A Lovely Winter Day

 

I took myself out for my birthday morning to enjoy the lovely winter weather we were blessed with. January is easily my top month, which goes against the grain of how most people view January (cold, dark, gloomy), but I love everything about it. This day was all sunshine and crisp air, but I will gladly take the cloudy days most would call gloomy. To me, clouds add interest and atmosphere, which in turn adds an inspiring element that I usually want to capture in words or a photo. 

What could be better than a browse in a used bookshop (Inklings Book Shoppe located downtown now), a coffee, and a time in the lovely Hollis Garden? It felt like such an indulgence to enjoy these moments so selfishly. It was a time of not being productive, of indulging in book browsing, and writing a poem in the garden. I began to ask myself - is it okay to take time to do such a frivolous thing? The answer came easily following the trail of the question - yes. It was a couple hours of filling up my bucket.  With the intensity of other things that have been occupying my time, it truly felt like a gift to take time out to be so frivolous, and it was much needed. So simple, really. I used my birthday as an excuse to take the time, but I know I should probably use a more easily contrived excuse for next time (not a once per year occurrence).

The beautiful thing about the time was the freshness of the air and how restoring the time was for my soul. I haven't been taking time for these things lately, and I feel it deeply. It is to my own detriment that I don't set aside such times. It was perhaps perfect timing to have just finished reading Essentialism, a book about setting aside the things that are nonessential to have space in your life, focus on the important things, and not be bogged down by all the clutter or noise of everything trying to grab you. It is something I've already been working on in my life, but I am better equipped with some tools to allow myself to let go of things that are not essential. It's refreshing to do so. 

I tend to have a sanguine view of the days ahead, not because I think the world's problems or my own will all be solved, but because I trust in the Lord who is all loving, all knowing, all seeing, and who is in charge of all creation. It means everything is in His hands, and that brings much comfort, that a higher power has ultimate oversight and it's not in human hands. The Lord is in charge, who has created and is creating. I am cheerfully confident in that, and felt it through and through as I sat in the garden penning these wind-swept words into a silly poem.

It's a beautiful day to sit in the garden
A cold breeze, fresh air, but do pardon
My warm wool blazer and sweater layers
I'm inspired by the age of Dorothy L. Sayers
And it's delightfully cold so I may deploy
This perfect way to dress and enjoy
Perched on my select bench with views
That conjure the words, inspire my muse.

The Edge of Moments

 

We are always teetering on the edge of a moment. We approach it, sometimes unaware of it until we are right at the edge of it. It could be why we can so often feel like something is about to happen and then it does. Sometimes it's the unknown that sneaks up, or it could be the almost known, as possibly expected.

I clammer in my mind to make sense of such a paucity. The thing small which catches me, makes me pause and stand at the edge there considering. A tacit moment.

In these quiet moments that will provide a space and draw me in - it almost says more than a speech could contain. Listening in the silence is key.

I would contain the notion that we stare into the potential as we move forward sometimes not actually seeing. Taking a breath to notice it causes me to conciliate instead of feel frenzied. Sometimes all I need when the world is cluttered around me demanding every fibre of me, is to pause and step back to see ahead of me. It can quickly shift to something beautiful with a change of perspective.

They are gifts, each one. These moments can speed by; they don't necessarily pause for you, especially if you don't pause for them. Like the sunset sky always changing every second, the daily ritual of time is nonstop. It doesn't rest to let you rest. You must take the time and use it for these moments. Allow yourself to be drawn into the present. We stand at the brink of it, though, something...

On Reading Challenging Books

 

Happy 2024 to you!

With the freshness of a new year comes the tendency to think about ways to improve oneself in the coming 12 months. It's an admirable task that requires some reflection on the last year and the thoughts of how to work toward becoming better in some way. Whether that's through setting goals, changing habits, setting intentional tasks, everyone is different in how they might approach it. 

I think a lot about reading, of course, as it is one of life's greatest pleasures, but it's also one of life's gifts for learning, growing, being challenged, and developing into a better person. I often talk to people about books and in conversation I might mention some authors I love and quite frequently I hear something along the lines of - "oh that's too difficult for me to read. I don't understand any of it." While it might be true that the level of that author might be above one's level at the moment, you will never grow as a reader if you never read above your level. If you only stick to the comfortable, easy books where you know everything, you'll always feel like certain books are "off limits" because they are above your ability to understand. You are limiting yourself.

I always wonder what people are afraid of if they don't understand everything in a book. I usually explain that I also don't understand everything by that author, and maybe when I read it 5 years ago I only understand 40% of it, but certain things stick and over the years I grow into that knowledge. Then, I will read it again and grasp much more, maybe understanding 70%. We grow into the wisdom that has come before us by reading ahead of ourselves and letting it guide us. Sooner rather than later, you grow into that level of reading and it becomes your level of reading the more you do it. Which then opens the doors to a world of more books to read that once scared you.

So as I ponder these things, I think about my own reading and how I want to continue to challenge myself and put my brain to work. I want to pick up the great books. The books that will make me think deeply. The books that will get my cognitive muscles working. The books that will improve my life by teaching me great insights. To read those wiser than me. My intelligence will never grow by sitting in a comfort zone. So, here are some notes to self, as I pick up books to read this coming year. 

- Put your brain to work. We are gifted with the amazing ability to think, ponder, consider, weigh morals, judge, muse, question. Use that gift. Stretch your brain and your understanding of the world.

- What is the real reason you are afraid to read something you deem is above your intelligence?

- Read outside your comfort zone. Don't just read about the topics you already know. Read topics you know very little about.

- Read above your intelligence level. It's okay to enjoy some fun books of course, but weave in the challenging ones as well. Ones you think are "too smart" for you.

- Don't be afraid to feel kind of stupid as you read. Nobody else knows as you read that you didn't know about "this" or "that".  

- Don't be afraid to be confused by a book, or not understand it all. Bits and pieces will stick, and you'll come back to it later. In the meantime, it's a good brain workout.