Where the Treetops Glisten

This photo was taken last year, in a sweet little town where my brother lives with his wife and beautiful little girl. Christmas last year was charming. Just my immediate family.... skating on frozen lakes, eating dried pears, soaking up the baby love (my niece's first Christmas), happily dreaming of moving to this adorable town, into a sweet little character home of my very own.

Maybe, some day I might find myself there. But not yet. I can't leave my island behind. I have grown some roots here. I've made some wonderful friends. And there are places I haunt that I just can't imagine myself parting with. The mountain I climb, the oak groves I wander, the rugged seaside trails I roam. The ocean is a powerful magnet. I think I truly belong here. If only I could persuade my family to move here instead.... but I know that they have built their nests in other places.

And I will see them tomorrow. In the morning, I will leave my cosy nest to see my closest family members. We will spend a few days together before the entire extended family gathers for a Christmas in the mountains. We get an old ski chalet all to ourselves...for all 44 of us. It's going to be crazy. And perhaps a wee bit snug. But, there will be skating and skiing and snowshoe trails to follow. There will be food and drink and plenty a merry making. There will be a Charlie Brown tree. And a secret Santa. And an abundance of snow to find the reindeer tracks in. Or perhaps, the bear prints?

And I will be blissfully capturing every moment of it with my camera. I can't wait to come back and share.

Have a wonderful Christmas, my friends.
Much love to you all.
xoxoxoxo

Ginger and Spice

I wish I could bottle the scents that have infused the air inside my kitchen since I started baking this morning. It smells like Christmas...and I hope it lingers like glitter in the air.

I make gingerbread men for all my piano students every year, and I added a few whimsical stars for friends... but this was no easy task this time around. The first batch burned. I even had them in the oven for less time than the recipe calls for, just in case. The second batch was undercooked ( I was so afraid I was going to burn them again), and as I took the poor critters off the cookie sheets, many of them lost their heads and some legs and arms were unintentionally amputated. Sigh. I thought I had this mastered after 15 or so years of making these little guys. I am truly culinarily challenged.

But I persevered. I listened to Wintersong, and I whipped up a new batch that finally turned out the way I wanted them to....and now I am going to flop on the couch and watch Little Women before I make my way to a friend's house for dinner.

It's been an almost perfect rainy Sunday.

Have the Martians Landed?

My thirty-sixth year on this planet has been placed in my internal filing system... nothing more than a memory now as I celebrate another birthday. And as my body gets older by the day, it's comforting to know that my sense of awe and wonder hasn't aged a day past childhood.

My mom comes to Victoria by train every year on the weekend closest to my birthday, and we share in a bit of girl time. This past weekend we unexpectedly found ourselves inside a new aquarium exhibit. We both left our adulthood at the door.

I couldn't take my eyes off the jellyfish!  How could such a simple creature, with no brain or central nervous system look so exquisitely beautiful and complex? How does it know how to move through the water and eat and reproduce without a brain? How sad, to be so fluid and graceful in the water and not even have an awareness of what that feels like. No consciousness. Are they merely in the ocean just to become food for a bigger fish? Is that really their only purpose in life?

Maybe they do have a brain, or a way of perceiving themselves in space, but they are simply structured in a way that we don't understand yet. I would like to believe that. I'd like to think that they consider themselves the most graceful dancers in the sea, their long tendrils flowing like a summer dress, their translucent skin brilliantly illuminated by the faintest light source. That they can feel the gentle pulse of their movements through the currents, and sense their peaceful existence, even if it is brief.

 I remember scuba diving a few years ago, when a tiny moon jelly appeared right in front of my mask. It was so still, and I became still as I watched it hover before me. I thought it was glowing with phosphorescent light and my eyes grew wide in astonishment until I realised it was just the light passing through it from another diver's flashlight. Nevertheless, there is something mysterious and beautiful about these simple creatures. I suppose they do have a deeper purpose... they have the magical ability to keep adult humans young inside...nourishing our intrigue for the natural world and its secrets.

Hush

You will remember that leaping stream

where sweet aromas rose and trembled,

and sometimes a bird, wearing water

and slowness, its winter feathers.

You will remember those gifts from the earth:

indelible scents, gold clay,

weeds in the thicket and crazy roots,

magical thorns like swords.

You'll remember the bouquet you picked,

shadows and silent water,

bouquet like a foam-covered stone.

That time was like never, and like always.

So we go there, where nothing is waiting;

we find everything waiting there.

~Pablo Neruda

I find myself in the quiet.

I've been reading poetry. I've been reading prose.

I've been observing. A still being amongst the frenzy.

I've been taking pictures in the snow, then in the rain.... and briefly in the sun.  And sometimes my camera can't tell if it is spring or fall or winter. 

Snow falls, then melts into green a day later. Hydrangea petals turn brittle, yet moss grows ever more soft and brilliant. The fog sweeps in, then out, followed by the milky brightness of the moon.

Not much to say today. 

Just quietly sharing with you, a touch of beauty.

Silk Parachutes

Did you know that some spiders can fly?

There is a spider that can create a tiny parachute out of her lightweight web material. She will wait for a breeze to catch her and carry her vast distances, to some unknown destination....to some unknown fate. A new life in a completely unpredictable environment.

Scientists have found them way up the earth's atmosphere. Sometimes over great ocean bodies. When a volcano has decimated miles and miles of landscape, the first living creature that is sometimes discovered in these barren rocky wastelands are these tiny spiders.

That is a hopeful, optimistic little spider! Who knew they could be so adventurous?

Personally, I don't think I could live that way. I am too much of a homebody. As much as I love and fiercely protect my freedom, I don't like the feeling of being untethered. Without roots. I like to know where I belong.

But it does seem so fantastical, doesn't it? To be wisped away on a gentle current, your white silky parachute freewheeling through the upper atmosphere like a dandelion seed blown from its stem. Swirling and curling here and there until a sudden stillness gently releases you to a new garden, a new coastline, a new mountain top.... where you begin again. The world, a whole new oyster. And if you don't like your new digs, just make another parachute!

I wish I could coax the spiders that live in my house to try this way of life.

Whippletree and Beyond

Last week, the grey drizzle brought about a softness to the day. This weekend, the cloud and fog enhanced the richness of things, deepened textures, and awakened the boldness of colour.

I feel as though I have just traveled a great distance. But really, I was only in my own backyard.... well, sort of.  My friend and I went adventuring with our cameras, about an hour north of Victoria. Our first stop was Whippletree Junction...a small cluster of colourful old buildings that have been converted into shops and studios. It is a wonderfully bizarre place....a garden strewn with dozens of teapots, a courtyard surrounding an odd sculpture/wishing fountain made of old machinery parts, and long abandoned objects like an old printing press that have been left to rust and adorn the garden spaces.

After spending a great deal of time, utterly fascinated with the moss growing between the bricks, we moved on to a place I had never been to before. As soon as we drove into Cowichan Bay, I was enchanted with the place. I can't believe I have lived in Victoria for 10 years, and I have never seen this amazing little seaside village! There were organic bread shops and cafes, vintage candy stores and all kinds of funky little buildings along the small oceanside strip.

And while we were taking pictures of all these interesting things, I could hear a loud roar coming from the harbour. Then, many loud roars. So I walked out on the pier, towards the commotion, and there in front of me, on a neighbouring dock... a mountain of sea lions! Mostly sleeping, except for one or two loudmouths who had to let the entire town know their business. These guys don't smell pretty either.

One minute, they are snuggled next to each other, having an afternoon snooze....the next, wide awake, startled by a boat coming into the harbour. Except for that little guy on the right....he slept through the whole thing. The sound was amplified dramatically.

So, I moved on to more peaceful subject matter.

The day went by way too fast. These short November days are unforgiving to photographers seeking the light. The drive home was over a mountain pass, thick with dense fog and drizzle. But, as you know, this weather doesn't get me down....it brings me to life. I saw new places that tweaked my imagination and sense of exploration. And there are so many other places like this I have yet to discover on this beautiful island I call home.

Ever so Fine, What Falls From the Sky

The drizzle outside my window this morning illuminated my houseplants. There was a gentle softness to everything. A foggy morning, bringing out the essential shapes of things...simplifying the landscape. I lingered for a long time, watching the rain fall so slightly it was almost invisible. And I would have been content to stay there even longer, next to my window... but I wanted to feel the rain. Smell the freshness of the mild coastal air.
So I went exploring.
I knew it was going to bring me gifts, this charming morning. As I drove toward my destination, the woman in the car in front of me, while waiting at a red light, made huge swooping movements with her arms as though she was conducting a symphony outside her windshield. I smiled at her through her rearview mirror...how could I not? She was not entertaining a child in the car, or laughing with another girlfriend....she was alone. Undoubtedly immersing herself in a piece of music that truly moved her.

I abandoned my car next to the ocean and walked up a street lined with beautiful character homes. Victoria is brimming with neighbourhoods like this. I like to walk and dream about my future life when I own a home like this. If it never becomes a reality, well, it's a beautiful dream for the here and now.

Garden flowers may be withering, heavy with Autumn rain, but seed pods are bulging with potential, waiting for their moment to burst open and bring new beginnings to spring pending.
And the ethereal lightness of others...like a warm breath on the dewy air.

Yet, there are still hints of colour. Blooms, not quite ready to call it a day.

Someone left their heart on a wooden pole. A bit worn and scratched, this heart has a story. Hopefully, the romantic soul who left it there hasn't abandoned love completely. They look like surface wounds. Nothing a little time and tenderness won't heal.

And now as the soft light evolves into darkness, I am grateful I stepped into the drizzle. There is a beauty in the greyness, a day most appreciated by a woman and her love of symphonic melodies... and a girl and her love of rainwater.

Autumn Swap

I came home yesterday evening to find a package waiting for me. Don't you love it when you receive packages in the mail? Especially when you are anticipating their arrival? Sweet Relyn is hosting an autumn swap and she paired me with a lovely new friend Diane, who is currently living in Germany. I opened up the box and found many goodies inside.

She included a thoughtful card with such kind words. I discovered that she had been to my city a few years ago....if only I had known her then! In fact, the very first post I saw when I visited Relyn for the first time, years ago, it was a post about her visit to Victoria. What beautiful synchronicity. Once again, if only..... Maybe, if I am lucky, they might return one day.

Inside the box I found a jar of homemade applesauce. How tempting it was, to go grab a spoon and indulge right then and there. But no...I will save it for a special dish. It is not every day I get such a wonderful homemade gift. But I have to say, I did nibble at a few pieces of this divine rich dark chocolate that I found nestled in next to the applesauce. As soon as I took this picture, a few squares quickly disappeared.

And the book she sent....I love the worn feel of this book. It feels as though it has been loved before it reached my hands. It contains a collection of essays about books. Well, I absolutely LOVE books. I vow to never own one of those digital readers. I love the feel of them in my hands, I love to turn the pages, I could (and do) wander bookstores for hours....so as long as they continue to make real books, I will always stay loyal to the real thing. This book was written by a woman who "once found herself poring over a 1974 Toyota  Corolla manual because it was the only written material in her apartment that she had not read at least twice." This is a woman who loves to read...it will be interesting to glimpse into her insights.

At the very bottom of the box were two gorgeous magazines. I poured through the pages, soaking up all the beautiful eye candy. These were some of my favourite images. Could I please have a rustic table and chairs next to a glass door like that? Could it open to a lush garden? With adorable little bird houses like these his and her's? I have been collecting images like this for a while now, as I try to uncover what inspires me, what my tastes are...they are ever changing, but I am learning more and more about myself as I go through this process. Lately, I have fallen in love with all shades of white. I dream to have a house of my own one day...a place I can lovingly create, make my own. But for now, I will use these inspirations I find as steps on the journey toward my dreams.

And that was not all that was in the box. I found some adorable little things to hang on my doors. There was a cute little mushroom made of fall leaves, an autumn wooden hanging that sounds like rain when the leaves collide with each other, and this little welcome hanging...Diane, how did you know it would go so well with the colours of my front door? So intuitive you are. ;)

This swap was great fun. And meeting someone new is always a gift. Thank you so much Relyn, for being such a caring and dedicated host, and thank you Diane for the lovely treasures you sent me from across the big blue sea. One day I would so love to see your corner of the planet. Germany has many charms.....and so do you!

Celebrating Debi

Debi, today I celebrate you. I celebrate your newest published article in Artful Blogging, but mostly, I celebrate you. And what would a party be without a little cake? I picked up this cupcake yesterday, and dedicated every scrumptious bite to something beautiful in you...

The first bite... this was the sweetest bite. This one was for your love of words, which manifest into the most lyrical pieces of writing. You invite me to imagine the world you live in with all of my senses engaged. Not only can I picture the places you describe, but I can hear the curtains flitting with the breeze, I can feel the fallen tulip tree blossoms under my toes, and I can smell the rain approaching on a hot Texas night. The softest shades of blues and greens are all around me, so calming and peaceful.

The second delicious bite was for your attention to detail. You see fallen leaves that look like birds, you watch shadows move across the walls, the night sky tells you stories as you look up from your swaying hammock, you see hearts everywhere. You capture things with your camera that make me do double takes...that make me gasp with delight, when I see the hidden gem that you have brought into the light, just quietly waiting to be noticed.

This substantial bite is for your intricate creative process. Passion seems to drain out of you, through your paintbrush and sweeps itself across your canvases with wild abandon. Your calming, simple style is deceiving, for it is never a simple picture you paint. Intuition is your faithful guide...the very soul of your paintings.

This one is for the uncanny way you turn the most ordinary things into breathless beauty. Your entire blog is like this. The world, through your unique frame of view (and frame of mind) is extraordinary, and full of magic.

This last morsel packs a punch. It is for your honesty. Your raw, unapologetic, unedited, unfiltered honesty. You are the real thing, Debi. When you speak of loss, when you recall a memory, when you reflect what a certain colour does to your psyche, how the people around you affect you, when you talk about your charming neighbourhood, and how it is changing, how you dream of a new place to call home....whatever it is you are feeling, you speak straight from the most authentic places in your heart. When I read your words, my heart takes its own journeys, and I am grateful for the explorations.

Today, it's all about you.
You are lovely.
You are a meditation on living with soul.
You are a gift to us all.

Many thanks to sweet Amy for hosting this wonderful celebration today. What a beautiful heart you have.

Now I must brush off the crumbs, those delectable crumbs, and go looking for a copy of Artful Blogging for my very own. I can't wait to see what treasures are inside.

Happy Spooks Day!

Pixie, kobold, elf and sprite,

All are on their rounds tonight;

In the wan moon's silver ray,

Thrives their helter-skelter play.

~Joel Benton

Have fun!

Stay safe!

For Keeps

Sometimes you find yourself in a moment that seems to stand still for you, just long enough for you to be aware that this is a moment you will keep forever. You will never forget.

Sometimes these moments are little happenings.... nothing monumental. But something in it stirs you and coaxes you to imprint it into memory.

There we were, a week ago.... my mom, my dad and I, standing next to a deep slow moving stream. We came upon it by accident. It was a beautiful little spot, and as we gazed into the water, as if in a trance by the gentle current, my mom told me how she loves how the leaves, the ones that are submerged, how they tumble and turn underwater as they move downstream.

And all of a sudden, a new universe appeared before my eyes. Like a child seeing something for the first time. I have watched leaves float along the surface, but under the water...this was new. Well, it was new to my ever-increasing awareness of things. I stood there, mesmerized by these little leaves doing slow graceful somersaults deep down in the cold clear flow.

And then, disturbing the peace, was the child inside my dad as he launched a small stray tree trunk into the flow. He wanted to see how far it would go. Not very. It lodged itself between a tree and a rock wall on the far side, where it probably still remains. But inside myself, I laughed at this grown man, still curious and childlike at heart. Remnants of the little boy he used to be.

All three of us were briefly held captive by this little stream. We stayed for quite some time, observing and playing with the water as we watched for salmon, as rare a sight that day as a meteor in the night sky. And we gasped when we did see one large and lonely fish, resting in the slower pockets of the stream. And I gasped again as I caught a glimpse of these mushrooms growing on a floating log!

It was this quiet, uneventful afternoon....this fleeting fragment of time next to a stream that I won't forget. I felt such gratitude, to be with my family, to feel a sort of unity in our experience of that day. I felt loved and I felt loving. And all felt well in the world.

One of my dear friends just lost his father. And when he spoke to me of his final moments with his dad, one thing became very clear... the only important thing, all that really matters in the end is the love you share between those closest to you. I carried that in my heart that day as I walked with my parents. I am so grateful they are here with me, and that we can share these simple, unassuming moments like this together.

Yes. This is a day I will keep forever.

I Heart Fall

Happy October my friends!

This is my most favourite month of the year. I am wrapped around this season like a warm fleece blanket. The air feels so fresh...so good.

And the trees have been turning ever so slowly. What used to sound like a soft wishhhhhh as the leaves flickered in the summer breeze, now sounds like a restless rustle. The leaves are indeed restless. I stood very still in a maple forest this afternoon and watched them fall. Some spun in rapid tight spirals, angry to be separated from the branch. Others twirled in open, loose circles like the graceful arms of a figure skater. And some were completely motionless, except for the slow, quiet drift to earth.

Have you ever been lucky enough to watch a leaf the very moment it separates from the tree? It's kind of like watching a meteor shower. Hoping that you will see that soft beam of light right exactly where your eyes are aimed at the giant sky. Usually you see a flash in your periphery and glance quickly at the fading star before it vanishes. Usually you see the leaf as it is already floating. I have yet to see one detach.

As I set up my tripod and peered through my camera, I would hear soft sounds as though a hiker was approaching...it was only the sound of the leaves settling after their graceful flight through the sunbeams. Little golden whispers, all around me. My only company as I settled into my solitude. Click here to see the images I captured today.

I was happy in those trees. So very much in the moment as I listened, and took in the scents that fall exhales. And as I silently expressed my love for the forest and its beauty, the forest told me how much it loves me too....down by my feet, next to the river, was this most perfect heart shaped stone. I couldn't stop smiling as I returned along the path. The stone in my pocket and a knowingness that love is all there is.

Just Sit There and Look Pretty

She's a little beauty. Those big brown eyes could woo the heart of just about anyone. Her lashes are so long, they could sweep the dustbunnies off the floor. Her bouncy curls and pouty lips. And those sweet little toes peeking out from under her princess dress? You could kiss each one.

How will the world receive her?

Surely she will be adored. She will hear the whispers, the expressions of how cute she is when she's mad....how contagious her giggle is....how charming she is when she shows you her dance poses in her brand new pink ballerina shoes.

As she grows, she will catch the eye of many boys... on the playground swings as they double-dare her to eat grasshoppers....as they show off in front of her on the soccer field....a glance from across the room in first year history class....an office crush....love at first sight at someone else's wedding....

She will not be immune to the mixed messages she will receive in the world...on magazine covers, television ads, Miss Universe pageants, modelling reality shows, celebrity gossip grapevines...she will feel the ever-constricting pressure to be perfect.

But will she see past all that superficial garbage? Will she know that it is all surface stuff? Will she understand that what really means something, is the gorgeousness of her insides? How extraordinary she is? What it is about her that makes her so hilarious? What her hidden talents are that separate her from the conforming masses? How special she can make someone feel, just by being her beautiful self?

This little look she gave me...the way she folded her arms when I asked her to sit down in her fancy dress and let me take her picture... may she develop this subtle emotion, and use this little roll-of-the-eyes defiance when she is confronted with something that doesn't correlate with the truest parts of her being. A little attitude can be a powerful thing.

There's more to this beauty than just sitting pretty.

~Please go visit emmatree and find the other sitting pretty links.... an open invitation to see how many other collaborative bloggers are interpreting these 6 little words. Debi has created quite a gathering with this brilliant idea. And she is giving away one of her gorgeous paintings too!

The Love Bug Chronicles #1

Who says magical realism doesn’t exist? I think it does.

Why, just yesterday, during a seaside walk, I saw so many things...

It all began with a click- clack- rattle- tattle sound approaching as a little red sports car whizzed past. An old car...vintage. Two seater. Bride and Groom. A just married sign in the tiny back window, and a string of dented tin cans bouncing off the pavement like a chorus line of tap shoes.

I walked along, edging along the shoreline and as the traffic noise drifted away, I noticed that the ocean sounded like a distant fairground. Screams of excitement were reverberating from a whale-watching zodiac doing donuts way out in the open water. It must have felt like a carnival ride at sea!

I came upon a grassy slope where people were flying kites. It looked like a Norman Rockwell painting, except for one beautiful anomaly... Standing there was an old man, who looked like he came from an exotic land far far away. He was dressed in colorful robes and a pointed cap and held two long sticks in his hand, joined together by a long string. He dipped the string in a bucket of secret potion and slowly separated the sticks, which were actually more like magic wands. Out flowed the most spectacular gigantic bubble the size of an elephant! Everyone stopped and watched in amazement. A little girl holding a kite jumped up and down, pointing her tiny finger in the air. It floated and morphed into beautiful shapes and fanciful colours and I smiled as I went on my way.

I went down the hill and around the bend, closer to the water when I saw couple sitting on the beach. The man was pointing to the water as they watched a stray bubble, a smaller one (small being relative...it was about the size of a basketball) hovering over the water, drifting and floating, eventually succumbing to its fate in a tiny explosion. The man looked behind him, puzzled...his eyes scanning for the source of the magic. It was like it appeared out of thin air.

It was like everybody was at play yesterday.

Including little red love bugs....for this one believes in magical realism too. I'm certain this is not the last you will see of her. The world is a big place... and there is a lot of road to cover. Today was a drive in the fall countryside. Cool crisp air and golden pie crust surroundings.

Who knows where she will venture next...

I'm a Newbie

Well, I finally did it! Finally joined the masses and created a flickr account. Sheesh, it's about time!

I was hesitant for a long long time, for a number of reasons. But I've been thinking... many times I take pictures that I want to share, but no words come to me. Sometimes I just want to put my images out there and let others come up with their own stories.

Besides, I feel as though I am getting a wee bit lazy with my picture taking. I want to push myself a little and start taking more pictures. I want to carry my camera everywhere and post new pictures almost daily. I can't imagine writing a blog post daily, but I can see myself creating and sharing more images, and I am excited about that. So many of my photos get lost somewhere on my computer because I can't find the right words to supplement them, and then they are forgotten before I ever post them!

Over the last several days, I have become a bit of a flickr junkie. I am addicted to looking at other people's images (I'm sure I'm not alone here ;) and nothing is more inspiring. Nothing makes me want to pick up my camera more than when I see a gallery of incredible images. There are so many creative people out there!

I feel the need to take a great variety of different images. I tend to stick to nature photos on my blog, but there are so many incredible things to photograph in the world. I want to document the world as I see it.... little snippets of my personal daily life.

So I hope you will occasionally pop in and say hi. It feels a little lonely over there right now. I feel like a new kid in class. A stranger in a new world.

Which leads me to a few questions. Can someone tell me how to link to my flickr account from here? Does anyone know how I can make one of those nifty little moving mosaics that I can put along the side of my blog..they are so pretty. :)

And how do I find YOU on flickr? Can I add you as a contact? Is that how it works?

So many questions. But so many new things are free to manifest out of me now!

So excited!

(update...I now have a mosaic!)

The Last Petal

It is at the edge of a petal that love waits

~ William Carlos Williams

I love me...I love me not...........I love me...

I have come to realize that almost every issue that I face in this life usually comes down to self love. When I am struggling with something, I try and remember to ask myself....am I coming from love, or fear? Almost every emotion stems from one of these. And more often than not, fear is the one that comes up for me. But as I am becoming more aware, I am choosing love... for the world at large, but especially for myself.

But I want to take it to a deeper level. I don't want to band-aid life's struggles with a hot bath or the distraction of a good book. Although these are things are nurturing, and make me feel better temporarily, the kind of love that I am talking about requires me to stretch a little further...go into the pain or the fear and wander around in there for a while....explore these familiar surroundings and learn more about myself and the way I cope with the heaviness of life. Without the help of that persistent and annoying self critic. Oooh, she can be nasty.

So I want to ask you....

Do you love yourself? I mean really love your insides? Do you have a nurturing part of yourself that takes care of the more sensitive and tender You? I invite you to share with me....what do you do to really take care of all the different parts of yourself that so crave your attention?

Pluck the last petal for your beloved You.

Insectia

What would it be like to be so tiny that you could nap the afternoon away on a bed of duckweed, as the gentle lapping of the water's edge lulled you to dream?

What would it be like to know that you are connected to ancient ancestors that go back 300 million years?

How would it feel to have a jeweled body of vibrant blue and wings made of nature's finest lace?

Or to have 1000 eyes to behold the world and its wonders?

Wouldn't it be amazing to be a nymph of the water world before becoming airborne? What would that first take off feel like?

How exquisite it would be to set your toes on the velvety softness of a flower petal and drink its sweet nectar.

Or to be called a name as sweet as *damselfly*

Road Trippin

Nothing screams summer like a good road trip. My mom and I took one together...just us girls. We were on our way to visit my brother and his family, but we took some roads through the southern interior of B.C. that I have never seen before.

We visited small towns that looked so romantically picturesque, I wanted to move right into this seemingly simple lifestyle. Of course, I conveniently forgot how isolated these places are in the winter. We walked down streets, ice cream cones in hand as we admired character homes and funky shops. As we continued down the highway, we gasped as we saw three black bears in three different locations. We stopped next to bridges to take pictures of overflowing rivers running high with spring's mountain thaw. We visited friendly horses and gave them handfuls of grasses in exchange for a picture or two. We crossed a river on a cable ferry that looked as though it came from another time and place. The beauty of this landscape was breathtaking and inspiring. Powerful transformations can burst inside of you when you experience a place that is new to your eyes.

I loved spending this time with my mom. We have always been close, but there is something special about taking a road trip together. We were like Thelma and Louise without the crazy....on the road, feeling free from responsibility and regularity for a little while. We had so much time to talk and muse about where we are in this particular point in our lives. I felt as though I was given a gift....this uninterrupted time with a woman so dear to me. I am so deeply grateful for the connection that we have, and will never forget this adventure we shared.

A picture perfect way to start the summer. I hope this summer feels as stretched out and endless as it did when I was a kid. Maybe the key is to savour every moment so that every day feels full and satisfying...not just when you are on vacation, but when you are living your daily life. Live it like you are on vacation.

Here's to longer days and warm dreamy nights sugared with the scents of summer blooms and ocean breezes. I think it's time to cut the watermelon.

Flower Games

I got a new lens last weekend. A 50mm 1.4. It is now my most favourite lens, and I think the flowers liked it too. I wandered funky neighbourhoods with old colourful houses, and saw many interesting things, but it was the flowers that charmed me this day.

They seemed a bit reckless as they were trying to escape their confining yards. Reaching over fences, sneaking out between the openings, stretching out their limbs as though they were challenging each other to a contest to see who could reach out to the sidewalk the farthest.

A flower riot. That is what it was. Quiet but colourful chaos.