I loved this Susie. You have reminded me so much of my own childhood - although how I could have forgotten the navy blue knickers and plimsoles I don't know!
Beautiful words and a lovely quote at the end. Happy belated birthday. 🙂
Heavens those navy blue knickers were a horror weren’t they! I wasn’t wild about plimsoles either, as girls we had to where white, I wanted black ones like the boys! Such gentle memories though… I am so glad they resonated Gill, thank you for taking the time to read them… I wish you a weekend of sunshine and smiles. 💛
This is absolutely stunning writing. Happy birthday, 60 is a milestone that I still haven't quite recovered from, and I'll be 65 at the end of the month!
Betty I truly never thought I’d arrive at this stage of my life. Losing one’s parents plants terrible doubts and worries. But here I am, and truly glad to be here… you wait, 65 will feel like a new lease on life has been granted to you! Thank you so very much… for all your wonderful support. X
Haha, merci ma belle, je crois que, que l'on aime ou non ce que l'on est, il faut l'accepter tel qu'il est... ce n'est pas toujours facile d'être rêveuse quand même!
Oui oui, à la semaine prochaine, n’oublies pas d’attraper le soleil en descendant si tu le vois ! xx
What a wonderful commemoration of a milestone, I'm so glad to have been part of that special day. Interesting that you picked up something that has been a lodestone throughout my rather too busy life - a recourse to Lao Tzu.
I am not surprised by this in the slightest Gabs, I can even imagine you sitting in quiet contemplation with such a great philosopher as Lao Tzu. It would serve me well to sit quietly and listen too…
We didn’t share our Haiku, I’m holding that thought xxx
It's true. I didn't really want to evoke that scene on such a lovely day, even as we sat working, and normalizing that land in our heads/imaginations. And I'm still tinkering with one of two. Whatever it /they will be after tinkering I'll send it/them together if that's your wish, darling gal.
-----------followed it up with something entirely different from the Native Americans. Not my writing and not a haiku, but part of the subject I'm working on.
The sacred (medicine) bundles
These bundles are gifts to their carriers
And they remind them of their connection
To a creation
In which everything is alive and filled with spirit
A belated, but very happy birthday to you Susie. Our childhoods had so much in common, including Bottersnikes and Gumbles which I loved (I think I even have it in a box somewhere), it all seems so wonderfully naive in hindsight.
Your thoughts on how we remember time are so interesting, I find the idea of a dusty old filing cabinet filled with bulging, paper files of ‘days’ enchanting - I hope to stumble upon my own sometime…. Bon weekend 😘
Thank you Vanessa, I still can’t believe I’ve made it to 60 years, or how quickly those sixty years have passed. Yes, yes, I agree, our young years do seem naive, Darling Buds of May comes to mind, but probably no more so than our children’s will to to them when they reach our age - time is so relative isn’t it.
Did you know Bottersnikes and Gumbles is now a classic children’s book in Australia? I wish I still had my copy, I read it so many times as a child. I’m sure you’ll stumble over your cabinet when you’re least expecting it.. be sure to let us know when you do! X
There's an amazing jazz group who busk in the Marais in Paris -- Philippe Audibert -- they play a lot of Bechet and we heard them when we got engaged in Paris in 2015. Plus Adam is a big fan of Bechet -- there's a link to them here and we last saw them in the street on a Sunday in 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IslYFl0o9J0
I love thé lady in the green hat! Obviously an old jazz fan… I am surprised to see my son following in my fathers footsteps also… he always has his music playing while we walk, it’s not my idea of a peaceful walk but if it means he’s ‘décollé de son écran’ I suffer in silence - or not - but I am surprised by the amount of jazz music he has on his play list, mixed with metal and rock of course but he tells me he really ‘digs’ the saxophone and clarinet especially. I am delighted and always hope my dad is listening….
I saw The Gypsy Kings busking at Place Jean-Marais in Montmartre before they were famous, two or three years later (I forget) my best friends sister was producer of their first concert in the Albert Hall.
Oh wow, so many things! First of all that photo of little you is incredible and gorgeous, I love it. Second of all happy birthday, and third of all, thank you for this, your writing always gets me to slow down and pay attention and I love that.
You’re so very welcome Andrea, our young lives seemed so much more simple didn’t they… or perhaps I’m just romanticizing? I do wonder what my own daughter will remember of her young days though?
Thank you for your kind support, I’m incredibly grateful - I hope the weekend is kind to you x
I had what most would describe as the idyllic upbringing Lynn, so gentle compared to my own children even though I’ve always tried to make theirs so, I often wonder what they will remember when they reach their sixties?
Thank you for the birthday wishes, I can’t believe I’m sixty! X
I'm so happy that you had a wonderful day to celebrate YOU! Memories are so important because in the end that is what we have to fill our elder years. So, like you do everyday, live life to the fullest, gather memories in your loving arms and keep them safe my dearest Pixie. Love you with all my heart XXOO
think live life to the fullest and then write everything down… as we said the other night! Our recollections and memories are so important and of course, they fade, even if they only happened last week as we age… I am determined to leave something for my children to read when I’m gone. So they know ME as I really was, and not the crazy headless chicken they see running around wondering which direction to turn next! You know well darling… thank you always for reading - love and light! 💛xx
My goodness you were adorable in your youth, just as you are at 60. Your cloud cuckoo land may have evolved a tad, but your beautiful reflections leave me to believe it’s still as vibrant, transcendent and connected as ever. Perhaps in a way, your imagination became permeable with age, allowing the wonder that you experienced to spill out into the world, shimmering everything you encounter with a certain kind of beauty that can only be felt when someone isn’t afraid of its opposite. You have that power dear Susie, and I celebrate all the decades before that shaped you into the wonder that you are now. ❤️
I am not certain all would agree dear Kimberly, I was mostly just very flakey around the edges, unable to comprehend the reality of anything which to my parents was very frustrating. To the point of despair on occasion. But I am what I am and I love how you say perhaps my imagination became permeable with age... what a delightful thought to justify my scattiness! I shall be throwing that back at my husband the next time he has reason to mention my tendency to wander far and forget to return/the point in question.
I still lose myself in the moment presented if it holds even the tiniest hint of magic, yesterday was the hare, whose ears I spotted just above the long grasses, in the distance rolling hills with heavy clouds scudding the tops, the seconds before he noticed me were such a precious gift I felt tears pricking my eyes... this world never ceases, ever to beguile, to bring forth an emotional response - I hope it never does, I don't ever want to end my life feeling cynical.
I have a strong feeling you know well... with love always xx🤍
Happy birthday, dear Susie, O frabjois day! Callooh! Callay!
Sixty years seems so few to me now, as I creep closer to that number myself. Still a little while for me but how ancient I once thought it, when my grandparents were there. I find myself falling back into memories of childhood so often now, with an older head they have meaning that I never appreciated at the time. I learned to play Stranger On The Shore on my clarinet, and friends and relatives would ask me to play it for them… Sending wishes for a wonderful year and all those to come.
Emily I’m truly sorry, I’ve only just seen your reply here too, I thought I’d replied to all and every time I check there is another I’ve missed. I try so hard to reply to everyone… 🙈
My older head feels freer, as if NOW I can really start living life. It’s the strangest of feelings, having arrived finally at the age I never thought I would. I think I spent so many of years worrying after my parents died I stopped thinking of how it could be. Don’t stop falling back on those memories, I found so many hidden in the cupboards once I started, not all good but mostly!
T H A N K Y O U SOOOOO M U C H for the video, I literally burst into tears within seconds… it was the kindest gesture 🙏🏽 much love and a hug to you and Suzie. 💛🤗xxxxx
Honestly no need to apologise, it’s hard for see everything here and so easy to miss things. It’s a gift freely given and I’m glad you got to see your birthday tune!! It made me happy to play for you (and honestly - it was serendipitous that it’s something I actually can play!!) sending love 💛💛
I woke this morning in Nîmes, a stop on a world wander, and read your post. It filled me with a pleasant warmth. At 75 I find a certain freedom in knowing I’m in my fourth quarter with nothing to do but love every day, and everything thing around me. Happy Birthday
Thank you very much Jeffrey, I can only hope to be as active and content at 75 at this point and after spending half of it worrying I’d never get to this point I am determined that from now on I will love and develop every second possible into something worth remembering! Enjoy your wanderings, and your freedom to be… every day is a gift right!
I loved this Susie. You have reminded me so much of my own childhood - although how I could have forgotten the navy blue knickers and plimsoles I don't know!
Beautiful words and a lovely quote at the end. Happy belated birthday. 🙂
Funny, it was the navy knickers and plimsoles that jumped out at me 😂😂
Haha, so funny, weren’t they just awful Lynn, nylon too if my memory serves…? 😝
Heavens those navy blue knickers were a horror weren’t they! I wasn’t wild about plimsoles either, as girls we had to where white, I wanted black ones like the boys! Such gentle memories though… I am so glad they resonated Gill, thank you for taking the time to read them… I wish you a weekend of sunshine and smiles. 💛
This is absolutely stunning writing. Happy birthday, 60 is a milestone that I still haven't quite recovered from, and I'll be 65 at the end of the month!
Betty I truly never thought I’d arrive at this stage of my life. Losing one’s parents plants terrible doubts and worries. But here I am, and truly glad to be here… you wait, 65 will feel like a new lease on life has been granted to you! Thank you so very much… for all your wonderful support. X
Oh! I missed your birthday Suzie, pardon. But I loved reading your words, and so recognise you in them. You didn't change !
Happy belated birthday, we'll catch up next week ;)
Haha, merci ma belle, je crois que, que l'on aime ou non ce que l'on est, il faut l'accepter tel qu'il est... ce n'est pas toujours facile d'être rêveuse quand même!
Oui oui, à la semaine prochaine, n’oublies pas d’attraper le soleil en descendant si tu le vois ! xx
Beautiful, thanks for sharing!
Thank you for reading Anne, have a great weekend.
What a wonderful commemoration of a milestone, I'm so glad to have been part of that special day. Interesting that you picked up something that has been a lodestone throughout my rather too busy life - a recourse to Lao Tzu.
I am not surprised by this in the slightest Gabs, I can even imagine you sitting in quiet contemplation with such a great philosopher as Lao Tzu. It would serve me well to sit quietly and listen too…
We didn’t share our Haiku, I’m holding that thought xxx
It's true. I didn't really want to evoke that scene on such a lovely day, even as we sat working, and normalizing that land in our heads/imaginations. And I'm still tinkering with one of two. Whatever it /they will be after tinkering I'll send it/them together if that's your wish, darling gal.
I think we should share them here… an excuse for t/walking… when you next have time x bisous
So I have put first the haiku, ---
Humps
clearing a meadow
of sheep shadows underfoot
their very own Somme
-----------followed it up with something entirely different from the Native Americans. Not my writing and not a haiku, but part of the subject I'm working on.
The sacred (medicine) bundles
These bundles are gifts to their carriers
And they remind them of their connection
To a creation
In which everything is alive and filled with spirit
In these secret bundles we carry items
That reminds us what we care for
with love
A belated, but very happy birthday to you Susie. Our childhoods had so much in common, including Bottersnikes and Gumbles which I loved (I think I even have it in a box somewhere), it all seems so wonderfully naive in hindsight.
Your thoughts on how we remember time are so interesting, I find the idea of a dusty old filing cabinet filled with bulging, paper files of ‘days’ enchanting - I hope to stumble upon my own sometime…. Bon weekend 😘
Thank you Vanessa, I still can’t believe I’ve made it to 60 years, or how quickly those sixty years have passed. Yes, yes, I agree, our young years do seem naive, Darling Buds of May comes to mind, but probably no more so than our children’s will to to them when they reach our age - time is so relative isn’t it.
Did you know Bottersnikes and Gumbles is now a classic children’s book in Australia? I wish I still had my copy, I read it so many times as a child. I’m sure you’ll stumble over your cabinet when you’re least expecting it.. be sure to let us know when you do! X
Well now you’ve made it to 60 I think you should relax and assume you’ll get to 100 😘
Wonderful -- I walked down the aisle to la petite fleur
Oh Jan, what a beautiful wedding song… my father loved that song almost as much as he loved my mother… thank you for sharing that with me x
There's an amazing jazz group who busk in the Marais in Paris -- Philippe Audibert -- they play a lot of Bechet and we heard them when we got engaged in Paris in 2015. Plus Adam is a big fan of Bechet -- there's a link to them here and we last saw them in the street on a Sunday in 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IslYFl0o9J0
I love thé lady in the green hat! Obviously an old jazz fan… I am surprised to see my son following in my fathers footsteps also… he always has his music playing while we walk, it’s not my idea of a peaceful walk but if it means he’s ‘décollé de son écran’ I suffer in silence - or not - but I am surprised by the amount of jazz music he has on his play list, mixed with metal and rock of course but he tells me he really ‘digs’ the saxophone and clarinet especially. I am delighted and always hope my dad is listening….
I saw The Gypsy Kings busking at Place Jean-Marais in Montmartre before they were famous, two or three years later (I forget) my best friends sister was producer of their first concert in the Albert Hall.
Wonderful that your son loves jazz -- mine too :)
The lady dancing is part of the group and still going strong :)
Oh wow, so many things! First of all that photo of little you is incredible and gorgeous, I love it. Second of all happy birthday, and third of all, thank you for this, your writing always gets me to slow down and pay attention and I love that.
Thanks Deirdre, I’m glad to be alive and kicking and sending calming vibes to you! Good luck tonight x
Happy belated birthday. So many memories coming back as I read your words, this was a perfect read to end the week and slow down.
You’re so very welcome Andrea, our young lives seemed so much more simple didn’t they… or perhaps I’m just romanticizing? I do wonder what my own daughter will remember of her young days though?
Thank you for your kind support, I’m incredibly grateful - I hope the weekend is kind to you x
Happy belated birthday, Susie! So many things resonated, and others so different....
I had what most would describe as the idyllic upbringing Lynn, so gentle compared to my own children even though I’ve always tried to make theirs so, I often wonder what they will remember when they reach their sixties?
Thank you for the birthday wishes, I can’t believe I’m sixty! X
I'm so happy that you had a wonderful day to celebrate YOU! Memories are so important because in the end that is what we have to fill our elder years. So, like you do everyday, live life to the fullest, gather memories in your loving arms and keep them safe my dearest Pixie. Love you with all my heart XXOO
And keep making NEW memories, of course!
think live life to the fullest and then write everything down… as we said the other night! Our recollections and memories are so important and of course, they fade, even if they only happened last week as we age… I am determined to leave something for my children to read when I’m gone. So they know ME as I really was, and not the crazy headless chicken they see running around wondering which direction to turn next! You know well darling… thank you always for reading - love and light! 💛xx
My goodness you were adorable in your youth, just as you are at 60. Your cloud cuckoo land may have evolved a tad, but your beautiful reflections leave me to believe it’s still as vibrant, transcendent and connected as ever. Perhaps in a way, your imagination became permeable with age, allowing the wonder that you experienced to spill out into the world, shimmering everything you encounter with a certain kind of beauty that can only be felt when someone isn’t afraid of its opposite. You have that power dear Susie, and I celebrate all the decades before that shaped you into the wonder that you are now. ❤️
I am not certain all would agree dear Kimberly, I was mostly just very flakey around the edges, unable to comprehend the reality of anything which to my parents was very frustrating. To the point of despair on occasion. But I am what I am and I love how you say perhaps my imagination became permeable with age... what a delightful thought to justify my scattiness! I shall be throwing that back at my husband the next time he has reason to mention my tendency to wander far and forget to return/the point in question.
I still lose myself in the moment presented if it holds even the tiniest hint of magic, yesterday was the hare, whose ears I spotted just above the long grasses, in the distance rolling hills with heavy clouds scudding the tops, the seconds before he noticed me were such a precious gift I felt tears pricking my eyes... this world never ceases, ever to beguile, to bring forth an emotional response - I hope it never does, I don't ever want to end my life feeling cynical.
I have a strong feeling you know well... with love always xx🤍
…and ps. My goodness THANK YOU for the very generous mention!!! I have a handful of new subscribers today and me thinks they all came from you. 🙏
I loved loved loved that post Kimberly, the twists and turns and references were utterly captivating... you are truly so very welcome! x
Happy birthday, dear Susie, O frabjois day! Callooh! Callay!
Sixty years seems so few to me now, as I creep closer to that number myself. Still a little while for me but how ancient I once thought it, when my grandparents were there. I find myself falling back into memories of childhood so often now, with an older head they have meaning that I never appreciated at the time. I learned to play Stranger On The Shore on my clarinet, and friends and relatives would ask me to play it for them… Sending wishes for a wonderful year and all those to come.
Emily I’m truly sorry, I’ve only just seen your reply here too, I thought I’d replied to all and every time I check there is another I’ve missed. I try so hard to reply to everyone… 🙈
My older head feels freer, as if NOW I can really start living life. It’s the strangest of feelings, having arrived finally at the age I never thought I would. I think I spent so many of years worrying after my parents died I stopped thinking of how it could be. Don’t stop falling back on those memories, I found so many hidden in the cupboards once I started, not all good but mostly!
T H A N K Y O U SOOOOO M U C H for the video, I literally burst into tears within seconds… it was the kindest gesture 🙏🏽 much love and a hug to you and Suzie. 💛🤗xxxxx
Honestly no need to apologise, it’s hard for see everything here and so easy to miss things. It’s a gift freely given and I’m glad you got to see your birthday tune!! It made me happy to play for you (and honestly - it was serendipitous that it’s something I actually can play!!) sending love 💛💛
Right back at you Emily ♥️X
Happy un-birthday, fellow Gemini. Very well captured. Onwards, always, making every day a celebration 🎉
Thanks Barrie, always onwards, and I’m glad to say it feels no different for being sixty, perhaps even better! Goodnight dear Gemini friend.
I woke this morning in Nîmes, a stop on a world wander, and read your post. It filled me with a pleasant warmth. At 75 I find a certain freedom in knowing I’m in my fourth quarter with nothing to do but love every day, and everything thing around me. Happy Birthday
Thank you very much Jeffrey, I can only hope to be as active and content at 75 at this point and after spending half of it worrying I’d never get to this point I am determined that from now on I will love and develop every second possible into something worth remembering! Enjoy your wanderings, and your freedom to be… every day is a gift right!