Wednesday Witterings . . .

 

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I started reading the best book yesterday.  Caroline, Little House Revisited by Sarah Miller.  Authorized by the Little House Estate it is a wonderful recreation of the beauty, hardship and joys of pioneer life as seen from the perspective of Caroline Ingalls, the wife of Charles and the mother of Mary and Laura. 

I have always loved the Little House Books and always loved the Little House series on the television. It was something I never missed and I have watched it far too many times in reruns to count.  Let's face it, I just love this family and their story. When I saw that there was a book written from Caroline's perspective I knew that I had to read it.  I bought it for my kindle  and got stuck into it right away and I am enjoying it so much.  So much so that when I am not reading it I am thinking about it. 

It is a slow enjoyable read.  I  wanted to tell you about it because if you are a fan of nice, you would probably enjoy this book also! 

 

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Cindy and I are going down to the cemetery today to spend some time cleaning up mom's grave and headstone after the winter. We will also change the floral arrangement on top from the winter one to the spring/summer one. I think Cindy is going to do some sketching also.  I have never sketched like that.  I will probably wander around the grave yard visiting with my ancestors. 

There are seven generations of our family buried there.   It is a very beautiful cemetery that looks down from the base of the South Mountain over the beautiful Annapolis Valley.  We might even drive up to the old farm house while we are that way and on our own.

I always thought, as an air force brat that I didn't have any roots, but I was wrong. Here in Nova Scotia my roots are buried deep within the soil in a way like they have never been anywhere else on earth. No matter how far away I have travelled in my lifetime, the  minute my feet touched down again on Nova Scotia soil, my heart whispered to me that I was home. My soul knew that it was home.

My family, we are not immigrants here, we are deeply entrenched in the very fabric and DNA of this beautiful province, from some of the very earliest of the settlers to the Indigenous peoples who were here to greet them and help them in their early days.  It is a part of who we are, and always will be. That brings me joy and a sense of peace and comfort.

 

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You are never too old to learn new things about yourself.  I have come to recognize that the Spring and the Autumn are my favorite times of the year. You may have chilly nights, which are good for sleeping, and the mornings might be somewhat chilly to begin with as well, but the days are usually quite pleasant. Not too hot. Not too cold.  Just right.  (I feel like Goldilocks here, lol) 

I especially love these sunny mornings when I can hear the blue jays calling out to each other and I can watch the approaching sunlight melt away the frost on the rooftops across the way.

I sit here at my keyboard, the sounds of my fingers on the keys tap, tap, tapping away. All is right in my little corner of the universe. Cinnamon is sitting in her little basket in front of the living room window watching the world go by and Nutmeg is snoozing underneath my bed.

They are such funny creatures and I love them so very much. Cinnamon was sleeping on the top of  my bed a few minutes ago. They like to go into the bedroom first thing when I get up. After they are fed you can usually find them snoozing away in the room they have been kept out of all through the night.

This their first nap of the day.  After that nap, Cinnamon will usually come and visit me for a few minutes. I brush her and snuggle her and then she leaves for her basket in front of the living room window.  Meanwhile Mr. Milk Moustache is still snoozing beneath my bed. 

 

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I think my Nigerian boyfriend has abandoned me finally. haha  There was this guy on my English Kitchen facebook page who kept leaving me voice messages. I could count on one at least every second day from him.  Telling me how  much he loved me, etc. I just ignored them. I have not heard from him in several weeks now. I think he must have given up the ghost and moved on to more fertile pastures.

I am so grateful that I am not that gullible.  I know many, many  women who fall prey to these hucksters and end up sending them money and all sorts. I read once upon a time that they actually have schools in Nigeria where they teach these young men how to dupe vulnerable western women out of their life's savings, etc. Nothing would surprise me.

I am afraid that I am very cynical when it comes to this sort of thing.  Especially now. I can see myself in the mirror and I know what I look like. There is no man who is going to come knocking on my door, and to be honest I don't really care.  I am not lonely for male companionship. Perhaps that is my secret protection.  I wear an invisible cloak of I don't care, move along buddy.  There is no space for you here in my life. 

My life is pretty perfect just as it is without the allure of the male species. I feel very selfish in saying so, but I like living alone.  My days are pretty much my own to fill as I like.  I do need to play more, but my work is a bit like play anyways, so its all good.

 

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 I had to go to the grocery store yesterday to pick up some buttermilk. I popped out to take my cheques for the next year's rent to the landlord's office and stopped at the grocery store on the way back. There was a young woman at the cash just over from me and she had two little boys with her and they were dancing with joy because their mum was buying them some bubble gum.  Oh but it was such a cheerful sight to see.  She was telling the cashier that she had two more children, both girls who were in school. 

I remember those happy busy days when my children were growing up. Looking back on them I always put on my rose colored glasses and see the joy in them. I am not sure I felt all that much joy when I was going through them. I was far too busy to stop and smell the roses I think.  Five children. A husband who was always away and who always took the car with him, leaving me without one to get around in.  My days were full to overflowing with laundry, cooking, cleaning etc. We never had much money to go around so I was always taking care of other people's children to earn extra cash as well . . .  or cleaning houses, offices, etc. at night. Just to make ends meet.

I did build some very happy memories for them however. My son was telling me at the weekend about how he remembers me making Sunday School for them at home.  Because I never had a car at my disposal I could not take them to church and so I made church for them at home. He had some really fond memories of that.  The thought of that made me happy.

I used to really enjoy reading stories to them at night as well, and I wrote poems for them. In looking back,  I guess I was not that bad. I did make time for them in every way that I could.  I was just too busy to stop and really smell the roses then, but I am grateful for the time to do so now as I look back on those happy busy days.

 

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I don't think anyone leads a charmed life.  We all have our troubles, our highs and our lows. Sometimes we are on the upswing and sometimes on the down.  I think the key to happiness and peace is being able to find the blessings along the way . . .  amidst the journey. To pick out the silver linings. I believe that there is always a silver lining even if we can only see and find it in retrospect. 

We can spend our lives looking at other people's lives with longing and regret, or we can look to the joys within our own lives knowing that peace comes in wanting and being content with what you already have.  I am content. I don't think anyone can ask for much more than that.

And with that I will leave you with a thought for today  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

•。★★ 。* 。

° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚

  ˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛

 ˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★

*I have a simple philosophy.

Fill what's empty.

Empty what's full.

And scratch where it itches.

~Alice Roosevelt Longworth

•。★★ 。* 。•。★★ 。* 。

I had a bit of a breakfast for supper day yesterday.  I cooked me some delicious Steak & Eggs.  It was quite simply delicious, and I got a bargain on the steak. It was marked down half price because it was on its sell by date.  I really enjoyed this simple meal. 

I know  . . .  when do you ever go to the shops for one thing and not come home with a bag of things.  Or is that just me?

I hope that you have a lovely day filled with loads of  tender mercies and blessings. Whatever you get up to, don't forget!

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And I do too!