Image by Besno Pile from Pixabay Throughout T’s adult life, he had almost always worked in careers where he was required to be outside in the elements for prolonged periods of time.  As a young man he didn’t like the heat; he preferred the cold. He found himself telling people that they could always put on more clothes to stay warm but could only take off so many to stay cool. Now, looking back on this and so many other things he thought and did when he was younger, he says he was an idiot. Some frozen toes and fingers (including two toes that stay dark purple all winter), and many cases of mild hypothermia, have drastically changed his view on being cold. (J, however, has never liked the cold, and has always stayed true to her love for the scorching sun!)

In response to T’s first post, I realize that I want to tell you more about myself. I’m not going to talk about my childhood, my career, or all my major life events. Instead, I will share one small event that helped me to see who I am, more clearly. Last summer, I found myself retired, an empty nester, and struggling to discover who I really was. After spending decades allowing myself to hide behind the title of Wife to T, and Mom to the Girl and the Boy, I was driven to find my own self. So, I booked an Airbnb in the Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia, learned how to load my kayak on my Jeep without any help, put my bike on the back, and headed out on a 10-day solo trip.

I have very recently retired and find myself wanting to continue learning and growing, so I have decided to participate in J’s blog.  For as long as I can remember, I have always enjoyed books; whether it was having them read to me as a child or reading them myself as I grew older.  I remember many a summer day spent with a Jim Kjelgaard book open in front of me and finding myself lost in yet another adventure. I truly believe that this love of books, specifically adventure novels, played a role in shaping my desire to always have a component of adventure in my life.

A few weeks ago, I bought a small bunch of purple tulips from the grocery store. I do not buy myself flowers often, and I am very frugal when it comes to non-essential purchases, however this little bouquet was only five dollars. I set this tiny bit of Spring on my kitchen table. Today as I was cleaning the kitchen, I grabbed the withered flowers and set to toss them in the organics bin, but I was struck by how beautiful they were even in their broken-down condition.