Gratitude for Our Eden

I owe “Our Boy” a thank you this morning. Perhaps he knew that I’ve not spent any real time with his family as of late, perhaps that is why his gentle nudges, his bumping of my bed this morning, his yodels and finally his wolfen throaty “oof” is something I needed to experience.

I’ve often said that life gets in the way, takes from a person the quality time to do what is truly important to them in their lives. While I thought I had mastered the fine art of finding that quality time, at least some times, I suppose now that was a personal deception, because I again fell into the ‘demand trap’ of getting things done.

Now I have always been rebellious in nature, and yesterday I rebelled and did nothing…of course that means that today, I will have to hump it, getting as much done as I can before heading into the new work week. Aahhh the sins of sloth take their toll on the unwise. Tell you what though, I fully enjoyed sitting in front of the TV watching my favourite series run back to back all day. You guessed it, my satellite is up. I don’t know if that is a good thing or not.

Loki has expressed his concern….hence we have reached a compromise and an understanding. Each evening, we spend at least an hour in the living room (his fave room) listening to music together before it is time to go to bed. It does not matter if there is a show on that looks interesting, an hour before bedtime we all head to the living room to be together. Thank you Loki for ensuring that quality together time is given to each of us each night. He is the ‘Wise One’ is he not?

The snow that has remained is slight, yet it is crunchy beneath our feet. The morning air is crisp and chill, yet so clean and invigorating. The trees are now barren of their foliage and have settled into their long sleep. Soon the winds of winter shall be heard…loud and powerful, unlike the whispers of summer which made the leaves rustle and the trees dance. ‘Snow Birds’ will arrive and the Ptarmigan will turn white, mink and bunnies take on the colors of winter and one is reminded of the cycle of life, the cycle of change.

I have learned to appreciate the Arctic Winters, the stillness in the forest and on the trails. I listen to our footsteps, I see our footprints in the snow, I see the stories of the forest creatures as they have searched for food, their own footprints, some tiny, some large. I marvel at the imprints made by Ravens wings in the soft fluffy snow.

With the trees now barren, I see the secret places that Loki once lead me to, where we would spend hours together, sometimes in total silence and sometimes when I would sing to him. Places where he would hide his treasures and the blankets I would take to him. I have left all of his toys out there right where they lay, amongst them, a glove or hat that he had stolen from me, in his game of follow me. So many beautiful and wonderous memories this beautiful boy has given to me.

When I look back over my life, when I look at what it was that I ever truly wanted in my life, what I never believed I would ever find, I bow in gratitude now, that I, in the ‘autumn of my years’ I have been given this great gift. Decades have passed and I went through the daily motions of the expected, the social and cultural expectations of conformity. Get an education, get a job, survive one day at a time and face whatever is thrown ones way, good or bad, fall, slip and slide, regain ones balance and for every two steps back take another one forward. We have all been through the trials of life, felt the sadness, relished the simplest of pleasures and the tiniest of joys. And if you are human, you have felt the need to find a place of gentle solace, where the world stops it’s unholy spin and all is quiet, even for a brief time so that your own deep breath of relief could be heard above the din of the expected.

I truly wish that I could share the great gift of calm, of spiritual awareness, of the shining light that Loki has brought to me, to the home I share with mom and our companions. I wish you could feel the wonder of snow crunching beneath your feet as you walk on silent trails, feel the crisp ice laden air and watch in wonder this gentle spirit who walks beside me.

All of you can, I believe, find your own Eden. As you walk with your beloved companion, as you run and race along side each other, as you watch ears perk, nose scent, even as you hold the hand of a loved one, know for sure, that those moments, however brief, can never be undone, can never ever be taken away from you. Remember that there is great strength in each memory together that is being created, it will be the medicine for your soul.   Please feel free to visit Loki’s FB page.  The link is below.

   https://www.facebook.com/Friends-of-LOKI-Sole-Survivor-188340937903082/