Maybe Both

We are alive in

so many different ways 

whether walking down 

a snow covered sidewalk 

the trees still winter black 

lined with snow

or visiting with friends in 

a buzzing coffee shop telling 

each other tales of books, 

or recent events 

or the latest fashions. 

Passersby and neighbours 

live their lives while 

taking a walk along the frozen lake

or driving from here to there

There is no must be 

   or should be 

only what we each believe 

~ maybe a belief in 

stern, no smiling, 

one foot in front of the other, 

or it may be a belief 

    in the joy of being alive.

Maybe both?

“Happiness. Simple as a glass of chocolate 

or tortuous as the heart. Bitter. Sweet. Alive.”

~ Joanne Harris, Chocolat

"The Gift of Walking"

Walking tells me I am alive.

To know it as a gift makes it 

all the more precious. 

Stiffening with age and a crooked back, 

walking asks me to focus, 

to never stop walking.

Each day, I am given the gift of walking

tied with ribbons of muscle and sinew

to be oiled and polished with stretch and bend

To breathe the air; to smell the rain

To feel the sun on my face

To feel the wind in my hair.

To know where my feet are planted

To feel the strength in my legs

To stride out with purpose

Walking tells me I am alive.

To know it as a gift makes it 

all the more precious. 

“To walk like a person who will never forget the gift of walking.”

~ Andrea Gibson, poet

(Aug13, 1975 ~ July 14, 2025)

Putting on a Show

Clouds dark and threatening

delicious clean smell of rain

mere sprinkles dotted the sidewalk, wind had no idea which way to go!

then it was quiet………..

but not for long!

inside, I could see the trees 

waving like limp rags

rain spattered onto the balcony

thunder grumbled unconvincingly

sheet lightning concurred.

Is the show closing?

“.…what thunder there was, now grumbled over more distant hills,

like a man saying ‘And another thing’...twenty minutes 

after admitting he’s lost the argument.”

~ Douglas Adams

On an Afternoon Walk ~ Luck

Too far from home to dash in and get an umbrella, I watched the storm clouds gather. I knew the forecast was for rain for the afternoon when I would be out and about. Did I pay attention? Would it have done any good? The wind was one of those umbrella destroying ones. But I did manage to avoid getting soaked. Luck, definitely not good sense. I got my errands done and after I had stopped for coffee and a read, the sun was out and the sky seemed to be clearing. The real rain, complete with thunder, lightning and hail, didn’t start until I was safely home and dry. As I said, it was luck, definitely not good sense.

“However small the chance might be of 

striking lucky, the chance was there.”

~ Roald Dahl, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Unfocussed but Alive

 

The tiny blue space waves to me

but sitting in the shadows, 

the breeze caresses my skin, 

filtered sun is warm through caragana branches.

A slide into the waters of life tempts me ~ to float and to swim 

but fear of drowning

in that beautiful spot of blue

holds me fast and keeps me safe

surrounded by beautiful distractions.

“A goal without a plan is just a wish.”

~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

On an Afternoon Walk - Through the Park

Buttercups scattered daintily at waters edge, lilacs bursting with elegance along the path, cyclists and walkers, some with their dogs big or small, while sun warmed benches welcome a casual sit down to watch 

   ducks in flight

      pelicans landing gracefully

Through the park, a light breeze dances and cools the air just enough.

 

“At some point in life, 

the world’s beauty becomes enough.”

~ Toni Morrison

On an Afternoon Walk ~ Bright Blooms

Bright blooms ~ decoration

for a sombre setting,

brought a smile to my face.

“The nature of a Flower is to bloom.”

~ Alice Walker

Movie Review: Fable Deaf ~ Written and produced by Deaf Crows Collective

I was invited to attend the showing of the short film, Fable Deaf, on May 21, 2024. It was held in a banquet room at the Crave Restaurant on Victoria Avenue. The room was crowded with a mix of deaf and hearing Regina residents. The film was silent, with subtitles and full of action and energy. It was a juxtaposition of past knowledge and present trials. An old library of built only of windows and loose boards was cared for by elderly Hugo (Allard Thomas) who would have been content to read his history books and have a cup of tea. Devi (Fatima Nafisa), a young and happy girl, was trying in vain to repair the window frames of the old library that really was falling apart. To Do Lists were posted everywhere, none of the items checked off. Jaul (Mustafa Alabssi), a curious and then angry young man tried to make Hugo understand his concerns but they fought. In a beautiful bout of magical realism, their anger erupted in a violent storm that almost swept them all away and destroyed the library. Jasper (Oscar Grodeki), a child, was seen at the beginning and throughout the film - a young boy alone and seemingly forgotten. In the end, the generations came together and agreed to work together.

This entire evening was in ASL (American Sign Language) with an expert interpreter for those of us who did not understand or communicate in ASL. Following the film and a brief Q & A, we were treated to an explanation of how the film was made as well as a synopsis of its meaning. The ‘library’ was built at Thom Collegiate. The storm scene was shot in a local back yard in a swimming pool! 

It was an excellent production. If you would like to contact the Deaf Crows to see a trailer of this film, or just to ask questions their website is deafcrowscollective.ca

“I am fourth-generation deaf, which means everyone 

in my immediate family is deaf. So I grew up always having

 100 percent accessibility to language and communication, 

which was wonderful and something so many deaf people don’t have.”

~ Shoshannah Stern, actress

Written and produced by Deaf Crows Collective

Directed by Chrystene Ells

Starring

Mustafa Alabssi as Jaul

Oscar Grodecki as Jasper

Fatima Nafisa as Devi

Allard Thomas as Hugo

Shot on location the John Hopkins Regina Stage, Regina, Sk

Cathedral Art Festival on 13th Avenue

As I walked through the throngs filling 13th Avenue from Albert Street to Elphinstone Street, a distance of …….well, a long way…. from my vantage of my barely 5 feet tall, I could hardly see the kiosks we passed. It was stop and start, weaving through the crowd at my measured pace, stopping long enough to watch the Salsa Colada troupe of young girls in bright costumes perform for the crowd that blocked the path of those that kept walking. From babies in slings or strollers, teenagers and young families, to those of us several decades past; dogs on leashes, rainbow coloured hair, local musicians established several blocks apart - each one a different genre, garish dress to perfectly acceptable dress, the occasional individual in wheelchair a caregiver in tow, kiosks selling artwork, food, clothes, jewelry, books, wood carving, pottery, ceramics, tarot card reading, massage, quilting, crocheting and food trucks. The food trucks! Ethiopian, Mexican, Indian curry, First Nations, poutine, hot dogs and popcorn. The soaring churches and buildings lining 13th Ave were dwarfed by this strolling, happy crowd. 

The late spring sun was wonderful, thankfully cooled by a light wind. I did sit down several times on my journey, but, in all, I walked from one end to the other. My goal: to visit Pause, an air-conditioned coffee shop, opened just 7 weeks ago, to sit down, have a coffee and just ‘pause’ before my long walk back. On that long walk back, I hoped to get a loaf of sour dough bread that I’d seen at the beginning - but not only was it sold out, but the space where the kiosk had been, was empty - not a crumb left!

This, and other community events are all volunteer driven. In that, I saw my community with amazing potential, participation and great diversity. My photo of the clear sky barely marred by cloud and a beautiful pink quilt draped on the kiosk wall, is only a tiny sliver of it all. 

“Strength lies in differences, not in similarities.”

~ Stephen Covey

On an Afternoon Walk ~ What Matters

I don’t remember flowers on that tree last spring 

but then I may not have walked that way 

when they were in bloom

or it could be one of those mind dwindles 

that lets me see things with new eyes

or I may not have been paying attention.

answering all those questions doesn’t matter 

when the sky is blue, the clouds are not threatening rain 

and the sun has warmed the air

what matters is that today my eye caught

the beautiful pink of a young tree in flower.

“Don’t let yesterday take up too much of today.”

~ Will Rogers

A Short History of the Prairies

The prairies are known for wheat fields and industry ~ no foolish flowers 

or graceful stands of trees 

especially for my grandparents and pioneers arriving on a flat, open plain, 

only wanting land, but somehow 

trees, flowers, and vegetables 

sprouted and grew 

with the patience of farming families and 

the longing for green growing things and bright colourful flowers

While the fields were quilted 

in green wheat, blue flax and yellow canola

it was not like the abundant gardens of home 

so gardens with potatoes, onions and carrots were planted

even if precious water had to be sacrificed to keep them alive

there was only waving grasslands and sky burning bright blue 

or gray with clouds if luck brought rain with a crack of thunder

the only relief, the night fall that erased the vast emptiness of the prairie

Now the descendants of my grandparents and pioneers

keep planting - not just fields of waving grains - but

graceful trees, foolish flowers and vegetables of many kinds.

“After the sunset on the prairie, there are only the stars.”

~ Carl Sandburg

Ode to Our Pets

Dogs and cats ~ 

lapping at our faces or

curling around our legs

walking by our side

or hiding under the bed

greeting us with a 

grinning yip or whine or 

a meow that speaks volumes

personalities that only a

pet parent can love, and

only hope to understand

(especially a cat)

with their leashes and

blankets, dishes and toys

they settle into our hearts

and there they stay ~

as any other family member.

“You cannot share your life with a dog…or a cat, and not know 

perfectly well that animals have personalities and minds and feelings.”

~ Jane Goodall