Walking in the Forest

I'm making a point of walking in the forest more
often. With all the online stuff I'm doing, it's easy
to neglect basic things. I'm making a point of
observing the plants as they sprout and grow,
and of noting new tree growth as we move
further into spring.

Last spring I missed the flowering period for the
trilliums -- it seemed that the weeks flew by, so
that suddenly we were well into June. It won't
happen this year! My eyes are wide open for
the slightest hint of trillium growth:)

A few days ago, I took a walk in the forest near
my home, where the sphagnum moss totally
covers the ground. It's a wonderful place. In
fact, I've never seen so much sphagnum moss
in one area. It's everywhere, like a large, soft
carpet, covering the ground.

Finally, I must say that the mayflowers are
quite plentiful this season. For a while, it looked
like a scarce period for mayflowers, but the rains
of the past few days have brought them out in
all their glory!

The perfume of the mayflower is very special. If
you live some place where they aren't growing, I
think you should make a journey to where they
grow, so that you can smell those flowers at
least once in your lifetime. You won't regret it!

Good medicine always!
Laurie

Wednesday was A Mystical Evening

Hi,

Yes, this past Wednesday evening was quite special.
I went for a walk and couldn't bring myself to go back
to my home until dusk had moved on and darkness
settled over the landscape.

I noticed that nature was very still while the sunset
painted the sky in an array of colour, ranging from
yellow and gold, to pink and other subtle shades in
that colour range. And, even after dark, you could
look to the Northwest and see a band of light sky,
as if daylight wanted to linger for an extra spell or
period of time.

As I said, I couldn't bring myself to go back indoors.
I had to remain outside, just walking slowly about the
road, field, and forest, contemplating, experiencing
the peace, beauty, and nature of that evening.

When dusk arrived, it was like the world was under
a magic spell. I felt charmed. I kept lazily walking
about, or standing, to soak in the energy of that
evening.

Time was mine. It wasn't for working or doing chores.
It was simply the experience of the moment -- each
moment of that special evening.

I had to share this with everyone. There is even
more, when I can figure out the words to express it.

Best wishes,
Laurie

Nature's Sounds

Hi,

It's getting quite late, but I really must
post a few lines.

I got back from a moonlight walk about two
hours ago. It was wonderful. The moon is
almost half full and casts a soft light
over the landscape.

At one point I stopped to enjoy the many
impressions of this night. I could feel
the warm spring breeze against my face.
To my rear, the wind whispered through
tall pine, while off to the west and
southwest, waves splashed against rocks
on the shore of Minamkeak Lake.

Altogether, it was a delightful walk,
and I'm very grateful for having the
opportunity to live in this beautiful
country setting.

Sweet dreams, everyone,
Laurie

The Moon, Peepers, and an Old Book

Hi Everyone,

Well, what a beautiful Saturday night here on the
south shore of Nova Scotia. The moon is waxing, and
is already giving off enough light to make walking a
treat.

As I made my way along the road tonight, I suddenly
heard the sound of a peeper, in a swamp near where I was
walking. A single peeper, but soon the swamps and
ponds will be alive with their songs. Such delightful
singing, and a sure sign that the fullness of spring has
arrived.

While I was in Mahone Bay this afternoon, I went for
coffee at The Biscuit Eater Cafe' and book shop. It's a
delightful place and one of my favourite spots to visit. If
you're ever in Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, you must visit
this Cafe'. It's located at 16 Orchard Street, and quite
easy to find.

Anyhow, while there this afternoon, I bought a wonderful
little volume entitled, Wood Wanderings, by Winthrop
Packard, published in 1910. The book is beautifully
illustrated by Charles Copeland, with a gold leaf etching
on the front cover.

It is one of four volumes written by Packard which,
together, constitute "The New England Year," dealing
with the four seasons. I'm certainly going to try to find
the other books in the collection. Wood Wanderings,
deals with the autumn season.

That's it for this post. It's already 1 o'clock, and I still
have some things to do before I catch some rest.

All the best!
Laurie

Wind and Rain, Earth and Fire

Hi,

Well, I haven't taken my walks for the past couple
of nights, as we've been under seige from the terrific
nor'easter blowing up along the Atlantic coast. It's
a wild storm and continues to blow strong today.
We've also had quite a lot of rain with the storm.

However, I love to listen to the rain and wind as I
fall asleep nights. Often, in my mind, I'll journey
to a special place on the shore of Liepsigaek Lake,
and visualize myself sitting by a camp fire to the
rear of a high bluff. The bluff shelters me from the
wind and rain blowing off the lake, and from the
waves hitting on the shore.

The bluff is a real place and, on occasion, I've built
myself a fire in back of it. I built a sacred fire there
years ago, that still burns in my heart. That was in
the late 1980s. I also went skating there, about 25
years ago, and built a fire to warm my feet and to
heat a can of beans in the cold winter air.

There's nothing quite like beans heated over an
open fire. Yummy! Add to that a brew of hot, black
tea, and you feel like you've transported yourself
back in time a hundred years.

Oh yes, just writing about those things makes me
tingle inside. In fact, if it wasn't so darn stormy, I'd
be tempted to shut down my computer and go there
now. But, no, that wouldn't work, as the bluff would
be surrounded by water. The lake floods the area in
the spring season and into mid-summer.

Well, anyhow, I'll be back soon. I'm so pleased to
have my crow book online. I often think of those
years and about the intelligence of crows and birds
in general. Now, I have a little chickadee that follows
me around the yard. Fun!

All the best,
Laurie

Easter Thoughts and a Snowstorm

Hi Everyone,

Well, this is pretty wild -- we're having a
major snowstorm on Easter eve. I suppose
close to 30 cms has fallen so far. For those
of you who aren't familiar with metric, that's
12 inches of snow.

This is the first Easter snowstorm that's
happened in my life time, at least here on
the south shore of Nova Scotia.

I think the wind's coming up, also.

I was driving in it earlier this evening. I
seem to be out driving in every snowstorm that
comes along. In fact, you might say I'm a
master of winter driving:)

But, now, I'm snug inside my home. I love it!
I feel like an animal curled away in its warm
den, while the winter storm rages outside. In
fact, at the moment, I'm sipping a cup of hot
black tea, while listening to the storm against
my windows.

I plan to sleep where I can hear the storm.
I've thrown two comforters on a sofa in the
living room -- when I'm tired, I'll go in on
the sofa and let the storm lull me to sleep.

A lovely way to prepare for Easter morning,
don't you think? :)

In the morning, I'll enjoy eggs, pickles, and
old fashioned home-smoked ham! Yummy!

Well, I'd like to wish everyone a wonderful
Easter! It's a delight to do this blog and to
have all of you as an audience. Thanks!
The web is truly a wonderful place for the
communication of thoughts and ideas. It's
a liberating experience for writers!

All the best!
Laurie

Yikes! The Moon Winked at Me

Hi,

That's quite a title, isn't it. I'll explain it later
in this post.

Anyhow, this will be a very "considered" post.
By this, I mean that I'll choose my words
carefully.

As I mentioned a few posts back, I had a flash
of inspiration during a moonlight walk. It
concerned something that's been in the back
of my mind for quite some time. However, the
flash of inspiration hasn't come back to the
same extent as on that precious night.

I had a beautiful walk tonight, even though
there was cloud cover, preventing the full affect
of a moonlight experience. During the walk, I
was considering things, and wondering how I
would find the time to flow along with the
inspiration of that earlier night.

I have several websites and activities as you
are aware from the links on this blog. I'm not
certain how much more web stuff I can handle,
without over-taxing my limits:) I mean, I've got
my art work to consider as well, and I will
likely have a new part-time job soon, also.

Anyhow, I was heavy in thought, when the moon
winked at me! It came out from under the clouds
for about two seconds, and left the distinct
impression that it did so in recognition of my
thoughts.

This was the omen I was waiting for, and the
main reason I hadn't said anything much about
the inspiration since that initial post.

So, I'll be launching a blog or a website on
intimacy, romance and passion. Does that
surprise anyone? Of course, you know that I'll
likely find some way to relate those things to
nature and the natural landscape. And, it'll likely
be a website.

But, I don't know when it'll come online, and it
may be related to self-development or writing or
my natural healing website, or to all of those
things. Then again, it may be totally different
. . . I will simply go with the flow of inspiration,
and encouragement of the moon.

Another possibility is that it'll be the vehicle for
the publication of an un-published manuscript,
now lying away gathering dust. I may put it online
in installments . . . kind of like an on-going journal.
The manuscript is composed of 783 hand-written
pages on intimacy, romance, passion, and eroticism.

However, I'm uncertain at the moment . . . I don't
know if it will even play a role in this new project.
We'll see . . . .

So, there we are. The moon winked at me, and
I've decided to go with the flow of inspiration.
Funny fellow, eh?:)

Sweet dreams, everyone.
Laurie