A Happy Ending

 

One of the things I love about our farm is the abundance of trees of various kinds and character. Among my favourites, this beautiful old maple I call “The Crooked Tree.” The shape of this tree alone seems against the odds, but let us continue …

On March 27, 2016 our area of central Ontario endured a 24-hour ice storm. Sadly, the big, old, crooked maple and its long-time partner across the lane (along with many others about the property) couldn’t take the stress of the one-inch ice accretion upon its limbs and broke down.

It broke my heart to see such a beautiful tree meet such an unhappy end.

It was so mangled that it seemed to cut it down was the obvious choice. And then we wondered about having a local sculptor come in to carve a rearing, defiant horse into it. You know, symbolic of rising above the situation.

In the end, and after much soul searching and upon finding sappy evidence that the tree, despite its terrible wound, was very much alive, we opted to give it another chance. We had an arborist make a diagonal cut across the tree from just above the shoot where the orange string is in the above image, hoping that perhaps this bit of assistance might help it to rise again.

And believe it or not, against all odds this crooked old tree has actually found a way to thrive.

It would have been so easy to right off this broken down and battered old maple. I’m glad we didn’t. Now I look at it as a testament to the resilience of both nature and the human spirit.

We are never so broken that we cannot rise again with the right support and love around us. We are how we choose to respond to the slings and arrows of life. We either endure in strength, or we allow ourselves to be defeated.

The scars become a testament to our character and provide an unexpected beauty all their own.

I love happy endings.

Thanks for visiting …

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti … All Rights Reserved 2017

Weekly Photo Challenge: Against the Odds

The Magic Season

Weekly Photo Challenge: Seasons

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This is my magic season.

The autumn of my life.

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My glory years.

Vibrant.

Full of colour.

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Fruitful.

A little wilted around the edges, perhaps, yet glorious.

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At peace with my past, and aware of life’s infinite possibilities, I manifest dreams.

Finally, I’m free to be myself.

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Let the magic season unfold.

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Thanks for visiting …

Dorothy

©Dorothy Chiotti … All Rights Reserved 2016

QWERTY

Weekly Photo Challenge: Alphabet

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This image speaks to the writer in me.

Every letter of the alphabet is represented in this old word processor, which is only a few decades removed from the model I learned to type on way back when.

Carbon copies and triplicate, white out and erasers.

“Those were the days,” she sighed with a hint of sarcasm.

Image captured at Heritage Park in Calgary, Alberta.

Thanks for stopping by …

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti … All Rights Reserved 2016

Day’s End

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Mother Earth

Blanketed in warm embrace

Of setting sun.

Another day is done.

Father Moon

Singing silent lullaby;

A chorus of emerging stars

Twinkling their

“Good night …”

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Thanks for visiting …

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti … Aimwell CreativeWorks 2015 

Toward the Light

Weekly Photo Challenge: Shadowed

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Yesterday afternoon, following a treatment of shockwave therapy to Bear’s recently injured right hind lateral suspensory ligament (in human terms a badly sprained ankle), I found him standing quietly facing the back of his stall. The light from the window reflected so perfectly on his noble face, and the shadowing was so beautifully dramatic, that I grabbed my Nikon D70, which I’ll be using a lot over the next four months while I document his recovery, and captured this moment of serenity. I did so carefully so as not to disturb his quiet reverie.

The vet diagnosed his injury by ultrasound earlier this week and, needless to say, it’s taken a few days for me to find my equilibrium after such terrible news. This is serious requiring 24/7 stall rest, twice-daily hand walking and daily bandaging. I want to give him every opportunity to fully recover so will do everything I can to help make him comfortable and keep him amused. Fortunately he is in the care of a knowledgeable and enlightened horse woman, so I know he will be getting the best of care. This makes all the difference to my peace of mind on the matter.

So, for the winter months Bear and I are truly dormant.

Still, this quietude gives us lots of time to contemplate the next leg of our journey, and as long as we keep looking toward the light this shadow we are living under cannot last forever.

Thanks for visiting,

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti … Aimwell CreativeWorks 2015

Bear Adoption

Monochrome Madness: Week 33

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I’m a collector of collectible teddy bears and have been for a number of years.

My relationship with teddy bears began, of course, in my childhood. As a little girl growing up in a broken home it was my Yogi Bear I squeezed at night to help me off to sleep.

After the family dog sent him to a premature grave I adopted another bear and this cycle repeated itself for years.

I’ve lost all of those childhood friends and in recent years have adopted the collectible ones to satisfy the little girl in me who still loves bears.

Yes, I even gave my horse Shakespeare the nickname “Bear.”

I’ve tried to let the bears go. I really have.

In fact, just about six weeks ago I looked at the various small congregations gathering around our home and thought it must be time to say goodbye; to find them another home. I estimate there are about 12 in my office, including Nutmeg and his small companion in the image posted here, and as many in at least three other rooms.

Within a day of that thought I dreamt about rescuing a teddy bear from a mud puddle.

I guess they need me.

Do you still have a treasured teddy bear living in your home?

Thanks for visiting …

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti … Aimwell CreativeWorks 2014 

Waiting

 

 

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My submission to Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness Week 27 takes us to sunny Spruce Meadows just south of Calgary, Alberta.

These children waiting with anticipation for the next horse and rider to appear for a big show jumping class in the main grandstand remind me of when I was a little girl with an insatiable passion for horses.

I started riding lessons at age 10 at a stable in north London, England. When I wasn’t at the stable I was reading horse books, leafing through the Moss Bros. equipment catalogue ad nauseum, making copious lists of horse names and colours and temperaments, and playing show jumping in the back yard with my best friend, pretending we were horses and launching ourselves over home made obstacles constructed from brooms and buckets and anything else we could find that would serve.

And certainly, I was daydreaming of having a horse to call my own one day ~ one I would keep in the shed in the back yard and gallop around the local park. 😉 (I had to wait 33 years for my dream to come true ~ minus the shed, etc. See my blog Musings of a Horse Mom for more about my experiences with my darling Shakespeare aka Bear.)

In the summer I would watch televised broadcasts from Hickstead ~ the main outdoor venue in England for the big show jumping events at the time (it still is, I think). In the fall I’d get special permission to stay up late the week the Horse of the Year show which, at the time was televised from Wembley Arena, not far from where we lived.

Occasionally, I even got to go. Oh the sights, the sounds, the smells … pure heaven!

I lived for the thrill of just seeing a horse (when I wasn’t at the stable) and being with the horses when I was there.

During the roller coaster of life I’ve fallen off the equestrian wagon a few times and had no contact with horses at all. It can safely be said that those were among the most miserable times for me. Separated from my passion I was denied an important part of my Self.

A death in the family 20 years ago brought me back to the horse and, as it turns out, this free-spirited animal in all its beauty and wisdom has proven to be a catalyst for positive change and an important partner in my healing journey.

And it’s all because I was a little girl with a passion for horses.

Thanks for visiting,

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti … Aimwell CreativeWorks 2014

 

Dialogue with a Vista

Weekly Photo Challenge: Dialogue

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America Bay in New South Wales, Australia, is the picture of tranquility and a short trek in, through snake-infested bush, from the road.

“One of the most poisonous snakes in the world lives in this area,” our newest family member, an elephant trainer who happened to have worked with snakes in the past, said to us in his thick Aussie accent. “But, they shouldn’t bother us.”

Comforting, indeed. So, we walked the mile or so in, keeping watch for things we didn’t want to see and finally arrived upon this incredible vista.

So mesmerized by its beauty, were we, that we spoke only in whispers so as not to disturb the ambient peace.

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Within minutes we each began our own dialogue with the land, perched on a massive rock outcrop while absorbing the beautiful view.

It was one of the most magical moments of our trip to Australia two years ago.

And then, of course, we had to walk back through the snake-infested bush to get to the road.

We saw one snake dart into the shrubs … and lived to tell the tale. 😉

Thanks for visiting …

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti … Aimwell CreativeWorks 2014

Bleeding Heart

Bleeding Heart
(Lamprocapnos spectabilis)

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 It looks like a rewrite of an entire section of my murder mystery is in order.

While contemplating what needs to be adjusted I distract myself with this pretty image captured on a recent walk around the neighbourhood.

Still, back to the trenches I go …

Thanks for visiting,

Dorothy

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©Dorothy Chiotti, Aimwell CreativeWorks 2014

 

The Happy Wanderer

Daily Prompt: The Happy Wanderer

This is an interesting topic given that we’re in the throes of planning a trip to Italy for late spring.

Seems to me you can’t leave much to chance anymore, especially if you want to see the major sites.

To avoid line-ups you need to pre-purchase tickets. That’s fine. I have no problem with that. I detest line-ups anyway.

To book events you must do it often months in advance. This we learned the hard way when we tried to buy tickets to a performance of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna on the day of the performance. What were we thinking?

Lippizaners at the Spanish Riding School, Vienna, Austria

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We’ve always been fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of travellers so it was huge disappointment to find out our approach to vacations had denied us a chance to see the Lippizaners dance. Instead we enjoyed a tour of the stables and a viewing of a daily practice. This was a thrill, of course, but not what we’d wanted. So, experiences like this, I’ve learned, can no longer be left to chance.

The same with flights. I don’t know if people are travelling more or the airlines are flying fewer plans, but it seems to me gone are the days when you could book a trip three months in advance and expect a reasonable seat on the plane. I suppose the fact that you can now book your seat when you reserve your ticket has had an effect on that too.

We booked our flights to Italy yesterday and we’re not even sitting together on our flight home. Adrenal fatigue has made long haul travel uncomfortable for me the past few years, and wilting (and I mean wilting) beside a stranger on a 10-hour flight is not my idea of a good time. It’s bad enough it happens when I’m sitting next to my husband. I hope we can get someone to switch seats with one of us.

So, as I look at our Italian itinerary, I am determined to make sure we secure the appropriate city passes for events and venues in Florence and Venice ~ two ports of call sandwiching a week in a Tuscan villa. If there’s one thing I don’t want to do it’s stand in long line-ups to see The David. I must use my precious energy wisely.

And we will stay in good hotels. We won’t skimp on quality here … ever. Been there. Done that. It’s a grey t-shirt and uncomfortable. 😉

Sure, some things we will leave to chance. Travel, like life, ought to leave room for a little spontaneity. But for the big things we’re going fully prepared.

We’re planning a trip to London for later in the year. A research trip for my novel. I will be booking major activities in advance. I’d like to attend opening night at the opera; experience afternoon tea at the Ritz; find a nice old pub my characters can hang out in. I’ll do the research for those things in advance and make reservations as necessary.

As I grew up in London and am familiar with the West End and other areas of my youth, I’ll also be happy just to wander, reliving some old memories and taking in the sights with my fresh eyes.

Sounds to me like a bit of pre-planning and some happy wandering make for a balanced travel experience.

I’m good with that. 🙂

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Thanks for visiting …

Dorothy 🙂

©Dorothy Chiotti, Aimwell CreativeWorks 2014

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Other Happy Wanderers

Be a Hero | Rima Hassan
Prison | Perspectives on life, universe and everything
Moon-rock | Perspectives on life, universe and everything
California: a fat wave* of options | Andrea Reads America
Daily Prompt: The Happy Wanderer-How an Introvert Travel (pics) | Journeyman
Daily Prompt: The Happy Wanderer | seikaiha’s blah-blah-blah
The Happy Wanderer: My Travel Style #DailyPost | The Wayfaring Family
Travel Style | From Journo-baby to Journo-babe
Daily Prompt: The Happy Wanderer | The WordPress C(h)ronicle
The Unhappy Wanderer | Mara Eastern’s Personal Blog
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How to Get a Green Card: A Lesson in Planning and Letting Go | Kosher Adobo
There’s Nothing There & Professor Hamilton’s Advice To Writers | The Jittery Goat
I’m a Writer, Yes I Am
love-hate | yi-ching lin photography
Daily Prompt: The Happy Wanderer’s | My Outlook on the World
I love airports | The Bohemian Rock Star’s “Untitled Project”
An Uncommercial Traveller | The Ambitious Drifter
Just following the sun… | Hope* the happy hugger