Today is the beginning of the Taranis Winter Challenge. A Crossfit competition in Victoria, BC.  Many of my friends will be competing… and I’m thinking of you all. I wish I could be there to cheer you on and support you, but know that I am sending you strength, and wishing you courage as you take on this ‘challenge’. Have fun!

This summer with its many different travels and adventures has limited the amount of time I’ve been able to workout, and at that it’s often been on my own.  Thinking of the Crossfit family in Victoria, the work they’ve put in to be ready for this weekend, and the fun (and awesome hardships) this competition will bring has me missing all of it.

Crossfit to me can actually be summarized in two words: Community & Challenge.  As a child training in gymnastics, my teammates became my family.  The same thing happened as I bonded with my cheerleading teammates at the University of Guelph, and my classmates at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre.  These friends were more than just friends.  We supported, pushed, and inspired one another.  We enjoyed our common interests and spent so many happy times together.  When I began Crossfit, I experienced that again.  It was so fun to have people to share a new passion with, and bond with outside the gym too.  I realize that being part of a team/group makes life so much more enjoyable and it’s an aspect of my life I’m beginning to miss here…

I also think that my time in gymnastics set me up for life in terms of wanting a goal and then working my butt off for it.  Somehow it just seems to give purpose/direction to things… The challenge of Crossfit and all of it’s diverse elements mean that there is always something to work towards.  I miss that too.  Although I have been trying some new things here – like rowing today (oh yes you read that right). But we’ll see if that becomes fun and joyful because today was well, not so much 😉

I’m feeling very grateful for the people in my life who’ve shared my various passions and have become my family through them.  I hope that wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, you continue to pursue the things you love, that bring you joy and challenge you to new heights!

And of course GOOD LUCK to all those competing at the TWC! 

Good times with good people!

Have you closed your eyes to and felt the warmth of the sun on your face? Have you felt the vibration of the beat or the dance? Has the texture of something created a visual in your mind?

As I watched the video below (that a dear friend has posted on facebook) I was reminded of how deeply we can appreciate something with all of our senses. A change of perspective (due to distance, injury, illness, surprise or any number of factors) can produce a deeper gratitude, understanding and appreciation.

As you live your day, take a moment to explore something in a new way. Appreciate something as you never have before – the colour of music, the smell of a landscape, the architecture of words. Beauty is all around us ~ go deeper.

I have heard of it before, but like many things in life the lesson keeps being presented to you until you are ‘ready to hear it’ (or learn it or live it).  LOVE LETTERS.  Back in the day before email, facebook and twitter the way to keep in touch was to write notes to one another.  I remember being pen pals with gymnasts I met at competitions; and to this day I adore writing cards and leaving little notes here and there for my husband.  But there are projects that take it a step further…

Torontonian Lindsay Zier-Vogel created The Love Lettering Project eight years ago and since then it has taken many forms. “Write love to what you love” is the focus and these small tokens of expression give way to moments of happiness, blissful memories, and connections to beautiful people-places-things.

Just over two years ago Hannah Brencher began writing Love Letters and scattering them throughout her city of New York.  An interesting component is that you can request a love letter for someone… and then they encourage you to ‘adopt’ someone, gather a group and write letters together to send a little warmth to someone that could use a kind word.

How simple. How beautiful.
I may not have a bunch of friends to gather round, but I think I’ll go out in search of some nice stationary today and will set aside some time to share a little love. (and I just may drop a nice note here & there around Oxford. Keep your eyes peeled. Perhaps there’s a note waiting for you?!)

“I wish for love” ~ on a wishing tree in Glasgow, Scotland (taken by me during the 2009 UK tour with Sylvain Émard Danse)

I’ve had these tabs open in my browser for a while. The videos just make me smile…

This first one is so beautiful and I think highlights our openness and willingness to love. It doesn’t matter what colour, race, shape, religion, or faith we all need love and have so much to give.

This is a touching video too.  This one emphasizes that when we show one another respect we can gain each other’s trust. (plus the lion kind of reminds me of how Basil likes to play too… we’re all just big kids at heart)

I hope your day is filled with smiles, laughter and love!

I will never take double pane windows for granted again!!!! It is COLD in our flat except when the radiators are on… and even then they aren’t on for most of the night.  By the time morning rolls around all of the hot air has escaped through the single pain slatted windows (they look like blinds that open horizontally….) Last night we bought a kit to insulate them, and I just did the windows in the bathroom. Next will be the kitchen and then perhaps we’ll get fancy and do some of the windows in the bedroom/sitting room. We’ll see!

During the process, I had to go across the street to a house under construction to see if they had an extension cord (because you need to use the hair dryer to seal it and it wouldn’t reach). They lent me a long power bar and it was oh so useful. When I returned it I gave them cookies (Delicious dark chocolate digestive biscuits) I had just bought. NOTE: I would’ve liked to have whipped up something homemade but time constraints did not permit. They weren’t a big extravagance at only 80p.  and at first the man didn’t want to take it but I insisted. I was so appreciative of their gesture and he seemed happy too. A nice afternoon treat with their tea, and warm windows for me. WIN WIN – hooray everybody wins.

As I was walking back I thought. Being nice is NICE. Having people be nice to me is so NICE! Isn’t it wonderful to take care of and be kind to others. It’s like a big group hug in the day to day of life.

How can you be kind today? Someone like me, is so grateful that you are!!!