Outside

We all tend to forget that the outside is speaking to us. Its language may be deceptively quiet but those whispers linger.

Most people love trees. I do. Sure, they provide the essential oxygen, offer the shade, provide the resources. It’s all vital to survival. But it’s more than that too. People want neighbourhoods with big established trees. We try to save them. Kids love them. They teach us about change. They are reliable. They are resilient. They are potential. They mark our history. The only piece of my childhood home that I still claim is the tree I planted there when I was ten. When we want to remember someone, we plant a tree. (If I were gone tomorrow, I would hope someone plants a tree for me.)

But there’s something else too.

The poet Rilke wrote, “These trees are magnificent, but even more magnificent is the sublime and moving space between them, as though with their growth it too increased.” That’s the feeling I’m thinking about...that feeling of being surrounded by trees...that space among them, it’s alive.

Japanese culture has a word for this: “shinrin-yoku,” which means “forest bathing.” I’m a firm believer that one fantastic word can impact our thinking like, well, like when a tree falls and then everything looks suddenly different. This is one of those words. Picture yourself inside those places in the forest where the trees seem to lean in as if gazing downward as we pass. We all know that feeling. The air cools, the light changes, the scents swell, and there’s a calm. But why is it so calming? Science says the trees bathe us in chemicals they emit to ward off insects and slow the growth of bacteria. Science says when humans are exposed to these chemicals they lower blood pressure, relieve stress, and boost cancer-fighting white blood cell production. Think about that. Literally, trees heal.

Therefore friends...go outside. Forest bathe. Mend yourself if you can. Find some peace. And then be peaceful with others.

Battle

Even for Canada, it's colder than normal, this November 11.

Winter is knocking on the other side of the door today. I can't ignore it much longer. Yet walking by our river there are pockets where water pushes through and up and over ice forms. And today, even though most of the leaves on our cut-leaf weeping birch (our biggest tree) are gone, a few still remain: yellowed, each one a shade of perseverance itself. It's that classic Autumn-Winter battle. One side advances, the other retreats. And then sides switch. Time and again.

I think Remembrance Day is somewhat like this push, this pull. It's a sign, a marker, a yearly waypost. It reminds us of what we've lost, what we've won, what we will endure and what we won't.

"You may encounter many defeats but you must not be defeated." Maya Angelou

This is my hood.

#ifthistreecouldtalk
#toomuchtoosoon
#beautifulthough

Things one should never outgrow:

little toys.

#johndeere

This is (was) my hood:

I forgot that in Saskatoon, the downtown crosswalk lights tweet when it's time to cross.

#thankyoufortheremindersaskatoon
#alotonmymind

This is my hood.

"There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery and the other that heat comes from the furnace." ~Aldo Leopold

#gotfood?
#thankafarmer

Things that deserve the stink-eye:

the last watermelon. This means summer is officially over.

#allfruitshouldcomeinitsownbowl
#sleddingandskiing
#sparklingsnow
#doesmywintercoatstillfit?
#bummer

Things one should never outgrow:

Thanks Will & Treena.

finding the perfect skipping stone down at the river on a perfect Sunday afternoon in September...and then -----a----a---a--a

Hanging there. Looking smug.

     Maybe you've seen them too? Just hanging there. Looking smug. Smirking. Knowing they make us uncomfortable. Knowing what’s coming even before we can fully sense it. Daring us to ignore them. A little wave here and a little wave there like that neighbourhood bully we couldn’t ever seem to shake. Putting us in our place. Sort of mocking us. And definitely multiplying. Not even afraid to jump. Red. Yellow. Orange. Maybe even green but a little mottled by a touch of frost. You know what I’m talking about right?
     Yup. Autumn leaves. They’re gathering like a group of rowdies and haters at a concert nobody wants to end but they’re just waiting to boo summer’s final performance.
     Although the sunshine and heat have faded somewhat, we must remember something though. Summer is tough. And sometimes she won’t leave without a fight or at least a lively encore. I like it when summer goes a little “gangsta” and spits out a few 25 degree days here and there. Despite her tenacity though, it’s inevitable. Summer will lose this battle. Always does.
     Therefore, I must change along with the season and adjust my attitude. That's why I made a list of fantastic fall things. So I won't hate autumn. And it worked. Kinda.
1. A lot less sweating.
2. Not looking chunky in your bathing suit anymore.
3. Dead insects.
4. Pickles.
5. And yeah, uh, I can’t think of anything else.