Winging It! ~ 2

‘Aware of all things around…….’  The second letter and line of June 1st’s anagram FAITH. I’ve had many more walks in the last several weeks. Some on windy cloudy days. Some with tiny mists of Island rains. Some in warm sunshine. All of them in the morning, afternoon or evening. I have watched the city rush by from buses taking me to or from home. Trips to work, to meet with friends or to get groceries. I’ve been fascinated by trees of many varieties, complemented by low growing shrubs, the jigsaw puzzle of stone walls edged with moss and spots of flowers, all lining the asphalt city streets. Most fascinating to me are the urban wildlife - brazen squirrels, crows, and the occasional deer. Raccoons, with their distinctive waddle and shiny coats, are most common in the evening and tend to avoid busy city streets. Walking from the bus stop last evening, I spotted another citizen of city wildlife feeding on the flowers. On one of these photos you may have difficulty picking it out. It took me about an hour to find it when searching my photos. I had taken five photos, and in only two, could I easily find the little hummingbird. Little wings beating with precision, it was much more intent on feeding than on posing for a quick photo shoot! A great way to come home from work! 

“may my faith always be at the end of the day like 

a hummingbird…returning to its favorite flower.”

 - Sanober Khan, Turquoise Silence

Low and Slow

Low and Slow

“Flying low and slow, buddy. You’d better learn to fly low and slow first, buddy.”

Uncle Roger was my favourite uncle, but when I was eleven I really thought he didn’t know very much. He was just a crop duster and that was all he knew. Flying low and slow was not what I planned to learn when I learned to fly. Uncle Roger did take me up on cloudless days. I had my own bomber jacket and hat. He showed me what flying low and slow felt like. And I knew that I would become a pilot. I had spent many hours looking up at the sky - cloudy or clear - when I heard the drone of a plane. I followed the sound with my eyes until it faded into the distance. Jet trails excited me. Pure white trails criss crossing a clear blue sky were the most dramatic. I was too young to travel on my own, but I travelled to all the Aeronautical Museums I could find by Internet when possible. My young heart planned out my future. Study aircraft, flight, everything I could find about getting off of the ground and being as bird up next to the sun and the stars. I smiled at my childhood memories.

I didn’t become a pilot, at least of the big planes. Life didn’t move me close to the sun, probably a good thing. I did keep my fascination with flying and aircraft. I was able to get and maintain a vocation in mechanics. It sustained me while I went to university and learned more about flying and the history of aeronautics. Keeping faith with my memories, I did get my pilots license and flew small planes. I was my own mechanic for the one small plane I was able to buy. It was a love like that of a young man with a shiny new car. 

But ‘low and slow’ stuck in my memory as much as the wide blue skies. When I was struggling with anything, I could put myself in that small aircraft with Uncle Roger as we flew low over the prairies in the sunshine. Everything smoothed out. I could even remember the hum of the motor. My problem in the moment became just like the trees and rocks below me. Smaller and more manageable. I could see which ones would need work to get around and which ones were just too big for that day. Flying low and slow really was the lesson I needed to learn. I closed my latest aeronautical history book up, turned the light out and went off to sleep.

“The reason birds can fly and we can’t is simply because 

they have perfect faith, for to have faith is to have wings.”

~ J.M.Barrie, The Little White Bird

Believing in Faith ~ FAITH ~ Theme for June 2017

Flying low and slow

Aware of all things around

Intuition deep inside

Trust hovers delicately

Hope for the future

“I believe in intuitions and inspirations…I sometimes 

FEEL that I am right. I do not KNOW that I am.

~  Albert Einstein

Fresh Air

Fear gnaws at my belly

like a tiny mouse

trapped in a maze

sniffing stagnant oppressive air

for even a whiff of freshness

Faintly, the air cools and stirs

~ a tiny chance for escape ~

stills the little mouse

to watch and to wait

ready to dart forward.

Confidence alongside fear

glows in the tiny mouse’s soul

easing the gnawing at my belly

breathing in the cool fresh air

gentling the urge to escape.

“Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance

There is A Moment

From my walk this evening to Poetry group.

I’ve joined a poetry group recently.  It’s a small group - just five of us tonight. We met for two hours reading our own works, critiquing and in general enjoying our evening.  Towards the end of the evening we had a timed writing.  The topic was chosen from one of Leonard Cohen’s works: There is A Moment. We each did rather well…definitely not Leonard Cohen….but not bad! Here is my offering.

There is A Moment

There is a moment when

the alarm rings

jarring me awake from pleasant slumber

There is a moment when

my eyelids lift languidly

letting in grey morning light

There is a moment when

the aroma of coffee is missing

giving me energy to push from under the covers.

There is a moment when

I sit, then stand sleepily

pawing the dresser for my glasses

There is a moment when

I breathe deeply and shuffle into the kitchen

to fill the kettle, take my pill, pour orange juice

There is a moment when

I savour the chance to create gentle calmness

welcoming birdsong from my kitchen window.

There is a moment when

I sit quietly in my comfy living room chair 

to read my latest book and contemplate my day.

There is a moment

in each day to be noticed and shaped

to make meaning in life.

“Build your home in small moments of joy, and you will always feel at home.”

~ Charlotte Ericksson

To Walk or Not to Walk

Since mid April when the frame on my car was damaged, I have been using other forms of transportation. Initially, it was just because I didn’t have a car at my disposal. As the days passed, I did realize that I was still unnerved about being in the midst of all the traffic - those huge moving pieces of metal guided by drivers of all ages, abilities and awareness. But more than that I have watched the traffic, the cars and the trucks, cyclists, busses and felt comfortable that I have not been part of that busyness. Environmentally I can also do my part, even if is is infinitesimal, by reducing gas emissions into the environment. And of course there’s all the expenses of a car - maintenance, registration, gas, parking……. 

Mondays are days for walking and Aquafit and now, more walking.  The weather is making walking very pleasant, indeed. Victoria has excellent transit so really I have little need for a vehicle. I’ve put on hold owning another vehicle for now. That unfortunate incident in April has provided me with an opportunity. A chance to begin reading a new chapter. Who knows what other opportunities will open in the coming days and weeks?

Addendum: February 08, 2024: Finally, age, epilepsy and family considerations completely tipped the balance.

My epilepsy is quite stable due to medication and to life style choices. Knowing the potential for other neurological events, which could also upset the stability of this chronic condition, driving a car safely became a consideration. While still presently able to drive, I could see that I had an opportunity to let go of my keys before my family had to wrench them from my stubborn hands. At the time of the accident in 2017, I was 69 years old. At this writing I am 76 years old and have been using transit and taxi for the most part. If I ride with a friend for any distance I contribute to their gas costs. It is still difficult for me to ask for a ride, but I'm getting there. I still prefer the independence of transit or taxi. 

“Not knowing when the dawn will come I open every door.”

~ Emily Dickinson, The Complete Poems

Author's note: Edited and addendum added February 08, 2024

Only an Onion

I only wanted an onion.

Not really enough to go for groceries

I wanted to enjoy the summer afternoon

my morning was on the patio writing

My legs and my heart wanted to go for a walk

So I took a chance and stepped out in the heat.

I strolled down the sidewalk

Cook Street Village hummed lazily

I wandered past restaurants

Sidewalk tables filled with patrons

I wandered into shops

Shopping with my eyes only.

I purchased vegetables at an open air market.

But really ~ I only wanted an onion.

“I love how summer just wraps it’s arms around you like a warm blanky.”

~ Kellie Elmore, Magic in the Backyard