Monday, January 06, 2020

Rainy Day Monday



Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful,
for beauty is God's handwriting.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Outside my window this morning the rain drips down. I see delicate translucent beads hanging from each branch of the bare maple tree. The street is shiny wet, with rivulets trickling down along the curbs. I rather dread going out. Inside, my back is to the fire as I type. A large mug of tea is close by.  


I am thinking about walks in the woods and how fresh everything smells, and the quiet sound of slow rain on fallen leaves. 

During the past week I did some major cleanup. We have a storage room over the stairs and it tends to extreme untidiness over time. It looks wonderful now and I discarded all kinds of things - some to the thrift store, many papers to the recycle (I'm getting rid of my teaching materials), and some to the garbage can. We shifted furniture while my dad and son-in-law were here to help and that's required some cleaning out of drawers. My sewing room has also been sorted and organized, although there is one bank of drawers that I still need to get to. It feels great to start the new year with tidiness. 

(For those who will think that I should pass on those teaching resources to others, most of what I have and use is now digitally filed and readily available to my colleagues.) 



We've met some interesting people recently. Our rental suite has been vacant for a couple of months while we've painted and did some minor repairs. It was lovely to have the extra space over Christmas, and we put up an advertisement just before our guests arrived, planning to rent it for January 1. Rental spaces are very hard to find in our town and we had so much interest that we took the ad down after 24 hours. We interviewed 4 possible tenants and it was really hard to choose between them. In the end, we chose a couple who are brand new to Canada. She will be studying at UVic, and he will work. 

Another couple with a small boy also wanted to rent the suite. They are new to Canada, as well, and she will be studying while he works. Seems to be a theme. We had this couple over for dinner last week. I made a Mediterranean Chicken dish that I liked so much I made it again on Saturday night. The recipe is on my other blog and available if you click the link.


Over the weekend our daughter and youngest granddaughter came to stay. Miss Iris is the sweetest baby, and so content. She looks at the world with big serious eyes and has to feel comfortable before engaging in smiles and play. Just before they left yesterday she was sitting in her high chair completely engrossed with a piece of packaging. The sun shone for a brief moment and illuminated her, so I grabbed my camera and took a quick photo. 


As we contemplate another year in a world where much is broken, I leave you with these words from J. R. Tolkien, 

"The world is full of peril and there are many dark places. But still, there is much that is fair and though in all lands, love is now mingled with grief, it still grows, perhaps, the greater."

24 comments:

  1. Illuminated is right! It's like the innocence and goodness of her soul are shining through, lovely photograph.

    Your happiness over having sorted the room may just inspire me to tackle my office tomorrow! And could the Tolkien quote be any more appropriate for a time such as this?

    I printed your recipe from your other blog!

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  2. What a lovely photo of your little one, so absorbed!

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  3. It seems that with new year comes the urge to clean out and clean up. I have been tackling some of that myself.

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  4. It is very special to watch babies developing and starting to take an interest in all that is around them, and in particular our own dear grandchildren. Iris is a lovely baby.
    You have been extremely industrious. I really should give our house a good top to bottom clean, but keep procrastinating - given time I will.

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  5. a lovely lovely keepsake photo to be framed and displayed of that gorgeous child. Her cheeks!!! Thanks for the hopeful quote

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  6. Setting things to order is a wonderful thing for January. How good to have quality renters...the other kind are intolerable. Do you know that we’re all “no reply” commenters these days? I have no idea how to change it.

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  7. I'm salivating over your yummy chicken dish.

    Nice shot of sweet Iris! Whenever I try to photography my godson (now 4 years of age), it ends up blurry because he's constantly moving. HA!

    Another one of my 2020 goals is to do some decluttering. I have a bad habit of keeping original packaging "just in case" I need it. After 8 years, I finally threw away the box for my old laptop.

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  8. Grandchildren are such a blessing. As my grow older, they just get to be more fun to interact with. Iris is such a sweet baby and no doubt such a joy. I worked on my basement today putting away Christmas. I have way too much and need to declutter and reorganize. I say that every year. Happy New Year, Lorrie.

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  9. Lovely photo of your granddaughter. It’s lovely that you see her often. B x

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  10. Little Iris is such a doll baby, Lorrie! I envy you in getting so much cleared out and organized. Your meal looks wonderful! Happy 2020 to you and your family.

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  11. I love that last quote. It's not easy to get out in the dark places and mix it up....as I always say. But we can meet interesting people and shine our light as well. Iris is such a precious little girl. She will always find wonder in the things around her....as she grows up. Hugs!

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  12. It seems that the new year brings a new broom and a good clear out is in order. What a beautiful photo of your sweet grandaughter, a real delight. Wishing you and yours best wishes for 2020.

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  13. That quote is perfect.

    I didn't realize you had a rental suite, with my daughter and her husband looking for an affordable rental here, I recognize that there are not many NICE affordable rentals. I'm sure yours is a dream!

    It feels good to clear out the clutter, doesn't it?

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  14. Beautiful photo. Tolkien was a wise man, beautiful quote.
    Cleaning out things is a good way to start the year.

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  15. Your chicken dish looks so tasty … and that is such a beautiful photograph of your grand-daughter.

    All the best Jan

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  16. Lorrie - pleased for you that renting your suite was a quick success. Upon graduation, our son will be working while his girlfriend attends grad school - sound familiar? Your grand-daughter is a beauty in that spotlight …

    The quote from Tolkien reminds me of the "Love Wins" song from Carrie Underwood - I am pondering using the lyrics in a future post - we all need a little hope these days!

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  17. What a perfect quote to ponder Lorrie! Cleaning, tidying, and donating all feel so good, it's great to start the new year with organization in place. Such a sweet picture of baby Iris, I know your heart was thrilled to have them visit over the weekend. That wild storm never materialized here, thankfully. Instead we had a perfectly beautiful day of sunshine! Blessings to you!

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  18. Mis Iris is so cute & sweet <3 Rain y & windy here too... Greetings.

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  19. A beautiful quote to begin the year dear Lorrie. And such an adorable photo of sweet Iris. Wishing you a Happy New Year XXX

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  20. Lovely post...on a rainy day Monday at the beginning of a new year! Yes, there is still much that is fair...and you are good at sharing it!

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  21. I can almost see your grand-daughter’s mind working as she figures out this new piece of her big wide wonderful world. It’s lovely to be reminded of good and joy these days ... thank you for those reminders from your world and for the quotes .

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  22. Wonderful photo of your granddaughter. So much fun to catch these moments. Love the quote by Tolkien!

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  23. I imagine it is a good feeling to have your storage room all organized as the new year begins.
    Your chicken dish looks delicious. I am going to go and check out that recipe.
    Your granddaughter is so sweet. I know you must have enjoyed visiting with her immensely.
    Happy New Year!

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  24. Wonderful ending quote. We must remember this.
    Love, love the quick picture snap of your grand daughter. Isn't it so nice when they come for visits?

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