Musings about winter and faith

The song in my heart as I awake to my day today is about faith. Wintertime always seems to have that effect on me. I reflect on the way that all of nature rests in winter, grass stops growing beneath the blanket of snow, trees stand bare and still without their leaves, many animals hibernate and flower bulbs lie dormant waiting for the spring sun. All of nature rests, waiting in faith for the season of sun to awaken them all from their sleep.

One of my all time favourite songs is the Rose by Bette Midler. There is one verse that goes... "When the night has been too lonely, and the road has been too long, and you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong, just remember in the winter, far beneath the bitter snows, lies the seed that with the sun's love, in the spring becomes the rose." I love that song. I love the idea of hope and faith that there are seeds of potential within us that in time will blossom into great beauty. Mighty snow falls upon us but we do not rest. The urgency to soar weighs heavy on our chest. Not avalanche, or floods, nor heavy winds prevent Rising powers of strength within us, heaven bent.

8 Things To Do With Kids On A Cold Saturday

8 Things to Do with your Kids on a Cold Saturday -Make paper snowflakes and hang them from the windows -Make cookies -If there's snow, go tobogganing -Ice Skating at a local arena -Visit the Library -Go for Car Ride (yeah gas has dropped!) -Write a letter or make a card for a relative and send it in the mail -Videotape your kids playing or doing something silly Saturdays have been family fun days for our family ever since I came across the concept from Flylady. I go through the week so engrossed in work and housekeeping that I don't always get to spend as much time as I'd like with my daughter. So now I make sure that on Saturdays we do something fun and memorable. Today I'm taking my kiddo to gymnastics and then we are going to the Nineteen Day Feast in the evening (This event is for Baha'is to get together to pray, consult, and eat -- a very nice way to spend an evening for us :) ) Last year, we spent many wintery Saturdays at the Ridgeway arena as Grace learned to skate for the first time. She was 2 1/2 and wore little trainer skates, the kind that strap on. She was really adorable all bundled up in her snowsuit waddling across the ice. When she saw the snow yesterday she asked me if we could go skating and she said "Don't you remember along time ago when we used to go skating? We can go again."So I guess it works. Family Fun Days do make for good memories! :)

no nobler deed than education of children

no nobler deed than education of children O ye loving mothers, know ye that in God's sight, the best of all ways to worship Him is to educate the children and train them in all the perfections of humankind; and no nobler deed than this can be imagined.(Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 138) Today I am filled with gratitude at my fortune of being a mother. This above quote brings me a sense of inspiration and purpose that even though being a loving and educative mother is not easy, striving to train my daughter in the perfections of humankind fulfills me in a way no other job could. This quote mentions God. My belief is that God is the Higher Power, the Creator, the Divine Maker of the Universe. God is Unknowable to us little humans, the same way that a painting cannot know its painter. God is Love. There is only One God. All religions come from One God. All people are created by One God. Worshipping God, I believe, is not only for Sundays in the church pews. When we use our talents, skills and capacities to help others, when we work in a spirit of service, this too is worshipping God. As mothers, whatever our belief system is, whatever our belief in God is, we still have a noble purpose of raising our children to be the best that they can be. When we dedicate ourselves to training our children in the perfections of humankind we are contributing to the betterment of the world. Today, I wish to acknowledge all you other mothers out there, sacrificing your time and energy to your kids. And I say "Cheers!" to you all. :)

What is in a name?

It was Shakespeare who asked so long ago, "Would a rose by any other name smell as sweet?" My answer would be no. I'll tell you why. Perry is the family name on my maternal side. It was the maiden name of my beloved great-grandmother Mary Aird. The woman who raised my own mother and four other children despite having a hearing impairment. Mary taught my mother perseverance and unconditional love. And she is missed by all her family. Going back a few generations, the Perry family was one of the six founding families that came from France to Prince Edward Island. They were Poirer then. Mary's father Anglosized the name to Perry. Joining together Perry and Pellegrini is very meaningful and acknowledges my side of the family as well as my husbands. For the first time it feels as though I have a name that I can identify with that has meaning for me.

A Poem After Two Miscarriages

My heart is heavy again,

I say to a friend,

One day I was happily pregnant,

Then that little baby did ascend.

Like the autumn trees around me,

sheding the leaves that fall,

My body released that baby,

But I wasn't prepared at all.

Now my tears fall unstopping,

the hurt is too big to contain,

My tears fall unstopping,

Like a warm autumn rain.

Two babies now wait for me,

In that divine next world,

I miss them though I never held them,

My little boy and girl.

In June I lost Elijah,

and my heart broke in two.

On Nov. 5th, I lost Mary,

Two children I never knew.

How did this story become mine?

Two babies I'll never hold.

The meaning, they say is divine,

There's a reason I am told.

The night has fallen around me,

But my weeping heart won't rest.

How can I chose to sleep,

With this weight upon my chest?

The Tree of Grace is high and wide,

Our family's love is strong.

God's gift is in the moment,

In the hope of my heart's song.

This dark night embraces me,

But soon the sun will dawn,

Bringing hope of brighter tomorrows,

In the hope of my heart's song.

My favourite moment today

At the end of every day since my daughter was about a year old I would marvel at something wonderful, cute, or funny that she had done that day. When her daddy came home from work I would share with him a cute story about what she had done or said that day that made me laugh or made me appreciate the beauty of childhood. I knew at the time that I should be writing these little mini-stories down, but I didn't, because just keeping up with her was enough for me. But now she is 3 with 4 just around the corner. And I feel her childhood slipping away from me like sand through my hands. At times I reach and grasp for moments and try to hold on to them as though if I concentrated enough I could hold on to them forever. But time will not be held. And my heart will not be stilled. I watch her grow and love her more and more each day. Today was such a wonderful day. She was cute and cuddley from the moment she woke up and when I brought her to daycare she clung to me. It broke my heart to leave her. A part of me needs the quiet in the house while she's out and a part of me never wants her to be out of my site. The weather outside today was amazing. Indian Summer they call this I believe. To have a 68 degree day in November is really something. So we were outside in the yard, she playing with a toy cat, I drinking tea with a friend. And then she brought over a bag she had found with candy in it. She asked if she could give it to my friend and I couldn't help but feel delighted at her generosity. Then after the candy exchange she went in the house. She was gone a few moments and my friend and I were debating about what she was doing. Was she getting into more candy and eating it while we weren't looking? Or was she getting another toy to play with?...In a few moments she returned with toys in her hands and absalutely no signs of any candy consumption. I know I swelled up with pride, but how could I not. My friend reminded me to watch my modesty and not to brag. But we were both so happy to see her playing happily feeding her little toy cat. The self-discipline and respect that I saw in her at this moment really made me smile and I know when I look back on these years it will be these precious moments that I truly cherish.

A Really Fun Halloween

Halloween wraps fear in innocence, As though it were a slightly sour sweet. Let terror, then, be turned into a treat... ~Nicholas Gordon, poemsforfree.com This year was the first year Grace really "got" Halloween. Last year she was only 2 1/2, dressed up as a kitten, and tired after about 10 houses. Last night, dressed as cute as could be in a Little Bo Peep costume she went from house to house to house, sometimes running, sometimes walking confidently with that funny stride she has with her elbows in the air. Never did she want to go home. We stayed out for an hour and this was perhaps one of my most memorable Halloweens too. I've never been one to go for suburbs, but last night, walking around in this burb was a blast. There were about 1000 kids and their parents wandering the streets. One family had set up a concert with animated skeltons in their front yard that were playing Grateful Dead music that could be heard around the block. Another family was in their driveway making Kettle Corn popcorn. One man had put a bunch of hay on a trailor and was pulling it around the neighbourhood with a four-wheeler giving hay rides. There was a true spirit of fun and family last night. Hooray for this neighbourhood for putting the fun back in Halloween.