One of the most destructive and rapidly spreading invasive species on the continent has been found for the first time in a Canadian national park. Driving along the road of Elk Island National Park, you see bison grazing in the prairie fields. Sometimes on the road a bison will walk in front or alongside your car. In midday you are less likely to see any bison as they stay in shaded areas dense with poplar and evergreen trees. What you hope to not see is a wild ...
October Thanksgiving-a Daily Gratitude Bible Reading Plan
I love everything about fall. How about you? We've been experiencing a lovely fall in the Alberta prairies. The result is the leaves have stayed on the trees much longer than I have seen in many years! I am grateful for the rich fall colours I can witness on the cherry and poplar trees in my own neighbourhood. So, I don't have to go far to experience the splendours of fall! In Canada, our Thanksgiving holiday is in October. I'm thankful for a sister who makes Thanksgiving dinner, ...
Making Purposeful Decisions
The sparrows and chickadees are emptying my bird feeders at record speed since the temperatures have dropped in the mornings and evenings. Sometimes I wonder, “why my bird feeder?” My backyard is average and small in comparison to neighbouring yards. If I was a bird, I think I would choose a less barren place with bird baths, ponds, and clusters of trees. I am happy to see them though, these birds that come in multiples to feed on seeds just for them. They do not know the joy they are ...
Changing Messy Thinking (imperfectly perfect)
I literally laboured to change my thinking of messiness. Instead of shaking my head with repeating “you are so st….d” thoughts, I began to laugh at my messy. I learned that breaking perfection leads to more connection and joy. It wasn’t easy, letting go of perfection. When a teenager, I remember admiring the vacuum marks at a peer’s out-of-bounds living room. My own home included spreads of magazines and newspapers on coffee-tables. I’d rearrange them by colour and size, just to look less ...
Encouragement for Changing Times
When change comes upon us, whether started by us or placed upon us, we can become fearful of the unknown. Our security, our life-style, and our hopes can feel threatened. Sometimes we may panic, other times we may want to hide. We wonder if we are going to be okay. I believe you are going to be okay! You’re going to make it through. Evergreens and poplar trees border the path I walk. The August sky is cloudless, the air calm but my mind is stormy. What if I can’t do this? ...
Life Transitions
“You’re too hard on yourself.” Those are words spoken to me often, yet I still resist them. How am I being too hard on myself? Especially since many summer weeks have passed by and I see unchecked items on my project list. I’ve allowed too much downtime, in my opinion. “You’re rushing things,” my friend says. I begin to understand. That anxiety that made me leave the list to take an off-schedule walk in grasslands is stemmed from panic. Panic that I should be in a ...
