Three Runaway Squirrels

Regina ~ July, 2023

This morning, I watched them ~ three little darlings scampering across the street. The boldest already racing up the first available tree. The middle ‘child’ was merely following along. The last one was still in the middle of the road trying to decide which way to turn to avoid the huge white monster bearing down on it. All three made it to safety. I turned away to get my coffee and to read. Silence was broken by the very busy rustling of the tree out front. I didn’t leap to my feet, but had to satisfy my curiosity. There they were the three red young-un’s, tails flashing, racing up, down, every single branch from one tree to the next. So fast that I could not get a photo of the flying three. Back to my book. A very loud, abrupt and insistent chitter stopped all the leafy noise. I could only assume that mom was calling her wayward kids home for lunch!

“Well, it may be humorous to you, 

but it’s a very serious matter to the squirrels.”

~ Lisa Kleypas, author

Any Other Day

Any other day 

could have been filled 

with sunshine or raindrops 

but today is 

not like any other day 

even though filled with 

the decisions of any other day. 

Which mug to fill with tea, 

which task to do, 

which part of life to live, 

which time to be here or there, 

which friends and family to enjoy. 

Any other day 

could have been filled 

with sunshine or raindrops 

but not the same ones that filled this day.

“Don’t count the days, make the days count.”

~ Muhammad Ali

(1942 ~ 2016)

Back Up, Go Around

Trust yourself ~ 

‘Sounds easy and does hard’. 

Breaking a decision 

    into chunks 

makes life manageable

each step simple,

hampered only by emotional baggage

with time between to change your mind

Trust yourself

to back up and go around

or turn down a different road

when necessary or 

if a more charming road appears 

Trust yourself.

“Some wisdom lives in your body before your 

mind can explain it. Trust what your bones know.”

~ Lawrence Nault, author

Genre: science fiction, Young Adult, Fiction

Mayonnaise Decisions

Steps to any particular goal 

are often hidden unless 

there is some form of 

manual that is numbered, 

bulleted and with an index. 

There may even be chapter headings 

outlining all the steps you need to 

complete your task. But if you look 

in a library or book store, or one 

of those little sidewalk lending 

libraries you may find many 

how-to books about your topic, 

each one a different author and a 

different set of steps. So there’s 

the conundrum. Now what to do. 

Pick and choose who is right? 

Throw them all out and run away 

in frustration? Or just get started 

and pick and choose what fits

for you? Decisions can be such 

a headache sometimes. So it may 

be best just to take a nap or eat 

your lunch. As you’re dreaming or 

chewing your tomato sandwich, the 

answer will arrive with the mayonnaise 

letting you get on with your journey.

“Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

With Only Minutes

With hesitation and not a 

little annoyance I could see 

a middle aged man stop on 

the very sidewalk I needed 

to get to my appointment. He had 

stopped, looking intently 

at his cell phone. A business call perhaps. None of my business, 

except that he blocked my way. 

I had my cane, and could have 

tried to move him out of the way, 

but I’m not a violent person. 

And he was bigger and younger than me. 

Deciding to take the pathway on the neighbouring 

property that connected to my destination, 

I was greeted by these gorgeous prairie lilies 

nestled in the greenery. I must have done a little 

stop - start - stop as I only had minutes to spare. 

But the beautiful orange wings of prairie lilies 

have always captured my heart and my imagination. 

After all what could happen ~ would I be shown 

the door before I even got there? Not likely. 

I just don’t like to be late. I risked it anyway 

when these beloved prairie lilies shone on my path.

“People from a planet without flowers would think we must be

 mad with joy the whole time to have such things about us.”

~ Iris Murdoch

Back and Forth

This branch, drooping over the fence 

unsure of whether to grow and flourish 

or to fade and dry up in the summer sun,

still is graceful in its uncertainty. Insistent lilacs made their own decision while deadness and the greenness were making up their minds ~ not unlike my writing practice that is still deciding whether to steady on or to toss it all over ~ so I continue to write until I have no more words, which has never been a failing of mine.

“If you aren’t in the moment, you are either looking 

forward to uncertainty, or back to pain and regret.”

~ Jim Carrey

Open Hearted

September, 2020 - Wascana Park

Assessing what direction to take ~ so linear, sorted on spread sheets with data to back up decisions,

when I watch my hand holding a knife, chopping vegetables for supper, easily swinging them into the pot,

there has been no obvious assessing, no measuring grids and lines, merely wanting the taste of good food. 

Assessing what direction to take 

~ needs the pull of heartstrings

with intuition to back up decisions.

“The head is powerful, but it can only get us 

what we really want if we open our heart first.”

~ James Doty, Into the Magic: 

A Neurosurgeon’s Quest to Discover the 

Mysteries of the Brain and the Secrets of the Heart

Coffee and a Good Book

Leading on a whim,

It was coffee time, 

more specifically 

Latte time but….

“Sorry ma’am, the 

espresso machine isn’t working. Closest would be a mocha or a cappucino.”

Hmm…decisions are hard!

I always have Lattes, but 

the barista was so nice…..

snow, wind and April cold or….

my choice was definite ~

“Mocha and that chocolate twist, please.”

“When values are clear, decisions are easy.”

~ John Spence

Good Earth Coffeehouse

3806 Albert St.

In SmartCentres Regina (Golden Mile Shopping Centre)

Regina, Sask.

Awakening ~ 4

Early morning dreams 

tangled in my pillow

wisp away from sleepy eyes

sensing another new day ~

a yawn, a stretch,

deciding:

do I get up? or not?

hope:

still sleeping until

movement awakens a smile.

“Not the day only, but all things have their morning.”

~ French Proverb

Into the Void

It’s easy to let hope 

drain drop by drop

while deep inside

healing fills spaces

that hope has abandoned

~ spaces designed to

hold light or dark,

sadness or willingness.

It can be difficult to 

decide which to choose.

“We are our choices.”

~ Jean-Paul Sartre

A Walk in the Sun

Puzzled

By my own indecision

The sun shone

Snow glittered

Through the window

Is the cold still snapping at our noses and toes-es?

It is only the trash to take out

Maybe it could wait.

I’ll poke my head out the door.

What?!

Porch boards soaking wet!

Only patches of snow remain!

Puzzle solved

Decision: walk in the sun

Even if it is just to take the trash out.

“It’s not about making the right choice.

It’s about making a choice and making it right.”

~ J.R.Rim, Better to be able to love than be loveable. ~

(a collaboration with other authors)

Chapter Two, Episode Forty-Nine - Slow Down - Situationally Theirs

Slow Down

Dez climbed into Old Faithful. Her old red car had just been to the shop. Oil change and tires were rotated. Giles, the Estate chauffeur, had referred her to this garage. She hadn’t been the best at taking care of Old Faithful, but the older it got, the more important it was. Giles had given her quite a lesson about what she needed to do. She always liked to report to Giles when Old Faithful had been taken care of, but he wouldn’t be at the Estate today. Today, she was going out to see her big sister. She and Em were going out to talk with Samuel. Dez had no idea why Em wanted her to be there, but Em asked for her to be there, so she’d be there. She had been pretty vague when Dez asked what they were going to be doing. So she just let it drop.

~~~~~

Emelina couldn’t decide which jacket she should wear. Glancing out the window, she saw clouds but thankfully no rain. She wouldn’t have to wear rain boots. She and Samuel had had many great visits, but they had just been visits between friends. This time she was going out there as his employer. It wasn’t a social call. She really wanted to call it off, but it would only be procrastinating. Reading personnel files, going to appointments at the bank and to the accountant were relatively easy. Not to begin with, but once she got going it was smooth. She’d had Brigitte with her for those meetings, but Brigitte was busy getting her school calendar set up. She did still come to the Estate but only a couple of half days a week. Em finally decided on her denim jacket, it looked more 'gardenish'. The blue leather just didn’t look right or feel right. Too much. There was still something missing. She didn’t want to do this by herself. “I wonder if……I wonder if Dez will come out? She’s probably busy….” Saying this as she punched Dez’s speed dial number, she already felt calmer.

~~~~~

He pushed his old straw hat back from his forehead, pulled his red handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped the dirt from his hands. “Now that wasn’t so bad was it, Miss Em. You looked like you’d lost your last friend when you and Miss Dez showed up.”

“I know, Samuel. You’re right - as you always are. It wasn’t bad at all. I am still uncomfortable when I have to be the boss.” Emelina had taken off her jacket, the afternoon sun too warm for a jacket. Dez had been quiet while her sister and the Estate gardener had talked. She actually felt sorry for her sister, usually so put together and controlled. 

All the way from the house to the garden, Emelina had chattered about her ‘agenda’ that she had written out. “I need to remember what I want to talk about. I’m so nervous that I can’t trust my memory.” She pulled out a small notebook. “Here’s some of my questions, Dez, what do you think: “Are you worried about your job?’ - Cook said everyone was worried about their jobs. ‘Do you have everything you need to do your work?’ I know what’s in Digby’s paper work, but there’s no real listing about what kind of tools Samuel would need. ‘Is your work satisfying?’ I really think for Samuel it is. He seems to live for the land. But I just can’t be sure.”

Emelina stopped to take a breath. “Em, just slow down. Who are you afraid of ~ Samuel or yourself? You’ve never had a problem talking with him before.” Dez had put her arm around her sister, took the notebook from her and literally slowed the two of them down. “We’re practically running!”

Emelina had slowed down then. She took the notebook from Dez, folded it and put it in her pocket. “I think, Dez, it’s me. Michael was always so good at this employer/employee thing. Never flinched, everyone loved him. I just feel like a misfit.” She linked her arm through her sister’s and was quiet. “You’re still learning, Em. It’s good that you have Michael’s example. Everyone loves you too, Em.” There were times when Dez felt like the older sister, but it usually wasn’t long before the tables were turned. 

~~~~~

“Thank you, Samuel. I’m glad you’re happy out here.” Almost stiffly, Em shook hands with Samuel, knowing a hug would not have been appropriate. Hugs were not something Emelina was used to giving, but she was so very relieved. “I’ll be sure to ask Digby to order those tools that need replacing. If you need anything else, just let Digby know.”

~~~~~

“Doubt, of whatever kind, can be ended by action alone.”

~ Thomas Carlyle