Heidi Greco's Blog, page 13

Resilient

I can't help but feel sorry for the brave little bulbs that keep thinking it's supposed to be spring. They rise a few inches, and then they get dumped on. Snow, snow, and more snow. That's the kind of February and (so far) March it's been. Earlier today there were a few flakes, but when they stopped, I dashed out on a few errands. Wherever I went, people asked me (I seem to have that kind of face -- people talk to me) what the weather was doing. Every one of them expressed relief when I said that the snow had stopped. And maybe they just heard the relief in my own voice when I told them. 

Whatever, today is supposed to be the day that we all '' towards whatever goal or cause we may bear in mind. I like that one of the things we're supposed to do today is to try something new, especially something we've always wanted to do, but haven't got around to trying. 

So, will this be the day I start looking for online lessons so I can learn to play something beyond one-finger 'Mary had a little lamb' on my little electronic keyboard? Or do I need to think about something more exotic, more difficult? Or should I just knuckle down and finish one of my many unfinished projects. 

If resilience is something I can learn from the bulbs out front, it's probably something I can apply to my own daily life. 

As the date suggests, onward!

Hope in the face of horror

As we approach tomorrow's hideous anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, I am prompted to do something I don't usually do by posting a poem of my own. 

This also happens to be Freedom to Read Week, so I've been thinking about freedom -- as well as loss thereof, the situation now in far too many countries. Journalists and protesters are being executed in Iran; their colleagues in Russia are disappearing or being sent to prison. 

Thankfully, I remain free to write and publish here in Canada. My poem was included in a collection called Poems in Response to Peril. Proceeds of sales of the anthology go to funds in support of Ukraine. And yes, I am hoping for a resolution to the hideous events that continue across the globe.  

Finding hope

This morning I am feeding the birds, replenishing

supplies in the little cracked saucer, the one that’s sheltered

on the window ledge all winter again.

 

I’m filling it with seeds, still tight in their shells,

ones I hope the birds will disperse, carrying them

far and beyond—sunflowers that will rise up

 

from the broken earth. I am putting my faith

in their sturdy resilience, counting on them to grow tall

and turn their golden faces to the sun.

 

Which way from here?

Once again, I am posting about a small celebration -- this time it's a blogiversary, and a fairly big one at that. Seventeen years, an amount of time that boggles my mind. Where all have I been since then? The sign maybe says it. Nowhere, but now here... 

I started writing here as a way of establishing a bit of an online presence. At least that's what the workshop I attended proposed itself as -- starting a blog as an entry point to the world of the Internet. 

Since then, it appears that I've written a post here 1,199 times. So I guess that makes this number 1,200. That's a number that makes me happy, as twelve has always been my favourite number. I even have a poem about it in one of my books. 

Where exactly I go from here (with this, or for that matter, with a number of other possibilities) remains to be seen. I hope that some of you will continue to stick around. 

Sometimes...

...the groundhog gets it wrong. At least that's what I'm hoping must have happened last week on the 2nd when the critter must have seen his shadow in all that sunshine. According to lore, if he sees his shadow, winter is supposed to linger for another six weeks. But I'm saying NO to that. 
Small testament to spring though it may seem, I take heart from seeing the bulbs pushing their bright green heads up through the soil. And I love how they are so forgiving of my bad habits as a gardener, leaving all that stringy debris from last season still there. 
Soon I expect it will be warm enough for me to want to get out there with a clipper and some digging tools, and maybe then it will be prettied up enough for those anticipated flowers to burst into my bloom. 

Once upon a time...and now

It was not so many years ago that the word 'gay' was a synonym for 'happy' or 'carefree' or even 'frivolous' -- as in the 1934 film, The Gay Divorcee . Yet even that title involved some controversy, as it was originally called Gay Divorce, but divorce was then considered too serious a topic (or was deemed so by the notorious Hays Office) to have such a flighty name. Ahem. 

It was only by the 1960s that attitudes were opening up enough that the world we now know as LGBTQ+ would be called 'gay'. 

It seems bizarre to me that there are still places in the world where it is a criminal offense to be gay, that there are still countries where one can be sentenced to death over one's preference of sexual partner. 

So it was with great relief and joy that I saw the announcement from the pope (who's often referred to as 'the rock' upon which the Church is built) relaxing the Catholic Church's longstanding attitude toward gays. Yes, Francis still claims such activity is a sin, but then I suppose his job requires that much as this small step towards sanity. 

And I can't help but think he had to wait for the death of his predecessor, Benedict, to even be able to say what he has, because really, 'saving the world from homosexuality' as equivalent to 'saving the rainforests'? Not on my watch. 

Maybe the good news about the New Lunar Year, with all of its positive predictions really is true. I'm certainly hoping so. 

Another New Year to Celebrate

According to the Vietnamese version of the Lunar calendar, today is the first day of the . For those of us who have learned to bow to the beliefs entrenched in Chinese culture, today marks the beginning of the Year of the Rabbit.  

And in keeping with the further tradition of combining elements with each animal in the zodiac, this is the year of the water rabbit, which sounds like it might be a good year for growing things. 

The rabbit in the photo is one that used to frequent our front yard, very likely because we're the 'bad' house where the lawn is only rarely cut, in keeping with the natural look of the rest of our yard. 

At least we aren't at the mercy of a Home Owner's Association who might send their patrols out to cut the lawn themselves and then likely hand us a hefty fine. 

I suspect that, come spring and summer, once the grass starts to grow again, the bunnies will be back. After all, this year has their name on it.  

Unofficial kindness

And a small kindness at that. It's an idea that was suggested to me by my friend who makes Christmas cards with me, and who also (like me) loves doing jigsaw puzzles. 

We often lend each other puzzles back and forth and she came up with a suggestion that might sound like 'cheating' to some, but made good sense to both of us. When you take apart a puzzle, bag up the edge pieces separately from the rest. In other words, you're giving the other person the kindness of a head start on completing the puzzle!

It might not yet be the official date to perform our random acts of kindness, but there's nothing wrong with doing such acts any old time.  

Imagine the other side of the world

This is how I'm imagining Orthodox Christmas might look in Ukraine. And yes, today is the day that much of the world, especially people in Eastern Europe, celebrate Christmas. 

The burning candle in the lantern is beautiful, but if I were in Ukraine, it might well be my only light, as so much of the country is without power. 

This is another day to be grateful -- for so many everyday luxuries we mostly take for granted: electricity and speedy Internet, water that's clean enough to drink from the tap -- and while we're at it, water that's hot on demand. 

Looking back, looking ahead

Already the second day of the new year and pokey me -- I'm still looking back. 

It was a year that didn't feel all that productive, especially on a personal level. No new book, though a number of entries in several anthologies. Not much in the way of travel or special events. Yes, there are a few exceptions, but they feel diminished through the lens of looking back. 

But as you can see if you play the video above, the best part about looking back is that it means you're going forward. 

That's the plan -- on many levels -- for the coming year. Goals? You can be sure of that. Whether they'll be accomplished remains to be seen, when at year's end, I find myself looking back again. 

P.S. The golden sculpture on the left (at the Marine Drive station on the Canada Line) is a piece of public art by Douglas Coupland, a representation of the famous 'Hollow Tree' at Stanley Park.

Spiders rule

 

Now that the big freeze has retreated, the spiders are back, though I'm not sure what they'll catch. I haven't seen a lot of small insects around. 
Maybe that big web will catch the last of this too-long-lingering flu back we've had. At least it hasn't been covid.. 
Looking forward to the new year, with blessings and happy times for all!