Focusing In

You are more blessed than you think. - Unknown

One thing that I have noticed since I began photography, is that by focusing my lens, I direct my eyes to find things that I would normally just walk by and miss. There are so many wonderful things around that we simply do not notice.  I believe in life, it is the same. I think that many times we just walk by and don't "focus in".
This week I determined to "aim my lens" at life and capture in words the moments that I might have otherwise just walked by or missed. At the close of everyday, I jotted down five points for which I was grateful. Honestly, my writing was generic on my first try.  A one word simple point number one, a simple point number two, a simple point number three, a simple point number four and a simple point number five.
As the second evening rolled around,  I reflected on my own abilities. I thought perhaps I would again write the same generic items:  A simple point one, a simple point two...
But, to my surprise, when I picked up my pen, to "focus in" on the day, all the amazing things...that I might have otherwise walked by...began to fill my page.  They were not so simple points.
By the end of day five, I was amazed. My simple points of gratitude were not so simple at all but, actually spectacular. Seriously spectacular. Is this my life? And to think I would have just walked by these things if I had not decided to take that written snapshot.
I highly recommend taking a moment every evening and "focus in" on all the little moments that fill your day. What will you see when you "focus in" ? Will you see just the rain? Or will you see...

The end!

In My Pocket

Beauty is not in the face, it is a light in the heart. - Khalil Gibran

Some of the most beautiful things in life we miss and walk right past. In my pocket, I put a small folded piece of paper. On that paper I have written a name. It is a name of a person I almost didn't take the time to get to know. It was a name of a person I had once avoided. 

I work with the elderly and I love what I do.  Most of the time, I make instant friends with those I work. But others take a little more time. One person, in particular, made me nervous. I will call her...Madeline for this story. Every time I walked by her, she would rush from her chair and confront me. Five inches from my face she would shout, "Why are you here!?!" What are you doing!?!" Being a master of dealing with difficult situations, I would avoid her by quietly tip-toeing past.

But one day I had an unavoidable confrontation.  The bell choir that I conduct was about to have a concert. I had an audience of about 30 people...and a chime choir of 10.  All of a sudden, I heard shouts coming from the audience. Turning around, I saw Madeline...and I needed to quickly calm her down.

I walked up to her.  Immediately, she raised her fist to strike.  My bell choir gasped.  Trying to shake off my own fear, I calculated how hard a 70 year old lady could punch anyway. I stepped closer again. She shouted again.  Now, just a few inches away I reassured her and let her know she would enjoy the show and everything was OK.

I did not see Madeline for one week after that incident, but when she saw me again, I braced for more of the same.  Somehow though, things were different.  This time she followed me and asked to join my drum program. She sat just watching everyone at first, but then she joined in.  When the program finished, and everyone had left, she remained. Then she began to talk (not shout).  She told me about her family, about where she grew up and her children. And I listened.  

Then this same lady, the many months before, who would shout at me as I walked past with my guitar, asked if I could sing her a few songs.  So I did.  For thirty minutes I sang.  The entire time Madeline stared silently at the floor.

As I stood up to leave,   Madeline lifted her head. She smiled at me for the first time and quietly  whispered, "Thank you."

Until this day, Madeline confronts me whenever I walk by her, with my guitar slung over my back.  But she does not shout.  She asks when the music will be and if she can come along.  And every time I say, "Yes". And every time, she smiles and says, "Thank you, I really enjoy coming." And I smile back and say, "I really, truly enjoy being with you, too, more than you will ever know."

Some of the most beautiful things in life we miss.  I think we miss them for many reasons.

So, in my pocket I carry a name. I hope to never forget Madeline and her beautiful smile...
a smile that I almost never took the time to see...

And Life Runs Through It...

'Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?' 'That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.' said the cat. - Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

 The other day I overheard my father in law mentioning about my aunt. He has not seen my aunt in many years, but he still clearly remembered a conversation and was re-conveying it to a friend ... 

My aunt has cancer.  She has had it for many years.  But when asked how she dealt with her poor health, she described it as this...

  She said that she could have chosen to invest the rest of her life in a battle against cancer, but instead of fighting what she did not like and did not want, she decided to embrace what she had and what she loved. She decided to embrace life and live with cancer. 

As we begin this new year...that is how I hope to live and think too... 

There are many things in life that I do not like and focus attention on...

and so many things that I sometimes have chosen to fight...

But there is so much more that I can embrace...

 Epictetus, a Greek Philosopher, wrote, "People are not disturbed by things, but by the views they take on them."

I am looking forward to 2014.  I hope you are, too!

Spoons (or The Lesson)

That is what learning is. You suddenly understand something you've understood all your life, but in a new way. - Doris Lessing

Have you ever had an experience where you thought you were helping someone, but later come to realize it was actually they who were helping you?
So this is the story of my friend Mary (I have changed her real name). I work with the elderly, as a Music Therapist. What is a music therapist? Well, I could give you a very formal definition, but I won't. Instead, I will tell you what I do. Basically, I have made a career out of trying to brighten people's day... to brighten their day when they struggle to find their value or when they feel the most alone in life and the most helpless. I help them see and find beautiful memories and talents they still possess.
The first day I met Mary, she confidently strolled into the music room pushing her walker. With her sparkling, bright blue eyes this 90 year old lady turned to me and skeptically said, "So, you are going to teach me music, are you? You know, I had a very accomplished piano teacher before I moved in." And so we began...

First, we strengthened her left hand's piano playing. Drilling note names...and hand exercises. And the weeks passed...

And Mary would ask,"Now, What are you going to teach me?"
Then, we worked on both hands playing together...And more weeks passed..

And Mary would ask, "Now, What are you going to teach me?"
Next we worked on perfecting the performance of favourite melodies...

But then her eyesight began to fade...
And playing the piano hurt her hands and did not bring her any joy...

And Mary asked,"Now, What are you going to teach me..."

Four large silver spoons I proudly displayed before Mary.  Smiling, I said,"I stole these from my mother-in-law's silverware drawer. This is what we will learn to play today."

And over an hour slipped by with the clang of silver spoons accompanying soft Nova Scotian aires.

With the end of summer, Miss Mary's health deteriorated and she had to be hospitalised. I was told she would not be returning. But she did...

And miss Mary said,"I know how much you need me." And quietly, she whispered, again and again,"I love you so much. I love you so much..."

My dear friend passed away last week, a month past her 92nd birthday. 
And I see now...it was I who was learning.

Sweet Things (or Little Boy's Plastic Knights)

It is the sweet simple things in life which are the real ones after all. - Laura Ingles Wilder

Happiness, I believe, is found in the little things in life...things that you might rush quickly by and not even notice.  We have all heard the expression, "to view the cup as half empty or half full,"  but, I think it is much more than that.  I think there is significantly more "good" around us than we notice. Somehow, we let the short comings of our day fill our heads...and let the small sweet things slip by.  So, I just wanted to share one very small thing that made me smile today...
Currently, My children are studying the middle ages.  We have filled our shelves with wonderful books to learn about the era.  We have already read Beowulf (with and without coloured pictures), Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Beorn the Proud (about the Vikings), A Single Shard (about a medieval potter), Famous Men of the Middle Ages, Outrageous Women of the Middle Ages and now we are on to the Trumpeter of Krakow (about medieval Poland).

There have been many sweet things this school year (and even this day) but one of the sweetest was seeing my littlest one engrossed in learning a very long history documentary with the desktop covered with plastic knights (Perhaps all people would love history more if they had their very own set of plastic knights, too). For him, history is not a boring subject...but a story... and he was actively trying to learn every line...and re-enact his favourite parts.
 When a friend later asked him does he like school? I quietly smiled when I heard him eagerly reply, "Yes, I do! Do you?"

The end!

To Be Loved (or An Unexpected Journey)

Whenever two people meet, there are really six people present. There is each man as he sees himself, each man as the other person sees him, and each man as he really is. - William James

With four children in the car (two teens, one pre-teen, and one eight year old) and a 45 minute drive down country roads, I took an unexpected journey.  Don't get me wrong, I had planned an outing and I knew where I was going... but the trip getting there was unexpected...(and was also unexpectedly the most memorable part of the day).

I had a musical ride.  First it began with silence...then it was talking and laughter (that is my youngest son's addition)..then it moved into music.  My eldest three children brought their musical devices and took turns playing their favourite songs over the car's sound system for everyone to hear.  First my eldest son hooked up his device.  And with a simple push of the button we were off into the steady constant grooves of the Classics...Classic Rock I mean...Allman Brothers, Beatles, Cold Play... 

Then we entered into my daughter's world of girl as she skipped songs, repeated songs, and found her favourites...Taylor Swift, Pink, Adele...

Then, shyly, but happily, my second son attached his device. There was a pause, as if he was holding his breath...before he finally pressed play. Then, immediately we were off into a more high energy world of music...with bands such as Green Day and The Black Keys.  

As we listened to each of their music....It was as if they were all waiting at the side stage door...

Waiting to go out onto the stage...and to show who they were...

Can you see me? Do you think I am too silly?  Do you like who I am?  Do you think I am good?

Through laughter, smiles and silence I think they heard the answers they were searching for.

Yes, we see you

                  ... and we love what we see.

We are all searching for the same thing. Aren't we?

The Number 8

All my possessions for a moment of time. - Queen Elizabeth

I had a friend tell me once that she wanted to enjoy everyday of her child's life.  Her own mother had mentioned that she had let the days pass too quickly and had always put off doing things with her young children until it was too late.  So my friend, took her mother's words to heart...and never wanted to waste a day and told me she saw her daughter this way...for only 365 days would she have a little six year old girl and she would try not to "miss" one day. (Then, likewise, she would have a 7 year old for 365, etc..) 

I liked this idea that my friend mentioned and have thought of it often.  So, I have decided to view Canadian Summer in the same way (it is very precious you know). I see it as the number 8.  Just 8.  Eight weeks where you don't have to don a warm jacket and warm gloves.  Eight weeks to enjoy the sunshine.  Eight weeks to enjoy the bright, warm blues skies....that's it. 

Now, it is five weeks down, three to go.

Here is our attempts to enjoy our beautiful summer days...even until the sun sets.  

Here is our world today...

The End!

A Piece of Glass

The pages are still blank, but there is a miraculous feeling of words being there, written in invisible ink and clamouring to become visible.   - Vladamir Nabakov

Not too long ago, when my children were smaller, I took a walk along the shore with a friend, my children and my nieces.  As we walked, my children kept running to show me the treasures they had found.  But to my friend's surprise, what they hunted the most was the sea glass (or perhaps I should correctly call it lake glass).  My children and my nieces found beautiful bits in all colours...clear, red, blue, brown, ceramic...

With each piece of glass that they brought before me, they asked for the story of where it came from and how it arrived at the shore.  Examining each piece carefully, I would find it's story.  "For sure", I would say, "this one came from the telescope used by the captain.  There was a terrible storm, the captain was frantically searching for the lights of the shore, when his telescope dropped into the churning sea..."
"And this one came from the jewel of a necklace worn by a very fancy lady.  She was standing on the deck one windy night admiring the beautiful starry sky, when suddenly, the necklace came unclasped and slipped off into the dark water..."

As all the children dashed up and down the shoreline trying to find more and more pieces.  My friend turned to me and said, "I have never heard such things...where did you come up with these ideas?"
Surprised that she had never seen the same in the glass, too, I had to think.  Where did I come up with these ideas?  As I thought...I began to remember walking down the beaches of my own childhood...searching for pieces of glass. Then I remembered running to my mom to hear the story of the glass...
               ...at that moment...I began to wondered if perhaps she had run to her mother for the story of the glass, too?...

Next time you walk along the shore...if you find a piece of glass...look inside...and try to find it's story ...and see just that little bit more...

Birds

A bird does not sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song. - Lou Holtz

I hope you enjoy these pictures of birds.  I've tried my best to capture them on photo for a very special reason....Today would have been my little brother's 34 birthday.  He passed away due to health complications when he was 27 years old.  One of his favourite things were birds...and his most favourite were small song birds.  In fact he had thought that every person would benefit by owning a canary...and it's beautiful song.
So, when the warmer weather rolled in a few weeks ago, bird songs began to fill the air around my house again.  One early morning, just as the sun was rising, I heard my littlest son's footsteps running in the hall.  First, I heard his feet come tiptoe into my room...then the sounds of his feet trailed off as he ran into all the rooms down the hall.  In a moment, he had come back and queitly entered my room.  He just gazed out the window for awhile.  At first, he quietly exclaimed to himself,"Wow!"  Then he turned to me and said, "Mom, do you hear? All the birds are singing in your room!"
And so they are...
Happy Birthday John!

  

Just A Little Trip...

Sing me a love song, in a slow southern drawl, to the tune of sunny days...-Kellie Elmore

I am not in the North this week.  And I am sad to leave behind dear friends to fend for themselves in the continued cold (I do feel really bad, honestly, I do).
I have come to the south to sing, though I think I have lost my southern drawl...
Here are a few pictures from a day at the beach with my family...
Way down south...

Just a little Bit of Green

When beauty is seen, it is difficult to tell the dancer from the dance and the glory from the pain. - W.B. Yeats

I am not really Irish...well, perhaps a little bit, I am.  But, there is somthing about Ireland that always makes me smile.  I have gotten travel books...searched through Google Maps the countryside of Ireland...cooked Irish food....and even tried my hand at writing a Limerick in hopes of winning a trip to Ireland.  I have not made it to Ireland...yet.

Maybe my love of Ireland began when I was small...I remember endless days of searching feilds of green clover in hopes of finding the one with four leaves and the luck it would bring (My mom always assured me I one day would ).
Maybe I was drawn to the stories I had been told...
                                                                      or the music...
                                                                           or the people...

But, I like Ireland.  So today I will put on just a little bit of green.  And dream...

Here are some links to some lovely things Irish
Irish Quotes
National Geographic Photos of Ireland
Ireland's Landscapes
Ashford Castle
Irish Castles

And some nice music too...

If wishes came true...

For last year's words belong to last year's language
And next year's words await another voice.

What we call the beginning is often the end
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
-T.S. Elliot

In the beginning of January, it was suggested to me, to write my hopes for the year on a piece of paper and carry it with me, tucked in my pocket.  I do always like new beginnings, as if they are a chance to try again...or even to move ahead.
I am excited at what the year might bring.  So I have thought...and thought...what I might hope for in this coming year.  And I think I have finally decided.  What would you hope for?

Thanksgiving

I am more and more convinced that our happiness or unhappiness depends more on the way we meet the events of life than on the nature of those events themselves. - Alexander von Humbolt

One October afternoon while at work, about two months after I first met my future (Canadian) husband, I received a phone call.  He was calling to wish me a "Happy Thanksgiving".  I told him he had the date wrong.  Thanksgiving is in November, not October.  I, of course, being American did not realize that our northern neighbour had a Thanksgiving holiday...clearly the pilgrims did not land near any polar bears, so how and why could they celebrate Thanksgiving?  And how could they eat turkey?  Didn't they steal the idea from America.  I was taught that Thanksgiving began with the pilgrims and their survival through their first winter with the help of their new found friends.  Canadians do celebrate a slightly different, but essentially the same reason for Thanksgiving.  We all need to be Thankful...to take time to notice what we really have...
"We live in an Amazing world , but no one is happy"  was a writing prompt(writing prompt tumblr) that headed my son's work this morning.  My son jokingly wrote about the woes of his great-grandmother and her half century old grudges and his little brother whose life is never quite happy enough unless he has one more Lego...he finally finished his work by saying that people aren't happy because they don't know how to get through things that are difficult.
I do sometimes wonder how different my life could have been if I had just went with...the Amazing... instead.