell and The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. 


10. A book you like to read over and over. Every December, I pull out Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher.


11. A book you just finished and loved. Homecoming by Kate Morton.
 

12. A book you just started and already know you'll like it. Growing Pains by Emily Carr, an autobiography of one of Canada's well-known artists. 


"I love the solitude of reading. I love the
deep dive into someone else’s story, the
delicious ache of a last page."
NAOMI SHIHAB NYE



Wishing you a beautiful week ahead,
Brenda
Photo credit:
Top image by Ylanite from Pixabay



Sunday, February 18, 2024

A Literary Hero (Part 2): Mother Teresa




"Lord, give me an open heart to find You everywhere,
to glimpse the heaven enfolded in a bud, and experience
eternity in the smallest act of love."
MOTHER TERESA


It was after attending a zoom event on the discussion of literary heroes that I stopped to consider who are my own bookish heroes. I always enjoy that kind of pondering, and it didn't take long for my list to form. 

In my first post on my literary heroes, I wrote about Lucy Maud Montgomery, so well-known for her creation of Anne of Green Gables. In my case, both Anne and Lucy Maud are literary heroes, Anne in my girlhood and LMM in my young adulthood. If you missed the post, you can find it HERE.

I should clarify what makes a literary hero for me. It's a person I met in a book, whether she/he is fictional or real life. These individuals made a difference in my life, and I looked up to them the way a child might look up to Superman. Through their lives, they showed me something about myself, something I needed to know. They showed me what a strong, courageous person looks like when they demonstrate selflessness and compassion amidst their own struggles, relationships, and disappointments. Usually their stories were unforgettable and stayed with me a long time, as I mulled their own discoveries about what mattered to them. I came to see that I wanted to emulate them in some way. 


Today I want to share another heroine—Mother Teresa—whose photo hangs in my mind's literary hero gallery. For many, she is a spiritual hero, but I think of her also as a literary hero, because her story and wisdom came to me through the books I read about, and by, her.

As a young woman, I was in awe of her loving service to the poorest of the poor in Calcutta, a woman who identified herself with human suffering and privation, giving herself so completely to loving God and through him loving her neighbour. What often grabbed my heart were the words she spoke with such humility and grace. Many of those wise words were etched on my heart and still resonate all these years later. Not only had I come to appreciate the inspiring things she said, but through one story she told, I found the courage to fully step into my own life, doing so without guilt or fear.

A little background to the story of how she became a hero for me. I don't know about you, but in my lifetime, I came across people who believed so strongly in their own passion and calling for their lives that somehow they implied everyone else should take up the same worthy mantle and follow in their footsteps... and if you didn't, you couldn't be doing 'God's will'. Unsure of what I should do with my own life as a searching young woman, that message settled in my heart and it caused me to worry and fret in the secret places of my mind 'how will I know... what if I miss my path'.

I wondered if Mother Teresa would be such a person, but one little story* showed me something different. The anecdote, as I remember it, was about a woman who came to work for a season with Mother Teresa. It came time for her to return to her own life and work—I think she worked in an elite beauty salon in a large city in Europe—and she wondered if she should give up her life and come work with Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa recommended she return to her home and continue her work among the privileged... because 'they need love too'. The woman went back to her own life.   *I have no idea anymore of where I read this account to confirm the details, but it's how I remember it all these years, and maybe that's best.

Those words lifted that sense of guilt I carried, where I wondered if I was pursuing the life meant for me, always with that niggle of worry it wasn't worthy enough. I settled into my life—into the joy of knowing where I lived and worked, whoever I worked with, they needed love too. I aimed to live my best life, walking in the beauty and love as best I knew how. Right where I was.

And that's how Mother Teresa became a heroine in my life. After that, I was ever on the look out for other wise words from this humble and influential woman. I found gems that have kept me company along the way, including that lovely one at the start of this post which eventually became the cornerstone for this blog. Here are a few others that continue to shine light for me:



"Never worry about numbers. Help one person
at a time and always start with the person nearest you."


"Not all of us can do great things.
But we can do small things with great love."


"If you can't feed a hundred people,
feed just one."


"I'm a little pencil in the hand of a writing God,
who is sending a love letter to the world."


"Now let us do something
beautiful for God."


I am so glad the writings of Mother Teresa came to me at a time when I needed the courage to settle into my own life path. She could never have known that her advice to one woman would help another who lived far away on another continent, in another world.

If you are interested in reading something about her, I recommend the little book Something Beautiful for God by Malcolm Muggeridge. Although biographical, it's more a tribute to her and includes a transcript of his conversations with Mother Teresa.

To close, I want to share a line I recently read in Margaret Dulaney's collection of memoirs To Hear the Forest Sing: "I cannot imagine who I might have been without the encouragement of certain sources of light along my own night's journey." This is how I feel about my literary heroes, I cannot imagine life without them.

Who is one of your favourite literary heroes?


Wishing you a beautiful week ahead,
Brenda
Photo credit:
Top photo by Annette Meyer from Pixabay
Floral graphic by antiqueimages.blogspot.com