Fiona Harbour 2024-05-12 Fiona Harbour 2024-05-12

Rambles on a Spring Day

Out in the countryside visiting family’s property this morning, I took my dog for a lovely bit of a ramble. We walked through the trees into the clearing. Whenever I pass through that opening and enter into the clearing, I feel like I’m entering a portal to a magical realm.

By my feet were the blue periwinkle flowers, and as the clearing opened up before me, I saw to my right the white narcissus with their yellow centers and the daffodils. These sunny flowers celebrating spring. The forsythia shrub has blossomed and the yellow flowers are a startling yellow against all the green vegetation, they are very beautiful and a different shade of yellow than the sunny daffodils.

Continuing along the front of the grassy clearing, I paused to enjoy the magnificent large crabapple tree. The blossoms have just begun to open and I hope that when I am here again soon, I will be able to see it in full bloom.

My dog, Charlie and I rambled back out onto the driveway and I took a picture of the wooden post fence that my father has built to protect a garden bed along the driveway.

Cutting fallen trees into suitable lengths, my dad put each post upright to create this fence. I always admire it, there is something about it that makes me feel happy when I see it, maybe it’s the rustic charm.

Sun through the trees and fleeting moments

We continued up along the driveway and as I looked to my left, I was touched by the beauty of the landscape with the sun shining through the trees. I took a moment and just breathed in and savoured the moment. Today is a lovely day and I am grateful that my dog and I are able to enjoy it.

A slower weekend, after the busy-ness of last weekend when we had a family gathering for a birthday and eleven of us came together to celebrate and share a meal. It was wonderful to see my family who live far and had come down to visit, and catch up again with the family who live closer too, and also to be able to join in the celebration of the birthday, a treasured moment.

It’s moments like this that I appreciate so much. I take pleasure in small things and quiet simplicity, my heart capturing the fleeting moments that mean so much to us, and together will make up my lifetime.

Fiona Harbour 2024-02-04 Fiona Harbour 2024-02-04

Wildlife Encounters on a Beautiful Winter Day

This winter in my corner of the world has been very mild. Yesterday I decided to take my dog Charlie and drive to my folks’ place in the countryside to visit for the weekend so we could enjoy ourselves walking on the trails, and also spend some time with more of our family who were joining us for lunch.

As I was driving along a country sideroad, a coyote appeared from the field…

As I was driving along a country sideroad, a coyote appeared from the field on my right and ran full tilt across the road in front of my car. I braked and slowed a little, and the coyote continued running into the field on the left of the road and disappeared as I kept driving on. Charlie was most interested. The colour of the soil covered snow on the side of the road, the coyote blended in so well in that scene as he was crossing the road. I had an impression of seeing the look of determination in its face as it ran full tilt to cross the road, and I wondered if it was just ensuring that it crossed safely or if it was chasing a prey animal that I hadn’t seen.

Then a little later, just on the country gravel road that my folks live on, I saw a group of wild turkeys with black bodies and pink heads. They couldn’t decide if they would go to the left or the right side of the road, so they all were milling about across the centre of the road and then a couple of them were jogging (do wild turkeys jog?) up the middle of the road. Charlie felt he had to give them a few loud barks to let them know they really shouldn’t be on the road or blocking our way.

I eventually managed to continue on, and as I was driving up the hill just before the part of the road that my parents’ property is on, I reflected how lucky I am, to have these wildlife encounters. And I felt extremely blessed and filled with gratitude. I felt that I was given the gift of seeing the coyote and the wild turkeys, to make me happy yesterday. My time in the countryside and seeing wildlife always helps me to replenish my well spring of energy and fill me with a sense of hope and renewal.

Before our family lunch, my dad and I took Charlie out for a walk. It was beautiful and sunny, around zero degrees census or a little below. That is actually not as cold as the temperature would normally be on a winter day in February, most years it can be quite a bit colder. We dress warmly in the wintertime, and combined with the sun, that made for very pleasant walking conditions.

I hate to slip and fall on icy patches, so I wear ice crampons over my boots. Many of you who also live in colder climates that get icy in winter, will be familiar with what these are. They are rubber things that slip over the bottom of your boots, and they have pointy studs on the bottom that can grip into the ice. They are indispensable for winter walking as far as I’m concerned, and they give me so much more confidence to walk my dog when it is a little icy out.

We walked along the snow, at first sinking down into it with each step, which made for a good cardio workout! Eventually the snow we were walking on was hard on top and we were able to walk on the surface. During our walk we saw the footprints of rabbits, deer, and coyotes.

Although I have been very much enjoying this winter, I’m hoping for an early spring. The days have been getting longer and it is lovely to have some more daylight in the mornings and in the late afternoons and early evenings. I continue to enjoy my winter walks and will keep getting out on the trails as much as possible. The lovely walks feel invigorating and as always, they renew my spirit.

Fiona Harbour 2023-12-05 Fiona Harbour 2023-12-05

5 Ways to Take Exquisite Care of Yourself During the Holiday Season

The festive season is usually such a busy time of year. Now, with the pandemic ongoing and Christmas fast approaching, I thought I’d share with you 5 Ways to Take Exquisite Care of Yourself During the Holiday Season.

1. Sit down and enjoy a cup of tea or your favourite soothing hot drink. Yes this may seem obvious but some of us begin skipping it during the day at this time of year when we can really use a few minutes rest.

2. Have a bath and in the running water put a few drops of your favourite essential oils. I love using a combination of spearmint and lavender. If busy you doesn’t have time for or doesn’t want a bath, try just soaking your feet after a hectic day. Sitting on the side of the tub and soaking your feet in water with your favourite essential oils even for just 5 or 10 minutes can do wonders.

3. Try a guided meditation. Many people find it easier and a more accessible way into meditation by listening to guided meditations. There are many free ones on the internet. Start with any that resonates with you and you feel drawn to. Even just a five minute guided meditation break can make all the difference.

4. Write a gratitude list of 5 things you are most grateful for this holiday season. This can be combined quite nicely with the first item on the list, sitting down and enjoying a cup of tea or soothing hot drink.

5. Write an affirmation for the day that will help you to get through what can be a hectic rush. Write it in your journal and or then where you can see it throughout your day such as on your phone, or on a post it note that you stick somewhere really visible to you. It can be something as simple as a reminder to yourself of what Christmas and the holiday season is really about. Or that you are in control of the food that you eat. Choose whatever works for you. Here’s a blogpost with more on using affirmations https://www.fionaharbour.com/blog/2021/7/17/give-affirmations-a-chance

Practice any or all of these five tips and it will make a difference. Nurture yourself with loving kindness and compassion. And above all else remember to be kind to yourself.

Fiona Harbour 2022-01-20 Fiona Harbour 2022-01-20

The New Year Arrives and a Lovely Walk in the Countryside Scattering Walnuts

….On New Year’s day we went for a lovely walk on my folks’ property where I have been visiting, along with my dog, Charlie. We walked across the first field to the stream where we crossed over and soon saw signs of many coyotes….

I am filled with gratitude as I look back on 2021 and think of the whole new year that lies ahead of us as I enjoy the present moment in these first few days of 2022. For me New Year’s Eve was a quiet one as usual, with close family and staying awake for the first time in many years to watch on you tube the countdown until midnight and the start of a new year.

With a new year comes the feeling of a new beginning and for me an excitement and newfound resolve to simply get things done that are important to me. I do make plans for the year ahead but I do not tend to make New Year’s resolutions. At least not lately in the last few years.

On New Year’s day we went for a lovely walk on my folks’ property where I have been visiting, along with my dog, Charlie. We walked across the first field to the stream where we crossed over and soon saw signs of many coyotes. In the snow we found quite a number of tracks of footprints of coyotes and then came upon large black feathers where they had caught a bird of some sort. As we walked through the second field my dog had his nose to the ground to examine all the footprints. We weren’t sure how recent the footprints were as the snow had fallen a couple of days before. But we didn’t think they were fresh.

We made our way over to near the edge of the property where there is a beautiful path that takes us through the trees. As we walked there were pine trees on the left and mostly tamarack or larch trees on the right. Beneath the trees there was a soft carpet of needles. It’s protected from the wind and there isn’t as much snow in there so the walking is easier and the beauty is, to me, breathtaking. It’s my father’s favourite trail on their property, and one of my mother’s favourite trails.

Wild turkey tracks in the light layer of snow were in abundance along the trail through the trees. And we saw rabbit tracks and signs of a mole or vole having burrowed along and leaving a track through the snow too. We reached the gulley that we had been heading for in the middle of the second field and came upon a cluster of rocks that I love to see. It is a collection of rocks likely from pioneer days when the farmers had to clear the rocks out of the fields so that they could farm the fields. They made a few large piles of rocks on the property and I always feel that there is a certain air of fairy magic in these places and feelings of yester year. I’m not sure why that is but I just always get that feeling in these rock pile locations.

The rockpile has a magical atmosphere about it

We then walked along the gulley pausing to scatter walnuts that we had brought with us, scattering them across the field around us. The walnuts had fallen to the ground from walnut trees near the house. My folks had already collected and then scattered close to two thousand walnuts so far last year. They take the walnuts to a place on the property where they would like walnut trees to grow and then just throw the walnuts about there, scattering them so that they will hopefully grow into walnut trees. Even if only ten percent grow into trees, that would be two hundred walnut trees which would be lovely.

After walking along the path in the gulley, scattering walnuts as we went, we headed back across the second field towards the house. We saw many more coyote tracks as we went, and rabbit tracks. After crossing the stream again we walked along a trail through the black locust trees. One larch tree had fallen down across the path. It had broken half way up the trunk, likely during a recent wind storm, and about twenty feet lay fallen, crossing the path that we were on. As we didn’t have a chainsaw or an axe with us, we went around the tree, and my father will return later to clear the tree from the path.

Heading towards the shrub garden we came upon many more tracks in the snow, this time wild turkey. We have seen many wild turkeys on and near the property over the thirty five years my folks have lived here. But on our walk we just saw the footprints and tracks in the snow.

With it being time for a lunch, and tiring from walking across snowy fields, we decided to head in to the house, and with that, our lovely new year’s day walk was over. I’m looking forward to coming out here to my folks’ property in the countryside in rural Ontario, Canada as much as possible in the year ahead. Being in the countryside, and with family is good for my soul, and my dog loves it too. For us, the new year is off to a beautiful start. I hope that the new year brings each of you peace and happiness.

Fiona Harbour 2021-12-28 Fiona Harbour 2021-12-28

A Quiet but Joyous Christmas

I try to enjoy as many holidays with my family as I can, for these are the seemingly small and simple things that to me, are part of making memories. My folks arrived on Christmas Eve and stayed for a few days. For me it was a Christmas of good family company, too much delicious food, and enjoying the blissful feeling of the moment.

Christmas arrived and it was quiet but joyous. It was tinged with sadness as well for me, as my grandmother had passed away in late November, just one month before what would have been her 103 birthday today. She had been my last remaining grandparent, and in addition to the normal grieving process, I now have the realization that it is the end of an era.

On Christmas morning my father and I took my dog for a lovely walk in a large park like setting that we drove to, instead of our usual walking routes. My dog was overjoyed and had his nose to the ground except when he was looking up in the trees for squirrels. There was a little snow still on the ground but it was a few degrees above zero. We saw very few people but the ones we did see wished us a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Back at my place, the Christmas dinner that I had planned was a beefsteak pie and a very rich mashed potato dish along with two vegetable dishes, broccoli and butternut squash. However, after a leisurely lunch, and some time on the phone sending Christmas wishes, I realized that the beefsteak pie preparation of the filling and cooking time for the pie was 4 hours and that I had run out of time unless we wanted to be eating a very late dinner.

I changed course and instead of making the pie, just made the filling, which resulted in delicious rich stew, but without the additional one hour of baking the pie in the oven. And with only one hotplate working on my old stove, I was then not able to make the mashed potato dish (which had been going to be a mix of mashed potatoes and parsnips combined with sour cream, cream cheese and chives). I needed the hotplate for the stew which of course must simmer for a couple of hours. So I ended up instead roasting the potatoes and parsnips inside the oven.

My mother helped me in the kitchen with the food, and everything came together and we eventually enjoyed a Christmas dinner of stew, roasted parsnips and potatoes, and butternut squash. For dessert I had made a clementine cake made with almond flour and with lemon zest. I had made it a couple of days before, and saved it for Christmas, but the taste gets better each day. On the table my simple centrepieces were homemade using bowls filled with limes and surrounded by cuttings from my shrubs outside.

In my neck of the woods, which is in Canada, we celebrate Boxing Day which is December 26, the day after Christmas and which is also a holiday. This year on Boxing Day, my father and dog and I all went for another lovely walk in the morning in the large park like setting that we drove to.

Back at my place after the walk, lunch was an array of cheeses and baguette slices, as well as toasted baguette crisps with rosemary, olive oil and sea salt. The cheeses were a Canadian cheese called Oka, Gouda, goat cheese, Boursin cream cheese with basil and chives, Stilton with mango and ginger, and Havarti with dill. We had a green salad, tomatoes, cucumber, and bean salad. For dessert, we had my mother’s homemade mince pies. Later on, dinner was leftovers from Christmas day, although we did have to cook more potatoes and parsnips, and then clementine cake for dessert again.

Although I missed seeing my dear nephews due to precautions due to the pandemic, and the rest of my sister’s family was far away where they live in another part of Canada, it was still a good Christmas. It has been about remembering the way that I want to feel at Christmas, enjoying the moments, and the things that to me, Christmas is about. It has been a quiet but joyous Christmas indeed. And as I reflect on these last days of the year, I feel that life is good. I hope that you all are having a lovely holiday season.

Fiona Harbour 2021-12-21 Fiona Harbour 2021-12-21

5 Ways to Celebrate the December Solstice

Today is the December solstice. Up here in the northern hemisphere it marks the shortest day of the year, the longest night, and the start of winter. Down in the southern hemisphere it is the longest day of the year and the start of summer. I feel like it is a magical and somewhat mysterious day, and I like to enjoy the solstice by celebrating my connection to the earth and nature.

I feel like it is a magical and somewhat mysterious day, and I like to enjoy the solstice by celebrating my connection to the earth and nature. A walk outside with my dog and a pause, to take a few moments to enjoy the beauty around us of a winter’s day.

Celebrate the solstice. Take a moment to pause and reflect on it. Read on to get some ideas of celebration rituals whether you are in the southern or northern hemisphere.

Incorporate a celebration ritual into the day made up of one or more of these activities:

1. Choose seasonal activities that bring you joy and help you connect with the earth. Perhaps as part of your celebration ritual for the first day of that season you will choose one or two seasonal activities. Some examples are outdoor walking or sports, crafts using the natural materials available to you outside at that time, such as winter wreaths, summer wreaths made from grasses and wildflowers, art and writing using the natural world around you for inspiration for your visual art or poetry or songs. And cooking seasonal dishes.

2. Gratitude journaling for that season. Write a list of things that you are grateful for specific to the season. The list can be as long or as short as you like, just let it flow, brainstorm, and you may be surprised how much flows out of your heart onto the page.

3. Write down your intention for that season? What do you plan to do this season. Also write at least the first few action steps that you need to take to make the plans happen.

4. Meditation centred around that season. Either find a guided meditation online, in a book, or get creative and write your own. It doesn’t have to be long, even just a few minutes long meditation will help you to reconnect with the earth and the universe.

5. Art journaling for the season. Draw or collage an image or images to depict what the season means to you in your life right now or your intention for this season. Or you can just draw and collage a celebration of the season, depicting the visual images that you think of when you are in the season.

By incorporating some of these activities into a ritual the day of the solstice, you will be celebrating the season. And in doing so you will also be reconnecting with your inner core essence, and deepening your connection with the earth and the universe.

You may wish to download my free 33 page PDF:Guided Workbook: 5 Ways to Celebrate the Seasons of the Year. It includes workbook activities and a meditation for each season to help you reawaken your creativity and reconnect with your inner core essence while you celebrate your Earth connection and the seasons. I keep my free resources, and this PDF Guided Workbook, available for download, in a free resource library. The library is open to everyone for free, all you need is the password to get in, which you can get HERE.

Fiona Harbour 2020-10-10 Fiona Harbour 2020-10-10

Thankful: On Gratitude and Giving Thanks

This weekend is Thanksgiving here in Canada. At this time of year many of us think about the things that we have to be grateful for as part of giving thanks to the universe. It is so important to take time to do this. Feeling and expressing gratitude has health benefits both physical and psychological, not to mention spiritual.

It increases our self-esteem as it balances the resentfulness we may sometimes feel if we compare ourselves to others. It also open us up to more relationships, because expressing gratitude can help us to foster new friendships. It strengthens the relationships that we already have. And feeling and expressing gratitude can increase mental toughness and our resiliency.

This year I feel particularly thankful for the health and wellness of my family as so many people have struggled during the pandemic including with their employment situations so I really feel grateful. I am giving thanks for having a safe place to live and to be able to support myself and have enough to eat which so many others in the world do not have at this time. And I’m grateful for my loved ones including my human family and friends and my dear dog, Charlie.

You can give thanks in prayer, in your journal, through art, through writing poetry and many other ways. What are some of your favourite ways to give thanks? Let us know in the comments below. And here is a poem that I wrote to give thanks.

I AM GRATEFUL

Feeling the gentle breeze

And hearing the wind rustle the leaves

Shimmering greens in sunlight

Feeling the connection

The circle of the Earth

Of life

Of nature

I am the earth

I am the wind

I am the trees

Living in the moment

I am here now

To enjoy eternity

A bird calls

An insect whirs

I am grateful

For this moment

You may enjoy this related post on expressing gratitude, it’s about writing a thank you letter to your body.

http://www.fionaharbour.com/blog/2017/4/8/thank-you-letter-to-your-body

And I have a free gift for you. It’s a 7 page PDF on FINDING YOUR VOICE: Five ways to find your authentic voice before writing, public speaking, or other activities of self-expression.

With this 7 page PDF you will learn ways to:

* Attune to your authentic self

* Express yourself more easily

* Prepare for your creative challenge

* Become unstuck or unfrozen

* Enter a state of flow

Receive the password to my Free Resource library so that you can download your free gift 7 page PDF on Finding Your Voice: 5 ways to find your voice, before public speaking, writing, or other activities of self-expression, and also download other free resources.

You'll also receive my Inspiration newsletter with updates on my latest blogposts, creative work and processes, guided meditations, resources and transformational journeys.

To receive the password to the free resource library so you can download your gift please visit

http://www.fionaharbour.com/finding-your-voice

Enjoy! Giving thanks, peace, and gratitude,

Fiona

Fiona Harbour 2020-10-03 Fiona Harbour 2020-10-03

Fall Forest Bathing in Rural Ontario

I love this time of year. As September turns into October, without the sluggishness of the heat of summer to slow me down, I feel more energetic and enterprising. I love walking outside in nature with my dog, and also just being outside, even if I’m not walking or working but am just “being”.

As my time continued at the countryside property in rural Ontario, Canada where I visited family recently, I took a picture of a lovely oak leaf, you can see the veins in it. I took a picture of magical looking mossy rocks that always conjure up vague notions of other fantasy worlds of fairies and elves in my mind whenever I see them. Another picture is of the carpet of periwinkle interspersed with the occasional goutweed. The dark grey clouds rolled in and I took a picture of them above the trees. Another picture, also a landscape, was taken after I had returned home and it was sent to me, reminding me of all that I was now missing. The beautiful landscape and fresh air.

carpet of periwinkle interspersed with the occasional goutweed…

I’m back at home now and looking at the photos, I’m reminded of the term forest bathing also called shinrin-yoku. In Japanese Shinrin means forest and yoku means bath. You can just be outside and soak up the atmosphere of the forest, the smells, sounds, the air. It is good for the soul. If you live in the city it is vital to your wellbeing to get some time outside in nature and is so great for stress management and reconnecting with your soul and inner core essence.

The dark clouds rolled in and I took a picture of them above the trees.

A lot of what I do out in the countryside or in the large park settings close to my home is forest bathing, I’m not always walking briskly or working. Sometimes I’m walking slowly, ambling along and just being. On one recent day out in the countryside my mother, Charlie and I were out for three hours. We ambled slowly, looked at the trees, collected seeds from the Siberian pea shrub for me to plant at my own home, took cuttings from the lilac shrubs and planted them elsewhere, tied up a honeysuckle shrub that was drooping, walked down and had a look at the linden trees, and then just generally soaked up the atmosphere. For three hours. Our “work” and walking did not take the three hours, but still three hours passed. It was a joyous and happy time and I felt all the better for it.

Charlie enjoying his shinrin-yoku (forest bathing).

To enjoy forest bathing, you don’t have to be working or doing a project, although if you live in the countryside you know there is plenty of work to do all the time, and you don’t even have to be walking or on the way somewhere. You just have to go outside and soak up the atmosphere, it’s about reconnecting with nature through all of your senses. Occasionally pause on your walks or during your busy work and soak it all in. You will feel better for it. I certainly do.

In the evenings now I look out and see my dog, Charlie, lying on my deck or in the grass in the backyard, even as it gets dark outside. With the cooler weather he is more comfortable, and being a dog with a thick coat makes it challenging sometimes for him to be out too long in the summer heat. But these fall days and evenings are just right for him, and he lies outside looking the absolute picture of contentment. I learn a lot from him and his wise attitude as he also enjoys “forest bathing” or just soaking it all in. Just “being” while you are surrounded by nature. Ah, bliss.