Finalist

True Story

As far as introductions go, this one was memorable for me. Meeting the ex-wife of your new boyfriend, with whom you are now co-parenting kids, is a little bit nerve-racking, to say the least.
Was I nervous? Hell, yeah. I wanted her to think I was capable of helping to raise her kids. That I was reliable, responsible, punctual, and well-mannered. I felt like I was going to be interviewed for a very important job as a nanny. Little did I know I would be tied to this woman with this memory for the rest of my adult life.
We were different in every way. I drink coffee, she drinks tea; I enjoy sugar, she likes agave; I like a neighbourhood, she lives off-grid.

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Building a Sense of Place

Our earliest memories are often a jumble of feelings and senses, nothing quite as organized and concrete as those of adulthood. These snippets of memory often arise unbiddenly; a scent on the breeze can carry us back to childhood with an experience so vivid, so real, that we can be rooted, transfixed in a time decades ago and half a world away.

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Confessions of a City Farmer

Like many people, my husband and I had a dream of owning a beautiful property with many trees and pastures for miles. We had visions of laying on a hammock and basking in the sun and enjoying many lazy, relaxing days.

In 2017, we were able to make that dream come true. We bought a 15-acre property in Yellow Point that was in total disrepair. 

We thought, “Great, the property is fenced and cross fenced. It will keep everything in!” 

Wrong.

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Beauty’s Story

A few years ago we moved to a little heritage farm and orchard in Cedar, which is now my home. We have many animals like pot belly pigs, sheep, geese, goats, and over 80 pet chickens of all different breeds and personalities! So I’m sort of like a chicken expert.

Our Easter Egger hen, named Coconut, disappeared for a few weeks and then we found Coconut and her nest with five baby chicks! They weren’t all genetically Coconut’s -other hens must have helped her by laying eggs in her nest, but she hatched and raised them.

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Memory and Growth

Somehow being outside, having the wind toss you around up in a tree that you climbed as high as you could, or as high as you dared, was the most humbling and exhilarating experience. It’s an experience that you thrust yourself into, unknowing whether you will be safe. Trusting your body in its abilities and having faith.

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The Ornament

We friends soldiered on and through the winter we saw her decline & yet continue to shine. We were all so busy in our lives and she in hers that the ornament went up and came down without too much thought.

That January she emailed me and told me she needed a kick in the butt and that we should get together to craft. We set that date and made a plan for the weekend. We were going to make memories and she was to show me this beautiful craft.

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The Synthesis of Her Traditions

Finally, some clay piñatas and fruit for stuffing them. Kids used to break clay piñatas and throw themselves to get the fruit, that was our 80’s candy. The best fruits of the season were mandarins, green sugar cane and small jicamas (a delicious white root that is juicy and tastes delicious with lime and salt). You could end up with your knees all scratched from the clay, but that wasn’t a reason to hold yourself back.

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The Mushroom Hunt

In the distance I could hear the faint sounds of a brook. And amongst the trickle of water there were birds that sang. As we walked deeper into the forest the light from the road began to disappear and the trees grew even taller. So tall in fact that I felt dizzy looking up at them and I completely forgot why we were here as I tried to find my balance.

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The Best Veg. Biryani

On my last night in India, I went dancing kizomba. I told the Indian kizomba dance teacher that I was leaving tomorrow, going to Angola. I thought he would be excited to know that I was going to the birthplace of kizomba, the dance he was teaching.
“Angola. What’s that?”

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