Some years ago now, as I was getting ready for yet another day, a breakfast television interview caught my attention. Lisa Marie Presley was discussing her relationship with music, her fight with drug addiction and her fondest memories of her father, the music icon Elvis Presley. Since Lisa Marie was born around the same time…
Tag: Life goes on
Changing Seasons
The seasons come and the seasons change. Time keeps rolling on. The journey of life sometimes feels long, but it is not endless. The last days of summer, of early life and youth are behind me now, they are but a distant memory. During my summer days, I felt fearless, spontaneous, dynamic, and self-confident. I…
Fabric of Life
When you think about the fabric of your life lived so far, what colour threads do you see? Which are the dominant colours? What patterns are evident in your tapestry? If every experience is a stitch in the intricately woven fabric of your life, then how have you been stitched together by the fibres of…
The Fire
Written by Jaana Jokinen, told by my maternal grandmother Hilja Maria 13th March 1913 in Joroinen, Finland It was a cold, early spring day in Northern Savonia, in the Eastern part of Finland, where my family lived. Joroinen is often called the “Paris of the Savonia” because in the 1700s the noblemen mainly spoke French….
Interlude
This year I have found myself in circumstances, I wouldn’t wish on anybody. Yet, it’s those situations that have taught me a great deal, given me pause and caused me to stop and think. Earlier in the year I was hospitalised after contracting Covid. There are a couple of ways to look at the same…
Road Closed
On a rainy summer’s day, my mum used to send us children to the attic. As an adult I now understand why. Ours was a small cottage, and we must have added considerably to the indoor noise levels. We climbed the steep narrow staircase, one of us followed by the other, all the way up….
Life Defining Moments
There are certain events that get burned into our memory, so totally, that no matter how much time passes, it feels like it only happened yesterday. It was a Friday evening and mid-winter. Although I had only just finished eating dinner, it was already dark outside. I was alone at home. My husband had taken…
His Eye is on the Sparrow
Early June this year, my husband Peter and I dropped into a corner café in the middle of the city. I took the table inside next to the window, while Peter went to order. I watched the last of the autumn leaves dancing in the wind, while passers by wrapped their scarves around them a…
Afternoon Tea
I recently had my grandson over for a couple of nights during the school holidays. I don’t know what came over me, but I got a bit soppy, hugging him as he left. One moment he is little, with his cheeky smile that always reaches his eyes, his think blonde hair and that never-ending energy…
Apples of Gold 