Words of Kindness and Joy

"Kindness makes this world beautiful"

More pictures from my recent adventure.

My sister-in-law, above with my "live-in-gardener", always has a kind word for those she meets along the way.

Near her home is a lovely hiking trail, which we took on one of the days we were visiting. Here are some glimpses of that hike. What is interesting about this hike is that at the bottom of the hill was a waterfall and creek. The only people we met on the trail were two women at the waterfall. They were leaving the ashes of their mother and best friend to flow with the water in that beautiful place.

We stood back at a respectful distance until they were finished with their private ceremony.

When they finished my sister-in-law stepped up to them with words of kindness and love, then gave them each a hug. It was a very tender, beautiful moment.

They then went their way and we went ours. But the touches of kindness still reside in my heart.
 

Sending love,

Marilyn

Words of Kindness and Joy

 It is truly amazing how often I come across words of kindness on social media. This is a picture I came across recently and thought it was perfect to share with you.

Some days seem harder than others to remember to "give yourself kindness and grace". 

Dear friends, let's always support each other in kindness and send out joy to others. 

Sending love,

Marilyn

Sail Away with Me

 Webster says, the metaphor for sailing is: "And that's where the parts of the metaphorical sail come in: exploration, love, and purpose. Exploration is the driver of all growth, defined by the desire to seek out and make sense of novel, challenging, and uncertain events."

I love the concept of "sail away with me", an adventure, delight and discovery.

Thus, the week recently attended was that indeed. My sister-in-law has this view from her house every day. It is always such a treat to visit her and enjoy the morning sunrise. Each one is different, a new discovery.

 

Later in the day the view changed.

And yet, another view to include her garden.

There was always something to see right from her windows.

And then there was a walk to the marina where the boats rested, waiting for their owners to come along for a new adventure.

 

This boat was gorgeous and a replica of a historic sailing ship.
 

Did I mention that I am a water/nature girl? Could I sail away on an adventure, a new discovery? Could you?

This area of northern Washington State is wrapped in water. Just about anywhere you go there is a canal, lake, or river. And when there is water there seems to be boats. This last picture is on Bainbridge Island, right next to the ferry we took to head over more water to visit Seattle.

Next week I will share more of the adventure, but for now I thought you would like to imagine sailing to some exotic, unknown location and finding a new adventure.

Happy weekend, dear friends!

Sending love,

Marilyn

Gravenstein Apples

 

In my last post Jan H. was curious about my mention of Gravenstein apples. She did a little research and found they are an endangered apple. Many people don't know about this beautiful apple.

"Gravs, as fans call them, are delicious and versatile. Depending on the degree of ripeness, they can be perfect for munching or making into apple sauce, apple pies, and other baked goodies. People have long believed that the Gravenstein was brought to Sonoma County (California) sometime around 1812 by Russian fur trappers at Fort Ross."  I always thought they came from Scandanavia, but maybe it was Russia. Some are stripey like the picture above and some have a soft yellow green skin.

The main reason you don't see them in the market is because they don't transport well, they bruise easily. That is probably why they are diminishing.

You might ask how I know so much about this lovely apple. I will tell you. My grandpa was an apple grower in Colorado in the early 1900's. Then because my grandma wanted to move to California, he took up growing in the Sonoma County area about the 1930's. He fell in love with the Gravenstein apple and started growing them. Two of my aunts/uncles then had orchards on each side of my grandpa about the time I was born in the 1940's. The grandchildren came along, there ended up being 27 of us. I was the second grandchild and oldest girl. We all, at times, worked in one way or the other with the apples. It might have been picking them from the ground, sorting them in the packing house, or making boxes.

My sister still lives on 2 acres of what was our grandpa's orchard. There are still Gravenstein apple trees on her property. She makes gallons and gallons of apple juice each year, which she shares with her four sons and their families.  

My uncles orchard is now mostly in grapes. Yes, Sonoma County later became wildly popular for growing wine grapes. My uncle would be so sad to see all the grapes on his property. The new owners did leave the apple trees to border the vineyard, just to honor the history of the Gravenstein.

My aunts each thought they made the best Gravenstein pies. It was a fun family tradition. To this day several of the girl cousins still think they make the best Gravenstein pie. Of course, I think mine is the best. Each August I make sure to get enough Gravenstein's to have 2-4 pie fillings in my freezer. They are indeed getting harder to find and a very short season when I do find some. There are just a few growers here in Oregon that grow them, but they just aren't the Gravenstein's I find in Sonoma County, California. The tradition does carry on.

And thus, the people that shared my pie at the Harvest Festival last Saturday didn't know this story of my apple pie, but they enjoyed it just the same.

One more time with the picture of the Gravenstein apple pie. When I started making these pies I would put a butterfly on the top, that has become my mark for the pies I bake.

Hope you enjoyed the story of the Gravenstein apples. My post is early, as I am leaving town in a couple hours for a little R&R and a bunch of tea at the Northwest (Seattle) Tea Festival. See you here later next week.

Sending love,

Marilyn

Words of Kindness and Joy

 Dragonflies delight my soul when spotted at Lan Su Chinese Gardens.

 

“In the flutter of a butterfly’s wings, we find a gentle reminder to appreciate the small moments in life and to find joy in life’s simple pleasures.”

 by Shree Shambav

 

Always a butterfly appears on my pies. It was a joy to bake this Gravenstein apple pie for a harvest gathering.

 

And then to walk in a fruit tree orchard.

And to end the celebration of the Autumn Equinox by sitting by the fire.

Happy Autumn Equinox, dear friends!

Sending love,

Marilyn
 

Happy Place

 Recently a long time online friend asked "where is your happy place?". She was wondering where does your mind go when you can't sleep, a place that relaxes you and helps you rest.

This first memory is so strong in my mind I was sure I had a photograph of it, but I think it is just a picture in my mind.

My happy place has always been by the seashore. I remind myself of the time my mother showed me how to dig in the sand a hole to sit in, laying my towel over the hole that fit my behind just right. That image is so real in my mind that I thought I might have a picture of it. I went looking, but didn't find one.

What I did find was this:

 

My second happy place when I need to rest is visiting Hawaii for the first time. I laid in a hammock and just let my worries go out the door. I didn't think I had a picture of that, but surprise - I found one. I can just imagine laying there, swinging gently in the seaside breeze. Yep, that is me 26 years ago.

Then the other night, when I couldn't sleep, my mind went to the time my "live-in gardener" and I visited Carcasonne, France. We stayed inside the medieval walls for 3 nights. At night most of the tourists were gone and we would walk around the little village in the dark. We would stop to eat a local meal under the stars and the branches of a large tree. It was like we were the only ones sitting there in the world just savoring good food and gentle, warm breezes. It was delightful.

Have you notice a trend for me? My comfort place, my happy place is outdoors.

Where is your happy place? Where does your mind take you when you have a hard time going to sleep?

Sending love,

Marilyn

Words of Kindness and Joy

 This past week:

My "live-in gardener and son most often take a walk each day, but on one day this past week my son asked me to walk with him. Isn't it interesting when you get alone with one of your children, either small or big, they talk more openly. We had to pause and take a look at a few things along the way. We were noticing the small things.

 

Two comments I came across this week were:

In the end only kindness matters

Be Kind for no reason

 

Both so true. Kindness does matter and it is so important to be kind for no reason. When I was out and about a woman smiled at me, it felt like kindness was there for no reason at all. I remembered that smile all day long. 

Sending love,

Marilyn