April 2022
Moments of Wonder
Listen to the audio version by Dorothy
Welcome to Innisfree's April newsletter! A friend recently asked me where the ideas for each Moment came from. Truth to tell, they come about often unexpectedly, through day-to-day experiences or people I meet on my path, resulting in reflective contemplation, joy, laughter and oftentimes leaving a warm memory. Perhaps my two recent ones will give rise to your Moments of Wonder.
Sharing a friend's birthday on-line with Skype was a new and delightful experience. I had found a glitzy gift and given it to her the week prior, suggesting she stay curious and bring to mind an expression made famous by the late Marilyn Monroe. With her curiosity piqued she suggested we share the moment via Skype. When the day and time arrived that my friend opened her gift I was able to see her joy, and knew it was the perfect choice. What was it, perhaps you're wondering? ... A single large champagne flute encrusted with diamonds around its stem ... bling, in today's term! A single one, as its companion had been broken, which left the perfect space for a bottle of champagne. It was a fun gift, but what made the occasion especially memorable was sharing the joy.
The second occasion, also birthday related, was deciding to gift myself by going to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver to see the Shen Yun Chinese dancers. It was pushing my comfort zone a bit, but there was a luxury shuttle bus available, and I could take my walker. The entire experience was a trip down memory lane as it was one I used to make daily, oftentimes leaving and returning before dawn and after dark. En route I saw hundreds of soaring eagles and stunning blossoms down avenues of trees. The gymnastical skill of the dancers to the music was spectacular and the choreography and colourful costumes were outstanding. Arriving back in White Rock in early evening I basked in the joy of the storybook experience.
I share these experiences, hoping they remind you of your special ones or encourage you to push through your comfort zone to create new ones. This is not meant to overlook current concerns with world events, or health issues, or the intense sadness due to a loss, but it is to suggest that being open to experiencing moments of wonder helps keep balance in our lives. Please consider for a moment what it is that lifts your spirits, and is most meaningful to you. A shared experience - in-person, on-line or by telephone, a walk in the park, a gift you give yourself, like my theatre visit, listening to beautiful music, or reading an interesting book?
Author and motivational speaker, Robin Sharma, suggests that reading a book is having a conversation with the author, and true to that thought is one I highly recommend, written by Hospice friend, Dr. Gordon Wallace, titled: Moonlight Serenade ... Embracing Aging Mindfully. It is inviting, certainly thought provoking, complemented by audio meditations, and is due to be released this month. For information on its author, a preview and readers' reviews, please visit: https://www.embracingagingmindfully.com/
Staying Young at Heart on the Journey from Aging to Saging included lengthy research for my ministry MBA thesis, which was dedicated to my late friend and role model, Dorothy Bonshor. She loved to have fun and was playful until her death in her mid-nineties, especially at Christmas when she wore her Old Mother Hubbard hat to distribute gifts. Consider adopting, along with me, words attributed to Oliver Wendell Holmes: Old age is always fifteen years older than I am! I like it! So wherever we are on our chronological scale, let's be open to new experiences, and to knowing that the doorway to our next wonder moment is already open, ready for us to walk through ... and may it include smiles and laughter!
For a closing smile I share a dream of mine this week where, with absolute confidence, I was about to drive a blue spiffy stick-shift sports car (think Aston Martin) ... I haven't driven a stick-shift in decades nor do I today own a car, but I did wake up with a smile on my face! A wonderful start to my day!
Until next time, may you have a blessèd Easter. Namasté!
April's Fireside Insight: "With our expanding lifetime expectancy, continuing research is being done ... to provide a quality lifestyle for people as they age. However ... it is still up to each of us, within our present circumstances, to avail ourselves of opportunities, and hopefully have fun as we do ..."
By the Fireside with Dorothy ... Into the Mystic, Ch. 17, P70.
Dorothy B.
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Rev. Dorothy Blandford, Ph.D
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Surrey, BC, V4A 6E1, Canada
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