Caught with her head deep in a vase of peonies (on the dining room table!!!), Pippa seeks to satisfy her thirst. Never mind that a fresh bowl of water is provided for her daily beside her food bowl – where’s the sport in THAT?!
WPC – satisfaction
kindness
Adding “Versatile” to the resume……
Stars in my eyes!! Such an unexpected gift!! Thanks so much to Lifestyles with Lia for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award. You are very kind. I’ll do my best to life up to it. 🙂
Here are the guidelines for “The Versatile Blogger Award”:
Show the award on your blog.
Thank the person who nominated you.
Share seven facts about yourself.
Nominate 15 blogs.
Link your nominee’s blogs & let them know.
So…. 7 things about me:
1. I’m an aspiring minimalist…..but I can’t seem to let go of too much stuff at once. So, slowly…ever so slowly, I’m working my way through years of accumulation and settling for being a “medium-ist” for the moment.
2. I love music! But I’m not at all muscial. I never, ever sing…unless I’m complely, utterly alone. And even then, I’m a little nervous.
3. I love spending time by myself. (….of course, I also love time with family & friends….) It’s all about balance.
4. I also love meeting new people. I get a bit of a thrill out of making a new friend.
5. When I’m alone, I have a habit of taking on tasks that should probably wait. For instance, just back from a trip to the Osteopath to pop a rib back in its proper place, I’m inspired to move a queen sized mattress two flights upstairs. Today. By myself! Even though I know it is illogical…..I move ahead with the project. (the mattress in question is presently wedged mid-way up the second staircase…and the day isn’t over, yet!)
6. I really, really don’t like being cold. And yet, I love living in this place, which is a cold place. (-20C today…..oh! so cooooold!!) But then…it is January …. and this is Canada.
7. Although I’m looking mid-life square in the eye and have 2 university degrees, I don’t feel like I’m completely finished with formal education. I enjoy searching university calendars for interesting courses of study, but haven’t actually signed up for one in over (OMG) 25 years. But hey! You never know!
Now its my turn to make some nominations. Just as Lia did, I will nominate 2 bloggers:
A Sawyer’s Daughter and Vero in Boston
Drop by and visit these sites…..you’ll be glad you did! 🙂
A Light in the Window
Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness – Chinese Proverb
It’s a dark, wet, gloomy night….after a dark, wet, windy, gloomy day. We are presently under the influence of a “stalled nor’easter”, just the kind of weather that makes you want to stay in bed.
Lucky for me, though, I was scheduled to spend the day with 20 five-year olds as their substitute teacher. No outside play today, due to the weather. But we got along cheerfully anyway, with songs and stories, with crafts and hugs. Lots of hugs.
Its a brand new school, designed to be “green”, and very energy efficient. The large windows usually allow us to get by, happily, without (or with a minimum use of) the overhead lights.
But, today it was so dark.
I was compelled to keep the lights on. And when I did flick the switch off as we left the room to go to the library, the darkness was punctuated by the glow of the the fairy lights on the class christmas tree. That made for a very cosy place to return to with our fresh library books.
Even though it was only mid-afternoon, it was still raining when I drove home. As I dogged puddles and potholes (no way of knowing just how deep those bad boys are!), and with an eye on the overflowing ditches, I caught sight of a house in which a single candle was lit in the kitchen window. No other lights were on. A signal of hope, I thought. A sign of welcome.
What a warm sight, that little light, on a dark day.
Kindness Day!
When I arrived at school today, the children enthusiastically informed me that today is a special day. The children are 4-6 year olds, and I am their substitute teacher. They knew that I was out of the loop when they saw I wasn’t wearing yellow. EVERYONE was wearing yellow today, because yellow is such a happy colour, of course!
“How do we celebrate Kindness Day?”, I asked. Well! We talked about kindness, we wrote about kindness and we drew happy pictures of ourselves on bright yellow paper….and then hung them in the hall for everyone to see.
The enthusiasm for love and kindness is easy to tap into at this age. The purest expression came when, while in line and enroute to the cafeteria for lunch. One little girl approached a much older student (adolescent) that she did not know…and gave her a big hug. When the confused older kid wondered who the child was and why she was hugged, another teacher said, “That was an act of kindness. Pay it forward”. That older student smiled, turned and walked to join her classmates.
It was just that kind of a day….filled with charming reminders of humanity at its most innocent best. I left the school feeing blessed and hopeful.
In the car, on my way home, I heard the announcement that the great humanitarian, poet, author, and activist, Dr. Maya Angelou had passed away today at the age of 86. What a tremendous loss, I thought. And yet, how wonderful and appropriate that in our little corner of the world, today is Kindness Day.
Rose Bay Letters 