
.
Word Press offers a daily prompt and yesterday’s was a question: “What is your favourite month and why?”
For me it has to be any month in which the days commence at an hour that enable me to view the dawn without having to rise indecently early.

.

OK. The days are short enough now!
But, it’s only a month till they begin lengthening again!
.
Grant came home from the post office and was alarmed to see me grovelling on the ground…

…appreciating the wild pansies that are among other plants thriving in our warm weather.
Others: weeds mostly.
Pansies have such sweet faces.

.

Back in Seattle where I lived until six years ago, they are expecting a “bomb-cyclone” with high winds and a blizzard up in the mountain passes.
In the eighteen years we lived there, I remember snow just once but ever since the first the winter after we left, it seems to have become a regular occurrence, while here where it is expected, we get less each year.
.
It would suit me much better if the weather would turn cold.
When I came in from looking at the pansies I sneezed my head off, my nose ran like a tap and my eyes blew up from some sort of allergy.

.

Among other things, I think I am vaguely allergic to animal fur but this is something I choose to ignore.
It’s more likely the dust they pick up as they romp around.
This morning I bent over to clean up the latest mess and was obliged to remain that way, Little Man having leapt aboard and installed himself for a lie down.
Where is that shy little kitten who came to us back in June?
Not so little or shy anymore!
.
Identity crisis?
In the past I sometimes displayed bumper stickers.
“The Falklands are British”, during the Falklands War.
Having been there, I knew it to be so. It won me a note from an IRA supporter. Nothing nasty, only an indication of how they felt about a different conflict.

.

At the time I took the message to be aggressive!
How times have changed. These days we go straight to being plain nasty and inciteful.
Whatever happened to people being taught discipline and manners? Consideration?
.
Here’s a link worth watching. It’s an article from the New York Times.
……..

… Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in
.

The light always gets in…

.
It sometimes seems so remote…
…beyond reach…

.

..but the barriers can come down.
.
The other shore may seem distant.

.

But never give up hope.
Have faith in yourself.
.
Sometimes I surprise myself.
Inspirational talk is not something I am much given to, being deeply cynical by nature.

.

But particular scenes or songs, or words lift me from the gloom that could so easily overtake me.
.
There is no way of knowing what the future will bring or how one will deal with it, but I know my past.
For so many years I was deeply depressed and almost without hope, but it seems there was always just a glimmer to head for.

.

If there were no dazzling lights for me, there were certainly enough that were bright enough to catch my attention…

…and steer me clear.
.
Suddenly I found myself on the other side of the river.

.

For me, the lid came off my depression when I stopped despairing over what I saw I would never attain, gave up regrets and just accepted what was and what is.
Life is seldom all we hope for but we owe it to those who have so much less to enjoy what we have, while we can.
No one can ever take the Moon away from me. Contemplating it takes me back to the time I was at boarding school looking up.
.
All those years, all that pain – and joy, blown away in the winds of time.

Wise words and beautiful pictures. Thank you 😊
Lovely, encouraging words, and pictures. 💜
Thank you.
You may not be “inspirational by nature”, but these were some inspiring words. And thank you for the Leonard Cohen – brilliant! The link didn’t work for me, but I found it on youtube, and Anthem is a tonic in these dark and depressing days. I will be watching it on repeat for a long while, I think.
You’re right, pansies have the prettiest little faces – whenever I can, I too stop to take a closer look at them. And what a wonderful start to my morning: Leonard Cohen’s Anthem is something we need to hear more often these days (love the video and beautiful scenes of nature), as well as your inspirational words in today’s post … thank you very much for that ❤️.
You are in a very contemplative and thoughtful frame of mind in this post. That is something I am also feeling more and more with every year that passes. My favourite month has always been September. The best average weather, (in the UK) neither late Summer nor early Autumn. When the kids go back to school, I can enjoy more peaceful holidays.
Best wishes, Pete.
A bit much for such a young child but what a contrast to western schools or at least to those in America where discipline and respect seem to have become non-existent.
I felt so sorry for the little girl who hadn’t done enough practice at home. Seems a very regimented way to school tiny tots!
I personally feel that here, in the US, one of our main problems to lack of discipline & respect are the basic lack of consequences for peoples actions. Our majority of voting citizens saw no problem with voting in a convicted criminal for our next president. It only goes downhill from there. Very sad for our country.
You are an inspiring person who shares your generosity and wisdom with us.
Letting go of regrets and some situations is really difficult. I often feel like I walk in a circle, and my mind is constantly buzzing with thoughts. But over the years, I’ve thought myself to close my life chapter, turning the page, and beginning a new one. It’s not easy, but sometimes I do it successfully 🙂.
The Leonard Cohen is incredible. His songs always gave me goose chills while I listened.
The article about Japanese education is fantastic. I hope schools all over the world adopt that program as well. It is important.
Take care 🙋
Letting go is indeed very, very hard as is the path through life. The thing to do is focus on the bright lights and keep going. Your blog is one of those.
Absolutely agree you. Keep going and never give up.
Thank you very much! 💗