Thursday, March 17, 2011

Newer Every Day

"We turn not older with years, but newer every day." ~ Emily Dickinson


phone call afterglow
This beautiful face belongs to my sons' Great Aunt Lois. She's their father's late mother's sister. The faraway look in her eye reflects the bewildered pleasure she felt at having received a special phone call just moments earlier.

This past Sunday was a special occasion - Aunt Lois' 95th birthday. Go on, you can say it. She looks much younger than that. She's young at heart, mind and spirit too.

In earlier years, Lois was a public health nurse right here in Mississauga, and among her duties were postnatal visits to mothers and their babies in the home. One such visit was to a woman just five years her junior, a new mother named Hazel McCallion who has since held the title of Mayor of Mississauga for the last 32 years.

talking to Hazel
Well, I'm sure you've guessed by now that it was Mayor Hazel on the other end of that phone, calling to congratulate her on her birthday. As it turned out, it was supposed to be an in-person visit, arranged by Lois' granddaughter Amanda and grandson-in-law Colin who were hosting the party. Hazel was planning to attend but was detained at an earlier commitment and opted to call and arrange an afternoon tea at Lois' retirement home sometime this week instead.

Aunt Lois was delightfully stunned by the incident. I'm not sure if the mayor actually remembers Lois - it's not like they've ever been in touch since they met over 50 years ago, but Hazel was touched by Amanda and Colin's desire to do something memorable for Aunt Lois and excitedly agreed to meet with her. It's unfortunate that she wasn't able to make it to the party as it would have been a wonderful surprise, but it's nice to know that she cared to make the phone call and plan an an afternoon tea with her.

When the brief phone call was over, Aunt Lois was so pleased, and she expressed how much she was looking forward to meeting with the mayor. What I found to be particularly touching was how Aunt Lois immediately thought about her late husband. "Reg would have just loved this."

The party was a fine celebration as most birthdays are.

gifts
There were gifts.




flowers
Beautiful flowers.




yum
Delicious cake.




icing roses
And flowers on the cake.




Lois 95 Maeve 3 months
And there was lots of love. This is Aunt Lois with her youngest great granddaughter, Maeve. Aren't they a beautiful pair?

Thanks for joining the party.

The mystery image in yesterday's post was of Venetian blinds seen at a restaurant. All comments have now been posted so you can see how everyone did. The full image appears below. All of you who guessed had clever answers but the correct ones were give by Glo, Zuzana, June, Sandra, Daryl, Fragrant Liar, Steve (Out on the Prairie), Kat, Reb and Cricket.

blinds

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Mystery Image and Posts of the Week


whatisit
The mystery image above was taken a few days ago. It's either going to be really obvious or it might possibly have you stumped. I'm going to moderate comments just for today. See if you can guess what the mystery image is. I'll post the answer tomorrow.

And now, without further delay, here are the Posts of the Week. The icon below is yours for the taking if if your blog post is named as a Post of the Week - either as top post or as a runner up.


This week's POTW goes to..



12 Ways My Dog Outsmarts Me
by TattyTiara
at Tattytiara



More wonderful posts are categorized below (they may well fit into more than one category but I'm only selecting one for each):






Sock it to Me
by Betty
at Bossy Betty

Great British Advertising: CATS
by Imbeingheldhostage
at In the Gutter

Repopping
by Travis
at One Word, One Rung, One Day

Wee Wisdom
by Fragrant Liar
at Fragrant Liar







F is for...
by Ellen
at Stuff From Ellen's Head

My Kind of Town
by Moannie
at The View from This End

Destiny
by Zuzana
at Life Through Reflections

Why I Won't Be Catholic - One Reason, At Least
by Wide Lawns
at Wide Lawns and Narrow Minds

Proof of Time
by Kat
at Seeking Sanity






Sea Eagle
by Bob
at Birds and Nature in the Forest of Dean

Silhouettes
by Daryl
at Through My Eyes

No Messing With This Character
by Sandy
at Writing in Faith

Passion
by Tammie Lee
at Spirithelpers







Guitars Bigger Than the Players
by TechnoBabe
at TechnoBabe's Adventures

Snow Sculptures
by The Retired One
at The Retirement Chronicles






In Silence
by Cricket
at Cricket and Porcupine
Recommended by: DS

Who Knew?
by Deb
at Talk at the Table
Recommended by: DS

The Day Mother Nature Made Me Smile
by Beth
at Be Yourself
Recommended by: Teri


Please drop by their blogs for a visit and leave a kind comment if you have the time. Also, please feel free to add your own choices (for any blog except this one) for a specific blog post in the comments section below, where others can see them.

Thank you.