@brittarnhild
Every meeting has at least one break. If you eat your lunch fast, there is always time for a walk, and with the autumn colours all around the lunch walk is not to be missed.
If there is a like, a creek or fjord nearby, there are also birds.
May be even some I have never seen before.
Unfortunately the lunch break is passing to fast, and when the path comes to a dead end, it is time to go back to your meeting.
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@brittarnhild
We have an old well in the forest where we get water for our life at the cabin. Last time we came here Terje discovered two holes in the old, rusty currugated iron roof. A drinkwater well needs to be safely covered, so after speaking to the farmer, my second cousin, who owns the land and the well, it was decided that Terje would get new tin plates to cover the well. "Just say at the shop that I will pay for it" my cousin said. I love this simple country life, where people can trust each other.
This morning we got new plates. Six of them.
Terje carries them up the steep him from the car to the well, and covers the old, rusty ones.
Though my arms are no good at carrying, I am there with my camera, taking photos for our cabin blog. While I am up there I start to look around, and all of a sudden my head, my heart is filled with plans for coming "hikes" and picnics with our grandson.
I am sure this old, fairytale, moss grown forest will be a dream next summer for Leander. And for more summers to come.
Only a few steps from the cabin, yet qjuite another life. A place to explore, a place to find unknown animals, a place to sit down and share adventurous tales.
Wait a minute. I don´t need to wait for next summer, do I? I can go exploring all by myself. I don´t even need to find the child in me. A middle aged silver haired woman can do it perfectly well. All by herself.
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@brittarnhild
In the US, and several other countries as well as far as I know, you are having snow days during the winter. Days when everything stops because of the snow. Here in Norway we NEVER have snow days. No matter how much snow has fallen during the night, and keeps on falling during the day, no matter the wind, the ice, the freezing temperatures. If you are supposed to go to work, you go to work!
I can live with that. I mean, I do wish for snow days from time to time, but being a Norwegian means that you are used to manage the snow.
What I really would LOVE to have though, are sun days. To be able to call my boss, saying - sorry, I am not able to come to work today. The sun is shining, and I can´t leave my garden.
With the wet. cold summer we have had this year, I thing we deserve sun days when the sun finally arrives.
I am lucky though. I don´t work on Fridays. Today is Friday,
AND.....the sun is shining.
Photo: the lunch I made myself today, mostly with ingredients from the garden.
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@brittarnhild
I have been reading Frances Mayes´book Under Magnolia. A book about her childhood in southern US. Very different from what else I´ve read by this favorite author of mine, still, again she has managed to enthrall me with her writing, with her words, with her thoughts.
I borrowed the book by a friend, so this time I could not read with pen or pencil as I love to do when I read. Instead I had to use my diary to write down words, quotes and passages.
Here is one of the quotes I now have in my journal:
"The South always has enjoyed its eccentrics people. I´m glad, because I intend to become more and more that way myself. I´m done with my life quest to appear normal."
Amen Frances, I´m following you on that one!
My life is mine and I will live it my way!
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@brittarnhild
I have a golden heart for sleeping. From the moment I put the book I am reading on the bedside table and turn off the light, I am dead for this world. All the way till next morning, with one or two visits to the loo in between. Well, at least I like to think that most nights are like this. The other night was sleepless though. I had fever, I had body pains and my sinuses troubled me. "No problem. I can listen to the birds" I told myself. The bird songs around the cabin is better than being in any concert hall around the world. I had the window open, my sinuses force me to do that every night, and suddenly there was a mosquito in the room. Now I have one question to you. "Why does every mosquito have to go for my ear first thing?"
I couldn´t stand the noise, put sleep well in my ears. And than of course I could not hear the birds singing.
I still could imagine the songs though. And when I closed my eyes I saw the night view from our cabin terrasse.
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@brittarnhild
Looking back I know there has been several turning points in my life. Some good. Some not. Some planned. Some out of the blue. Some a bend in the road. Others a fork with a choice. Or a roundabout with many possibilities.
Looking ahead I know there are more turning points waiting.
Some big. Some small. Some life changing.
I hope I never get too old to find pleasure in turning.
Never to old not to anticipate what lays ahead.
Always childish enough to play.
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@brittarnhild
I leave home early these days, and I work long days. But as always, I try to give myself some "just me" moments. For some days now I have taken another bus downtown. A bus which takes a completely different route, which takes 10 extra minutes, and which makes me feel I am a traveller exploring new land.
The bus is almost empty when I find a seat. I take my kindle out of my backpack and start to read. For the moment I am reading Edith Wharton´s House of Mirth. I read for a few minutes. I only use my kindle on the bus so the books I read from it take a long time), but as more and more passengers get on the bus, I spend longer and longer time to read one page. I watch people and I try to imagine their lives. The middle aged couple from somewhere in Asia, China? Nepal? Tibet? who waits on the bus at the same stop every morning. The young father completely in love with his little baby girl, the old man who came one morning and left the bus at the hospital stop, the African mother and her son who told funny tales from his school day.........
When I arrive at my stop I decide to continue to the next, which means I can walk over the marketplace, through a city which is waking up after a good night´s sleep.
15 minutes later than I could have, I arrive at the Archbishop´s Palace. I find my office, I open the computer and my work day starts.........but first I look out my office window to see if there are new spring flowers growing in the cathedral park, and I open my window to listen to the birds.
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@brittarnhild
The taxidriver who drove me home from the airport this afternoon originally came from Ethiopia. He has lived in Norway in 9 years and spoke fluently Norwegian.
We spent the whole drive talking about Ethiopia, and the driver´s smile got broader and broader when he learned how much I actually know about his country. As I sat beside him, in the front seat, I couldn´t actually see his smile, but I heard it in his voice :-)
Now I long to go back to this amazing country, lovely people. If when I do, I will bring some ping pong stuff, to give away to all the youngsters playing along the road.
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@brittarnhild
A completely ordinary day. Woke before the alarm clock as always. Up for a shower, a hair wash. Breakfast. Newspaper. An appointment before work, which gave me the opportunity to stop at Terje´s job to park the car there and we squeezed in a cup of coffee together in his canteen. Work. Bus home. Grocery shopping. Making dinner. Eating with Marta and Terje. Napping. Afternoon news, coffee and some left over Christmas cookies (read krumkake). Some house fun. A couple of bills to pay. A program with a favorite musician of mine on television. Reading. A glass of wine......may be. Going to bed.
A completely ordinary day.
Nothing fancy with it.
Nothing exeptional is happening.
And everything is exeptional.
I am breathing.
I am alive. I can feel my husband´s kiss on my cheek. I can enjoy my daughter´s soft, beautiful hair. I can speak with my kids on the phone. I got a letter in the mail. I have a job I love. I made something good for dinner. The squirrels are busy out in the garden. The dark sky is filled with stars. I am knitting socks for my oldest son. There is peace in my country. I own the words. I am living. Here. Now.
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@brittarnhild
Elizabeth, who lives in a small town deep into the western part of Ethiopia has never seen the sea, has never tasted salt water. She and I spent part of yesterday together, doing a lot of fun things. At one time we stopped along the sea, walked hand in hand down the slippery stones, drank salt water from our hands, collected shells....
....and laughed a lot.
There are so many things Elizabeth is experiencing for the first time. Like when we drove along a common Norwegian road she looked at me, smiled and said: "Have your roads been like this from the beginning? You know Britt, when I sit in a car in Etiopia the car is dancing, our roads are not at all like yours, there are deep holes. To come to Norway I took a plane, I have never beed in a plane before. I though the plane would be dancing as well, just like our cars. But it did not. It was like sitting in an ordinary chair. I could even sleep on the plane"
We drove on to see the ferry. Elizabeth couldn´t believe her eyes. "Look, there is a bus on the ferry, and look, there is even a driver in the bus. Is he the one driving the ferry? Oh, look, there are more cars coming out of the ferry......."
I am supposed the be the guide, but what happens is that Elizabeth shows me my world though her eye. And I love it!
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