The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry’s cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.
~ By Emily Dickinson
Is there one small spot in your home that makes you happy? Perhaps more than one? This is one of the spots in my home.
It’s a collection of items that all make me feel happy, calm, and grateful. An oak washstand I bought in Brooklyn on Atlantic Avenue back when I lived in Park Slope; a rather poorly matted, (by me), and framed photo of my Mom and Dad when they were married; a rusted crow sitting atop a real piece of branch; a couple candles and some fall leaves in a heavy opalescent dark brown pitcher …
I change these items around regularly, but for now, this is what speaks to me of Fall. Warm, simple, woodsy. Home. I am grateful to have these small reminders of where I’ve been in life and with whom, what holds memories for me, and how blessed I’ve been in so many ways.
Happy Thanksgiving.
“The greatest wisdom is in simplicity. Love, respect, tolerance, sharing, gratitude, forgiveness. It’s not complex or elaborate. The real knowledge is free. It’s encoded in your DNA. All you need is within you. Great teachers have said that from the beginning. Find your heart, and you will find your way.”
― Carlos Barrios, Mayan elder and Aiq’ij of the Eagle Clan
At my house, it’s the appearance of my favorite Dollar Store Christmas plates and German Christmas mugs. I find them so simple and festive that I can’t help but get in the holiday mood when having coffee or serving up something good to eat, like a slice of yesterday’s Thanksgiving apple pie. Yum.
How much better is a cozy moment with good food on some pretty dishes than being jostled endlessly while competing with swarms of shoppers on Black Friday? I leave the shopping marathons to others and content myself with oner tasks. It was rather unsettling, to say the least, to find that a number of stores out this way had decided to one-up their competitors who traditionally opened their doors at 4 a.m. Friday morning – by opening theirs at 7 or 8 p.m. ON Thanksgiving. People, people, is it really all about money?
So snuggle up with your loved ones, your yummy leftovers, a good book – whatever inspires you – and protest. That’s right – stay home and actually enjoy some holiday time. Spend a few moments in gratitude and leave the shopping olympics for someone else. Feels so much better, doesn’t it?
My apple pie cooling in anticipation of Thanksgiving.
The last few days I have been intuitively drawn back to read my friend – though I have never met him – author Mark Nepo. I find such comfort in the kindness and wisdom of his writing, but moreover, the ability of his words to help center me.
Work, and its sometimes seemingly endless demands, can pull me farther and farther away from my self until I feel lost. Especially with Thanksgiving upon us, I wish for my mind, heart and spirit to be in a far different place. This morning, tuning into Nepo’s The Book of Awakening helped me rein myself back into a place where I want to be … calmer, more content. He writes:
“The goal of all experience is to remove whatever might keep us from being whole. The things we learn through love and pain reduce our walls and bring our inner and outer life together, and all the while the friction of being alive erodes whatever impediments remain.
“But the simplest and deepest way to make who we are at one with the world is through the kinship of gratitude.”
He asks that we sit quietly and meditate on what keeps us from knowing ourselves, inhaling gratitude and exhaling what stands in our way. I know that when we are feeling most whole, when we have separated what we “do” from who we are, that we experience greater peace. And when we are at peace, we love more easily, breathe more easily, give more easily. So beautifully connected.
Knowing ourselves and releasing all that we are not taps us right into the magnificence of spirit, our Oneness. This Thanksgiving I share peace and thankfulness with you.
Have you ever noticed how many perfectly competent, as well as excellent, cooks shake in their boots at the thought of making a cheesecake? (Also homemade pie crusts, but that’s a different post!) This always surprises me, because cheesecake is actually one of the easiest desserts you can make. It’s not that you can’t find very complicated cheesecakes – they’re out there, and I’ve made them, too – but most of your cheesecakes are fairly simple and almost foolproof.
Take this pumpkin cheesecake, for instance.We decided that this year for Thanksgiving I would forego the more traditional pumpkin or apple pie, and make a pumpkin cheesecake instead. I have a couple good recipes for pumpkin cheesecake that I know to come out well. In deference to my host who cannot eat nuts, I eliminated the pecan or walnut praline topping, and made a substitution in the crust ingredients. Instead of the called-for graham crackers, I used gingersnaps. Note – the crust has only 2 ingredients – ginger snaps and butter. Easy, right?
More simplicity – the filling is all made in one bowl, – cream cheese, sugars, eggs, pumpkin, cream and spices. It doesn’t really get much easier than that! It came out creamy and delicious, and although it called for 1-1/2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice, you couldn’t go wrong by making that 2 teaspoons.
Feeling more confident yet? Cheesecake is really an easy dessert – easy on the cook, easy on your busy schedule, and easy on your hungry guests eyes!
p.s. If anyone would like to try my recipe, just leave a comment, and I will scan it or type it up.
Life is an interesting journey. Here are journals, stories, reflections of a traveller of this journey. (songoftheheartsite@gmail.com)
Sharing my journey of a calm, intentional life.
Sharing Information About Writing and Illustrating for Children
Aren't songs of grief lullabies to the lost?
Immersive Tales for the Curious Explorer
Life in a flash - a bi-weekly storytelling blog
Becky Ross Michael: author & editor
Observing, Gathering, Gleaning, Sharing
Official Home of Lavinia and Rick Ross
Thoughts on life, writing, creativity and magic
Canadian Author & Memoir Writing Coach
"Be a dew to the soil of the human heart."
Still A Dreamer 