Friday, February 20, 2015

The White Out

Today started out no different than any other crisp sunny windy winter morning .We had planned to meet downstairs in the front of the restaurant and head right away off to New Minus where friends were waiting for us to have a lovely tea.
My reasoning for going was of a more personal and professional level.I always wanted to see Crosby House as I had heard really successful reports of its treatment stats over the years.I have been engaged in Addictions Counselling for about 20 years and now working with Reiki healing practises and acupuncture I wanted to investigate there attitude towards naturopathic medicines.
I found it strange my friend was running late, not her usual habit .I stood in the sunniest place on the veranda in the sun as the temperature was about minus 9 or so. As I stood I felt an very delicate energy forming in my chest .I'm an energy worker and so I was not alarmed exactly the opposite, I raised my head skyward and thanked Great Spirit and all beings of light for this blessing.
We chatted and drove along for about half an hour, stopped in for a coffee and started for Windsor.
The roads had been icy in spots with some blowing but overall it was a very pleasant drive.The white fields of snow were glorious against the ice blue sky and soft white clouds.In places the horizon seemed infinite and as if it went on forever as one huge scene of white and blue.Snow, sky and clouds.
Out of nowhere came blowing snow high banks of snow narrow road isles of passage, then blowing white blanket of snow and fog.My instinct said pull over.Yet I did not speak.
Within moments I saw a trunk of a car no lights on, I heard the smashing immediate carnage of crashing twisted steel! We were lunged forward from a force behind us into oblivion.
Parallelising,incapacitating vacuum of trauma, over takes all my senses. I reach out for the steel in front of my face and lunge myself off to the left of me.  Pain sears my right shoulder,I'm woozie and almost throw up!
I hear my friend holler "get out Kate there may be fire! " I swallow my fear and open my door.I cannot stand on frozen L'eggs.Someone helps me out.Someone puts an arm around me and walk me slowly to an open van door of the man who did not get hit. I see oil smoke and a haze of faces for the first 10 minutes.We huddle.We puzzle.We muddle.
The young man who hit us remained with his car.
The 18 wheeler who pulled off the highway in front of us moved off down the road.
We waited for the ambulance.

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Empty pockets

One fine hot summer day our family decided to go on a picnic and stop into the zoo, abut 60 miles from home on the other side of Moncton.
We invited our grandfather Charlie,and his friend Wilfred.
Grandpa Charlie had a family reputation of being overly generous, and Wilfred was known to be on the  stingy side.
I slide my nine year old hand into Grumpy Charlie"s and off we went!
The sun shone bright in our faces as we sauntered up the gravel stony path to the small animals cages.Our first stop.
"Oh look a raccoon" I gasped.Wilfred turned to face us leaving his back exposed to the cage.A raccoon came up behind him and stuck his little paw into his left pants suit jacket pocket,unbeknowns't to him.
Gramps Charlie could not resist the comment "Ya won't find anything oink there little one".
We all smiled and moved on.Wilfred no less the wiser of his visitor.
Later on at home my dad and Charlie sat for hours making merry with the experiment of the raccoon paw in the wrong pocket!
It became a family humorous telling at many dinner table gatherings for years to come.
It is one of my fondest memories.