Along the Merry Way....

When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be, I go and lie down where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. I come into the peace of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief. I come into the presence of still water. And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light. For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free. — Wendell Berry

Here is a poem that I wrote, which was inspired by the famous " Bookmark " of Teresa of Avila and written in the traditional sonnet style. Peace Let nothing of this world disturb thy peace. Or cause thy kindly soul to be distressed. Cast fears aside, tell clawing thoughts to cease. From terrors of the mind give thyself rest. The driving ache and loneliness of heart, Will melt like mist and sadness fade away. For from his love none ever shall thee part, And he will not abandon nor betray. Defeat and disappointment thou may face. Yet bitterness shall not thy hope destroy. For he shall guide thee onward with his grace, And in his love and through his radiant joy, Thy shattered soul will mend; its ruins rebuild. In love divine the empty heart is filled.

Another reason I love Victoria :) I'll add more as I find them.         I like this: Sink the Bismark and then Go Confidently in the Direction of Your Dreams! :)

For the past month, the windowsills of the classroom have been blossoming and little tendrils have been climbing their way up to the light. We started a few seeds, watered them, and waited breathlessly until they "hatched". We even planted some jellybeans for fun, but the kids gave up on them after a week or two. The seedlings have grown so well that we had move some into the principal's office. Then other teachers asked if they could have some too to take care of. Then some of the teachers who didn't have them in their classroom came asking for some! Pretty soon, we had a plant nursery production going on - pumpkins, sunflowers, zucchini, beans and lots of flowers! As they were threatening to take over, the local pastor luckily gave us a space in his garden plot, and we were able to transplant the majority of it. The others we gave away to friends and even strangers! Whoever was willing to take an extra pole bean or zucchini off our hands :) PS. My pictures ...

It's been a year since I picked up and moved out West. At first I thought it was going to be for only 4 months, and then I fell in love with Victoria :) It has been quite a set of adventures, building life up almost from complete scratch again. Everything may be unknown in life, but anything is possible! I'm grateful for the ocean and the mountains of Washington in the distance, beer on the beach, and swing-dancing in just about every physically possible place in the city. Living with addicts and lunatics (the boarding house) and learning how to handspring over other human beings :) Living in a creepy house with echoing wooden floors. Not so nice, but a great place for a temporary dance studio. From having one suit-case and nothing, I now have a job in a community of dear, sweet folk with quirky, endlessly entertaining students; finally, a cozy little home in Fernwood with a room-mate who is wise, positive, and adventurous (and a popcorn addict like myself). Finally, dear...

One is a real nest. The other is edible. Can you guess which is which?

I found this receipe online , and it was too much fun not to try. It made my little cousin and her step-siblings pretty happy over Easter. You bite inside these rainbow productions and see the hidden color inside. All you need is a white cake mix, neon food coloring, and cupcake trays. Mix the colors in different dishes (I used my room-mate's pottery mugs and bowls because they were the perfect size).   Add different spoonfuls of each color into the muffin tins:   The finished product:   Disguise these in white icing, and let the kids bite inside and count the different colors. They loved it.