Holiday Blessing

I received an early holiday blessing today - an email from a dear high school friend that warmed my heart in a way I find difficult to put into words.  My friend and I lost touch in the years following high school but recently reconnected and what a joy it's been to get to know her again.  When I read her email it felt as though no time had ever passed between us.  Like time had just stood still.  Her words and the tone of her message spoke volumes of sincerity and warmth; I was transported back in time to the early days of our friendship.  I've never had another friend as dear as she was and continues to be.  What a gift.  The gift of friendship is the most wonderful and fulfilling gift one can be given.  What a wonderful prelude to this holiday season and a gentle reminder of all I have to be thankful for.  Thank you my friend for the reminder of how wonderful life is in spite of all the sorrows and darkness that surround us. 

Tipping Into Another Season

It's dusk, one of those evenings where the evening outdoor light seems to linger, hesitating to disappear in all its pink and golden glory.  Fall's presence - so comforting and warm, yet chilly and crisp at the same time.  Golden leaves sprinkle over and hide the fading green grass.  The time of year when hunters eagerly prepare for their hunt, children ponder Halloween costumes and yummy candy and people like me who think of a hot bowl of chili, knitting needles and a skein of soft wool yarn, a good book and a cup of warm spicy tea.  Fall encourages us to reflect over the past year, remember what we're thankful for and what we will anticipate for the coming year.  It's all good. 

Built for Fun

Summer, finally.

This Little Light of Mine

Beautiful, Serene Ola, Idaho

For Mother's Day, we headed for a place called Sagehen Reservoir for a picnic.  Sagehen is a small reservoir surrounded by Douglas Fir and Lodgepole Pine trees and nestled in the mountains northwest of Boise.  As we made our way toward Sagehen reservoir, we wound through desert sage covered hills and through several little towns.  One in particular caught our eye today, a place called Ola.  We've been through Ola several times before, but this time we stopped to take a little closer look at this gentle, pastoral piece of Idaho history.  Wikipedia describes Ola as an unicorporated town in Gem County Idaho.  Homesteader Carroll Baird established the first post office in Ola on July 22, 1882.  Wikipedia states that Baird chose the name Ola "for an old Swede that happened along."  Ola does seem a place that folks might "happen along." 

Today's Ola from afar...a sleepy little place with plenty of story.

Ola's community church.  Each of the windows had a candle glowing in it. 

Baird's cabin thoughtfully preserved.

The modern day post office.

And the school house.  When I see old school houses still in use I think of all the technological changes that have been incorporated into it - like internet access and whiteboards.  Amongst all the changes, brick and mortar still remains.

A message to think twice about litter...

A homestead, a place called home.

A cabin up the creek.  Gone but not forgotten.

Spring green in the hills above Ola.

Jackson and Speedwagon in the mountains near Ola.  We never made it to Sagehen reservoir, there was too much mushy wet snow on the road and we thought we'd get stuck.  That wouldn't be fun.  We spent our time wandering around Ola instead.  I think it turned out to be a good thing. 

A sign wishes us well as we head back out of the canyon towards home.  I am so glad we "happened along" Ola today.  What a great Mother's Day.

Dorothy had Toto...

I have Scout. 

He patiently waits for his next opportunity...

Quickly returns when he gets too far away...  

 

A best friend who always knows the way home.

What's Your Color?

I love blue.  Blue skies, blueberries, blue sweaters, blue blankets, the blue Pacific ocean.  Blue reminds me to slow down, relax, enjoy each passing moment.  It seems like we all have a few colors we naturally choose over others.  My sister enjoys red - red cherries, red fabric, red antiques, red flowers.  She and I balance each other out - even in our color choices.  Her red influence fires me up when my blue influence encourages a little too much relaxation and not enough action.  Friends and family balance us out and help us make our way though life's challenges.  It's reassuring to know we have others around us to sit along side occasionally. What's your color?

Idaho's Owyhee Mountains Waking Up

A sleepy reservoir wakes up to wandering geese and the aimless chatter of red wing blackbirds.

Snow-capped peaks lose their blanket of snow, ready to give way to fresh wildflowers...

A hottie golfer warms up...

Life's good.

Oregon (not Southern) Fried Chicken

Today as I sat in my car at the gas station and waited for my gas tank to fill, I noticed a sign across the street, "Mother's Day Car Wash Special 5 washes for $20."  I wondered if my Mom would've liked that kind of gift for Mother's Day.  I don't think she would've.  I think she would've thought that a car wash coupon was a silly Mother's Day gift.  Of course, if someone would've given her a car wash coupon for Mother's Day she would have acted like it was a really cool, useful gift but my sense is that she would have had different thoughts about it.  Like, "Geez, what a stupid gift. I don't need car washes...I want a new Nordstrom blouse.  I thought I raised these kids to have better taste.  Oh well, I guess they just take after their Dad."  She was a person of practicality but not to that extent! 

Done at the gas station, I went on through the rest of my day but still thinking about Mom.  She died June 7, 2005, a dark day for our family.  Since that dark day, I continue to relive memories of her last good days, one of which was Mother's Day, May 8, 2005.  It was a sunny Oregon morning as we gathered around her hospital bed for one last picture.  It was a good day.  As the days between May 8th and June 7th progressed, we continued to gather together as a family in search of hope and another treatment for her cancer, all the while questioning how and why life can be so mysterious and cruel at times.  I think our Mom would've wanted us to remember the good times and the good things about her life rather than the injustice of cancer and all such gloomy things. 

So I topped my day off by making fried chicken and potato salad.  Mom made the tastiest fried chicken and potato salad and they bring back great memories of back yard picnics and warm Oregon summer afternoons.  Betty Crocker and I tried to mimmick Mom's recipes as best we could, but Mom was the master of both juicy, tender fried chicken and smooth, creamy potato salad.  I plan to share my chicken and salad with friends tomorrow but deep inside my heart they will really be a little secret tribute to Mother's Day and my Mother's life :) 

Lifetime Projects

In this fast-paced, computerized, digitized, electronic high-tech world we live in, I seek comfort in occasionally making things.  Occasionally.  I'm not very skilled at making handmade treasures but there's something incredibly satisfying about gathering raw materials and turning them into something of beauty or purpose - especially if you sit in front of a computer all day at work.  I can't say I'm prolific at making many things, I guess I work in spurts.  I started knitting a scarf in January and there's plenty left to do on it.  I guess it's just as comforting to have the "works in progress" around as it is to have the actual finished products.  Maybe.  But it would be nice to finish something once in a while.  Recently I was describing to my sister a quilt project I've been working on for nearly 10 years.  My sister, an incredibly talented crafter, mentioned that most people have a lifetime project they work on for many years.  I think she was trying to make me feel better and she did but I think I have several lifetime projects that I'll probably never finish.  Maybe I should get busy on my scarf before arthritis overtakes my fingers and hands and my vision correction is no longer adequate to see the knit and purl stitches.  Here's to lifetime projects and the tenacity to see them through.

Welcome Spring!

Today is March 20th, the first day of spring. I am reminded that March is the time of year where we begin to anticipate a transformation of winter's gloom into spring's new life. Where winter's dark shadows are replaced with spring's soft, supple light. In northern climates like Idaho and the Intermountain West, the spring season serves to usher in the fresh faces of such delicate flowers. Delicate flowers who proceed into the light cautiously, slowly exposing their gentle petals to the longer, warmer days of sunlight. Spring is a time to celebrate renewal, new life and a renewed sense that while there are things in our lives that will always bring us sorrow, there will, in turn, always be things in our lives that bring us joy. I guess it's up to each of us to remind ourselves to take the time and look around to spot moments of joy.

Welcome spring!

Even the dog is feeling frisky!

A Little Robe

If you were young in the 1970s you may have had something similar to this little robe my grandmother made for me for Christmas one year. My sisters had similar ones. Somewhere in our mother's old photographs there's a picture of us all wearing our new robes posing for a picture on the sofa. It's a good memory. I treasure the simple fact that I can hold a piece of family history in my hands. It's one of only a few things I have of hers and I treasure it because it seems to somehow keep her memory alive for me. Several times I've thought, "What on earth am I going to do with this old robe? Maybe I should use if for rags or donate it to a thrift shop." But that kind of action never seems to prevail for one who is nostalgic for special things that remain from the past. I suspect I'll have this little robe forever and with it I'll forever cherish the memory of my grandmother lovingly creating a piece of our family's legacy with her hands.

Another Barn

This sweet little barn was built by my husband's uncle, a Quaker farmer who lived and farmed in a small rural community in southwest Idaho. The barn stands perched on a hill overlooking what was once a thriving little farm yard and house. While in dire need of repair, it still serves as a reminder that what we build in this life will remain for others to admire and appreciate long after we are gone. I was almost out of sunlight when the photo was taken but luckily just enough light was left to capture yet another story.

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There's something about old barns that just makes me yearn for stories of the past, for things that are no longer visible but still ever present within our beings. The barn pictured above is from my family's farm in Oregon's beautiful Willamette Valley built in the late 1800's. It serves as a constant reminder and symbol that people go through this world but the things that they build and put their heart and soul and sweat into outlast their finite number of days on this earth. The places where we live and grow become the essence of who we are. These are the places where our imprints upon this earth remain long after we are gone. What a great thought to ponder!