There is one story that pretty much sums up my childhood relationship with my sister. It is a sad and tragic tale about my most favourite shoes ever. Practically magic I don’t remember how they came into my possession; they were probably hand-me-down shoes from my cousins, but they were the most ah-mazing shoes! Practically […]
family
The folly of boys OR How the outhouse lost its lid
I don’t often share my poetry outside of my family. They’re usually stories from our family lore that are retold in a poem for a special occasion, most often ‘given’ as a gift to my parents. I don’t even recall which event this one was for, but I’m sharing it by request. Growing up on […]
Saying ‘I love you’ shouldn’t be that hard
“You all be good,” she is saying, starting to doze. “I love you.” These are the things we all say at the end of book club now: I love you. Of course we do. Why haven’t we been saying that all along? ~ from The Bright Hour – A Memoir of Living and Dying by […]
Conversations…do you hear what I hear?
A guide to better holiday conversations “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” – Stephen R. Covey “Bergeron Funeral Services, this is Cathy. How may I help you?” This was – and still is – my standard telephone greeting at the funeral home where I […]
Love at the end…
I thought I knew about love. I thought I knew about loss. I did. And I didn’t. What I am feeling now, experiencing now, is something I didn’t know about. This kind of love requires more than I knew I had in me to give. We are having a long goodbye. Dad is so near […]
Practicing gratitude
At the end of December I started thinking about the New Year and what I wanted to accomplish and if I should try to set a resolution for myself. I tossed it around for a while because I don’t really like New Year’s resolutions. I have never been truly successful with them and I don’t […]
Light from the dark places
“Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering. There’s a crack in everything, That’s how the light gets in.” Leonard Cohen died this week. While I may not have cared for his vocal stylings, you cannot deny the man was a gifted poet. The words above are lyrics from his song Anthem […]
People keep asking…
Not quite two months ago we became grandparents again and people keep asking me if it’s different this time. No. That beautiful baby does what all babies do: eats, sleeps, and dirties diapers. Nothing out of the ordinary really, at least not yet. So why do people keep asking if this time is different? Because […]
How a 3 year-old is helping me make sense of the world
Can you remember the last time you had a brand new, completely unique experience? You know, the kind of moment when you had to struggle to make sense of the world? Sometimes we find ourselves struggling to make something fit into our frame of reference, to make sense of what we are experiencing. It happens […]
Slowing down for a second chance
Last weekend our kids and little people were out for a visit. The sun was shining, a beautiful blue sky overhead and not a breath of wind, it was a good day for a walk in the woods. There is a beautiful trail near our home that winds through the forest. At the point where […]
