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Thursday

“I’ll do it later. No, I’ll do it now”

To make progress do anything while it is still fresh.

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These words of wisdom have a message for me… I am a do it now person, I have always been like that, this morning has found me dragging out my medical books and researching and refreshing my “tired’ gray cells on my actions of the past few days.

I woke to the searing discomfort of the neuropathy symptoms all clamoring to express and shout their discontent at having to share my limbs with each other. Nerves screamed, and went into an unwelcome screaming fit. I could barely manage to balance as I made my way to the medicine cabinet in the bathroom. I will not bore you with medical terms, the long and short of it was my muscles cramped and toes jerked up in protest… I have learned to quiet the mind and try to still the mounting urgency to rectify the physical reaction that happens when the the tendons and other fellow body parts go into their trauma mode.

I had a small amount of success with calming the body by using a cream infused with magnesium. I had done it faithfully for weeks, and I was having night after night with no symptoms… I got lazy, or forgetful, and took to reclaiming activities/tasks that needed to be done. but I did it all at once, I threw out my support pillow (for under the legs) and then didn’t follow through and get to the store to replace it. That meant I had to use a substitute knee pillow that was not the same angle/depth and composition of what my legs were used to.. I went out the next day and got the correct pillow, but meanwhile, the legs started to grumble…

AND that didn’t trigger or jog my gray cells to remind me to use the magnesium cream after my shower. I allowed myself to be distracted and and and.. I didn’t do it when the thought came to mind, I put it off and of course, it got lost.. I didn’t do it at all.

This morning my body told me in no uncertain terms… “it was not happy” and I had to deal with the fall out.

No its not just the magnesium, there are of course other factors.. but all could have been better planned and executed. … “do it now” when you can, if something comes to mind, and it is something that has shown to be helpful, THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE DOING…or not doing… and act accordingly.

Our bodies are our life long companions… we should not take them for granted.

Have a good day everyone…

Oyashikiri

just because – I bought an exercise stretch band ( the idea was a good one) , help with exercising the arms/shoulders… a good stretch… did I use it.. no it hangs on the back of the door. because I searched it out, found it, brought it home.. if I don’t use it… it is not helping me… right? Right !!!!

Just because – I studied and researched .. gathered info. sought solutions.. if I don’t apply them .. I am not being proactive to my well being… right? right!!!!

andei, andei

Com Quem Contar, a song from the PL Songbook -Portuguese/Brazil -photo is of Ottawa church.

You can learn from anyone

There is a limitation to your own knowledge and experience. Listen carefully and sincerely to others’ opinion.

PL2015.18

“The possession of knowledge does not kill the sense of wonder and mystery. There is always more mystery.” (Anais Nin)

Bom Dia everyone… Make today YOUR day… S M I L E

Oyashikiri

A Door, doors are built to allow us access to a building and then to leave it. While we are inside, we are protected from the elements and the world outside.. The door is our method of returning to the outside world and the chaos and cacophony that is forever trying to invade and influence our “Quiet “‘

The door comes in a wide variety of colours even shapes and sizes, the dictionary says it is a “a hinged, sliding, or revolving barrier at the entrance to a building, room, or vehicle, or in the framework of a cupboard.” I have seen doors that are imposing and others that are just sturdy and practical. Think about it … where would we be with a door.?

PL thought 2017.18

Welcome the new while respecting the old

Every generation brings forth new and positive changes, but also relies on the wisdom of the past. Be able to appreciate both and take the best from each.

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Unless you live in a cave.. in everyone’s life there is a door. your thoughts?

If you would like to see more doors from all over the world, visit the No Facilities site, where Thursday there is weekly theme on doors.https://nofacilities.com/2025/09/18/from-fair-to-fair/ – bloggers from all over, participate, it is a wonderful experience and example of people from all walks of life sharing a shared interest.

segunda-feira

Roller skates.. .. the other day, when I went on FB to post to the PL Brazil site.. I saw what they call “reels’ and people roller skating. That took me down memory lane, I once flew into California to skate along a famous stretch of beach in California…. that was many many years ago.. at that time skating was all the rage, I got to skate where I would never have imagined, along a boardwalk, with sand /surf for a backdrop… I think from what I saw, it is back and very popular in some States…. L U C K Y !

All this to say, that was yesterday, a distant time in the scheme of things. it was a reality then .. all those years back when I thought anything was possible… I sit today and think of how much the world has changed, yet… no matter how many lives I’ve lived, places I’ve been, I am still ME. Imagine that. I look in the mirror, the face looking back at me is different, yes, the signs of having lived a full life are there.. but it is my eyes…they have changed.. they look somewhat the same.. but no.. if one really looks, there is an un readable depth.. that no matter how hard I try, I can’t penetrate.

I’ve started drawing/sketching again. I will wake up and have this need to grab a coloured marker and sketch. I don’t write, I draw…. I met a young man the other day, in way of introduction, he said, he wanted to meet and talk with me because I was an “artist”. That gave me pause, I draw/paint etc. does that make me an artist.. I didn’t feel a first meeting was a time for me to go into the philosophy of why I don’t like labels.. dear man was spared. I say PoTAYToh.. and you say PaTA..TTOE -( root vegetable commonly called a potato or spud)

Tell yourself “Things Happen

Even if something is inconvenient, once you accept it, you will be able to move on to the next step.

PL2021.8

Have a good day everyone.. remember anything is possible..

Oyashikiri

sequindo

I recall a trip we took years ago.. we drove to Montana, (my previous time to go there I had flown in, and never did I want to do that again).. So my husband the planner said, “let’s drive there” he planned out the route we would take from here in Ontario (Canada) and on a lovely September day, we took off with the two dogs for Montana. The only States I had visited before this was NY, Vermont, NH, Florida, and California. We drove down into NY State and from there he took us through as many of the middle states towards Montana.. What a diverse geography the landscapes were at times “mind blowing” especially as we got closer to Montana itself. I got to see Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wyoming, Idaho and then into Montana, It was many years ago now and my husband is no longer here to tell me if I’ve missed any of the States we drove through. He promised we’d go back, I had wanted to see Arizona and spend more time exploring, but we had limited time and our goal was my friend in Montana.

What brings the trip back is stories I have been listening to that take place in the “old west” life in the 1800’s and the fact that Brian always wanted to take me away during my birthday month. His birthday gift to me was to take me to places he wanted me to experience.(He had been a journalist and media personality, his work had taken him to all four corners of the globe. I used to love listening to his adventures.. ) Now of course I have to plan and decide my own “birthday month”.. After the years of having adventures planned out for me, I confess I was spoiled.. it is an adjustment.. I find myself, part of me anyway, wanting to pack the car and take off to explore… etc… however… another part of me says, “you’ve done that… and… blah blah blah)

In PL we say ” PL Precept # 1 Life is Art ” every day is a new beginning.. a new canvas.. At the moment I have a new living space to adapt to and make my own… a new “lifestyle” ….

The Excitement of life comes from expressing your individuality

In PL we say it is important to live each moment of your life expressing your true self with Makoto (sincerity) when we can do this we will experience the true joy of self expression.” Learn to live respecting one another and working for each other’s happiness.” a lesson we are reminded of daily when we recite the PL Prayer.

After mulling about what I want to do, and simply not getting anywhere, I opened my calendar to today’s reading…and et voila…

The picture for those who are unfamiliar with the Teepe or Tipi as it is traditionally know.. is a conical dwelling many Native American Plains tribes used as dwellings.

Whatever your day brings, enjoy .. smile.. be happy.

Oyashikiri

Why do teepees have 13 poles?

According to these teachings, the poles of the tipi represent the nations of people living upon Mother Earth and form the circle of life. Each one of the 13 poles also represents a trait to be honoured, starting with the three anchor poles that signify respect, obedience and humility. (wiki)

sexta-feira

It seems easy … just sit back, relax…. let the moments come and go.

I watched a short clip today, where there is a moving ball, starts at one side of the frame, moves slowly to the top (centre) of the frame pauses and then slowly slides to the other side of the frame. The caption and voice, asks that you watch taking a slow breath, then hold when the ball pauses, then release as it slowly drops down to the other side. Lovely reminder to pause during your day, to take a moment to just stop relax for a moment before hurrying on with whatever you are doing.

So often we live our lives on automatic pilot, When I was out yesterday driving to the conservation area I frequent, I thought about how often I had done this over this years.. and how the car just seemed to know where it was going. Ottawa is surrounded by green spaces. We are very lucky that way. I found myself asking the empty space around me (in the car) why I always went to the same locations. Why with hundreds of options, did I always go where it was familiar. (didn’t get an answer)(working on it)

When finally home, I settled down for a wee nap, and turned my iPad on to listen to one of my lessons, but instead of a podcast on male *health/ psychology, a story came up about a woman pilot.. a woman who had military training … now no longer in the military she was on a commercial flight when there was an incident that required quick thinking and the skills she had acquired while in the military,

This was not something usually on my radar.. but I was tired, comfortable, my eyes closed… so I let the story unfold. I woke to a story about a woman living in the wilderness of Nevada back in the 1800 when the land was wild, and civilization sparse ,… She tended a trading post on her own, in the middle of nowhere… stepping outside when she heard movement, she found an injured wolf… the story was about how she took responsibility for the injured animal.. and the consequences of her actions. (women did not have it easy!)

Both stories were nothing I would ever have searched out, but there they were.. … both told of courage, of kindness, of persons who put the safety and what was morally right first. Made me wonder what other “stories” were being offered. Interestingly I found that there are human interest stories .. that speak of kindness and helping others in all walks of life. There are consequences in life, and we are often the creators of our own “destiny”.

Have a great day everyone.. try something different. But keep smiling.

*this is a field of its own, men do have issues and problems specific to their gender.

today

Song is Thy will be Done.. I never heard it before last night.. by James Hilton-Cowboy… listening to it, sent me into a very reflective mood. We are all born to die, yet death ( the word )seems to strike fear and anxiety into almost everyone. Only in October, do the ghouls and goblins come out to play…

There seems to be a focus on aging, we are all going in that direction, yet the media is full of commercials, videos and clips on “staying young”. there are ads for everything, all items with claims you just can’t live without them… creams, lotions, tonics, oils, machines, … Life is for living… at any and all ages. One podcast I saw was about how when you are reaching or in your 40’s *.. you have to focus on accepting you are “old”. I almost choked on that one,

Instead of living each day to the best of our abilities and exploring all this world has to offer, the focus is on the past, or all the MUST do’s if you want to “look” good in your “older” years.. OMG you might reach 50!!!

It is true, people are living longer,

PL Precept # 19 Begin once you perceive

There was a time, when it was different, but that is not now.. we’ve come a long way. I’m not saying the world is perfect, but there is so much to be thankful for. i.e if the technology wasn’t what it is today, I would not have heard that song.. thy will be done.. and I wouldn’t have spent an interesting evening searching out more music and trying to find out information on the singer and the album that song came from.

PL Precept # 18 Each moment is a turning point

With progress comes change. (the only constant in life is change) and in true Tao fashion, you cannot have positive without negative… With the technology and all its positives, it has negatives too… it is used in negative ways i.e. cyber theft, the falsifying of documents, the robotic way we have to communicate with companies… the “human” “humanity” is being “downgraded”.

PL Precept # 15 All is a mirror

The thought process was very enlightening, I found myself going down “memory lane” to what was (for me) a “ahhhhh you have lived a long time. The song I’ve listened to over and over, I am not sure why it has an appeal to me, but it does. I am very content with my life… and I am ready to take that final journey. NO.. there is nothing wrong with my health, I’m fine…. I am not at death’s door, but I do accept and know that my time will come. Meanwhile I want to live and experience life to its fullest. By that I mean .. I like being “happy and content” .. and that is what I want in my life.

I am not interested in what other people consider a “need” nor do I want to listen to or be around negativity.

I’m repeating this message from the other day..

Face Challenging situations with positive determination

When you encounter difficulties, boldly take measures to overcome them. By creatively finding solutions, you will feel the joy in tackling any situation.

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Oyashikiri

  • ref. old. I work with “older” clients… and one sent me an example of what she was listening to… it was about why younger males appreciate “older” women.. the older women they were referring to were ladies in their mid 30’s and early 40’s.

I can only shake my head and hope that common sense prevails.

flowers

A bouquet of friendship and love from friends in Australia.

Came home from a long day yesterday to find a message from the concierge, could I come to the front desk please…. et voila…this beautiful arrangement was waiting for me.

It took me some time to get over my husband’s passing, the changes that made in my life, how I felt about my situation, what it meant to me, and how I was going to move forward. Nature, its constant ebb and flow, the seasons, flowed into one another, spring was followed by summers, summers turned golden and crimson, … winter soon followed, and before I knew it years had passed and I was still “on hold”

You all know that soon changed in the spring of this year when I woke up one day and listened to the urging of my inner voice. You have seen my posts, you’ve read my “ramblings” … one quote that I have used .. is

it was like a light bulb went on in my head. I didn’t even know that I was ready to move on with my life it just happened. To my amazing friends who helped me achieve this mammoth change from being a home owner to a renter….the real estate agency that worked to accomplish my goal, Walkerottawa.com (Michelle Walker and Carl Brunet) .. I am filled with gratitude, I could not have done it on my own. their expert consultation/guidance their action plan. The house was sold within the first couple of days.

Blessings all, till soon.

Oyashikiri

Walker real estate group is part of Remax Michelle Walker 613-830-5858 michelle@walkerottawa.com Carl Brunet 613-830-5858 carl@walkerottawa.com

Flowers were from Talia flowers on Bank St. in Ottawa. @taliaflowers.ottawa

bom dia

A different season. temperatures are somewhat cooler this morning, but who knows what we will experience by end of day. The humidity levels have been so draining.

The move has gone well, the house is now sold, belongs to someone else… Yay! I do miss my garden(s) especially the trees that are now giving fruit. but.. such is life.. now I am adjusting to living in an apartment and parking in an underground maze of cars…. metal sculptures on rubber wheels that wait for us to need them again.

There is one car down there that is kept like a polished jewel, one day I will meet the owner, it is a baby blue jeep. Not once have I seen it with a spec of dust on it, it just looks so “pretty”…. mine has already been christened, with cement scrapes and scratches.

“Oh! and guess what!” I finally found my storage container with the pasta etc. in it. Yay! Let’s see… and oh yes, yesterday I treated the hardwood floors to a Magnolia Home carpet. (by Joanna Gaines)(Loloi) It is a runner not a full carpet.. the cats love it. I enjoy the contrast of it against the hardwood floor. Slowly my new “home” is taking shape. You saw yesterday the mask I found.. lots of good positive energy there!!!

Eartha was here yesterday, she helped me with the magnesium creams/spray .. getting ready to work on the “ZEN” room. There is a teaser for you.. I’m really looking forward to enjoying the “ZEN” room. fyi. the magnesium cream does seem to give breathing room to the neuropathy visits. I have found the topical use of magnesium more effective (for me) then supplements. Which end up in my digestive system.. I want it where I need it.

Think of the timing before you say “but”

When stating your opinion, make sure you are being respectful of others’ opinions. Be mindful of this when you speak.

PL2022.14

Oyashikiri

Etheria (content creator) being carried off stage when she fell from a high wire act in (raglan) memory from the past.

The Sun

The sun that had warmed and welcomed her earlier that day was no longer friendly. She lay in quiet despair feeling the unrelenting heat, burrow down deep into her body. The ground under her was hard, unforgiving and uncaring that her body hurt. Where once she thought of the sun as a healing energy and one that gave life, she now thought only of how it was slowly killing her with it scorching blistering persistence on her now barely living shell.

The once slender arm that one gracefully waved to friends and showed her animation for life, now lay limp and useless across her eyes. Her parched throat tried in vain to find one tiny drop of saliva ..anything to relieve the thirst that raged inside her she felt her soul evaporating drop by drop into the stillness around her. Nothing moved. The animals knew to conserve their energy. Not a sound could be heard … and she had no energy left to try to cry for help.

How long she lay in the semi state of consciousness, no one would ever know. All hope for rescue was gone, she simply let herself go.

It was at that moment that she felt rather than saw a presence. She knew her eyes would not open, her strength was gone. Maybe the angels had come to take her away from this burning inferno. Maybe… he would once more feel the cool of a shaded nook, and feel the fresh green grass beneath her feet. If she were to die now… she would be rescued from this horrible state of passive death.

What was that…. a sweet smell … the air around her had changed… Then yes… she felt a drop on her lips. A gentle rain, just enough to slowly wind its way down her throat and give a feeling o reprieve. She knew she could not move… so she lay and accepted the gift from the “gods”…. her body was bathed in healing rain, drop by drop she felt her skin greedily take it in.

Maybe she would see tomorrow… maybe there was hope… as her body drdank t his blessing from above, she felt the earth beneath her begin to take shape and mould to her now drenched body…. Her arms that had been limp and useless now began to lift in prayer to the skies.

Her eyes opened to the world and she knew she could stand tall and be strong again. In letting go and accepting the moment of despair, she had welcomed the unknown, in doing so, it became her friend…. she was free to embrace the sun again.

In death, comes a new beginning/life.

Q

lundi

I live on an island where my front door opens to this view. I can spend hours watching the water swirl and listen to its song as it makes its way around the rocks. I can even watch the sky as it turns from dawn to dusk…. It is true I can’t get to it every day, but it never leaves my heart or my thoughts. We live alone on this island, there are neighbours on other islands, but we are fortunate in that, living in different time zones, we are seldom on our properties at the same time. This is the beauty of living in a virtual world (smile)

By now, you have if you are a regular to this blog, have read I am moving and have seen the story I shared with you the other day about the “Little House” https://youtu.be/F74CR1uqXFA?si=M4Fxvkml523xj3Al I have heard back from a few of you who took the time to watch the YouTube version of Virginia Lee Burton’s .The Little House. thank you,, I appreciate that you took the time to view it.. it tells the story of what I am living in a very poignant way.

For days now I have been going through photos, correspondence etc that accumulates when you have lived in one house for over 25 years. The faces of friends now long gone, or living in “space and time”. It had been tedious and long.. my hands ache at night from the constant pulling, and tearing of papers for recycling. But … in all the frustrations and challenges, I have found happy moments seeing the faces of people I once worked with, and shared special adventures with.

I am tossing a lot of “stuff” out.. a lot of what can be recycled will go to charities. Leaving 3 levels of living space, to go to a 1.5. apartment is certainly going to be a new adventure. The hardest is knowing that my gardens the green space I have surrounded myself with, will be no more. The animals that alive here …(Outside) will have to find another oasis. There is no doubt that my little house will be razzed to the ground, and with it the vegetation that has sheltered us for years will disappear.

You have all heard me say this before… life is to be lived and enjoyed, don’t squander your moments …. embrace life…. appreciate your friends…. and protect nature as best you can. Reach out to someone you haven’t heard from in awhile.. smile at a stranger… life is precious.

This was taken by my Dad who was an avid photographer, he took the pictures and developed them himself. And it was a time when we could enjoy country sides like this on a hike not far from our home. You guessed right if you thought, not so now…

PL 2014.9

Oyashikiri

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