Another small change? No, big!

Whoot Whoot! My One Small Change challenge has been so much fun. I've made great, sustainable changes for January, February and March and now I'm ready for April.

I took my TTT (Teach The Teacher) Rain Barrel class last night at WMEAC. Come on...it's that easy to make these? Yes! It really is. And you know what? I won the raffle, so I came home with the water barrel we made. Whew! Now I have a way to show you what they look like. The link I gave you for WMEAC has a video and instructions for making your own at the bottom of the link page.


There is an overflow spout at the top right where I'll attach a hose for when there's too much rain. There are dual valves on the bottom so I can attach 2 soaker hoses, one each for the back and side yard gardens. There's a screen covered hole at the top where the downspout will be retrofitted (yes, I know what that means.  Aren't I smart?) The screen is to keep mosquitos and debris out of the barrel. And, you can't see it, but there's a hose attachment on the other side in case you want to get your hose up off the ground.

People, rain barrels are so simple to make that you have no reason not to have them at your own homes. Think how many gallons of rain water I'm keeping out of the storm sewer. What's more, rain water is free and just think of how many gallons of treated water I don't have to buy from the city just to throw on the ground this summer.

Next up, rain barrel workshops at my home. I get to teach the neighborhood how to make them. Have I mentioned that the rain barrels and all the supplies are free from our city if you go through the WMEAC workshops? Yep, free. I love free. I love my city!

"Look down my rain barrel. Slide down my cellar door. And we'll be jolly friends forever more!"

Let me go back.

Back to the island. Back to what I love...sleeping in the woods, paddling my kayak, walking the animal trails, resting. Breathing. Feeling. Watching and listening.




Just the two of us, away from the city for a brief period of us time. Together, but alone. We're on an island.



An early morning paddle and we meant to paddle up to the mouth of the river. We never made it, but instead found our way to this delightful little marina. Run-down and ramshackle, covered with cobwebs, nests in the rafters and dock boards so worn and weak I thought they might crack under my weight. They held, thankfully. I didn't want to swim. It's April and the water is barely out of the 30's. Is it?

Our gentle breeze is no longer. A wind now, urging us to go back. The sky darkening and still we turn into a cove, lured by the call of eagles. Where are they? Do you see them? Yes, over there, high in the trees. An adult Bald Eagle and a mud head, a youngster. Soon his sibling appears, but he crashes roughly as he tries to land in the tree. We laugh, he needs more practice. Ruffled, he continues on his flight, turning North towards the arie. More wind. We must go back. The sky is very dark and a cold misty rain has begun to fall. Time to go back to the safety and haven of our little camp. Coffee, breakfast, wrapped in a blanket for warmth. Rain, lots of it. More wind. Ah, yes, a wonderful time to nap.

Later, after the rain, the sky clears to a beautiful clear blue. A Mute Swan and a Tundra are having a show of dominance...it's Spring, after all, and love is at stake. Clever Tundra, he is swimming away, followed by the Mute, when he suddenly takes flight, circles over the Mute and heads back towards the female. Oh, enormous beautiful birds. Great splashes and flapping of wings as the Mute catches up to the Tundra to drive him off and then it's over. The Tundra climbs the bank and sits back just so, watching the Mutes, waiting for another chance that does not come.



Nature is doubly beautiful this morning. The reflections cause us to see things that are not there. People, faces, animals, fish. She's a clever one this Nature.



But who is this wildly crazy woman who so loves Nature, who seeks to bond with her and feel her spirit in the wind and sun and sounds? Oh, silly, it's me. That's me.

Let me go back.

This young lady....

This is one of those posts so you may not want to read further.

Let me begin. This young lady, right here....


inspires me in ways I never could have imagined. I've written about her before and I'll write about her again. This is my 4 y/o granddaughter and I waited 30 years (from the time her Daddy, my oldest, was born) to get to her and I assure you, the very essence of her was worth every minute of the wait. I don’t mean to imply that she is a ‘mini-me’, but she looks like me, we share personality traits, she reminds me of who I thought I was. She reminds me of who I could have been, who I can be.

She is bright, and curious, and sweet, and generous and so full of love and life. When Alex was home over Christmas, he remarked on the family life she has (along with her brothers). He said it was a safe home and a home full of love. By safe, I think he meant both physically and emotionally. My grandchildren are growing up immersed in love from aunts and uncles, cousins, grandparents, parents and their siblings. What a wonderful way to grow up. I didn’t grow up feeling like that. My childhood was dangerous and fraught with fear. I did have a protector, who helped me learn to be brave, but he was only a year older than me and he was torn from my childhood home when I was 12. I was lucky in that I survived with no physical scars, but there are emotional scars. This young lady inspires me to continue being brave, and because I know she is learning from me, she inspires me to shake off the last vestiges of my broken childhood. She inspires me to reach beyond the emotional scars to live a fuller and healthier life. One would think that at my age, I would have already done this since I am a grandmother. But life had a way of going on and allowing me to use whatever defense mechanisms I had at hand to get through the motherhood era. It seems grandchildren cause me to be more aware of being a whole person. It seems this young lady is a springboard for me. Thank you, my little Chickabee.

I’m about to embark on the Inside Out e-course, for which I am very excited, but this journey began in earnest this past January when I signed up for the One Small Change and the Reduce Clutter challenges. One Small Change has helped me to make small monthly changes in my physical life, but also got me thinking about small changes I could make in my emotional life as well. It’s not scary to make small changes, but it got me to thinking, a lot, and it’s been a rough winter for me emotionally because of it.

Reduce Clutter is helping me to clear out physical objects from my home, but it asks what mental clutter are we hanging on to. Hmmm, then I come across A Step Toward Balance and I know I want balance in my emotional life. I’m seeing a pattern here. Geez, who knew the three challenges would be so connected. So, as I begin this new journey, I’m filled with hope…and I’m inspired by this young lady…and the wonderful women I have met through here. As an aside, but completely related, I love sticky notes and I write inspiring messages that I come up with or that I come across and I post them on the walls of my CRS where I see them all the time. One of my favorites has been “Women who inspire Women.” This is so accurate and so fitting for my life right now. So, to all the women and young ladies who inspire me, thank you, and please wish me luck as I begin this journey toward a fuller and healthier emotional life.

Inside Out

I'm about to embark on the trip of a lifetime aren't I?


I'm pretty excited to begin and as you can see, I've got my creative space prepared. I have no idea what to expect mentally and emotionally. Sounds like an adventure to me.

A time of reflection....

that began with an early morning paddle.








And entailed some great bird watching as well. Several species of Ducks, a pair of nesting swans (we steered a wide berth), geese (the alarmists), Red-winged Blackbirds, an eagle...and Sandhill Cranes. Oh, this was cool. They're back and they're feisty and they're noisy.



Pretty cool, huh?

I wish I knew them all.

I wish I knew all the women who owned these wooden spools of thread before they were handed down to me. I wish I knew what each thread was used to make. I wish I knew their choice of fabric. Who did they make it for? What happened to the finished product?

Each of these remaining spools has been handed down to me by my mother or grandmother and I'm very particular about using them. They do not get used for practice projects. Once a spool is emptied I save it in a basket with wooden beads that my granddaughter plays with. (Is that wierd?) She stacks them and strings them and sorts them. She takes care of them. Good for her.

I own 2 items that I know were handmade by relatives of mine. One is the yellow prom dress my mother made for herself in 1952. Dang! She was good! The other item is a framed piece that holds 3 squares from a crazy quilt embroidered by my g-g-great grandmother. Some day I'm going to try to duplicate all the stitches she used. Wouldn't it be awesome if she were able to teach me? Wouldn't it be awesome to know her? Wouldn't it be awesome to know her mother?

You light a candle...

to escape into the quiet. I reach for this to escape into my mind.


Ahhh, the urge to create. I can feel it pull at me, compelling me to do something, make something, anything. Just....create. And so I do...and when I feel satiated and satisfied with my creation, I'll escape to the outdoors for a walk around town, or a slow stroll in the woods, or a quiet paddle down a river. Yesterday, I rode my bike. Will you look who I found?



I laugh. Clearly, someone had a greater need to create than I.