Memoir Moment: The Piano

Some of my earliest childhood memories revolve around the beautiful 1900's piano that once sat like a grand lady in the corner of our cozy farmhouse living room. That piano—now in my own front room—surely played a key role in our family life, adding a musical lilt, not to mention 'a little culture' to Mom's growing brood.

As a girl, I loved to sit beside Mom to watch her play in the evenings after the day's work was done. Her fingers would fly across the keys while Dad relaxed in his easy chair listening, eyes sometimes closed. A peaceful, restful calm would settle around us. It's a cozy feeling I've never forgotten.

 Only a year old and I was already taking joy in making 'music'

Mom was determined that her kids would get to take piano lessons and I started lessons in Grade 2. My teacher, Miss Norah L. Thompson, a gentle teacher, was a classically trained English woman, who'd come to Canada to live. Taking lessons was exciting for me, and a little nerve-wracking at first. What if I didn't remember what the notes were, but it all eventually stuck, learning my scales and finding out about famous composers as we studied little pieces based on their works.

 Little Blondie smiling at the thought of one day playing the piano,

 just like her momma

Once I learned to read music, I then loved to tinkle the upper keys when Mom played. Mom had no formal lessons but had a great love for the piano and a natural gift. You see, she could play by heart, something I yearned as a little girl to do. (I used to even dream I could play without notes, but alas I'd wake up to find I still played better reading the notes, although I became a whiz at chopsticks.) 

Although my mom didn't play classical music, she was amazing with the beautiful, old hymns we used to sing in church. I still love to hear her play them to this day. I think it was listening to her, as a little girl, that stirred not only my own love for music and the piano, but maybe a love for God, too. Hearing melodies that stirred my soul then and now, not to mention belting out the faith-stirring words as we played -- what pleasure it gave us!

 

"Prayer is when you talk to God. Meditation is when you're listening.

Playing the piano allows you to do both at the same time."

Kelsey Grammer

It wasn't until I was older that I truly valued the gift Mom and Dad gave us -- their love for beautiful music, and the opportunity to take lessons from Miss Thompson. I owe an incalculable debt to my parents and to my teacher.

Mom, thanks for pushing me to practice those early days when I preferred reading over doing scales. For I always loved playing the piano, it was just the practicing that wasn't as fun. As a child, I certainly never clued in to the fact that it was the practicing, the scales, and the theory that would help create a foundation for a joy of playing that has lasted my whole life. I am grateful for them now.

And, so dear beautiful readers, there's my little story. Did any of you take piano lessons as a child?  Do you still play? 

Sending musical thoughts your way today,

Brenda

xox

Quick Without Thinking...

...Seven things for which I am grateful today...

ONE

For blue skies this morning that are clear of the hazy, gray smoke from the forest fires burning for weeks in various parts of Western Canada. The air is sweet today.

TWO

For the good rain that has watered thirsty, thirsty ground and helped with those forest fires. Not to mention, my own little patch of earth where my flowers and trees are most grateful.

THREE

For the cooler temperatures this week as anything over +31C feels too warm for this chickee. Today I feel more energetic and less sloth-like.

FOUR

For misty goblets of homemade iced lemonade with a dash of anise oil to sip on a hot day. 

FIVE

For the ability to enjoy the summer as it unfolds moment by moment, knowing that there is no having to get up before dawn to go to work, and there's no need to head off to bed long before the sun gives its amazing twilight summer show in the late evenings.

SIX

For spontaneity and the freedom to invite someone spur of the moment for chicken salad on croissants served with iced tea and lemon.

SEVEN

For the gift of this blog and my beautiful blogging friends who still come to visit. Honestly, I didn't mean to be away for so long between posts. (We were on a couple of mini-holidays. And, then I've been working feverishly away on a delightful project these last couple of weeks. Something I cannot reveal just yet, as it's meant as a surprise for someone who reads this blog.)

“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer's day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.” ~ John Lubbock, The Use of Life 

Now, whether you're sitting in the shade of a tree listening to the leaves rustle, or you're off tackling some neglected project with gusto, or you're sitting with friends on a cafe patio, I'm wishing you a happy day and a joy-filled week ahead.

Gratefully,

Brenda

xox

The Rice Days of Summer

We're meeting friends for a picnic later this warm summer afternoon so it's a perfect day to make a light, but satisfying rice salad. The recipe I made includes chopped vegetables, minced herbs, and diced mango. The dressing is a lemon garlic vinaigrette.

The beauty of this salad is that you can substitute the vegetables to suit your own taste or based on what you find in your garden or refrigerator. And when you're trying to stay cool on a hot day, there is something quite refreshing about dicing up garden vegetables and herbs. I love the smell.

Once everything was diced and mixed together, we had to sample. A generous spoonful  or two. You want to make sure it's suitable for company, right? Oh y-e-e-e-e-s, this salad bursts with flavour and texture and is SO satisfying to the tastebuds. I might have to stay home because I think I could eat the whole bowl myself, it's so delicious.

I like rice.

Rice is great if you're hungry and
want 2000 of something.

~ Mitch Hedberg

Below I've included the recipe -- you're welcome to 'copy and save as' on your computer. Hopefully it prints out fine for you. Now, dear blogging friends, I'm off to eat rice in the company of some fine people!

Wishing you a lovely day,

Brenda

xox

Correction to recipe:  I forgot to include the amount of rice -- 2 cups. I've also added the amount in the recipe below. Remember, you can double-click on the recipe (as with any photo) to see a larger version.

The original recipe which I have adapted is found here.

It's All A-Dangle

Sometimes a funny streak hits me where I just feel like being a little silly. Today is such a day. Not so long ago, I read an article where the author started explaining that big grammar no-no of dangling participles and modifiers.

Don't ask me why, but that started a daydream about other dangling objects. Here are a few things that came to mind:

1. Earrings

2. Catkins in the springtime

3. Projects that didn't get done

4. Unfinished sentences

5. Wilted celery sticks

6. Bird feeders hung from tree branches

7. The brass chain pull on a table lamp

8. Kitty's tail over the side of the couch

9. Legs dangling from the pier at the lake

10. Outstanding promises

11. Toilet paper caught on the bottom of a shoe

12. Carrots on sticks

13. Cuckoo clock weights on chains

14. Charms on bracelets

15. Spiders spinning webs

 16. While you're waiting for an unforthcoming answer

17. Grapes from a vine

 18. Keys on a hook

19. Kisses that miss cheeks

So, what dangling things come to your mind?

Sending hugs,

Brenda

xox

PS.  Click here to find out the story

of that mismatched pair of earrings in the photo above.

A Fine Morning's This And That

"The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see Nature all ridicule and deformity, and some scarce see Nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, Nature is Imagination itself." ~ William Blake, 1799, The Letters

Outside my window: Spring morning with blue skies and sunshine, with barely a breeze to flutter newly unfurled leaves. The air is fragrant this week with the flowers of May Day trees. I love when you catch the fragrance on the breeze -- it's like a spritz of paradise. Mix that with the happy whistles and chatters of the birds, and you'll understand one reason why I feel so full of wonder this morning.

"He that planteth a tree is a servant of God,

he provideth a kindness for many generations,

and faces that he hath not seen shall bless him." ~ Henry Van Dyke

My happy thought: If you've been visiting my blog for a while, you no doubt recall posts where I shared about working a part-time job with my hubby these past four years cleaning at our local performing arts centre. Every morning, five mornings a week we got up at three in the morning (even earlier sometimes) to wax and clean and polish. It has never been easy to crawl from a cozy bed to get going that early.

But we had a goal. And our goal was met a couple of months ago and today I'm c-e-l-e-b-r-a-t-i-n-g that we just finished our very LAST shift. We're hanging up the brooms, dust mops and vacuum hoses. This morning, we wiped lipstick and fingerprints off walls, gave mirrors a brisk polish, tackled overflowing garbage bins, vacuumed carpets, swished toilets, and straightened dressing rooms for the very last time.  It feels good. It feels wonderful. Mmm... I wonder what it will feel like to sleep in till five or six or seven in the morning.

With this new shift, we're taking some holiday time in the mountains.  And I look forward to enjoying the long summer evenings, and to focusing on my writing, especially here on my blog. I'm also looking forward to spending more time with my loved ones, not to mention catching up on much neglected home tasks and getting the corners of my home back in order. Woo-hoo!

I'm also giddy with excitement about: Susan Branch has been writing a new book -- a sorta novel/semi-autobiography/fairy tale. It's called The Fairy Tale Girl and it's going to the printers in a couple of weeks. If you pre-order on her website, those will be out end of August. Otherwise you have to wait until October when they are available in the bookstores.

Which means you don't want to miss this opportunity! Susan is hosting a draw and giving away the first ten books as they arrive from the printers. Hop over there... read her latest post, leave a comment to enter her draw, pre-order if you want a copy, and start getting excited about her newest gift to the world. I can hardly wait!

Sending out a gently used post: I often check my blog's stats to see which posts are being clicked on and to see who is visiting from where in the world. Usually, when someone visits a post from my old archives, I will check it to ensure that it's still a post worth reading.

This morning, someone visited a post I wrote in 2009 -- on the topic of finding comfort in Nature. I was happy to see it again after all this time. It's a little like meeting up with an old friend, my younger self and my present self connecting in this small way. It was interesting to re-read what was meaningful to her in another time and season. And encouraging too, as it spoke to me all over again. Undoubtedly you find that yourself, do you, when you look at some of your older posts?

As my little gift this morning I'm offering you Nature's Comfort... and hope you won't mind reading it again if you've seen it before.

On that note, I'm cheerfully wishing you a beautiful day!

Lots of hugs and good thoughts being sent your way,

Brenda

xox