New Horizons

Though the horizons set before you,

May be vast and unexplored

The wisdom that you hold within

Can make the journey filled with endless possibilities…

SMM

From the wilderness  of Canada Happy New Year

Happy Christmas

 

May your heart and home
Be filled with the joys of Christmas…
Happy Christmas Everyone

*Pic via Pinterest

Winter

Winter under cultivation

Is as arable as Spring

Emily Dickinson

The Winter solstice begins and the daylight hours become longer with each passing day. That alone is worthy of celebration…

One’s Perspective

 

 

I love snow… its beauty, the tranquility it brings and the melting potential to fill the creeks and rivers.
But I must admit what has just occurred 30 miles south of me in Buffalo NY. is downright deadly.

 

 

As soon as the first snowflakes fall I hear the complaints of the cold, how long the Winter will be and when will it ever end…

 

 

Perhaps these souls should take a cue from my daughter’s new kitten Oliver and go into hibernation mode…

 

 

I on the other hand shall enjoy it, even though it must be shoveled, respect it as it covers the streets and highways and be grateful of its breathtaking sparkle.

 

 

 

Mesmerized

Along the wayside lies many an abandoned home…
Still standing after decades of neglect almost as a tribute to its former occupants. Defying the passage of time bearing witness to a former glory…

I’m intrigued, perhaps mesmerized by their long forgotten history. Do the echoes of children’s laughter still fill the hall. Does the smell of fresh baked bread and woodsmoke permeate the kitchen.
Does the laundry still flap in the breeze on the clothesline out back…

Whatever the history that lies within this now empty shell I’m sure there were babes born here, lasses wed here and grandparents that died here amongst its many secrets…

So next time you come across such a place in your travels, stop for just a moment and listen…it may be history whispering back…

Pics taken along the road from Ontario to Alberta, Canada.

How Do You Measure Success

Let me count the ways…

Our barn sale was greeted by a clear blue sky, dotted by cotton ball clouds. The temperature was a perfect Fall day.

The crowd was good and quite a few sales…

But most of all it was a day spent with wonderful friends.

A special thank you to Barbara, Nancy, Nella, Marty and Valda. And my deepest gratitude to Mr. & Mrs. High for granting the use of their historic property...

This Saturday

 

The guys and gals want to remind you to follow them to the barn sale.
Details below.

See you there!

 



Barn Sale

Saturday October 11
9:00am - 3:00pm

2848 King St. Jordan, Ontario

 (Old Hwy. # 8 right across from the former Jordan Public School)

Featuring

Farmhouse Primitives

Vintage Treasures

Handmade Lovelies

Please join us on this beautiful October weekend. 

Rain date to be determined.

Perhaps

Do you ever contemplate that perhaps your soul has come from a distant past and the passions that you share were held captive from centuries ago?

I often wondered if I lived amongst the Bronte sisters lured by the sullen mists that crossed the moors…

Did I dwell in a tiny stone cottage where my very existence was gathered from the gardens and fields that surrounded it…

Were there roses that climbed along the paths I travelled? Berries picked from the hedgerows so tempting it was difficult to return to home without sampling a few from the basket…

Then on the other hand maybe I should stop daydreaming and return to the task at hand and continue cutting the 1/2 bushel of peaches that await the hot jars and carry on…

What do you daydream about?

Nature’s Anticipation

The shadows linger longer in the morning and the dew is heavy on the well trodden path leading to the garden…
Most of the jam and pickle making has been accomplished, with still tomatoes for sauce ripening on the vines.

Yes there is  a month on the calendar left in Summer with plenty of humid days but as the nights become cooler and the daylight disappearing fractionally sooner Nature has begun her gentle transition to Autumn.

It being my favourite season I anticipate its arrival with pleasure… I’ve a barn sale in October to organize so there are goodies to collect from storage. Plenty of Fall sewing projects I’m playing with
help to pass the time.

I do hope that you are enjoying these bountiful, warm days but like me look forward to the season which lies ahead…

Till next time...

Beauty

Often the images we capture with our cameras reflect the beauty Nature shares with us in our everyday lives...

They in turn give us the opportunity to look back and remember the moment usually clouded by time...
Each of us is moved sometimes almost to tears at how magnificent these pictures can be...

I do hope your Summer is filled with celebration and photos that will remain with you forever...


* Pic of the wild horses taken at a campsite in Alberta.

Remembrance

Regardless  of the days, weeks, months, years, even decades that pass a Mother never truly heals from the loss of a child...

Be they newborn, toddler, teenager or adult the void will forever remain...

It is on this day I remember my son, a wee babe, 33 years ago...

Enjoyment

As the season of Spring surrounds us, the lure of treasure hunting abounds...

Working for a long established auctioneer I begin to notice the frequency of barn sales, tag sales, auctions and country shows that come with the arrival of beautiful weather...

So gather your best walking shoes, light jacket, tote bag and join us for a day in the country (or the city)...

Eugene Boudin (1824-1898)

Crinolines Sur La Plaza de Trouville  c. 1865

Watercolour, gouache and graphite on paper

And don't forget some cash you never know what you might find...

Joy Ride

Sometimes life is like a carnival ride, spinning you all about but always ending up where you started...

Or a trip down a fast moving river tossing you hither and fro as you attempt to find a sheltered harbour...

What ever comes your way and no matter how difficult the trip eventually the river will calm...

And there will be smooth sailing once again.

Welcome to April...

* Pics taken by my daughter Jackie over the past few years in Alberta, Canada.

Grateful

When you're wishing for this...

And this is the probability after viewing the forecast for tomorrow I'll be patient and not complain about the delayed arrival of Spring.

I'm most grateful though not for the weather per say but after receiving a phone call last week (you know the kind you never want to get) from where my daughter lives, thousands of miles away, that she was in an accident at work. She has suffered a broken back and after the implant of two rods and five screws she is up and about. She can walk and though it will be a long and trying recuperation she has been blessed...
I booked a flight as soon as I could and rushed to her side for as you know that's what we Mothers do...

Thank you so much to the surgeon, the nurses, Justine and her friends for watching over her.

Delayed by a day returning home by you guessed it the weather I'm home now and hoping to return to a some what normal routine.

So I'll leave you with wishes for Spring soon to fill our hearts and homes...

To Rose

As I ponder the words set forth with pen and paper (or should I say fingers to keyboard) I  often contemplate if they are worthy of such a worldly space...

There are  artists that gift us with their creativity, others that take us on a tour of their beautiful homes and countryside, some who explore the sorrows of life...

It is an ever changing world in which we dwell especially amongst the people we know...

In this tiny corner of my daily life I try to share simplicity, serenity and contentment...

I bumped into a darling acquaintance the other day who in the past few months has been to hell and back. During that time she told me she enjoyed reading my blog...

This is a woman whose exquisite quilting causes one's heart to flutter. A simplicity in life where needle and thread unite with fabric to give her solace during difficult times...

It is to you Rose I dedicate this post, grateful though not often enough I share a little piece of paradise...

Under the Influence

All my creativity seems to be reflected by the beauty that lies outside the window...

From the dainty heart shaped tokens of affection that have been created from a lovely lambswool sweater I've hand felted...

To the delicate knitting on the needles... with the palest hint of blush pink , samples of colour found amongst the snow drifts refracted  by the sunlight.

Perhaps soon the artistic ventures will be influenced by the shades in the garden!

I do hope so. Stay warm...