New baby

I enjoyed our trip to Vancouver in November despite not being able to meet Liam because he just didn't want to come on out. It was great to spend the week leading up to his birth with his parents. Watching my daughter spontaneously and often climb into my sister's lap to cuddle her unborn cousin was delightful. Nonetheless, there was a pang of regret when we had to drive away still having not met the little man. This week my sister Leah brought him for a visit. Upon meeting my sweet nephew, all residual regret or disappointment has melted away. He is sweet and beautiful and his big grin is totally worth the wait. Thank goodness that new baby smell isn't as fleeting as new car smell.

*AND my other, biggest sister knitted me up the fingerless gloves that I have been wearing all week indoors and out as seen in the top picture. Thank you!

Creative community

It is exciting to see people pull together in the face of the Haiti crisis. Don't get me wrong, I am glad we aren't sitting back globally and leaving Haiti to itself, but why is it exciting? Maybe amidst all our back-patting, we should also consider the state Haiti was in before a natural disaster made us all sit up and take notice. It was in the kind of poverty that many cultures around the world still exist in. It shouldn't be exciting to see people pull together, it should be the norm. I know, I know, I am an idealist. Cynicism hasn't quite taken root like some people think it should in me. But wouldn't it be neat if all this helpfulness was commonplace?

What if we were actually neighborly to our neighbors? What if we actually spread around all the excess so everyone had some? What if we all swallowed our pride enough to let someone else help us? As I get ready to start planning this years Love Cranbrook Day, I have been reading about other people's approach to changing the perception of community. This is one of my favorites.

What would happen if we all made a few adjustments to the way we do buissness, do our shopping, do our yardwork. Could we start a revolution of creative community? Could we morph a culture of extravagance into a culture of extravagant love?