Lilian Nattel's Blog, page 27
October 18, 2011
October 17, 2011
Reunion
I spent this weekend with half a dozen families that I know very little and at the same time very well. We meet every year, our bond based on the most important of commonalities: we received our babies together.
Now these children are all 13 years old. Some have older siblings, bio and adopted, a couple had younger siblings–including mine–and there was an only, too. You couldn't find a more diverse group of families. Background, education, occupation, religion, philosophy, all different. To give you some context, the family that we, Jewish with Buddhist leanings, leftie, vegetarian, urban are closest to in values and politics is a rural Catholic family living on the shore of a Great Lake.
In fact in the space of less than an hour, two heated political arguments came up on opposite sides of the spectrum, possibly because we've endured so many elections here in the last year. But what struck me was that, despite these differences, you couldn't meet a group of nicer kids or more devoted parents.
After the arguments, A-M, one of the moms, mentioned that we haven't seen one of our group's families for years because they live some fifteen hundred km (thousand miles) away on the east coast. LF had travelled to China with her father and brother, who'd had a suit made in China; we all remembered her baby's spunk. If only, A-M said, we'd thought of this earlier, we could have arranged to meet by Skype. Maybe we still can, someone else said.
Soon we were all huddled together, working cooperatively to figure out how to get in touch with them. A-M tried to reach the family on Facebook; no go. I had brought my netbook and was installing Skype while D (a Conservative dad who'd organized the reunion) searched his cell phone. I sent a message to the email address he found; it bounced back. Then he dialled information and asked for LF's father with whom LF and her daughter still live. Fortunately the province is small, the name less common than I'd supposed. There was one number and it was the right number.
Success! Soon we were all talking on speaker phone, then adding each other as contacts on Skype. I've only used Skype 2x, and never on my netbook. We had visual but no sound. We texted until I figured out how to make their voices audible and then ours. I moved aside so the girls could meet each other.
Please imagine this: a crowd of barely teenage girls with new bodies, new confidence and new insecurities, changing visibly day by day, excitedly greeting another of their cohort from across the country.
Skype
This is the hope of humanity, that we can surmount our differences and work together for the sake of love. Because we were together on the bus when the guide said to us, "Your babies are at the hotel waiting for you," we know that what we share is more important than what divides us. May we all remember this.
Filed under: Personal, Uplifting Tagged: reunion
October 16, 2011
A Photo to Suit My Mood
Double arc – a closer look – Landscape & Rural Photos – Vaido's Photoblog.
I just got back from a weekend reunion–I'll post about it tomorrow. For now the photo will illustrate
Filed under: Beautiful Tagged: sky photos
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October 14, 2011
More Inspiration
This falls into the never too late department. Fauja Singh ran his first marathon at age 89. He began running when he was 80 to cope with family losses. His background isn't in athletics: he was a farmer. Coming here from England, this Sunday, he hopes to set a world record for the books in Toronto: being the first person over 100 years old to complete a marathon.
"He doesn't think of himself as old. He dresses to the 'T' in Boss and Armani," said trainer Harmander Singh, who …says the trick to coaching seniors involves no life secrets or a special diet, but "to make them believe in themselves." The qualities that has made them valued members of society — hard work and determination — didn't vanish with the turn of a calendar page…
Good luck Fauja! (Full story here.)
Filed under: Fun, Uplifting Tagged: seniors marathon
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October 13, 2011
Tara Miller: What is Sight?
Prize winning photo by Tara Miller
This photo was taken by Tara Miller (click to enlarge), a professional photographer who works with her husband Jeff, also a photographer. In itself that's enough–the photo is gorgeous. But there's an unusual twist to the story, which is what led to her work being featured on CTV in their Meeting a Canadian Original clip. Tara Miller is legally blind. Due to glaucoma, she has no sight at all in one eye and 6% in the other: devastating for a photographer. In fact, she'd given it up, when her husband encouraged her to pick up her camera again.
Most of us have full vision, at least with our glasses on, but can we see?
In this photo is darkness, the shock of light–dangerous and powerful, illuminating the landscape, the beauty of the flowers, the colour of the setting sun. Now I'm off to write. I hope that Tara Miller's work continues to remind me of what matters and what doesn't.
What reminds you today?
Filed under: Beautiful, Uplifting Tagged: blind photographer, Canadian Original
October 12, 2011
Writing and Weeping
I intended to post my report about Scrivener yesterday, and I have photos from my Thanksgiving walk to upload. But instead I imported a document to Scrivener. It was a book I began months ago but had to put aside while working with my publisher on Web of Angels.
Yesterday I looked at the few pages I had of that new book and thought to myself, how terrible they are. I decided to begin again, and made notes on the characters, re-conceiving them in a way that must have touched a node of truth because I was crying so hard, it's a good thing I touch type. I couldn't see through the waterfall.
I cried because it felt so good, so right. My kids are bemused by my weeping over beauty, nobility, the shock of an uplifting truth, but they were at school so I could cry unabashedly. Scientists have analyzed tears and found chemicals in it that improve states of mind. Tradition says that when you cry, your tears find their way to the heart of God.
Filed under: Literary, Personal Tagged: Writing Life
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October 9, 2011
Fauna by Alissa York
He's a fine hunter, young but able, no trace of the blind kitten he once was. The memory lives in his senses: the massed, many-hearted comfort of the den; the return of the mother's pungent coat and sweet-smelling teats. Soon she brought them more than milk–the first leggy mouthful of spider, the first pretty pink worm. Eventually she led them to the source of all things good and wriggling, the wide open night of the world. (p. 147 of Fauna)
That was a skunk, by the way. I found myself engrossed by and sympathetic to skunk, fox, raccoon and bat in Fauna
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Alissa York writes tenderly and poetically about animals amongst themselves and in relationship to humans, who are fauna, too, albeit the only species with access to the internet. In this novel a collection of wounded creatures, human and otherwise, connect through the handsome young owner of an auto-wrecker yard, Guy Howell. Animals are rescued there, roadkill is given a proper burial. Humans are accepted unconditionally: teenage runaway Lily, wildlife officer Edal, ex-soldier Stephen, vet tech Kate.
Like the animals in the story, they've lost loved ones, been rejected, suffered trauma in war and with family. Finding refuge with Guy, they bond through their common love of animals. Only survivalist Darius, whose pain has found expression in vendetta against urban wildlife, can find no comfort or ease from it.
Alissa York's writing is lyrical and lovely, portraying woundedness, animal or human, with compassion and truth. Her animals astounded me; her humans lacked some degree of complexity, but they are endearing and I so wanted everything to work out well for them.
Fauna is a good novel, and Alissa York a good writer with an uncommon subject. I'm so glad to include her in my sidebar of CanLit authors!
Filed under: Beautiful, CanLit Tagged: Alissa York, literature about animals
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Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!
This is a photo of a Thanksgiving Service in France 93 years ago: October 13 1918. It was held in a chapel in Notre-Dame-de-Grace. Did these Canadian troops know that armistice was coming in less than a month? (Nov 11th, which happens to be A's birthday, albeit 2 generations later) I look at this and I see the wars to come, but I see more: alongside ruin is beauty and prayer. What do you see here? Click to enlarge:
Canadian Troops in Cambrai Cathedral, October 13, 1918
Filed under: Interesting Tagged: Canadian thanksgiving, WWI photos
October 7, 2011
Software for Writers: Scrivener
I'll post a complete review later but I just have to tell you folks about this. When I think of all the work that Scrivener could have saved me in my last novel–or what it could have done for A when he was working on his PhD dissertation, it boggles the mind.
This is software that works the way writers think, unlike most software (generally designed like a car with the ignition hidden in the trunk). You can move blocks of text around by working with automatically generated index cards. Search by pov. Keep your notes, images, and references in a sidebar. When you just want to focus on the writing, use full screen mode. This is just the beginning!
The Mac version has been out for a few years. But now thanks to Lee Powell, an Australian writer, Scrivener-user and programmer (and his team), the Scrivener for Windows version will soon be available for about $40. I'm working my way through the tutorial in the beta trial version. Thanks guys!
Filed under: Interesting Tagged: Scrivener Windows, technology for writers
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