“I noticed that she used this phrase again and again: in sauna rather than in the sauna. She’s not talking about a building, a little pine shed with burning coals in the corner; she’s talking about a state of being.”
—Katherine May, speaking of a Finnish friend in Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times
Yesterday I took a day. A whole day.
I went for a short walk, but other than that I did nothing but lie on my couch, read a book, and watch the Toronto Blue Jays and Tim Hortons Brier curling.
I don’t have a pine shed with burning coals or a cedar-lined sanctuary, but I spent the day in sauna, in the way of Katherine May’s friend.
That is something I almost never do. I’m always doing something.
It was glorious.
Today I feel restored, and that is the power of rest and retreat.
Some days I feel like this: snapped off with jagged edges exposed.
Tree snapped by a derecho in Ottawa, May 2022
Some days I feel like this: uprooted and toppled.
Evergreen tree blown over, probably by the same derecho.
But most days I feel like this: strong, straight, and reaching for the sky. I have a broken branch or two, but that’s okay. The morning sun shines on me and the skies are blue.
Here is the first joy from my week. Her name is Farley, and she is my daughter’s new puppy. Look at that face!
My second joy is this colourful arrangement of heart cookies I made for Valentine’s Day. Yum!
The third joy was a sunset cross-country ski outing – with horses!
And now the book, which is also a joy. The Poetry Circle of the Canadian Authors Association branch in the National Capital Region published an anthology. Five of my poems are included in the book. You could buy it if you wish. (It would bring you joy.)
The most common response to roller coaster, my word(s) for 2023, is . . . horror. Eyes widen and lips fall open. A person might event take a step away from me.
I read the thoughts: Why would she choose something so . . . erratic? Why would she invite that kind of energy into her life?
So far this year I have spent a lot of time going up and down, up and down, up and down. We skied for a week in fabulous Revelstoke, British Columbia, where the gondolas and ski lifts pulled me up, up, up, and gravitational potential energy converted to kinetic energy carried my down, down, down.
It was FUN!
One of the things I appreciate about the ups and downs of it all is that up is both a grand thing entirely and a tough old slog or a concern.
Things are looking up.
She's so upbeat.
It's an uphill climb out of debt.
The grocery store prices are up.
Something's up over there.
And down is both a breezy joyride and a depressing turn of events or a concern.
The hard parts over, so it's all downhill from here!
I'm down with that.
The best is over, it's all downhill from here.
She's looking down in the mouth.
Something's going down over there.
I enjoyed the up rides on the ski gondolas and chairs. I put forth no effort. I chatted with strangers. I warmed up and rested a little. A grand thing entirely.
Riding the gondola. A grand thing entirely.
At the mountain peak, I looked down at the spectacular view and the ski trails. “It’s all downhill from here!” Whoosh! whee! A breeze.
I had to go up in order to see this spectacular view.
But if I were standing beside a bicycle at the bottom of a mountain looking up at an arduous climb, I would see it as a tough old slog. ( My daughter’s boyfriend LOVES to climb hills on bicycle. See? We all can’t seem to agree.)
Or if I missed my bus on the way to work, arrived late to an important meeting and spilled coffee on my boss, the rest of my day might go downhill from there.
Up, down, up, down, up, down.
On my 2023 roller coaster I might be riding, climbing or slogging up, or I might be whooshing, slumping or tumbling down, but the one thing I will not be doing is standing still. It’ll be fun!
What’s up with you? I hope you have everything down pat in your life.
King Charles III and the Queen Consort, Camilla, released their first Christmas card since Charles became king. The message reads: Wishing you a very Happy Christmas and New Year.
Upon seeing this, my husband noted that in Canada we tend to wish people a Merry Christmas, whereas residents of the UK wish people a happy one.
Having mulled it over, in future I will wish people a Happy Christmas, because that is my truer wish. A person can be merry without being happy at all.
Merriment is surface stuff. To be merry, a person needs only to smile, laugh, and overindulge in shortbread and eggnog.
Happiness runs deeper than that. A happy person doesn’t need to be merry at all. Happiness is sitting at peace in the moment and being grateful for what is. The merriment, the gifts, the gingerbread, and the spiked hot chocolate are mere bonuses.
No matter what or how you celebrate, may you sit at peace in the moment, grateful for what is.
During a writing workshop led by the fabulous Melissa Yi (emergency room doctor and writer, because both are so easy), she proposed finding humour by turning hate into love.
Here’s how it works: Think of a situation, and name three things you hate about it. Perhaps a ride on a municipal bus, for example.
I hate when a bus is late, so I have to stand outside and wait.
I hate when people hold long, loud telephone conversations on a bus. I especially hate when they use speakerphone.
I hate when someone falls asleep and snores.
You’re with me? All those things are contemptible. But Melissa suggested I should flip that into love.
I love when the bus is late, because it gives me time to have a conversation with a neighbour and hear all about his prostate operation.
I love when people hold loud, long telephone conversations, because it gives me good dialogue tips for the annoying characters in my stories. And speakerphone gives me both sides of the conversation. Two annoying characters at once!
I love when someone falls asleep and snores. It keeps me awake so I don’t miss my stop.
Here’s your challenge for the day. Turn some hate into love. You might laugh, and you’ll for sure find some gratitude.
Somerton Smith 