Beautifully written Susie. You have a way with romancing the everyday. These moments in our lives, with our children, fly by much too quickly. Writing them down seems to slow the process I think. Thank you for the magic of those fairies in the golden light by the tree, they bring much joy. I love how you remind us of our connection to others, to nature, to the world. We often forget that our life is here and now, in this moment, not in the past, nor in the future, but now. You are the second person who reminded me of this today. Thank you!
Beautiful words and images Susie – your love for your family and life itself shines through in them. Your opening lines also made me think. It’s interesting how it seems so many people right now are finding that life has quickened these past few weeks – it’s almost in sync with the wheel of the year as nature speeds up growth, leaves, flowers and eventually a harvest, we’re busying ourselves with all that we can do in our lives during the lighter months…just a thought😊
Its a good and very real thought Lin, at this time of year I am at my busiest, I barely sit for more than a minute before the next urgent chore has to be crossed off an endless list… but yes, this is all preparation… good honest work in tandem with the seasons - necessary in order to relax a little through balmy summer days before the harvesting and storing begins… a never ending bustling and beautiful cycle.
Thank you so much for reading - may your weekend be beautiful with time enough to enjoy the last days of this spring season 💚🍃x
Thank you for letting us join you so vividly at home, watching the storm, smelling the scones, leaving the young friends to their project. I laughed at the tough choice between chemical edibles and health at home. Oh, the universal dilemmas of motherhood! :-)
Tara, I am far from perfect, if I had been alone it is not unlikely I would have traipsed around the supermarket, my choices the least possibly infused with chemicals but not devoid entirely - it is, after all, infinitely faster than baking! With them in tow however, just looking at the weight of sugar infused rubbish they'd have chosen alone would have put my body into sugar shock! They are still at that wonderful age where immortality is an easy to believe invincible dream.
Sometimes the dilemma is an easy one, if indeed more time consuming...
Thank you so much for reading, motherhood is one hard job right, I know you know! xx
I have a fascination with a sense of home and that feeling of belonging. Be longing. There is something of our purpose and journey here. Beautiful as always, Susie.
'Too many people think of themselves as separate, singular, exclusive from our origins, from the trees and the stars. Especially the stars' .
I am not surprised you agree, I believe our ultimate journey in life is quite simply that Síodhna, a search for home, for love and belonging too. Most of us are lucky, we find that place and we nurture it, guard it with our lives, infuse it with our love. It is in our deepest most basic nature. Why anyone would try to deny it a very basic human need, a (be)longing, is beyond my understanding.
Thank you so much, I wish you a weekend of beauty and joy! xx
Thank you, It seemed to work wonders Betty, although they didn't win the competition they were working on, the instructors were so impressed with their preparations, they were asked to mark the papers of all the rest! Seth didn't know whether to laugh or cry!
Gasp. Susie! I do believe our minds were circling on the same motes of dust, fanned from the same soaring blackbirds, fed by the same sprouting maize these past few weeks. You, in the most exquisite, immersive prose envelop us in belonging, while an ocean away, I write about longing. And we meet, caught on some enchanted breeze in the “be” that marries the two. Isn’t it extraordinary to think that maybe to truly belong, we must “be” with our longing? The memory of the rupture? And the longing to return, to remember just how inseparable we truly are?
Your heart and its manifestations are a gift to this world, to me. With olive scones and oj to boot? Yes, your son’s memories of your hearth will feed thousands.
❤️❤️❤️
“tell him it is a wonderful thing how our memories and thoughts and ideas and dreams and loves all twist and turn, roll from one tiny, single note to a rhapsody of others!”
Perhaps those blackbirds were singing us the same songs dear Kimberly? Perhaps they carry the vast importance of memory and be-longing far and wide so we don't forget?
You write, " Isn’t it extraordinary to think that maybe to truly belong, we must “be” with our longing? The memory of the rupture?" Oh my goodness yes! If I could write these words on my children hearts I would...
"And the longing to return, to remember just how inseparable we truly are?" yes, yes, yes!
This is everything I dream of; even when I am but one of those tiny stars in their memories and maybe the home I have created for them is another families home, I hope the longing shapes their own lives, with their own children, I hope there are cheese and olive scones in abundance !
Thank you my beautiful friend, for hearing the same songs, for being here with yours. xx
Well, gosh. I’m glad I’m not the only one who loses words in the rush of the day. I’m also glad these words returned to you, because they are a gift. I was reminded of the days when my daughters and their friends chose to be here, left traces of themselves all over everything, were a little too loud, a little (or a lot) too fragrant, the energy of honey bees. What we all want, and what we can, with care, help create for ourselves and others are home and belonging. Thank you!
Ah, I am not alone in this, I'm delighted, no, make that relieved - Thank you! Lost words are my speciality Elizabeth, I wish I could write a book of them, maybe make a few bucks like Robert Macfarlane but, of course, I'm not that clever and lost is lost isn't it, if I gather up a few from the dust of the day, it is sheer luck!
Our children.. ooph! It's a big thing to know they want to be at home, big enough to swell a mothers heart to overflowing sometimes, every time - big enough also to look like a flock of sheep have moved in for the weekend, grazed every two hours, left their litter wherever it fell and bedding wherever felt comfortable to sleep but a home, and belonging, is anything else as important? That they know they have one, no matter what life throws at them...?
We are fortunate to be able to offer our kids this space, aren't we? And equally fortunate that they are willing to accept it.
Speaking of lost words, have you read Pip Williams' The Dictionary of Lost Words. Thoroughly enjoyed that one, though it's a different take on such disappearances.
What a coincidence you should mention this book when I have literally just placed a bookmark to remind me to order it. I haven’t yet read the whole of it Elizabeth, last summer while staying with a friend I began reading but had to leave the book behind, it was only in writing this post I remembered I wanted to order it!
Aww, what a gorgeous way to end my day… thank you Lor ♥️Do you know what I love? Every time I sit down to write to you, you are by some telepathic magic, writing to me… I was half way through an letter to you with buttercups and daisies when you sent this - unfinished love arriving soon.! X
As I'm sure you know, Susie, I feel a certain kinship with 'it all', but I must admit that I've always assumed "all the souls who have understood the empathy and compassion in every line of beauty Mary Oliver wrote" to be closer relations! The way you tend (to your son, your land, your words, your readers) is an exceptionally beautiful thing. Thank you.
Dear Chloe, I could have, should have, changed Mary Oliver to read Chloe Hope, to me, indeed to all who know you, the sentence would have read with the exact same beautiful meaning, your kinship with empathy shines in every word you write.
My most humble and grateful thanks for reading mine. With love xx
Beautifully written Susie. You have a way with romancing the everyday. These moments in our lives, with our children, fly by much too quickly. Writing them down seems to slow the process I think. Thank you for the magic of those fairies in the golden light by the tree, they bring much joy. I love how you remind us of our connection to others, to nature, to the world. We often forget that our life is here and now, in this moment, not in the past, nor in the future, but now. You are the second person who reminded me of this today. Thank you!
"We are winged birds, how have we forgotten to use our wings?"
thanks for the reminder, Susie 🌻
I hope your feathers are strong Darren… 🪶
strong as ever, Susie... and i'm ready to fly again 🦅
We can always fly back home. Thank you for the reminder, you beautiful soul! 💛
I don’t think I’d fly anywhere else Fotini… thank you with love xx
Beautiful words and images Susie – your love for your family and life itself shines through in them. Your opening lines also made me think. It’s interesting how it seems so many people right now are finding that life has quickened these past few weeks – it’s almost in sync with the wheel of the year as nature speeds up growth, leaves, flowers and eventually a harvest, we’re busying ourselves with all that we can do in our lives during the lighter months…just a thought😊
Its a good and very real thought Lin, at this time of year I am at my busiest, I barely sit for more than a minute before the next urgent chore has to be crossed off an endless list… but yes, this is all preparation… good honest work in tandem with the seasons - necessary in order to relax a little through balmy summer days before the harvesting and storing begins… a never ending bustling and beautiful cycle.
Thank you so much for reading - may your weekend be beautiful with time enough to enjoy the last days of this spring season 💚🍃x
I can't ever let it go now I've found it. Thanks Susie.
I can't ever let it go now I've found it. Thanks Susie.
I can't ever let it go now I've found it. Thanks Susie.
Thank you for letting us join you so vividly at home, watching the storm, smelling the scones, leaving the young friends to their project. I laughed at the tough choice between chemical edibles and health at home. Oh, the universal dilemmas of motherhood! :-)
Tara, I am far from perfect, if I had been alone it is not unlikely I would have traipsed around the supermarket, my choices the least possibly infused with chemicals but not devoid entirely - it is, after all, infinitely faster than baking! With them in tow however, just looking at the weight of sugar infused rubbish they'd have chosen alone would have put my body into sugar shock! They are still at that wonderful age where immortality is an easy to believe invincible dream.
Sometimes the dilemma is an easy one, if indeed more time consuming...
Thank you so much for reading, motherhood is one hard job right, I know you know! xx
I have a fascination with a sense of home and that feeling of belonging. Be longing. There is something of our purpose and journey here. Beautiful as always, Susie.
'Too many people think of themselves as separate, singular, exclusive from our origins, from the trees and the stars. Especially the stars' .
I am not surprised you agree, I believe our ultimate journey in life is quite simply that Síodhna, a search for home, for love and belonging too. Most of us are lucky, we find that place and we nurture it, guard it with our lives, infuse it with our love. It is in our deepest most basic nature. Why anyone would try to deny it a very basic human need, a (be)longing, is beyond my understanding.
Thank you so much, I wish you a weekend of beauty and joy! xx
Oh, Susie, how on earth did you learn to write this way?
🎶🎵🎶 T H A N K Y O U 🎶🎵🎶
Louise that is the loveliest thing to read... thank you so much.
All my writing comes from my heart, it has to, my head won't do as its told anymore!
Bless you lovely lady - a hug to you and all your kitties! xx
And what an exquisite heart it is! 💕
Have a wonderful Sunday dear Louise.. 🙏🏼😘
Same to you, dear Susie. 💕🐾
What a beautiful study scene. I love imagining the smell of fresh scones arriving on that table. I'm sure they gave the project a little boost!
Thank you, It seemed to work wonders Betty, although they didn't win the competition they were working on, the instructors were so impressed with their preparations, they were asked to mark the papers of all the rest! Seth didn't know whether to laugh or cry!
Gasp. Susie! I do believe our minds were circling on the same motes of dust, fanned from the same soaring blackbirds, fed by the same sprouting maize these past few weeks. You, in the most exquisite, immersive prose envelop us in belonging, while an ocean away, I write about longing. And we meet, caught on some enchanted breeze in the “be” that marries the two. Isn’t it extraordinary to think that maybe to truly belong, we must “be” with our longing? The memory of the rupture? And the longing to return, to remember just how inseparable we truly are?
Your heart and its manifestations are a gift to this world, to me. With olive scones and oj to boot? Yes, your son’s memories of your hearth will feed thousands.
❤️❤️❤️
“tell him it is a wonderful thing how our memories and thoughts and ideas and dreams and loves all twist and turn, roll from one tiny, single note to a rhapsody of others!”
❤️❤️❤️
Perhaps those blackbirds were singing us the same songs dear Kimberly? Perhaps they carry the vast importance of memory and be-longing far and wide so we don't forget?
You write, " Isn’t it extraordinary to think that maybe to truly belong, we must “be” with our longing? The memory of the rupture?" Oh my goodness yes! If I could write these words on my children hearts I would...
"And the longing to return, to remember just how inseparable we truly are?" yes, yes, yes!
This is everything I dream of; even when I am but one of those tiny stars in their memories and maybe the home I have created for them is another families home, I hope the longing shapes their own lives, with their own children, I hope there are cheese and olive scones in abundance !
Thank you my beautiful friend, for hearing the same songs, for being here with yours. xx
Well, gosh. I’m glad I’m not the only one who loses words in the rush of the day. I’m also glad these words returned to you, because they are a gift. I was reminded of the days when my daughters and their friends chose to be here, left traces of themselves all over everything, were a little too loud, a little (or a lot) too fragrant, the energy of honey bees. What we all want, and what we can, with care, help create for ourselves and others are home and belonging. Thank you!
Ah, I am not alone in this, I'm delighted, no, make that relieved - Thank you! Lost words are my speciality Elizabeth, I wish I could write a book of them, maybe make a few bucks like Robert Macfarlane but, of course, I'm not that clever and lost is lost isn't it, if I gather up a few from the dust of the day, it is sheer luck!
Our children.. ooph! It's a big thing to know they want to be at home, big enough to swell a mothers heart to overflowing sometimes, every time - big enough also to look like a flock of sheep have moved in for the weekend, grazed every two hours, left their litter wherever it fell and bedding wherever felt comfortable to sleep but a home, and belonging, is anything else as important? That they know they have one, no matter what life throws at them...?
Many thanks for taking time to stop a while.
We are fortunate to be able to offer our kids this space, aren't we? And equally fortunate that they are willing to accept it.
Speaking of lost words, have you read Pip Williams' The Dictionary of Lost Words. Thoroughly enjoyed that one, though it's a different take on such disappearances.
What a coincidence you should mention this book when I have literally just placed a bookmark to remind me to order it. I haven’t yet read the whole of it Elizabeth, last summer while staying with a friend I began reading but had to leave the book behind, it was only in writing this post I remembered I wanted to order it!
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Beginning with the word
HOME
and ending with
home
And each and every written word in between,
is what I love about
you. 🌷
Aww, what a gorgeous way to end my day… thank you Lor ♥️Do you know what I love? Every time I sit down to write to you, you are by some telepathic magic, writing to me… I was half way through an letter to you with buttercups and daisies when you sent this - unfinished love arriving soon.! X
As I'm sure you know, Susie, I feel a certain kinship with 'it all', but I must admit that I've always assumed "all the souls who have understood the empathy and compassion in every line of beauty Mary Oliver wrote" to be closer relations! The way you tend (to your son, your land, your words, your readers) is an exceptionally beautiful thing. Thank you.
Dear Chloe, I could have, should have, changed Mary Oliver to read Chloe Hope, to me, indeed to all who know you, the sentence would have read with the exact same beautiful meaning, your kinship with empathy shines in every word you write.
My most humble and grateful thanks for reading mine. With love xx
Well, that's me, giddy and cartwheeling for the rest of my life...🙃 You honour me, dear Susie. Greatest love to you xx
Beautiful, Susie, full of heart and soul and tender loving care! xx
Thank you my lovely, tenderness is as important as kindness where our children are concerned... IMHO! Happy weekend hugs xx