Intentional living
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Happiness two ways
“It’s 1992. I’m in Genoa on the hunt for pesto.” I tell my family. “We can’t find the restaurant in our guidebook so we ask this man for directions.” “And it turns out he is the owner,” my daughter rolls her eyes. “I know, I know Mom. We’ve heard the story, like a thousand times.” Fair enough. In my defence, we are eating spaghetti with a zesty pesto I made with the Genovese basil from my garden. With the fragrant plates in front of us, it was the perfect setting to reminisce about my youthful backpacking story. My family was forced to travel along with me. Granted the story is…
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Cottage time … and time again
I am floating, suspended in the deep green, cool, clean water. Drifting. My body relaxed, head back, ears submerged in the water muting out any sounds other than the quiet of the lake. There is no other body of water where I have passed so many idle hours. Lazing on an inner tube, extremities dangling languidly into the water. Plunging into its refreshing embrace on a hot day. Swimming leisurely along the shore. Little Straggle Lake. I have been coming to this little lake my whole life. Literally. My parents owned the cottage before I was born so my first trip was as a baby. My husband and I now…
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Memories of zucchini blossoms
My daughter really likes to cook and try new dishes. She’s always browsing for recipes. I suggested in the spring she find some recipes for zucchini. This slender green squash is apparently prolific, and I planted several in my garden. We would have an absolute glut. I may have been a tad optimistic. Cucumber striped beetles killed my zucchini plants. Gardening lesson number 1 for me. Truthfully the cabbage worms in my kale were lesson number 1. It’s a multifaceted lesson: many critters can wreak havoc on a garden and they specialize. These pests are the policy equivalent of subject matter experts. They zoom in, laser focused, on their area of expertise…
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Sit and remember
Memories are powerful. You could even say they are like a superpower (Meik Wiking in the Art of Making Memories goes so far as to say so). I tend to agree. If you take the time to focus, to nurture a happy memory, it can transport you back to the specific moment. The feeling of the moment returns. Puts a smile on your face. I am fascinated by the things that can trigger a memory. A smell triggering a fond childhood memory. A taste. The call of the loon reminding me of the cottage. A song making me want to dance like I’m in my 20s. Returning to a meaningful…
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Harvest Salad
I enjoyed my first harvest today. A little harvest. Fittingly. It’s been four weeks since I finished planting our smallest little garden, and I am amazed at how much bigger everything is. The plants are flourishing. Thriving. Thank you sunshine! My painted rock labels are now buried within the lush greenery. It has become my morning routine to check on the little garden at the side of my house. Assess the progress. Water if needed. Mound the soil around the potato stems. Weed. Inspect. Play in the dirt. Sniff the basil. Rather spontaneously, I picked a bunch of green lettuce and purple kale this morning. Small clusters, still young. The…
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Alone Time
Imagine you are in Florence. In the popular Uffizi gallery. Standing in front of Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus. It’s the one with the Goddess herself standing nude on a large scallop shell casually covering her unmentionables with her arm and flowing auburn hair. The painting is famous. People come from all over the world to see it, or buy a replica on a souvenir. There is generally a crowd gathered around the masterpiece. Necks stretched to get a peak. In this instance you are completely alone. The room is empty. Serene. This a moment in Stephanie Rosenbloom’s book, Alone Time: Four Seasons, Four Cities and the Pleasures of Solitude.…
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Our smallest little garden
The tiny green sprouts are poking out. It all started early April. A friend sent me a photo of her raised garden beds. She was starting a backyard garden, maybe I can too? Her sunny plot is in California. Mine could not be so ambitious. Nonetheless, my dreamy aspirations grew larger watching the Biggest Little Farm. Thankfully, the Halton Environment Network organized a helpful webinar on Starting your own Garden. This was the practical advice a first-time gardener like me needed to get going. Here’s the basic process I followed: Step 1: Find a sunny spot It’s the west side of our house. We have a very small patch of…
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Spotting painted rocks
Do you have painted rocks in your neighbourhood? Neighbourhood walks are the norm these days. Local is very local. So finding a new discovery on a familiar path really brings joy. Words of kindness. Cute creatures. Pretty flowers. Inspirational messages. The rocks are tucked along the path amongst shrubs, resting on stumps and nestled in tree trunks. Hidden just enough to make you slow down and take a closer look. Some have simple designs. Others are more intricate. They all make me smile. I don’t know who has planted these thoughtful ornaments. Thank you for sharing your positivity….and artistic talents! I hope you have these little drops of kindness in…
