There are some who might wonder about a gift like this. But anyone who knows me understands how chuffed I was when M. brought me this present. Rocks for my garden are always welcome and I love that friend M. wrapped them in bright pink tissue and green-coloured jute. It's fun and whimsical, and totally charming. My friends rock!
These stones that I brought back from a trip to Nova Scotia have been polished by the actions of water and time.
Do you ever feel like you don't quite fit into the group around you? Or perhaps you stand out because you do things a little differently than others? It turns out that may not be a bad thing. It could be a signal that you have not discovered what it is that places you in your "element".
I'm presently reading a wonderful book about finding your element by Ken Robinson, entitled The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything. I only wish I had found it years ago... but it hadn't been written yet!
According to the inside of the book cover, the element "is the point at which natural talent meets personal passion." When this happens, people "feel most themselves, most inspired, and achieve their highest levels". I guess it's what is meant by someone "being in their element". How odd that just days before I came across this book, I had snapped this photo because something about this wee stone seemed to ask the same questions, "What am I doing here? Why do I feel different?"
The word for memories in French is souvenir. So it was apt that I would want to bring home a small souvenir of my beloved mountain on a trip back to my childhood hometown.
At the base of the mountain, along the path in the car park I noticed this heart-shaped rock. I brought it home with me, a small memento of Mont St. Hilaire. But there’s a tiny notch at the bottom missing… the little piece of my heart I left behind.
I can’t take credit for this one. I think I saw the idea in some magazine. I love it and it works! With all the slushy wet boots that get taken off in our household there is always a mess to clean up in the entrance. We used an ugly plastic boot tray which served the purpose, but was hardly a decorative feature and also gathered unsightly dirt and slush. But… fill the tray with pebbles, and you achieve a kind of Zen quality. Plus, the wet dirty slush soaks down through the cracks and cannot be detected by the naked eye. I loved this idea so much I bought a round pizza tin (for a couple of dollars) and took it to work to make a mini version for my office. When colleagues and visitors notice winter boots or rain boots standing on one of the trays they remark what a great idea it is, and when it lies empty most people have thought it’s a kind of Zen decoration and compliment me. Best of all, you don’t have to wash out the boot tray every two minutes!
