Cake

Photo taken in Victoria, December 2014
(I ate my slice of cake at Cozyhaus - sorry!)

I often long for cake 

  

Chocolate

  Spice

    Carrot cake

      White cake if necessary

Icing not a requirement ~ 

  but I’ll never turn it down

Today I gave myself a treat

Only because I hadn’t eaten yet 

   and I’d walked a long way

‘all sold out’ of rice bowls 

  forced me ~ yes forced me ~

   to either just have tea or maybe, 

     just maybe a piece of cake?

When I saw a real piece of apple 

   inside a maple cinnamon cake 

with cream cheese frosting ~ two layers!

   There was no contest.

It was dense, moist and delicious ~

  a perfect accompaniment 

    to my Peppermint Fog Tea.

“Where there is cake, there is hope. 

And there is always cake.”

~ Dean Koontz, author

Author’s note:   

Did I not mention the name of this delightful cafe?  No?     

CozyHaus Desserts and Coffee, 2245 Albert St., Regina

On Instagram: @cozyhaus_regina

Not Always Dramatic

Eyes wide open to each day 

a strange second chance 

to do what? 

Do all the same routine things 

as the day before. 

Or is the second chance 

a gift to see beauty, 

  to hear life’s rhythms, 

to feel from the tips of toes 

to the top of the head, 

  to be aware once again 

that this day is ours to shape. 

“We’re given second chances every day of our life. 

We don’t usually take them but they’re there for the taking.”

~ Andrew M. Greeley

(1928 ~ 2013)

Regina Native Outreach Ministry Charity Evening

 

They say that charity begins at home. Tonight, home was at Nicky’s Café and Catering at 1005 8th Ave., a popular Regina fixture for over 35 years. A diverse group of friends and family enjoyed meals from choices of Chicken Cordon Bleu, Ribs or Steak. There was a raffle of the donations from local businesses. Thanks to everyone who organized and volunteered for this lovely evening. We ate well and visiting was lively! Funds received will go the Regina Native Outreach Ministry, a local Outreach non-profit organization with the United Church of Canada.

“Where there is charity and wisdom, there is neither fear nor ignorance.”

~ Francis of Assisi

Gifted

Waking to the drizzle and drop of rain 

I thought of the trees given 

a last drink of water of autumn.  

When the rain turned to snow, 

whipped about by fierce winds, 

I was secure in the warmth of my home.

When granola, warm and spicy, 

comes out of the oven, 

I am blessed with its goodness.

Abundance is a gift I am grateful for. 

If I compare my home to others 

I am neither wealthy nor destitute.

“Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, 

it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude.”

A.A. Milne,  Winnie-the-Pooh

Between Two Hearts

Elegance of 

a simple thank you 

wrapped in sincerity 

is a flower 

offered by a child.

A gracious nod 

for a job well done.

An intentioned act 

of kindness.

A gift from 

one heart to another.

greater than two small words.

Treat this elegant gift with care for gratitude strengthens 

the world between two hearts.

“Gratitude bestows reverence…..changing forever

 how we experience life and the world”

~ John Milton

"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)

A Gift

The smoke of green sage curled 

in the air around my head,

carried by my hands;

asked that I be the vessel for 

good words, good thoughts, 

a voice for the voiceless and 

deep caring from my heart. An 

eagle feather guided the smoke 

all around me and beneath my feet 

to guide me on a straight path…

~ a blessing from the Creator.

“The excellence of a gift lies in it appropriateness rather than in its value.”

 ~ Charles Dudley Warner, essayist, author

The Gift

Leaning into the winds of change, my balance threatens to be lost. But no, it is a threat without a promise. My promise is the gift of my 

own balance causing me to step back, to breathe deeply and know that I am here, now, not flying about in the tornado of chaos like an old chair, or roof torn from a barn. 

Here all is quiet and good, even the glittering 

snow that fills cracks and crevices everywhere. 

Today I lean into my own home, and make plans for tomorrow and tomorrow; grateful for all that I have and all that I am.

“I know myself a mortal, and my share in what 

the morrow brings not more than thine.”

~ Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus

An Open Hand

Big Organizations offering help are scattered all over the place with ribbons, buttons and walks for the cure.

 

An organization, the wish of one young woman to give back to community touched my heart. 

In an empty parking lot, 

one table with boxes 

of homemade soup, 

     pudding, 

       sandwiches,

         bannock

   apples

   water

We filled bags

welcomed hungry people

    on foot

     bicycles,

      small families

in need of a meal. 

No papers to sign

   No proof of need

A small group of family and friends 

gathered round this young woman

in support of her wish to give back 

Her gift has not gone unnoticed, 

but those she aided today with 

her homemade soup will not 

know her, or her reasons why. 

Giving with an open hand and open heart was all.

“Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness 

and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.”

~ Kahlil Gibran

Two Sides of the Street

Loneliness and solitude are two completely different things. I have felt them both. When I am lonely, I feel cut off, unloved and unwanted; feeling very sorry for myself, and that no one really understands me or wants to understand me. It’s a very bleak, frightening and empty feeling. Beauty and joy are singed badly around the edges. Incredibly melodramatic! 

When I am in a state of solitude, I feel whole. Excited about life, I know I am loved and wanted. As far as that cut off feeling? It’s my responsibility to reach out to others. Reaching out can be because I am lonely, or because I’ve not connected with my loved ones, or both. Disconnection does go two ways. In a state of solitude, even the tiniest flower is beautiful. My heart will feel joy in my world as it is; great sadness for the tragedies in the lives of others.

There is narrow path between the two states of being. Maybe they are two sides of the same street. Solitude going on too long can slide silently into loneliness. Just like a treasured gift ~ if solitude is not appreciated and cherished, it can become a dark and broken loneliness. 

“I hold this to be the highest task for a bond between two people; 

that each protects the solitude of the other.”

~ Rainer Maria Rilke