a dream from the sorcerer’s garden (Craigflower Farm)

Thank you Alanis Morrisette

When I came out of the hospital yesterday your song was playing in my head which inspired me to sing my own thanks.

Thank you beautiful  daughter for sharing our most excellent adventures far away this last summer, for keeping me organized and on time and for sharing a pint of Guinness in County Clare and Dublin, tramping through the Orkneys and much more.

and my brother  whom I visited in the Okanagan a week ago and though he has been going through a painful life change  is still committed to helping kids play sports as a coach and mentor and giving back something to the community. At Christmas he and his son collected toys and visited  a few people who were struggling, trying to ensure that as many as possible would have good cheer and to share his own blessings and the good fortune which he knows can be fleeting.  He had time to take me on a little road trip and up to Apex mountain showing me all the winter beauty of the valley with it’s lakes, mountains and hills.  I took lots of photos- only  a few worthy ones-  http://gatewaysandjourneys.blogspot.ca/     Thank you dear brother

and my sister who never ceases to amaze me with her paintings of local scenes in the gulf islands, her boundless energy, her steadfastness, her love of children and who always stood by me.     Thank you sister

 

sweet  brother, crazy dreamer who made us stained glass birds, played music,  made us laugh and then made us cry but your carefree spirit always remains with us.  You are much missed.- “Everybody hurts, hold on, hold on.”  Thank you dear bro!

 Thank you children for your wonder and beauty and for letting me share a small part of your adventures as you grow on this amazing planet.

Thank you mom and dad, grandparents, relatives who may be gone but that all touched us in important ways , that let us know that we were part of a larger community of family, cousins and friends –  a mom with a loving sense of duty and a stoicism in the face of life’s adversities and also humour,  and a dad with a sense of art and wonder, a childlike enthusiasm and a powerful chi,  a granddad who taught me to sing, and another who took me to the opera!

Thank you.

Thank you faith, and brother Jesus, brother Francis, brother Buddha and Ghandi and others, who have taught me to step outside myself, and that there is so much  more.

I didn’t always follow my heart.  Sometimes I second guessed myself and went down paths that lead nowhere. As Carlos Castaneda said, a path must have heart!  Sometimes I gave in to the darkness and to despair.

Thank you light

Thank you for my sorrows and difficulties which made me appreciate more those shining moments. Thank you for the fears , the disappointments and grief where I had to regroup and rethink my priorities- and where I had to learn to let go, wipe away the tears and see further.

Thank you

Thank you for a clean bill of health during this last (and somewhat painful) procedure at the hospital, for  painkillers and  selfless nurses and doctors!

Thank you to all who happened into my time and space on this earth, a few who became dear friends. It was no accident.

Thank you for this humble little life so full of terror and magic,  and thank you for the stardust that is in us all.

Thank you for the peace there is in letting go

Thank you for letting me start again and again

OUR WHOLE LIFE COULD BE A RITUAL
“We could learn to stop when the sun goes down and when the sun comes up. We could learn to listen to the wind; we could learn to notice that it’s raining or snowing or hailing or calm. We could reconnect with the weather that is ourselves, and we could realize that it’s sad. The sadder it is, and the vaster it is, the more our heart opens. We can stop thinking that good practice is when it’s smooth and calm, and bad practice is when it’s rough and dark. If we can hold it all in our hearts, then we can make a proper cup of tea.”
(Wisdom of No Escape)- Pema Chodron