Make A Wish!

I want to believe that wishes come true despite the skeptics. Wishing, in fact, is exactly what many of us do and have done for centuries on our birthdays. The tradition might have started with the ancient Greeks who prayed to a mythical moon goddess over round-shaped cakes topped with lit candles. They hoped, it is said, that when blown out, the rising smoke would keep evil spirits away. Whatever helps, eh?

As time when on, it evolved into a personal wish ... just one ... not three like in Aladdin's story. It's a tough choice. What should it be? My mom would have said health. The more altruistic would say world peace. The one living in the moment might say winning great gobs of cash or a coveted job. Whatever it is, it must be kept secret. That is the bargain we make with the universe we hope will manifest our desires.

Not wanting to break any spells, I won't reveal the one wish I made last week when I forgot it was my birthday. A box of chocolates and tiny cake left on the table for me to find in the morning was my first clue. Should I have wished for a better memory?

In the evening, more desserts (above) arrived unexpectedly. I am always grateful for sweet surprises and memorialized the moment as well as others. Below are photos from my recent walks amid a typical West Coast mix of cloud, sun and drizzle.

An ornate gate framed the sea in Ocean Park.

A lone tree stood tall overlooking Semiahmoo Bay.

Clouds obscured the Coastal Mountains and hovered around the Alex Fraser Bridge.

Clouds coloured the sea gray on this particular day.

Whitecaps surged like horses' manes when the wind swept through. 

A little boy enjoyed the waves. He looked for stones to cast into the water.

A small puddle waited for someone to jump in and make a splash.

A big shade tree leaned over the lawn. Leaves quietly stirred but were not visible yet.

Plumes of gray smoke at the foot of snow-peaked mountains across the bay were not keeping evil spirits away, although I wished that they could.

Above, the giant smoldering candle-shaped industrial chimney was perhaps damaging the environment? White cloudy trails are sometimes simply water evaporating though.

Most trees at Crescent Beach were winter bare, their branches gnarled.

The ocean lapped onto the mostly empty squishy shore.

Eagles scanned their kingdom while a man at the pier (below) surveyed his horizons.

Nestled in shrubbery (below) I could see it wasn't only me having a birthday. 

Poof! How quickly the years have flown. 

But there's still a distance that we will go.

See more horizons at Skywatch Friday and explore OUR WORLD.

Still the kid I used to be

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle and Musings of A Puddlist In B.C. 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.