On the Rise

August 2024

Over a year ago, I began

a sourdough starter ~

bubbly and full of life. 

Flattened and lazy,

On the watch for 

mould or a flat taste. 

no mould appeared

taste is sharp and sour! 

What was I doing wrong? 

Too long in the cold

fed once a week! 

No reason to bubble.

    ~~~~~~~

So it is with spirit

Excitement in life 

shrinks in the cold

flattens without life 

stirred and kept warm, 

danced and out of breath

What excites me?

ideas that beg for the written word

story that stirs my soul to laughter or tears

music to tap my toes and sway my hips 

What excites your heart and mind?

“For here I hope begins our lasting joy.”

~ William Shakepeare

(Re: Sourdough restoration: I’m keeping it on the cupboard and feeding it once a day for a while until it’s back to it’s bubbly self. Maybe a week? In this cold weather, I’m not going far from home.A metaphor for life - it I keep my life in the cold)

On the Rise

 

Stretch and fold

  as in yoga &

a sourdough rise.

“There is not a thing that is more positive than bread.”

~ Fyodor Dostoevsky

Clarity - CLARITY - Theme for April 2023

Clara knew…….

Leading on……..

Assessing what……

Respect for…….

Incurring a …….

Trusting each……

Yet, they did……

“At sunrise, everything is luminous but not clear.”

~ Norman Maclean, River Runs Through It

An Early Morning Walk - Winter be Damned!

footfalls behind and ahead

striding out or 

measured paces, 

laughing and talking 

grey heads and coloured hair

exciting ABBA music playing

for spin cyclers in one corner

treadmills, ellipticals to one side, in the centre of it all, 

great blue drapes topped with netting lowered to surround tennis court; an errant tennis ball escaped into our path scooped up and retrieved with apologies

~ The Fieldhouse: a safe haven from icy winds.

“A bear, however hard he tries, grows tubby without exercise.”

~ A.A.Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

February Theme Come Early ~ CONFIDENCE

"Just Learning"
Water colour from 2006

Confidence was new…….

Obsessing over…….

Never more……

Finding the way…..

Intimacy came slowly….

Depth was a quality….

Everyday chores……

Needing something……

Entering into…..

**Wednesday is the next episode of Situationally Theirs. February’s theme has come early to accommodate both a new theme and this ongoing story.

“Public opinion is a weak tyrant compare with our own private opinion,”

~ Henry David Thoreau

A Gentle Day ~ 2

My old friend arthritis 

paid me a visit this week ~

unwelcome and jabbing

and grabbing at joints 

hobbling my morning walks,

my afternoon walks.

Did I take any missteps?

Too much sugar

Not enough yoga

Skipping exercises

Trying to push through discomfort

Walking in the heat of these days

(Just don’t tell anyone.)

Settling into the cool,

resting, writing and reading, 

watching TV and gentle exercise

has eased discomfort ~

Just in time for a short walk…..

“My message is - keep moving. If you do, you’ll keep arthritis at bay.”

~ Donna Mills

Work Out

Gulls fishing - churning up their own water

Blue water sparkled and churned.

Multicoloured bathing suits flashed.

Multi shaded coiffures, tied up, loose or curled, 

endangered by splashes from

the energy of watery exercise,

survived intact ~ almost.

Hearty cheers and steady direction called out from a seasoned instructor lead us through a whole hour!

Singalong music, muffled by laughter,

shouts and frothing water kept us

in time to strains, stretches, and strides.

“Energy and persistence conquer all things.”

~ Benjamin Franklin

When I Was a Child - 4th in Series

The following is from a writing exercise borrowed from the book Walking in The World by Julia Cameron. The words in italics are direct quotations from that book. I have already completed this exercise in my personal journal with answers a bit different. There are a total of 10 questions. The first six were completed and posted November 7th, followed by the next two on November 8th and 9th. Today's post is the ninth of the ten. For this work day, direction is the next focus of Identify Your Identity in Chapter Two of Walking in The World.

When I was a Child - Continued

One action I can take in the direction of my childhood love is….

read, read, read and keep writing on a daily basis 

(that’s actually two but I think they are of equal importance).

“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have 

the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”

~ Stephen King

When I was a Child - 3rd in Series

The following is from a writing exercise borrowed from the book Walking in The World by Julia Cameron. The words in italics are direct quotations from that book. I have already completed this exercise in my personal journal with answers a bit different. There are a total of 10 questions. I’ve done the first six on November 7th post. Today is one more work day - still two posts to go in this series. Here is my next post from Identify Your Identity in Chapter Two.

When I was a Child - Continued 2nd

The reason it is too late for me in this lifetime is......Well actually it isn't too late ~ even though I have considered that:
          a) I'm too old 
          b) no money tree around 
          c) Victoria is a veritable haven of writer's, artists 
          d) I'll just never be famous! 

But, although my passion for paper dolls has vanished, I still love designing, learning and now, word crafting. And, when I was lost in my paper doll fun, I didn’t know much about writing or what it was good for. Now, I can learn more about creative writing and with retirement soon upon me, I will have more time dedicated to writing the stories, poems and essays that swirl in my head.

“If you carry your childhood with you, you never become older.”

~ Tom Stoppard

Pivot Point

Exercise

Turning around today

Monday morning movement

Bending into yoga

Walking without talking then ~

A break to sit and talk with friends

then off to fit muscles into watery cardio

Makes a mind happy!

“True enjoyment comes from activity of the mind 

an exercise of the body; the two are ever united.

~ Wilhelm Von Humboldt

Don’t forget!  March is Epilepsy month with Purple Day for Epilepsy on March 26 each year.

A Twin Surprise!

An exercise on developing dialogue, this piece started with the first line: “Are you kidding me? We’re not ‘fine’!”

                       *****

A Twin Surprise

“Are you kidding me? We’re not ‘fine’!”

“Oh heavens, we are right now. But in a few minutes, we are going to be having fun!”

“Well right now, we’re not fine or having fun. Standing in line is neither. And it’s hot and noisy. Can’t we just go and have something to eat. I’m hungry.”

“Trust me, you don’t want to eat first - I think...”

“Why don’t you tell me what we’re going to do for this ‘fun’?”

“Because I don’t even know, silly. Mom and Dad just gave me this money, said it was for our next ride and told me what line to get in.”

“You know, I really love the midway, even if it is noisy and hot. It’s the music, all the delicious food smells and all the families having own fun. And of course the guys. Nobody I really want to know, just - Wow - good looking.”

“Come on, the line’s moving. We’ll lose our place if we don’t keep moving.”

“This line’s leaving the midway. Oh look! There’s a couple of thoroughbreds being saddled up. Do you think we could go over for a look at them after we’re finished here? I’ll wait to eat if I have to.”

“Oh! That’s where this line is going! We may not be riding in the ring, but…….those horses are amazing………we get to ride today!!!

“There is no surprise more magical than the surprise of being loved.”

~ Charles Morgan

An Ideal Definition

Idiosyncratic flashes of brilliance
Dynamic belief in thought
Effervescent dreams of growth
Astute observations of the margins
Scientific bits and pieces

“Anyone who fights for the future, lives in it today.”

~ Ayn Rand

Out of the Gate!

It’s only a walk
Ten minutes a day - or as many minutes as one wants!
Or run, or cycle, or swim or ~ 
Any exercise outside of a work day….

Once more I almost played the age card on myself! 
All the team members will be younger so don’t even bother!
A kind of misplaced arrogance? 
Or is it false modesty?

Where is your humility!

A definition of humility  - according to The Free Dictionary online -
is: ‘modest opinion of one’s own importance or rank’

Do I want the rank of ‘too old’?
Sure don’t!
I can do minutes of anything…..

So - running (walking) shoes on, 
bathing suit at the ready, 
(I don’t cycle),
my daily yoga gear ready for morning - the challenge is accepted!

“Difficulites strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.”

~ Seneca

A Timely Adventure

A Timely Adventure

Terrence the mouse scurried along long stretches of baseboard into the kitchen. 
Inching his way under chairs to creep under the long tablecloth, he found lovely bits of cheese and bread.
Martin, the cat, snoozed on the fuzzy grey rug by the crackling fire, certain all mice had been chased far away.
Eager to nibble, Terrence cautiously sniffed the delicious kitchen air and stayed under the table snacking on delectable dinner crumbs, scuttling away just as Martin woke up with a yawn and a stretch.

“Make use of time, let not advantage slip.”

~ William Shakespeare

Body Awareness

In past essays and muses I’ve talked about the education that one needs to deal with epilepsy. I’ve discussed education from a ‘school’ point of view these past few weeks, and a bit about self education. What I have, I think, failed to mention, is body education. Not a body of education but educating the body! One would think, that once you learn to walk and run, ride a bike, dance, throw a ball there would be no other education needed. Now that I think about it, I’ve merely been adequate at any of those activities learned in my youth. The most regular activity, specifically for my body's health, a yoga/exercise routine for years. The regularity have been intermittent, but in general pretty faithful.

But that is not the point of this post. My skeleton is rather crooked - my spine is the shape of my first initial ‘S’. There is a fancy medical name for that physical oddity - scoliosis. There's much more to that story than I have to talk about tonight. Tonight is about, not just educating, but re-educating the body that, with each year and dare I say, decade, just keeps on reminding me that muscles protest loudly when overworked. This scoliosis thing, besides stamping my back with the letter ‘S’, has created an imbalance in my musculature.

Since I’ve been doing Aquafit, walking so much more and of course doing my yoga/exercise routine I have gotten stronger, more balanced and have slept better. However…… when you’re in the water, doing aerobic exercise for an hour, following the directions of a 40 something man who runs marathons, any muscle that hasn’t kept up with its lessons, stretches too far becomes annoyingly sore and unwilling to respond rapidly.

My own re-education is to try not to keep up to someone 20 years younger and much more fit. But when I do, I seek the services of my very effective massage therapist and slow my pace. Not quit, just walk slower for a bit, get out the Epsom salts for bath and rub on the liniment.

So, what does that all have to do with epilepsy? A tonic/clonic seizure, strains every muscle in a body. Yoga and exercise have positive effects on brain health. Regarding epilepsy, they have provided me with focus, calm, energy and, I believe, supports seizure control. So it is a 'two for one' benefit for my health in general.

“The body is a big sagacity, a plurality with one sense,

a war and a peace, a flock and a shepherd.”

 ~ Friedrich Nietzsche

Author's note: August 17, 2024

    Extensive revision to provide focus on epilepsy that I neglected to write in the initial writing of this essay.