Why Turquoise Kettle?

Some people have asked me, "Why Turquoise Kettle? What does it mean?"

Three years ago my husband and I purchased a little summer house that sat at the edge of a pretty canal.  The house had been sadly neglected but in my eyes it had loads of potential.  The setting was so charming that I immediately fell in love with it.  I had always (forever!!) wanted a house on the water.  I have a thing about water, it lures, soothes, calms and fascinates me.  Oceans, rivers, lakes even a narrow canal, they all have the same effect.

About a week after we finalized the purchase, I was shopping and spotted an enamel turquoise kettle with a whistle and a silver heart shaped handle on the lid.  It was perfect! This kettle was exactly the look and feel I wanted for our summer house.  I imagined this one item setting the mood for the all the renovations and decorating we would do there.  It would be the symbol of my simple, uncluttered life by the water.

I picked up the kettle and carried it around while I browsed through the rest of the store.  And then I did a funny thing, I put it back.  I left the store without it.

Days later I was telling my sister about that experience.  Why hadn't I bought it?  My best guess was that I didn't think I needed it.  But I realized that I didn't feel that I deserved it.  Not that I wasn't worthy of a kettle, it was what it symbolized to me. Who was I to have this amazing life?  A loving husband, wonderful daughters, even a son-in-law I adore, an artist life ...and a house on the water.  That kettle symbolized all I had and all that I hoped to create.  I had held it and yet chose to put it back as if to say, "Thank-you but I have enough.  I don't need or deserve more."

The next day my sister showed up at my door.  In her hands she held my turquoise kettle!  Awestruck by her kindness and love, I began to cry (quite typical behaviour for me...I am often moved to tears). "How did you know it was this one?" I asked.  "I saw it and I knew it was you." she said.

We have since sold the summer house.  We sold it completely furnished; with the exception of the turquoise kettle.  The kettle now sits in my suburban kitchen, reminding me, "Who are you not to have a wonderful, love-filled and creative life?"

Thank you sisto...

My turquoise kettle and this blog serve as a reminder to me that there is no benefit in being miserly with myself, no one wins when I set limits on the amount of creativity, love and abundance that I allow to God pour into my life.  My job is to create, to be thankful and above all to love.

Thank you for visiting My Turquoise Kettle Life.

Sandra

Walking And The Visual Feast

In my last post I wrote a little bit about how beneficial I found a leisurely walk could be.  And while I was still gushing about having slow mindful walks through the woods on my recent retreat, yesterday I practiced that same discipline in my suburban neighbourhood. 

I had a few classes yesterday (substitute teaching) and took the bus home.  The walk from the bus stop to my house is 12 minutes.  The weather was overcast and drizzly.  I noticed that the colours of the lawns, shrubs and trees were really "popping".  I took a few photos to share with you, showing how even in a suburban setting there is so much amazing natural beauty to be enjoyed, if we just slow down and take the time to savour the visual feast that is all around us.

 It would be wonderful if I knew the names of all of these flowering shurbs....

 I do know that these two (above & below) are Lilacs!

An amzaing "carpet" of fallen Crab Apple blossoms

Below is a close up of those same blossoms

While we're still enjoying drizzly days, why not give yourself the gift of a mindful walk and savour the visual feast in your neighbourhood.

Thank you for visiting My Turquoise Kettle Life.

Sandra

Retreat to Replenish

Waking up in the tranquility of an over-sized tree-top bedroom with an expanse of windows that overlooked the forest canopy, I knew that my decision to retreat was exactly what I had needed.  Each morning I awoke beneath crisp white linens listening to the various birds, the sound of the wind among the branches, sometimes to the rain, always to the dog across the lake barking and I counted my blessings:  "Thank you" I whispered, "for this house, the time, the means, the privledge of escaping my daily routine.  Thank you for the time to paint, and write, and just sit....yes....to just sit, to be and not do."

As the first few days passed and I saw the benefits of my time away, (I felt relaxed, my creative brain was sprouting new ideas and I felt refreshed) I began to wonder how I could take some of this "retreat" back home with me to my real life. 

I have long practiced a morning "quiet time".  At home I have a big comfy chair in a small room where I go each morning to journal, and think and pray.  Of course on vacation this quiet time sometimes stretched on till late morning, but on a busy day at home even 10 minutes can be sufficient to help me approach the day with gratitude.

Another thing that I loved about my retreat were the walks, morning walks, walks in the rain and evening walks.  Not a power walk, not a walk to anywhere, just a meandering, slow paced walk.  A leisurely walk allows me to see things that I might otherwise miss, it also helps me to put things in perspective.  Years ago when my daughters were little and I was often weighed down by worries, I would walk and look up.... how immense is the sky, how vast this planet we call home.  Somehow by looking at my "problems" from under a big sky, rather than from under a small roof always helped me to believe that everything would be just fine.

Solitude, sunrise and a quiet country road

When I walk with the intention of noticing, of being truly aware of colours, textures and scents, when I close my eyes for a moment and really focus on the feeling of the wind, it is as though the path says, "Look over there, take a peak under this shrub."  When I do, I am often rewarded with amazing displays of nature's endless beauty.  These discoveries nourish my spirit and feed my creativity.

Following a path led me to this picturesque sugar shack

A Trillium, just steps from our door

These two habits, a morning quiet time and a leisurely walk help to keep my creative well primed. 

Thank you for taking the time to visit My Turquoise Kettle Life. Have a beautiful day.

Sandra

Good-bye Dial-Up

Welcome to the very first post of "My Turquoise Kettle Life".  This blog has been set up for a little while, just waiting for the day that I had high speed internet installed.  Today is that day!

Last week we rented a country house in the Eastern Townships of Quebec (Canada).   It was a vacation intended to allow us to escape our day to day routines and for me to paint and write.  The setting was gorgeous, the house was perfect and except for a brief excursion into the village for groceries, I never saw another person the entire week.  In short it was perfect!

Perhaps the best part was getting up early, tucking my pyjamas into my rubber boots and heading out with our dogs, Zack and Grace, for a long walk through the woods.  I felt like a little girl again.  There were so many ponds, paths, brooks and streams to discover, it was a virtual feast for my eyes and for the dogs' noses.

Small stream at sunrise

The first couple of mornings were still quite chilly, but I hadn't expected to find snow...

New shoots

It was delightful to return to the warmth of the country house on those mornings inspired by mother nature's beauty, ready to embrace another day of creativity and simple living. 

More from the Eastern Townships in my next post.

Thank you for visiting My Turquoise Kettle Life.