What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness. ~John Steinbeck
This is the time of year when it’s easy to feel “down” with the weather. Christmas is over and all the bright lights, Christmas trees, get-togethers, and festivities of the season have come to an end. The freezing winter temperatures have descended upon us and it’s only January. Winter is a challenging time for getting around especially for those of us who are Senior Citizens. We worry about slipping and falling, getting the flu, shovelling the snow, not to mention all those layers of clothing we have to put on to even go outside.
I was feeling very shut-in for the last week or so although I went out a few times. I found myself needing a quick lift and despite having lots of comfort food, hot tea, and lighted candles, my spirit was asking for something more. Florida or the Caribbean was not an option. I decided to revisit my collages and look through those where my body, soul, and spirit, were nourished by the memory of summer scenes.
— William Howitt
This collage brought back wonderful warm memories of sitting out on the porch and walking in the garden when the roses were in bloom. Cali, my cat, loves being outside in the summer, as you can see.
One of my favourite excursions in the summer is a visit to Centre Island. It’s not a long journey and yet one feels relaxed and happy from a visit there.
We went to Harbourfront in the early afternoon when it was sunny and bright and stayed there by the lake until it got late and the sun went down. It’s always a fun place to visit, day or night. Every weekend in the summer, Harbourfront features a cultural event which covers the music, food, and artifacts of a different country or area of the world. On this particular weekend, the South Asian Festival was on.
At Harbourfront, there are many boat cruises that one can go on and a variety of boats to choose from. There are lunch cruises and dinner cruises and some people even charter the boats for parties or events such as weddings. We went once on the Tall Ship “Kajama” for a birthday celebration after having a fabulous dim-sum lunch at “Pearl” right at Harbourfront. Seeing the pictures of the lake helps me to forget all the snow outside and to think, that in a few months, it will be possible to go and sit by the lake again.
Summer afternoon – summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.
— Henry James
If the winter’s feeling a bit long for you or too cold, I hope these images have taken your mind off of the season for a while and perked your soul and spirit up. The bright orange/red flowers above are called “Ixora.”
Think Spring!
