Tag Archives: Education

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

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It rained today. Not that that really matters, except that I was getting used to the pretty view of the deep snow from my window. I am thankful for the warmer weather. It means I don’t have to go out to break ice and give fresh water several times a day to the animals. It has been exceptionally snowy early here, and as much as I complained, it was quite festive… as long as I didn’t have to drive in it. And when we were driving, he white snow covered pine trees along the country roads had us singing “Walking in a Winter Wonderland”… which had me musing… I wonder what the background of the carol was? Did he really walk around in a winter wonderland? Let’s refresh:

Sleigh bells ring, are you listenin’,
In the lane, snow is glistenin’
A beautiful sight,
We’re happy tonight,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

Gone away is the bluebird,
Here to stay is a new bird,
He sings a love song,
As we go along,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

In the meadow we can build a snowman,
Then pretend that he is Parson Brown
He’ll say: Are you married?
We’ll say: No man,
But you can do the job
When you’re in town.

Later on, we’ll conspire,
As we dream by the fire
To face unafraid,
The plans that we’ve made,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

In the meadow we can build a snowman,
And pretend that he’s a circus clown
We’ll have lots of fun with mister snowman,
Until the other kiddies knock him down.

When it snows, ain’t it thrillin’,
Though your nose gets a chillin’
We’ll frolic and play, the Eskimo way,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

Walking in a winter wonderland,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

The first lyrics were written by Felix Bernard Smith and Richard Bernhard in 1934. Originally it was just a romantic ditty about a young couple out on a romantic winter’s walk. It merged into Christmas-hood later with remakes from the likes of Guy Lombardo, Perry Como and even Elvis. You’ll notice some versions changed Parson Brown to “circus clown” to make the romantic version a little more child friendly. The one above includes both. All in all, just a fun song.

However… the original Mr. Smith didn’t actually get to go a walkin’ in the winter wonderland because he was recouping from another bout of tuberculosis in a hospital Sanitarium. As he stared out the window, dreaming of seeing his beloved wife, Jane, the kids frolicking around in the snow reminded him of his childhood days in Pennsylvania… and the song was born.

It’s actually sad to think about this poor guy suffering with coughing fits, hacking up a lung, with little hope of full recovery dreaming of a white Christmas at home with his new bride. The powers that be say that’s what the reference to the blue bird is… happiness gone and a new bird… sadness, has come to roost. Still, that’s speculative.

Whatever you choose to see in this little song, and even if the rain begins to take away all the pretty snow, I hope you’ll look out the window once and awhile and dream of days gone by and your true love. And be thankful we have modern medicine treatments! Be blessed!

Transforming Pallets: An Independent Woman’s DIY Adventure

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Don’t fear, my beloveds! I’m baaaack! I guess I have been on a little sabbatical. Well, at least I haven’t been posting. Not to worry, I’m back. I have no excuses for not writing, really. There’s been no crisis, just laziness on my part. There’s been stuff happening and lots of content, it just didn’t get put out here on the internet. But… it’s Tuesday, and here I am. So let’s get into it shall we?

Wanna hear about my latest project? I’m afraid I have grandiose ideas way too often, but little results. My mother used to say I had champagne ideas but beer budget. Very true. Otherwise, I’d be stinking rich by now, right? Anyway, I went down the rabbit hole of Youtube and Facebook marketplace and ended up with about 25 pallets sitting on my driveway. And pallets are free. (Beer budget, remember?) The first batch the hubby picked up. I miss our van. The SUV just doesn’t have the capacity to fill my grandiose ideas.

The latest project…

The second batch, however, I picked up all on my own from a local guy. A story in itself. The older folk were about 10km or so away. He’d worked for a plant and had several pallets stored in his backyard, but they were getting ready to move and needed to downsize. His yard fueled my fire. A cute picket fence and a rustic looking tool shed all built by pallets. He was quite helpful and pulled the collection out onto the front yard. First challenge: backing up into his narrow driveway without going into the ditches on either side and making a fool of myself. We loaded the first batch. I can fit about 5 or so full size pallets in the trunk with the back seats down. However, my gas tank is now on low fuel. I’ll be back, but I must get gas… about 45 minutes round trip.

Several minutes later, and a full tank of gas, I was maneuvering my way back down the narrow drive. Load two. I’m hauling pallets now! Load three is now securely in my SUV, a hand shake and a wave, and I’m off with a trunk full of dreams and done my good deed by helping an elderly couple clean up their yard. One splinter later, I was musing at my day.

I’d like to think I am pretty independent. The hubby was away and I arranged all of this by myself. Strong, independent woman who can haul wood, pump her own gas and wield a hammer! Truth be told, I do get a little anxious… deals are not always safe for a single woman hauling pallets from a back alley. And in light of today’s world, I in no means want to get into gender roles, violence against women, risks of being in public spaces or any other hot topics so present in our lives right now. Yet, it did have me thinking.

I’m saddened that my grandchildren will have to go on public transit with eyes in the back of their heads. They’ll have to go to school subjected to rules put in place simply to keep them safe. Not only safe, but alive! Forget the backyard scraps, there will be cyber bullying, anxiety meds, reconciliation circles, mass shootings, bombings, and the list goes on. How was it that in Noah’s day the world was so evil that God decided even He couldn’t stand it, and wiped it out in a mass flood? Can you imagine? A world so evil, only one lone family was worth saving. Pretty surreal.

We need to pray for our cities, our countries, our world. We need to pray for the next generation. We need to love on others so hard that they can’t help but see Jesus in our hearts. And it’s not easy. There are some very unlovable people out there. Confused, hurting, misguided, unlovable people who fight back. I want to see us get back to where every Facebook Marketplace meeting ends with a handshake and a “thanks”.

About a quarter of the way through… and still working on making the world a better place!

As to the pallets? Well, like most of my projects, we’re about half way through them. (Have you ever dismantled a pallet? It’s hard work!) It has required a strong hand of the middle kid to assist in prying rusty nails from aged boards. Yet, perhaps that’s the point. Intergenerational work required to get the job done. I guess I can say I am doing my part. What have you been doing to deal with our sad world these days? One trunk load at a time, I guess. And a few prayers along the way. See you soon, friends.

The Dual Nature of Floods: Devastation and Renewal

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A few weeks ago, I told you the hubby and I were visiting Montreal, and it was hot! Forty plus Celsius. On Sunday, we went to visit a family friend (and a faithful blog reader — he’s gonna be so excited I mentioned him :)) As we were enjoying his back porch, catching up on old times, the rains finally came in. And then it came down. Torrents of water filled the old Montreal streets and quickly overwhelmed the storm drains. Our friend received a call that his church basement was quickly flooding… so we all braved the downpour and headed over. We arrived to find the afternoon’s Spanish congregation mopping frantically. Amidst attempts at shuffling the lunch potluck and emptying mop buckets back out to the street, we managed to get the flood somewhat under control. I giggled when the Spanish guys tried to Google translate messages to me from Spanish to French when we all spoke English… but we made do, and with mostly hard work and a few shop vacs, got the floors mostly back to “normal”. They have a hard road ahead dealing with the municipalities and church government to plan for future floods.

Caution: Wet floors. Yep.

To make matters worse, after that few hours of soggy labour, we returned to our rented room to find wet throw rugs and puddles in our basement abode! It wasn’t a huge disaster, and although none of our belongings were affected, our host graciously discounted our time significantly for “our troubles”. As I dotted our room with slippery footprints, and hauled towels and throw rugs into the shower stall, I mused: God is still in control, but a little rain can easily change our circumstances. We build tall buildings and establish our roots, only to have them quickly washed away in major floods and mudslides.

We’ve watched a few documentaries about flooding. The news certainly shares its moments of this or that disaster and the rescue efforts in the wake of tsunami’s and flash floods. People have been swept away so suddenly; lives lost in a blink of an eye. Others loose everything but their lives. And then the aftermath. Clean ups hundreds of times the scale of our little church basement episode. Waterborne diseases and filth and mold, mud and … well, you get the picture. Water can be so life giving on one hand; we need it for our very survival, but so devastating at the same time.

Hurricane Katrina, Texas, Western Canada: Floods create Disaster

The great internet tells me that the most horrific flood in history was the 1931 floods in Yangtze, Yellow and Huai Rivers in China. The death toll was estimated between 1 million and 4 million people. God promised He would never send another world wide flood to destroy the Earth, but 4 million people is a significant dent. Plus the after effects of disease etc. Yeah, sobering thoughts. So, can floods, like wildfires, have benefits?

Again, the internet tells me flooding can replenish our groundwaters, wetlands and transport much needed micronutrients to the soil. Dry land, when flooded, can spark new growth or animal re-population. Much like the Biblical description of flourishing trees of abundant fruit, planted near streams and overflowing riverbanks, the water source once again revitalizes life.

Alas, what do we learn, my friend? I’m about to self talk because it’s been a tough week for me. I’m feeling a little overwhelmed by a “flood” of things filling my mind with doubts and sadness. So, here we go:

  1. God is still in control and we can trust His promises.
  2. Tiny floods mean we need to work together to get the job done.
  3. Sometimes the rain is needed and is refreshing.
  4. Find your security. Don’t get swept away. Be prepared, for a time of flash flood can happen quickly, and catch you by surprise.
  5. When it is all over and the dry land once again appears, it will be in a state of replenishment, and new growth will result.

I am reminded of Ezekiel’s description of the flood waters flowing from the Temple in Chapter 47: with its many trees growing along its riverbank, for it makes the salty waters of the Dead Sea fresh again, and there will be swarms of living things and life abundantly wherever this water flows. Be blessed and refreshed my beloveds.