-
The Best Part of Our Temporary Lifestyle
This temporary lifestyle is growing on me. Living in this cabin by Lesser Slave Lake has me immersed in nature. It reminds me of visiting Grandma and Grandpa Johnson’s as a little girl before we moved to the big city. As I walk along Devonshire Beach Road, here in Lesser Slave Lake Provincial Park, I often think back to the smells and sounds around their place on the hill behind Castlegar, B.C. Out at Grandma’s I’d take off into the woods with my sisters and cousins to explore for hours. None of us worried about where we were going, how to get back or whether we’d encounter a bear. I’d…
-
Writing Family Matters
How many times have you been sitting around the dinner table when a senior family member tells a tale of some past experience and you’re so drawn in, you forget you ate dessert? Before you know it time has flown by, grandpa is ready to go home and you are left craving more. We are pulled into the past as though we are gathered at the storyteller’s feet, listening to a favourite childhood fairy tale, “Once upon a time….” and we are enrapt. We want to know the stories of those who came before us. When I was a child, my Great Aunt Mabel was like that. She knew the…
-
What I Knew One Day in July 1990
The moment I saw my baby’s face, I believed in love at first sight. My eldest niece and one of my nephews are about to become parents for the first time. Thinking about how their lives are about to change, makes me revisit that time in my own life. Becoming a new mom was my most challenging transition. Here’s what was going on for me back then. In July 1990, I was the happily married young mother of a one-year old son. While pregnant I had a romanticized vision of myself balancing home and career – just like the superwomen who had carved the path before me. However, once my…
-
Simply Do the Right Thing
Cowardice asks the question, “Is it safe?” Expediency asks the question, “Is it politic?” And Vanity comes along and asks the question, “Is it popular?” But Conscience asks the question “Is it right?” And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right. – Martin Luther King, Jr. “Just, do the right thing.” Lately, I hear myself saying this more and more often: really, how hard can it be? In truth, it can be very hard and that’s the problem. Sometimes the right thing seems so hard that we…
-
Return to Dance
I’d just added finishing touches to the Chicken Cacciatore dish I was creating. There was a cross-breeze through the open kitchen / living area of the cabin, so the heady aroma of tomato and fresh basil filled the room and wafted out the windows. As the classic Bill Withers oldie Just the Two of Us came up on my playlist, the hungry and tired Consultant came through the door. “It smells great in here!” He grabbed my hand; we smiled directly into each other’s faces and started to dance. I took the lead and twirled him before he could twirl me. When we stopped before the music ended, we laughed. Nothing…
-
What’s Your Struggle?
Right now, I am struggling to stay focused on my writing goals. It’s that time of year again, when I pack up a few of my favorite things in preparation to head north in support of The Consultant and his work. This is the fourth summer of our temporary lifestyle and, it is starting to feel like my new normal – at last. The transition to this new way of life has not been easy. When we started this path in 2011, it seemed everything was a struggle. Looking back now, I can see why. Virtually everything in my life changed within four months. I left my secure full-time job…
-
Queen for a Day
This photo greeted me on Facebook this morning. My daughter, Princess, posted it. It’s not the best photo of the two of us but I like it. It’s an oldie that takes me back to fun summer days at the lake where we escaped technology and bonded as family. The message with the picture is “Happy Mother’s Day to all the hard working Moms out there. A special shout out to my amazing mother, Kathi. I love you!!!!!!” Yes, it’s Mother’s Day today. It still feels strange for me to walk right by the Mother’s Day section of the card store. I have no one to buy for. Even after…
-
Lessons From the Chick That Flew Coop
I am thrilled to have my daughter, Princess, guest posting on my blog today. She has written from Koh Samui, Thailand. This letter is a keeper. Dear Mom, Dad (AKA The Consultant) and Buddy, Thank you. Without all of your travel stories, shared experiences and encouragement I would have never been inspired to take this journey. As of April 1, 2014 I have been gone for seven months and I’m terribly homesick – the homesickness kicked in on about month three – but that is beside the point. You convinced me at a young age, that traveling, in some capacity, should be on every young person’s priority list. Hearing…
-
How Will You Find Your People?
Who are your people? They might be the family members you grew up with, they might be old school friends or you might find them walking amongst your coworkers. But often, you need to look beyond your obvious circle. With a little extra time and effort, you find them. When you do, you know it. When you are with your people the energy in the room buzzes and time takes on a natural flow. That’s what happens when I’m with my people and we get into our journaling and writing projects. I recently shared a post about My Heart Writer Sisters and the keen connection I feel with them. A fellow…
-
Where I’m From
I have always believed that in order to know where you’re headed, you need to know where you’ve been. I was inspired to write my “Where I’m From” piece by Lisa Hall-Wilson. It’s from a fun and easy to follow template shared by Sharla Lovelace. I have linked their posts for your enjoyment. You can find the template here. Why not give it try? Here is what I came up with. Where I’m From… I am from Fanta Orange Soda, Wint-o-Green Lifesavers that sparked in your mouth when you chewed them in a dark closet and grape Popsicles that dripped on your bathing suit after running through the sprinkler on a hot day.…
