R & R

 

Vitality in the past ~ 

to return tomorrow 

with a smile.

“Rest and be thankful.”

~ William Wordsworth

Deep Within

As our lives grow and mature, 

all can seem more crowded; 

yet growth shares vitality

from roots deep within.

And yet, 

each flower, each plant 

blossoms and grows from 

deep within your soul.

“Humankind has not woven the web of life. 

We are but one thread within it. 

Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. 

All things are bound together. All things connect.”

~ Chief Seattle

An Evening with Tom Jackson - The Huron Carole

Beginning the Christmas season with The Huron Carole was a delight. Tom Jackson, Winnipeg born Canadian actor, singer, producer and activist, and his singers and band entertained a full house at the Royal Theatre on Broughton Street with familiar carols in innovative arrangements. He took the stage for the first half of the evening, joined gradually by the remainder of the cast. The last half of the evening was shared by the rest of the cast, including two west coast girls, Britt and Carly McKillip. The energy and talent of all the entertainers was joyous and moving.

The entire evening was a fundraiser for the Mustard Seed Society a local and very vital organization for the homeless and hungry in Victoria. The Huron Carole is a project to support organizations of front line workers with the homeless and hungry in Canada. He and his troupes have raised over two hundred million dollars in their musical Christmas travels.

This evening was the first of their annual Canadian tour which Tom Jackson began in 1987 in Toronto at a ‘dark time’ in his life. They will be travelling through western Canada with their next stop in Lethbridge, Alberta on December 2, 2014. Go to huroncarole.ca for more dates that continue through December 18, 2014 for a total of twelve dates.

“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we 

have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.”

~ Albert Pike

'Til Next Year

One more vital celebration 

to finish the week.

Just a day for a birthday

‘twas a bit much to seek.

So out in the cold

for a walk ‘round the block.

Appies, dinner and laughter

then talk, talk, talk, talk.

Celebrations started with family

on this Sunday last,

then Wednesday with butterflies and birds,

tonight with fun friends ~ celebrations are past.

“Sometimes you will never know the true value 

of a moment until it becomes a memory.”

~ Dr. Seuss

At the Nurses Station

A question hung in the air….
Chosen behaviour or discrete function of gray matter?
Where is the line that shifts one to the other?

Answers tossed back and forth
Unformed details trail off into question marks.
What is the line that shifts one to the other?

Behaviour, thought, emotion
All come from within wrinkly folds of soft tissue
How do we learn to act, to feel and shape our thoughts?

A question hung in the air…
Curiousity, vital to finding answers,
dampened by clamour of a real and present work day.

“Reason can answer questions, but imagination has to ask them.”

~ Dr. Ralph Gerard

A Faraway Place

Leo

In the misty cool rain of the Victoria winter

the tropics beckoned - but only 27 minutes away

Little E - he sat on my arm.

In the humid warmth of a carefully constructed tropic

Inner wings are brilliant blue.

I stopped. I took a deep and truly cleansing breath

in a far away land where butterflies flitted and flew under and over leaves, 

light landing on table tops, on plates of sliced fruit

many hidden in camouflaged beauty.

Scrabbling below, and high in the trees,

lived brown knobbly turtles and brilliant parrots,

Leo, reserved and quiet

Little E, chatty, posed for a picture and flew onto my arm

koi fish flashing by a pair of long legged flamingos

tiny songbirds high in the foliage twittered and flew

Whatever the season ~ a tropical island awaits to renew my vitality.

“We live only to discover beauty. 

All else is a form of waiting’

~ Kahlil Gibran

Victoria Butterfly Gardens

1461 Benvenuto Ave.

Brentwood Bay, BC

1-877-722-0272

www.butterflygardens.com

Birthday Gifts

From Kate's dining room window last summer.

Birthdays ~ always good days
Wrapping up one year
Opening a new year
Vitality always in a package
full of family, friends and colleagues.

“Today is a gift.

Today is all I have.

I be fully awake in today.”
~ Lailah Gifty Akita

Marijuana - Therapeutic or Intoxicant?

Only a tomato plant - (see the little tomato?)

This is one issue where my opinions clash with the experience of others, and with medical research and treatment, leaving my opinions in tatters. Marijuana, specifically THC and its use for medical purposes, vs marijuana, when over used or abused, is so frighteningly life altering that it has come under the fire of opinion with developing research. I have known this drug, cannabis, specifically THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) the isomer found in the plant to be used for chronic or cancer pain, for severe intractable nausea, in some cases of dementia and most interestingly in the treatment of some forms of epilepsy. I have cared for clients in withdrawal from excessive amounts of cannabis who experience extremely high levels of anxiety, bordering on psychosis; disturbed sleep and one condition labelled Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome. This last syndrome is unremitting, unpredictable nausea and severe episodes of vomiting. Aside from plant chemistry, what is the brain chemistry involved in this divisive issue? And I would be remiss if I did not mention the effective use of THC in veterinary care.

Throughout my life and career, many medical issues have shifted and changed as research and experience mesh. This issue also is a thorn in the side of the police, the courts and all levels of the legal system. Given all of that is there a right and wrong? One side or the other? I know that many that have settled in one camp or the other. 

As a nurse, working in addictions care, this puts me in a bit of a bind. And as an individual that has epilepsy, it creates another area of questioning and concern. Concern for the child that may have an effective treatment withheld ~ a child with uncontrolled seizures that has had unsuccessful trials of numerous other legal drugs and finally success with marijuana ~ which may be illegal. Concern for the individual that has the potential for addiction to cannabis. The vitality of the arguments and opinions in the media and at an individual level seems to be mounting with little sign of agreement or acceptance.

I have read articles from Twitter, Google and the online Time Magazine, as well as listening to an interview on CBC radio regarding the toxic nature vs medical value of marijuana. At an International Nurses Society on Addictions conference several years ago, one of our members discussed at great length the endocannabinoid system and the value of marijuana in nursing care. And I have also seen the many memes that have carried the message of marijuana as an intoxicant, sometimes with the words and face of Bob Marley or Jimmy Carter in the background. If this drug, from a plant, is used as an intoxicant, I disagree with it’s use; if it is used for medical managment of a health condition, I may have to rethink my ‘all bad’ opinions. As a nurse, I will just take care of the individual that, because of cannabis abuse, arrives at the door of detox.

“All opinions are not equal. Some are a very great deal more robust, 

sophisticated and well supported in logic and argument than others.”

~ Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt

December 30, 2023

Author's Note: THC is the psychoactive chemical found in marijuana.

                         CBD or cannabinoid has no psychoactive effect.

Simply Intolerant

While walking in the brilliant sunshine at New Brighton Park in Vancouver, yesterday afternoon, I came upon this simple monument honouring the historic events of June 18, 1935 when longshoremen and their supporters attempted to reclaim their jobs. Dubbed The Battle of Ballantyne Pier, these longshoreman and their supporters clashed with local, provincial and federal authorities on that fateful day.

Union activities have often left me feeling powerless and in the midst of angry fights or discussions. And yet union activities have also won rights and benefits that would not be in place for many workers historically through to today, including rights and benefits that I personally enjoy. The vitality that I see and hear from those strong in their belief in the role that unions play in our society is really quite impressive.

There have been many times I have been intolerant of the union-management antagonist language and behaviour. Those of you that know me have probably heard some of my intolerance. I do not support or believe in violence. For some reason, this monument spoke to me yesterday. I thought of those that quite literally fought for their rights - not with words, but with broken bodies. Those longshoremen and their supporters did not win that particular fight, but continued to fight for what they believed in. The intolerance of union members is toward what are considered unfair labour practices for a broad range of workers. I do believe I have been humbled!

“Nothing dies so hard, or rallies so often as intolerance.”

~ Henry Ward Beecher

An Early Start

An early ferry to Vancouver
A ‘scenic route’ to Jason’s house, then off to pick up Jeff.
(I’ve only made that routing mistake seven times!)

Brunch with my sons on the sunny side of Commercial Drive at Lear Faye Cafe ~
Live jazz combo - sax, bass and guitar - played as we ate and visited ~
Delicious coffee, mimosas and bennies disappeared as music through the air.

To the park with grand-dogs, both full of the vitality of play
Soggy leaves and cold wet grass a minor detail when chasing a stick ~
or running with other dogs in the park.

Home to see the Stampeders win the Western Conference final
 - tucking into huge bowls of Wonton Soup and dainty spring rolls
It’s been a lovely early start to my upcoming birthday!

“The beginning is always NOW.”

~ Roy Bennett

Just One Bag

Leaves
beautiful red and gold leaves
wet beautiful red and gold leaves
rained down as heavily as the cold, wet rain
a brilliant carpet for sidewalk, steps and patio
extra leaves swept by yesterday’s wild wind into corners and crevices.

One bag - they all fit into one bag!

Whining about cleaning up all those leaves!
One bag - and they were leaves!
Not the heavy, wet snow covering the residents of Buffalo today
Perspective leant vitality to my efforts with broom and rake
Leaving sidewalk, steps and patio clean and tidy.

“Sometimes we must unfocus our way to clarity.”

~ Terri Guillemets

Phase-ology 101

New phases, like the phases of the moon, need breathing space
Not too long….but just long enough
Centering, regrouping but more importantly
….remembering.
Remembering each difficult, or not so difficult, task was accomplished with all the same skills,
learned over a life that keeps rolling along,
shifting with changing spaces of time and talent,
carrying the vitality of belief and experience into each new phase.

With belief and creativity in mind and heart ~ 
Deep breath, 
Spread out,
Pull back in
And lean into the work once more.

“There’ll come a writing phase where you have to defend the time,

unplug the phone and put in the hours to get it done.”

~ James Taylor

Re-Post of: Riding Through Life

Aging ~ a topic often met with fear, laughter or derision.
So many jokes about so much of it, as if it were inevitable.

And then there’s the saying ‘aging gracefully’ ~
now what does that mean?
There’s a tendency to be resentful, with a bit less stamina, not graceful.
A disliked phrase? ~ ‘it’s just part of aging,’
Often said with a gentle, almost patronizing tone,
a pat on the head wouldn’t be surprising.

Quite frankly I don’t have time for any of it.
I do know that I have learned to do things differently ~ 
at different paces,
what’s absolutely necessary and what is not
words jumble, tumble and dart away from the tip of my tongue

In high school the big question was, and still is:  What do you want to be when you grow up?
When you’re 65, and still working: When are you going to retire?

What happened to the growing up part, all that space in between?
Not ready to park my bike any time soon, I’ll just keep on riding.

“Age to me means nothing.I can’t get old;I’m working. 

I was old when I was twenty-one and out of work. 

As long as you’re working, you stay young. 

When I’m in front of an audience, all that love and vitality 

sweeps over me and I forget my age.”

~ George Burns (1886-1996)

Into the 'Grey Wave'

My life has taken another turn. I don’t think a very big one, no major curves, just in thought. Once the busyness of summer at Detox ended, my hours at work have decreased, often just to my part-time scheduled line. Right now? Ten days off with one relief shift in the middle. In my long stretches of days off, I have scheduled appointments with the dentist, the doctor, massage therapist and recently added, an acupuncturist. And did I mention the dental hygienist. Then there is book club, writing group, walking group and aquafit. It is a busy and very satisfying life. At home? Writing on a project that goes well and then goes poorly depending on whether my ‘inner editor’ has anything to contribute - I try not to pay attention to her, except to say ‘thank you for that bit of insight’.

I had given myself a break from listening to CBC news and talk shows, and recently turned the radio on again. In the break, I started listening to a variety of things on the internet, attended a couple of Toastmaster’s meetings and one mayoralty debate. What I have gleaned from all of this, is that I have not paid attention to community politics while they have swirled around me. Victoria, as the other cities I have lived in, is a very vital city. My ideas of life have, as many of you may know, been as though wearing blinders. It is important, this concern of mine about addictions care and the housing issues that plague this population, especially now that the ‘grey wave’ is advancing. But the housing issues also relate to the infastructures that are necessary to create functioning and safe housing. I am part of this ‘grey wave’  - the over sixty five - and am curious about what and who makes up the community I live in. Do I just continue with appointments and groups and homemaking? Or step out into the community to learn and participate in my future?  

“The important thing is not to stop questioning. 

Curiosity has its own reason for existing.”

~ Albert Einstein

Amidst Clutter

I’ve been going through drawers today - actually I’ve been clearing clutter for the past couple of days. Moving furniture around. Bruising myself - just my finger but a ‘battle scar’ none the less.

In small spaces, one needs to use all the space that one can find. Initially I filled drawers and corners and...well drawers and corners...until there were no drawers or corners left to fill. This clutter clearing has put a new face on down sizing - at least in my mind. In the corners and crevices, I have found scrunched up plastic bags, plastic bags containing screws and bolts for some unknown thing I put together a long time ago, three bags (plastic) of coin wraps, another bag (yes, plastic) of match books - and of course electric cords for unknown electronic devices. In other words, the clutter that I’m clearing is of little to no use, although the matches would come in handy if there was ever a black out.

I suppose one point of this essay, is that clutter breeds - or we breed clutter. I do recall being amused, as a teenager and young adult, of all the plastic containers saved religiously in kitchens of friends and family - until entrepreneurs designed, produced and sold fancier containers. Now, we - I suppose I should just say me - save plastic bags!

More interesting was the drawer that I cleaned out in my newly reorganized second bedroom. This excursion into clutter has been like going through a box of old photographs, a slowly fading fascination in this digital age. What I found was a folder with tiny paintings, tiny pieces of personal vitality, that I had painted while trying to find my feet in the world outside of work schedules and nursing. They are definitely not high art, but they are a lovely part of my then budding creativity. There they were tucked in one of the drawers, lying quietly waiting to be rediscovered.

“You can either be a victim of the world or an adventurer 

in search of treasure. It all depends on how you view your life.”

~ Paulo Coelho, Eleven Minutes

Understood

Body language
A language without sound.
Gesture, stance, and facial expression

Vitality

‘the power giving continuance of life……….’

Expressed in gesture, stance and facial expression.

A white striped crosswalk,

A gesture of dismay to a driver who didn’t stop

No gesture of thanks to a driver who did stop.

“It’s a rather rude gesture, but at least it’s clear what you mean.”

~ Katharine Hepburn

A Question of Spirit

What do eyes see when eyes can’t see into the past?
What does a heart feel when eyes can only see the present?
What picture does a mind build without seeing into the future?

Hearts only allowed to feel present deeds?
Eyes only allowed to see what’s in front of them?
Minds allowed only to limit the future?

Spirit knows.
Strength of spirit pulls survival forward
The spirit to live and love stays strong when humanity fails.

A wounded child grows to manhood and returns to his wounding,
with pains of past and present, and fears of the future.
Just an ordinary human being whose vitality of spirit still burns.

“Our spirit is mightier than the filth of our memories.”

~ Melina Marchetta, Quintana of Charyn

An Evening at the Ballet

Last evening was filled with the vitality of dance. Graceful, beautiful poise and precision flowed from the stage to a packed house audience at the Royal Theatre at 805 Broughton St. here in Victoria. Walking to the theatre with friends in an unusual, for Victoria, crisp cold of early winter, the four of us joined throngs of theatre goers to see the Ballet Boyz. Ballet Boyz is a dance troupe from the U.K. whose only stop in Canada was in Victoria for two nights - Nov. 14 and 15. Formed from ten men, each one an experienced ballet artist, this dance troupe is internationally known and travels extensively. A first for me, this performance was not the delicate ballet I have been exposed to on television. For me, attending any ballet is outside of my frame of reference, my career having consumed most of my life. Attending this remarkable performance was a conscious move to see a part of life outside of that career world. Not only was I not disappointed, but I learned more about myself as an individual outside of nursing and the work world.

“Dancing is creating a sculpture that is visible only for a moment.”

~ Erol Ozan

By the Light of the Moon

Words

drip….dripping

drip...dripping

Time 

Tick….ticking

Tick…..ticking

Vitality

Cozy in flannel

Sleep

zzzz…….zzzzzzzz

“Sleeping is no mean art: for it's sake one must stay awake all day.”

~ Friedrich Nietzsche

Patrick's Secret Gift of Kindness

Sanford Fisher’s painting hangs on my wall 
A simple shack in a prairie snow storm
Sparse trees, bare and black, edged in white
Pale drifts of colour vitalize winter sky ~
reflected in snow laden brush.

Thank you Patrick..
Rest deeply in peace.

“The spirit of an artist’s gifts can wake our own.”

~ Lewis Hyde, “The Gift”