Back in the day when my sister was planning her wedding, she asked my children to stand as flower girl and ring bearer. This photo has been on display here in my home ever since.
They are adults now, of course, and my daughter is married with a family of her own.
Of special note, the pandemic didn’t bring all bad news: my son is now engaged!
♥ Cherish Every Moment ♥
*Ragtag Daily Prompt: Wedding!
As we recognize and celebrate Earth Day this year, I fondly think about my favourite tree.*
This huge and flourishing maple tree is in the front garden of my daughter’s summer house in outport Newfoundland. I look forward to seeing it each and every July.
“Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky.”
~ Kahlil Gibran
Caring for our trees is of vital importance, now more than ever. Strong, healthy trees help to clean the air by absorbing pollutants and releasing clean oxygen for us to breathe. They capture rainwater, which helps prevent landslides and floods. And, of course, they provide shelter and habitat for many forest creatures. All of this shows how trees help reduce the effects of climate change.
“The true meaning of life is to plant trees,
under whose shade you do not expect to sit.”
~ Nelson Henderson
We can all play a part in countering the effects of deforestation. One way is the simple act of planting a tree or a number of trees. Check out the Canopy Project at https://onetreeplanted.org/
Do you have a favourite tree, woodland or forest?
Please share if you do!
*All photos taken on July 11, 2021 in Lead Cove, NL
All around the world, people are playing Wordle. The popular daily word game has become a must for me (at least until a paywall presents itself), as it has for many of my friends, relatives and acquaintances.
Thinking about word games reminded me of a post I wrote ten years ago this month, not long after I started this blog. I spruced it up a little and added a couple of photos:
As far back as I can remember, I have had a penchant for words, especially the written word. Whether that love was instilled in me by a father who himself had a strong interest in language and books, or because I genetically inherited from him, I do believe he deserves most of the credit.
A familiar scene from my childhood was seeing Dad enjoy a little “light reading” before bed—devouring such tomes as War and Peace and The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. On more than one occasion he was known to take an atlas to bed, to study up on the world geographically in relation to the news of the day.
Remembering my father that way always makes me smile. If only I could talk to him more about the books we’ve read. If only we could watch one more episode of Jeopardy together or play one more game of Trivial Pursuit as a family. He would have been eight-eight years old tomorrow (March 21), but we lost him nearly twenty years ago at sixty-nine. I’ve missed him every day of my life since.
I usually read about a book a week, but my passion for words doesn’t stop there. When I think of games, word games have always been my favourite. Give me a competitive game of Scrabble any day over other board games. I also delight in solving a difficult crossword puzzle, anagram, cryptogram, or jumble. And if playing Jeopardy, what is my favourite category? You guessed it: Word Origins!
When I think of word origins, one particular book comes fondly to mind, recommended and owned by our father, and now in my possession. Our Marvelous Native Tongue – The Life and Times of the English Language by Robert Claiborne, is probably the best book ever written about the origins of our language. Thorough in its examination and encompassing the first intonations of our caveman ancestors to the many dialects of today, I found it hard to put down, even on a second reading. Particularly notable are the many words we ‘borrowed’, and then kept from other languages, making English a true amalgam, and the rich, colourful and ever-evolving tapestry of words and speech we know today.
“To me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it’s about, but the music the words make.” ~ Truman Capote
Readers and writers:
Do you play Wordle?
What—or who—instilled in you your love of words?
Do tell!
*Most of the above is from an Evergreen Post written in March 2012.
Hello everyone! Vivian K. Perry here, eager to bring you a fresh look of me enjoying Perry’s Point this morning.
It’s been an odd sort of winter here in Newfoundland and Labrador, with less snow than usual, particularly here on the Bonavista North coastline where a strong gale often whisks the flakes away before they can even think about settling. But overnight last night the light wind allowed a pretty layer of snow to fall, and the sun came out, so I couldn’t wait to go outside and explore.
This was my second trip outside this morning.
Time to make more tracks!
I’ve made plenty of paw prints but I look for the dry spots too.
I think I’ve had enough for now. Time to go inside for a cuddle.
“You know, sometimes the world seems like a pretty mean place.
That’s why animals are so soft and huggy.” – Bill Watterson
Check out my very short YouTube video below
to see how I try to retrace my snow-prints! ~ love, Vivian
Photo Challenge: Sunday Stills – Another Fresh Look At…
Happy Sunday, all!
This afternoon has me wistfully looking back on our European trip, yet again. For this post in particular, I’m reminiscing about Paris and our visit to the Notre Dame Cathedral.
As enthralling as it was to take a tour inside this extraordinary example of French Gothic architecture, I was equally enamored with the feathery congregation outside!
In April of 2019, a massive fire tore through the roof of the Notre Dame, but a restoration by artisans is in the works. I have a feeling these birds have missed the tourists and will be happy when this historic cathedral reopens in 2024.
By the way, did you know that February is National Bird Feeding Month in the U.S.?
“Birds are the most popular group in the animal kingdom. We feed them and tame them and think we know them. And yet they inhabit a world which is really rather mysterious.” ~ David Attenborough
Photo Challenge: Sunday Stills — Are You a #Bird Feeder?
My photos originally shared here: Scenes From France – Part 3: More Paris!
Happy Friday, all!
Here’s a fun photo challenge from the blog Alive and Trekking.
Which way do I go for my favourite local walking trail?
To Greenspond, of course!
And which way to Bennett Island?
Across the water from Newtown, that’s where.
“It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
While visiting Italy, which way to Siena?
Through this archway!
And which direction do we go to spend lots of money?
This way!
Here I am getting ready to leave Grand Central Station
to explore New York City. But which way should I go?
There’s so much to see!
Back in Newfoundland, what is the only way
to enter St. John’s Harbour from the Atlantic Ocean?
Through the Narrows.
“Happiness is a direction, not a place.”
~ Sydney J. Harris
And finally, which way was Maisie going on that lovely August day?
Where was she leading Vivian? Who knows?
“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.”
~ George Harrison (and perhaps Louis Carroll?)
Photo Challenge: Which Way by Alive and Trekking
“Some old things are lovely warm still with the life of forgotten men who made them.”
~ D. H. Lawrence
I snapped these photos with my phone on July 11th last year while visiting my daughter and her family at their summer property in Lead Cove, NL. They are of my son-in-law’s shed, which once belonged to his father, and to his grandfather before that. The above quote came to mind from one of my previous posts, titled Old.
The weathered closeup depicted in the last photo takes me back to that summer afternoon, when I pressed my hand on the sun-warmed clapboard, grey as driftwood under its flakes of peeling paint. There’s something about old structures that inspire a longing, speak in soft whispers, as if sharing with me the poignant aura of days long gone.
Photo Challenge: Weather(ed) – Travel With Intent
Photo Challenge: Closeup or Macro – Cee Neuner
Hey everyone, look what WordPress told me today:
Jennifer’s Journal all started with a little procrastination on my part because I couldn’t pull myself away from my best-loved musical / fantasy / children’s movie, The Wizard of Oz. Check it out!
Hello, and welcome to my Journal! This is my first foray into the world of blogging, so being a total newbie at this, I am not even sure where my words will take us. The one thing I can tell you, Dear Reader, is that Jennifer’s Journal will be a sharing of my thoughts in the forms of prose, poetry and musings. As well, I plan to include selections of photography that I think you will like.
New Year’s Eve 2011 is upon us, and 2012 beckons with promise. I should be getting gussied up for the Ball at the Barbour site here in Newtown in a few hours, the first one in several years for us. I should be primping and preening, painting my nails, curling my locks and donning a frock to ring in the new year in style with the local revelers. Instead, I’ve happened upon The (wonderful) Wizard of Oz, a movie that has hijacked my attention for the hundredth time.
And once again, I ask myself, What is it about the Scarecrow (always my favorite), that makes my silly heart melt? Is it the way he falls about in his straw-filled pants, like he hasn’t a bone in his body, or is it the way he talks so kindly to Dorothy, making me wish I was her? Yes, I smile at the Tin Man, and I laugh at the Cowardly Lion, but it is the Scarecrow that makes me PVR the rest of the movie before I am reluctantly pulled away.
And I know it is the last day of the year, but I didn’t want to wait for January One, which would have been the expected start date of a blog. I had to ask that very important question today.
Perhaps, Dorothy has the answer?
Originally posted here.
Heartfelt thanks to everyone who visited, commented, and continue to follow my blog.
You’re the best! ❤
Meowy Christmas, peeps and pets! Vivian K. Perry here today, filling in for Jennifer while she finishes getting ready for the holidays.
I got to reminiscing about my sister Maisie this morning, who went over the rainbow bridge in May of 2020. Here we are, together, several Christmases ago:
And here is Maisie, unable to resist our little tree:
Jennifer has many other cats in her extended family.
Here is Joey, one of her daughter’s cats:
. . . and here’s Joey with his sister Ginger:
Jennifer’s sister-in-law owns this fluffy kitty who goes by the name Scotty—aka Butterscotch:
Not long ago, Scotty had a brother named Merlin:
This cat’s name is Gerald. He belongs to Jennifer’s niece:
Jennifer’s sister had a cat named Zoe:
. . . and Jennifer’s son had a cat named Miss Mooch:
Jennifer and I are sending out Season’s Greetings to all of our friends, family, pets and bloggers.
We look forward to catching up with you again in 2022!
~ Love and purrs, Vivian. ❤
Jennifer's Journal 