Colour Me Happy

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be." - Anon

I got home from work a few days ago to find a delightful surprise in my mailbox.  My dear friend Frank sent me a colouring book and a beautiful set of coloured pencils.  It is a beautiful book filled with pages of beautiful drawings and inspirational quotations.  I love to colour.

The popularity of adult colouring books is soaring.  Chapters has a whole line of them on sale right now.  A number of my friends have been posting pictures of their books on Facebook lately.  I've posted some pictures of my creations too.  There is something very calming about colouring.  Not only does it bring me back to childhood days, but it gives me a chance to unleash my inner artist.  I cannot draw or paint for beans but I love playing with colour.  There are no rules and no way to make a mistake.  

One of my favorite pieces was a drawing of some paint brushes drawn underneath the caption, "Some pursue happiness, others create it."  There are six brushes.  In honour of pride week, I coloured the tip of each brush in a colour of the rainbow and then coloured each word of the caption in a different colour.  This piece was my first attempt at shading and mixing colours.  It was a perfect opportunity to colour outside the lines and I loved it.

My 60th birthday might be right around the corner, but my inner child is having a blast.  Thank you Frank.  You know me so well.

The Count Down Begins

"Everyone is the age of their heart." ~Guatemalan Proverb

One month from today, I will be sixty.  Aging is a good thing when you consider the alternative.  Still, it is a bit shocking to be here already.  I visited my back specialist today.  There was good news and no news but at least there wasn't bad news.

The good news is that the multitude of tests I had, show no serious bone abnormalities.  No metastasized cancer.  No cracks or breaks.  There is some arthritis in my legs and especially in my feet.  Whatever.  I'll cope.  Though I had hoped to be further along in my healing process by now, the physiatrist tells me that my nerves will recover from last years problems at the rate of one millimeter per day.  She told me to do the math.  It has been ten months but I still have a long way to go.  At least I'm moving in the right direction.  

It is the time of year when I tend to become introspective.  I'm taking inventory of my life again and while it is a pretty good life, there is room for improvement and change.  It is time for me to pay more attention to my health.  To stop eating like there won't be sugar in the world next week.  To tackle my level of stress which has been growing exponentially with each day I watch my mother transition, and each new client with unreasonable demands.  I want to turn my attentions to other things - things that bring me joy, like making jewellery and penny tables and art projects.  It is time to give serious consideration to how I can monetize that work so I can do more of what I love and less of what eats at my soul.  I'm so tired of firing people for a living.  

The weather is growing warm and the days are longer.  I love this time of the year.  I intend to take a few days before July 2 to sit on the deck and contemplate.  I'm almost sixty.  I've earned a little rest.