76/365, originally uploaded by vanessa.paxton.
Simply a beautiful picture worth sharing…
It makes me think of ‘home’ as if we will gather with everyone we ever loved right here in this field…muted, surreal. And then there is the bird, always… how lovely.
A couple songs to sit with…
Today is the 2nd Tuesday of August and thus, I set out to make a home made valentine. I wanted to do something with Pippi Longstocking because who can motivate a girl like our favorite freckled-face-redhead-girl? I found a picture to color of her and I thumbed through Pippi’s Extraordinary Ordinary Day (by Astrid Lingren) and found the perfect quote. I combined the picture and the quote in psp. And here is the result,
I printed it full page and then wrote a letter around the picture to a friend I have not spoken to or written to at all in months and not reconnected with in years. So, I will mail this and hope it is received as happily as it was made. =) I also apologized for disappearing so often, for being easily distracted for long periods of time. (Making amends…1 down, 2 to go!)
I owe an apology to someone I care a lot about. I am often so inside my own head I do not realize how my retreat within, my withdrawal from the everyday affects others. I recently avoided someone when they needed me, not because they needed me and not really on purpose but more because I was in my own head and trying to avoid the world. No matter my reason, I hurt someone. So, what better time than NOW to send a postcard with a simple apology and words expressing how important this person is to me? That is what I did this morning. Good Morning.
For the record, I am sorry. And love is fade resistant, no matter how far I go, no matter how long I am silent.
A hand drawn message drawn for me a long time ago, I keep it near my computer and I know I am always loved!
I think it is important to love without abandon, to say what you think but make sure you really think it first. Laugh often, even at yourself but be kind and forgiving with everyone including yourself. Write notes to those around you. Texts. Leave voicemails. Write a note by hand on a shred of paper or on 32 pages front and back… and mail it even if you live in the same house. Everyone loves to get mail that isn’t a bill. Give yourself a pep talk. Use affirmations that are fun. Be nice, go the extra mile. This world needs a little extra dose of love and friendliness.
I find the simplest things in life are most enjoyable. I love reading, writing, good conversations. I love researching my ancestry and the ancestry of those I care about. I like to read the stories of yesteryear, tales of Scottish lords and English peasants. I treasure time spent with people I care about in whatever way I can get it. I like to laugh and love and live. I have been on the quest for meaningful interactions with others. Genuine engaging conversations. Talking of everything that is real and avoiding that which is not. I find comfort in the warmth of silence enveloping the end of a satiating conversation. I like to read aloud to those who will listen and I love to be read to, particulary whilst falling asleep.
This past year I have returned to simpler motivations. I want those I care about to know why I care, why I enjoy their company, why I choose them to be in life. I also want to steer clear of overconsumption, of wasteful spending, of collecting things I do not need. I decided for birthdays to get creative, to get personal. I will make compilations of music that are thought out and relevant. I will make gifts and cards that say, “you are important to me”. I will give my time, my attention, my thoughtfulness. I will share of myself more. I have already started this… with the birthday Cardis (Tardis), handmade Valentines, a homemade custom birdfeeder and handwritten journals filled with descriptive reasons I like a person. I’ve jotted down things people have done that made me smile or feel warm and fuzzy. I’ve typed them up on notecards and filled them in small boxes…sharing them like love-filled recipes of how to appreciate the more important things in life.
It is time to return to a time where people mattered more than things. And I don’t mind being in the forefront of this change.
December babies lose out when it comes to birthdays. People simply do not have enough time, money or energy. And inevitably celebrating our births is lumped in with the holidays. Birthday slash Christmas gifts, Christmas cards signed — “and have a happy birthday” are all too common. So, since everyone else wants to lump my birthday in with the the holidays, I decided…if you can’t beat them, join them. And join them I did.
I decided this year I would celebrate the 12 days of my birthday! YAY for 12 whole days to celebrate my birth! I fully anticipated this would be a solo celebration but I was wrong! HA! I love how those in my life indulge me in my fanciful ideas!
Today is Day 7 of the 12 days of my birthday… the halfway point and here are some of my gifts and fun!
Thanks to my friends for indulging me! =) And playing along! How fun! I also got a new game (thanks to a gifted credit!)! Yay for games! Yay for elongated birthday celebrations! =)
You can read more details here.
Suffice to say, I think a new tradition has been hatched!
It seems we all need mothering long after we have grown up. This may or may not be a reflection on how good or bad our biological mother was at being a parent. It may just be a lesson unlearned or an idea never shared, a moment lost in the busy of her day. It may have been the lesson you learned when she was too tired, at work, on the phone or simply having a bad day. Whatever the case may be—we all need mothering from time to time. Some of us more than others.
I am fortunate to have the most wonderful friends. We mother each other all the time. On Mother’s Day we celebrate one another because we have learned so many of life’s lessons from our experiences together. We have dried each other’s tears. We have calmed each other. We have pushed each other to be the better version of ourselves. And we are fortunate to have each other.
The 22nd of March was “Mothering Day” in the UK. It is the equivalent to the U.S. holiday “Mother’s Day”. It is a day where children celebrate their mothers.
Originally, “Mothering Day” was a day in the middle of Lent where the fasting rules were relaxed in honor of the “Feeding of Five Thousand” story in the bible. This day was referred to as Mothering Sunday. The word ‘mothering’ refers to a practice of visiting one’s mother church. About 400 years ago people used to visit the biggest church near them, the Mother Church, this was often referred to as “going mothering”. During Lent, young servants were only allowed to visit their families once a year, typically on Mothering Sunday. Often these servants were allowed to take home a cake or flowers or gardens for their mother on this yearly visit and thus became a day of treating one’s mother well.
My friend discovered this holiday and thought of me. I am always mimicking the baby bird in the P.D. Eastman children’s book, Are You My Mother? So, she decided to give me a “Mothering Day” present…
Her note to me on the last page...
And so it goes, and so it goes… =) I am 34 now. Though, I do not feel any different than yesterday or the day before. But I like happy birthdays, mine and other people’s. Fun for everyone. I like to celebrate life and people, including myself. =) As always, my mind is a scattered reflection of many things. I have thought about Cuba, baskets, puffins, elmo, socks, friends, food, snow…crows… and a plethora of things in between. I am fortunate to have friends who are thoughtful and I know I am loved. For this, I am profoundly grateful and humbled.
Thank you.
By the way, my birthday was the 18th…not today or yesterday. I just never finished this post. It is incomplete but so am I…
