Dream, Imagine, Believe In Better Tomorrows

"The new year begins in a snow-storm of white vows." - George William Curtis.

Sometimes it's as if the sky has a day planner of weather events it must do. White snowy caps arrived on schedule, Dec. 21, the official first day of winter. Flakes rapidly settled on roofs and roads, weighing down unsuspecting trees and blooms.

Gleeful sounds of children eager to play in the puffy white were heard up the road. 

One cap (above) grew as tall as Marge Simpson's hairdo.  

Branches hugged and huddled in the bitter chill.

Faster and faster the flakes fell. 

Glittering Christmas lights hid beneath pillows of snow. 

The blinding blur came a few days too early for Christmas though.

Before long B.C.'s coastal rain started needling the winter wonderland.

Digging out from what fast became icy slush wasn't pretty.

Soon the birds flew back to feast on frozen left-over berries ... swallowing them whole. Our holiday dinner was a little warmer and more slowly digested. 

Sadly, nothing lasts forever but it's good to know 2020 will melt away. It's been a traumatic year for some more than others. The three candles that lit up my Christmas table said: dream, imagine, believe. As the vaccines roll out amid societal ills exposed, hopes for better tomorrows are as plentiful as the blizzard of flakes that briefly fell. 

Explore more at OUR WORLD. 

Still the kid I used to be

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle and Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride to view more West Coast scenes.

Because the state of our planet is the most pressing issue of our time, link up and learn about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report.

From My Bubble To Yours ... Baubles, Critters & Hugs

Holiday hug from Penelope Puddle by Maria Pavlik

As the holiday approaches, here's a hug from my "bubble" to yours via a watercolor my daughter painted when she was small which I later digitally formatted ... much like the safe hugs we give nowadays. An online program helped place the art into an animated snow globe that fit the mood of an upcoming Christmas season in a global pandemic. 

If pleas from the health experts are heeded, people won't be gathering in droves but they will decorate the inside and out of their homes.

I still haven't put up a tree and not sure if I will but someone I know did a fine job sprucing up the one shown at (left). 

The snowman in the globe is the only snow I've seen as yet this year in my southwest corner of B.C. so walking is easy and so is picture taking of places I go.

Pretty baubles have been building instead of snowflakes day by day. 

Unexpectedly, alongside train tracks at Crescent Beach, I saw men were working to ensure no First Nation's skeletal remains were buried in land primed for development. Dizzying when put into motion, a closer look shows the earth being carefully sifted.  

Taking the beach path below, I saw a sky that sometimes is crystal blue but on this day had a smoggy pinkish hue. Although my photo failed to show the majesty of the surroundings, I was bedazzled by the sunlit sea on the horizon.

Later, I saw the iconic large painted boulder (below) in the small City of White Rock.

People and birds love to gather and play along the shoreline. 

A colourful beak suddenly appeared. A patch of white feathers created a heart shape on the black bird diving in and out of the water. It made a pretty picture.

 

Dogs were also out and about ... some with a lot of extra fur.  

Two Alaskan Malamutes were on the pier despite a "no pets" sign at the entrance.  

The pier was seriously damaged during a winter storm and repaired thanks to community support and donations from far and near. People bought planks to rebuild. I like to think it's the Canadian way.   

 

Seagulls ruled the skies but there was also a flag waving from way up high. 

I saw an artistic hug in the cloudy blue, too. Blades of grass embraced a dewdrop in the 17 foot tall sculpture Coastal Cradle (pictured below) by Andy Davies. The orb reminded me of bubbles and baubles, crystal balls, snow globes and the world. 

Back from the pier it was clear, despite local objections, high rises continue to grow.   

High rises are a source of income when tourism is the main industry of a seaside city.

Most folks on mild weather days head outdoors to where there are many spacious paths to wander. I am grateful to have had many such wonderful walks in the outdoors during this strange and stressful year. But I look forward to breaking free from bubbles and, arms wide open, to blanketing someone outside my sphere in a big warm hug.

Explore more scenes from OUR WORLD, find the artistic side of life at Paint Party Friday, and enjoy discovering non-human life at Saturday's Critters.

Still the kid I used to be

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle and Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride to view more West Coast scenes.

Because the state of our planet is the most pressing issue of our time, link up and learn about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report.

Dancing On A Spider's String

“When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor. It’s to enjoy each step along the way.” – Wayne Dyer

   

At first it was a blur ... the tiny leaf stuck to an invisible discarded spider's string.

It was haplessly tugged like a puppet forced to move at the whim of the wind.

It stayed glued to the thin thread on the roof no matter how buoyant the breeze.

Red as the maple leaf on Canada's flag, the Japanese maple leaf couldn’t detach or let go. It's fate out of it's control, I'd like to think it was enjoying the dance. Sometimes all we can do is to let go of what we can't control. 

The little leaf could twist loose or the string become torn. Perhaps then the string and leaf would fly off together, their spell unbroken. The bird in the holly tree (below) watched with me as the beat of the wind swayed the pair to their next performance.

Explore more at MOSAIC MONDAY and OUR WORLD.

Still the kid I used to be

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle and Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride to view more West Coast scenes.

Because the state of our planet is the most pressing issue of our time, link up and learn about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report.

Looking Down But Feeling Up

When world events make me weary and the going seems all uphill ...

words of encouragement come along like stepping stones to a more positive outlook. 

On a recent walk, messages lay at the wheels of an old decorated bicycle.

 

Near the beguiling bugs painted on stones and by the twigs and shells ... 

advice I could appreciate, about looking up, was written on a rock in freehand.

Another rock said be kind and a seashell (below) advised be helpful.

Forgiveness (suggested below) is perhaps the toughest but wisest of paths to follow. Despite wrongs done, rising above old grievances could lead us all to a better place. 

    

Explore more at OUR WORLD.

Still the kid I used to be

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle and Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride to view more West Coast scenes.

Because the state of our planet is the most pressing issue of our time, link up and learn about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report.

What's Next?

"My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic." - Jack Layton

     

 

What's my next move, the squirrel seemed to be thinking while my thoughts, (on a walk to the beach fresh after the US election), were on words by Canadian New Democratic Party leader, Jack Layton. Layton passed away in 2011 but his message from the current Party leader was sent to Joe Biden who, in his victory speech, said cooperation is no mystery, it's a choice.

 

Earth floats the universal sea with mathematical precision while our lives hang in the balance serendipitously. Consciously or unconsciously, we make decisions impacting our survival that depends on a positive spirit of cooperation to solve problems from those who did (like me) or did not breathe a huge sigh of relief post election. 

Will there be constant choppy waters ahead and/or creeping cooperation that will build back better? Since positivity, too, is a choice, Layton's words ring true today.

 

My friends, love is better than anger.

Hope is better than fear. 

    

Optimism is better than despair. 

So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic.

Explore more horizons at OUR WORLD.

Still the kid I used to be

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle and Penelope Puddlisms: BC Life Is A Whale Of A Ride to view more West Coast scenes.

Because the state of our planet is the most pressing issue of our time, link up and learn about the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report.