Sunday light as I sat in the sunroom with Bear…
It lit the kitchen…
Bear.
The branches outside the sunroom.
Bear in Sunday’s light.
Before bed
Zack
Gus
Bob
Karl
Bear
My boys…all on my mind and in my heart this evening before bed.
Bob is in the bedroom, on the bed waiting for me.
Bear is at my feet, out last walk taken as the sun was low. He is doing so well on the short long line unleashed. He is with me all day and sleeps in the living room, but I can hear him as we are separated by only a gate.
All of them, the boys, they and I lived/live in a rhythm of our own.
This day: we narrowed the “plumbing” problem to the cold water feed to the washer. Hopefully only a plugged filter – I’ll pull all apart on the weekend.
Walks with Bear.
Time with Bob.
Work.
A dinner of chicken with a rub of almonds, 5 spice powder and garlic…and a cherry sauce.
More cherries pitted, sugared and mixed with basil for cherry basil soda syrup.
Broa dough mixed for morning “English” muffins.
Dishes done.
Night falls as I write this post that only I will see for some time. I am happy to be writing for myself for this time.
I miss Zack, Gus and Karl.
I read for a bit before mixing the dough…of Julia Child.
Peace. It is nearly dark.
I am comforted by Bob and Bear…this evening, before bed.
Birthday: 2011
Birthday dinner…pizza with pesto, roma tomatoes, kalmata olives and provolone…washed down with a cherry-basil soda – happy day!!
Pesto was made with walnuts as in an odd burst of frugality, I won’t spend $9.00 for a small bag of pine nuts :)!
The day was gorgeous with blue sky, a few white clouds, temperatures pleasantly in the 60’s until afternoon when it topped out at 74. My knee is better, my back has been giving me fits so I DID have a birthday nap complete with heating pad…which made me feel that I really was/am 56!
An evening walk, an early night and a bit of Julia Child’s “My life in France” with Bob on the bed and Bear through the gate in the living room. A wonderful birthday: 2011.
The first step
One of the things that keeps me blogging is the diary-like nature of recording events, thoughts, weather and so the ability to go back and see what I was doing, what the weather was like and “What was I thinking ???”. I cringe at some of the writing and some of the photos AND some of the thoughts, but mostly, it is helpful to see progress.
A little over a week ago, Ree Drummond, on her The Pioneer Woman Blog posted Then and Now: Pots de Creme on the progress of her own food photography.
The last sentence of her post was: “I’m nowhere near where I want to be. But I’m a lot closer than I’d be if I hadn’t kept going.”
That sentence says so much to me…not just about photography, but about any venture in life. And one more thing -you have to make a start.
I was reading comments, several others commented on that sentence, but it was tj’s (Tammy) comment that caught my eye:
tj On Wednesday, July 27
…This post almost made me cry, and it wasn’t because it was about you or Helene or how far you’ve both come in food photography, it was that last sentence:“I’m nowhere near where I want to be. But I’m a lot closer than I’d be if I hadn’t kept going.” … Wow.
…I just returned from feeding a friend’s farm animals while they are on vacation and on the drive back home I was negative talking to myself about this journey I am just beginning in an effort to help to try and save our old barn from an almost certain demise. I was more or less calling myself a ‘big dummy’ for even thinking I could do this, for even thinking that I could sell my coleslaw dressing and even try to make a go of this. I got home, [..] checked on my fav’ blogs and this post popped up, I was reading along and I thought to myself, “Wow, Ree has gotten better at food photography” and “Who’da thought that what was once awesome photography has now become awesomer”.
And then I got to that last sentence and it hit me square in the heart and the head… All I can say is, “thank you Ree” for posting this today. Thank you.
I replied to tj in comments:
Ann from Montana On Friday, July 29
tj, YES, the JOURNEY!!! You hit the nail on the head IMHO! Yes, we have a destination or a hoped for destination, but every moment of the journey is a blessed moment as well with things to be learned and enjoyed.
I just came up against this myself – entirely different situation, but the commonality is that I may or may not reach my destination…or my destination may look a whole lot different than what I originally thought it would. Once I turned my perspective around to “the journey”, the frustration and negativity left – mostly…I sometimes have to have a good talk with myself.
I followed tj’s comment link to her blog and read in more detail what she was working on.
I emailed tj on Saturday. Part of that email is:
My own journey that might not end up “where” I thought. I lost my 10 year old Karelian Bear Dog, Karl, to cancer, in mid-April. In mid-May, I adopted a 6 ½ year old KBD, Bear, whose person, a single man, had died suddenly. […] I also have a 14 year old diabetic cat, Bob. Bear and Bob did not hit it off. My home is separated by gates. Bear is well trained, well mannered and is responding well to the training I’m doing so that he can be off leash with me for walks in my rural area, but the Bear and Bob thing and in fact, the whole rhythm of my home is not how I pictured. I had a kind of comeuppance several weeks ago – the journey thing. Changing my focus to enjoying each day and the progress, no matter where it leads, is what turned it for me. That is why your comment so resonated with me.
While I keep an eye on my “destination” my focus IS on enjoying each day and each day’s progress with Bear, with Bear and Bob. I have let go of the outcome, it is TODAY that matters and today, ALL is good! Bear and Bob and I are healthy and happy.
As Tammy (tj) and I traded a few emails…Tammy wrote “I know the starting out is the hard part, right now I’m still taking baby steps and every journey starts with just one step.” That FIRST step in whatever public venue…internet, family, family and friends…taking that FIRST public step…it is actually a leap – a leap of faith. To put yourself out there, whether it is your coleslaw dressing, your photography, your writing, your professional skills…it is hard! What if you fail, what if no one buys, what if…what if…what if???
To take that first step, in confidence, in faith, in fear…it is admirable and courageous.
THAT is why I responded, why I emailed and why I posted “Save a barn and have delicious cole slaw”. The real title, though, should have been “Courage” because that is what courage looks like…despite all of the “what ifs”, despite fear – taking the first step.
***Comments are closed
Save a barn and have delicious cole slaw!
It’s not my barn…I don’t have a barn…I’d love to have a barn…I LOVE Barns!
But that’s not why I became involved with Humble Origins (tj in comments) effort to save her family’s barn.
More on the why and how I took an interest this weekend. All the details are on Humble Origins’ Save the barn page. Tammy is selling her DELICIOUS!!! homemade coleslaw dressing to raise funds to save the barn.
Humble Origins Etsy Shop has two listings. One is for $6.00 and you pay shipping. The second is the same jar of dressing for $25.00 and shipping is free. The $25.00 jar is to allow any who’d like to get a bottle of dressing and additionally donate a bit extra for the “Save the Barn” fund. And, to quote/paraphrase Tammy: “If you make your own wonderful dressing OR if you don’t want to offend your Aunt Betty who makes the family dressing”… BUT, you’d like to help save the barn,…there is direct donate button on the Save the barn page.
I encourage you to try the dressing, though. It is a tangy, sweet dressing – wonderful and so refreshing.
Happy Friday!