65 Reasons to Give Thanks

65 reasons to give Thanks Another birthday coming, it is a time for reflection and a reason to give thanks. So this weeks blog will record my thankfulness, in no particular order. 1. The gift of breath. To breathe deeply is a beautiful gift. 2. The gift of a new day....

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A Day to Celebrate Women

A day to celebrate women, March 8 is also a day I remember a special woman in my life, my Grandma Anne.  It is her birthday today, it is 114 years since the year of her birth and 40 years since her graduation into heaven. (I hope I have those dates right!) She always...

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Welcoming March

March   Marching into lighter days The earth is waking up This in-between of thawing and freezing sun and sleet Temperamental. I’m sentimental This doorway to spring The possibilities of seeds, of dreams cracking open to surprise me all over again to the beauty the...

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Ash Wednesday Lament

Ash Wednesday lament I walked in the cold mist grey as ash And wore my sorrow Like a cloak heavy. There is a time for mourning to feel the loss acknowledge pain You don’t have to like it or ignore it Sackcloth and ashes Are a poor fit Yet fitting for mourning Ash,...

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A blog for Valentine’s Day, for everyone

It’s a funny quirky vulnerable day named after a saint who must be shaking his head but most of us long for it wanting to get it right I love you imperfectly as I long for your love in return. And for those whom are separated by death, by distance, by brokenness, for...

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From here to there… and back

We’ve just returned from a lovely two week break to sunny skies and desert landscapes. It was wonderful to go, and also great to be home again. Thosw who know me know that I’m not the greatest traveller, and  if I let my anxiety take root, I wouldn’t go at all.  I’ve...

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Motion and Stillness

Life is full of paradox. Slow down and hurry up. Less is more. Save money by spending it. Deep down, I’m really shallow. (Which is not true) 😊 I was playing with paint this week, and it started off terribly. I had to salvage the roses, and my hummingbird is not...

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Hope is Birthed in the Dark

Hope is birthed in the dark My word for the year is hope. Really, it is my life’s word, and it is reflected in many if the things I’ve published such as my book “A Journey of Hope” to my Instagram tag @journeyofhopefaithandlove. I’m experiencing hope in a new way...

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The Urge to Purge

I was looking for a drawing this morning, one that would illustrate this blog. As I scrolled through hundreds of pictures, paintings, and drawings, I could not find it. It became clear to me that I really need to clean up, organize, and purge many of my files. There...

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Transitions

Transitions This week it will be three weeks since I “retired”. I really don’t like that word, it sounds like I’m tired… and although that is true, I’m seeing this season of my life as changing gears, transitioning. Retiring from ministry or any life’s calling is...

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Saying goodbye to 2022

We are in the closing chapters of 2022, now part of our history. What were the gifts of this past year for you? The challenges? The joys?  The griefs? We hold all these elements as part of the human race.  As much as we can plan, and educate, and save up for, we...

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And the greatest of these

Christmas is just around the corner, our advent journey almost complete. I'm focusing on love this week. We tend to reduce love to a feeling, and our English language does not adequately give us words to describe love in all its forms. I love chocolate (I do), but...

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Moments of Joy

I’ve had quite the week as I’ve prepared to retire from my role as hospital chaplain.  Because many have been generous, I have stored a wealth of resources, including bibles, books, children's colouring books and crayons, prayer shawls, and quilts. And they all have...

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A Presence of Peace

We like watching scenic pictures on our TV, created for ambiance. TV has come a long way since the fireplace app, blazing away to create a cozy feel, without any fire at all.  All that was missing was the heat. Now there are cozy cottages, inviting coffee shops, with...

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Advent Begins

The turning of the calendar to the month of December has long been special to me.  Although we marked the first Sunday of Advent already (as early as it can get, for Christmas falls on a Sunday this year), today marks the first day of active celebration,  of waiting,...

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‘Tis the week before Advent

‘Tis the week before Advent  And while the world slows and darkens Things are ramping up. Out of storage are emerging plastic giant figures popping up on lawns near by Bright and colourful Neighbors stringing lights Wreaths placed on doors Christmas is coming. Today...

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Mostly Cloudy

Mostly Cloudy Mostly cloudy So the forecast says mirroring my soul. Some days feel grey like November skies dark and brooding. Pain can colour my mood matching the cloudy skies. Pain comes in many flavours Grief, disappointments, Body aches, exhaustion. Perhaps read...

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Plunging into Winter

I loved our late summer. Picnics in October.  Sweater weather. Did we even have two weeks of autumn?  People were mowing their lawns 10 days ago, I was picking the last of my beans. And here we are, in a white world, -8 this morning, the day before Remembrance Day. Im...

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It’s the Simple Things

It’s the Simple Things When I think about what brings me joy, it is the simple things. It is the unexpected moments, like when a colleague at work spontaneously bought me a tea and I felt so loved. It was the moment I walked into urgent care and the nurse on duty is a...

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Ok or Ok-ish?

Okay-ish Perhaps I am. Perhaps I’m not. I’m hearing more and more of this little add-on “ish” in our vocabulary. Say we want to meet. 12-ish would be fine. Now, do I show up at 10 to? Or 10 after? It is very confusing. The vagueness of this little word which I even...

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Transitions

Transitions We’ve had the most amazing September and October, falling into autumn beauty. Outdoors has been such a pleasure, blue skies and perfect temperatures. My harvest has given and given again. Flowers grace my table, brilliant dahlias, sassy sunflowers,...

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Playing in the Wind

Playing in the Wind It’s a blowy day. Clouds scuttling across the sky. Leaves dancing… Is this my time to fall? A bird doing a dance above taking the wind currents for a ride. There are calm days. There are blowy days. There are days where the tempest rages Grateful...

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A Gateway to Joy

A Gateway to Joy Thanksgiving weekend is upon us, and somehow it feels different this year. We are still enjoying summer like weather and yesterday I harvested tomatoes, zucchini and string beans. There is much to be thankful for. I was thinking about that yesterday...

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Tentative

Tentative My Monday’s newsletter (which goes out by email) featured the letter T this week; I’ve been going through the alphabet and finding inspirational thoughts with each letter. So we talked about trust, and tea for two, just for fun. But another T word started...

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Don’t Lose Heart

Don’t Lose Heart There’s nothing like a pandemic to make one extra vigilant. Even though it seems we are through the worst of it, I know of a number of loved ones, friends, and others who have come down with the virus in recent days. Working in a hospital, I find...

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A time to Mourn

There was an awesome picture I saw recently, an artist’s rendition of an elder lady dancing with her cane.  The suggestion was that if we all start the day that way, life might look differently.  I was inspired by that, but most mornings, I forget to dance. This is a...

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Do Clouds have an Expiry Date?

My thoughts were full of words and pictures this morning, and I quickly wrote them down before they fell out of my brain into oblivion. Another gift of a Thursday; it was just Monday! So here’s some thoughts on life for a Thursday morning. Life Life scurries by May...

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September Song

An ode to September, the changing of seasons. There always seems a shift this time of year, new beginnings, calendars filling up with new schedules. Some enjoy the return to routine and regular rhythms.  But I always feel a bit of melancholy as we say goodbye to...

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The Ebbing of Summer

Whilst I say spring is my favourite season, it is summer I like to hang on to. It is not the heat which has been constant. It is the light, the long days, the permission, or so it seems to slow down to have some fun to spend time outdoors. Of course we can do that at...

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Eraser

Erase.   By my favourite chair, where I like to curl up and doodle, is an array of pens and pencils and one of my most useful tools, an eraser. I use it everyday, adjusting my sketches, erasing pencil lines where I want to paint. Years ago (and this dates me) there...

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