community spirit – As Far As The Eye Can See

Do You See What I See?

I must really love my husband. I am at David’s house with Russ and Morgan, we came to join David watching the NFR Rodeo finals on TV. I really hate watching rodeo, the potential for disasters seems to be happening all the time. At least that is how it seems to my tender self. I am here because Russ invited me and I figured I could bring my laptop, be near my fellas and David, and ignore the stressful stuff on the big screen. The situation strikes me kind’ve funny actually. I brought some ministry books and I have been reading and getting my head around a couple special services coming up, including our Blue Christmas service. I’m not working as a minister officially but I do fill in for special services when the ranch schedule allows. So here I am pondering caring liturgies while off to my side the Powell’s projector makes it seem there is a life size rodeo going on. The National Finals Rodeo is in downtown Carnduff!

Now its time to blog a little bit.

The week has gone by very fast. Russ and I ended up deciding to go to Minot for a 48 hour trip. It was such a treat. One of our favorite stops in Minot is Ebenezers Irish Pub & Restaurant. We had some of our favorite food and drinks and felt really lucky to be there and to feel relaxed. We had earned it we thought, after doing so much close up work with our entire herd in the weeks prior.

I discovered “Chelada” on our last visit, its has the same flavor hit as a Caesar but is lower alcohol and way more volume, the experience lasts through the whole meal. This experience of drink and food made me so darn happy.

Russ loves ordering their 32 oz beer. It lasts through our whole visit at Eb’s and feels so plentiful.

It is now a couple days later, not “at the rodeo” anymore……It was easy to decide to go to Minot, the money we spent on our hotel was more than made up for by the exemptions at the border that a 48 hour journey gives us. However, for days and days we have been flying in and out of our house and doing the BARE minimum. The word “tsunami” has been applied to our place this week. I really could have used and should have used the days away working in our house. I shouldn’t even be writing right now. I should be house and Christmas prepping. But sometimes you just have to give yourself some room for expression and making memories.

Are you noticing that Russ and I are wearing matching shirts in our Eb’s pictures? Russ loves that. I am well aware how weird it is but it honestly makes Russell so happy. Teams wear uniforms and I guess you could say, that is our deal. We had matching tops for each of our days away.

Russ found an old friend at Marketplace Foods where we also scored some Bugles!

I am amused by how things get crazy kind’ve quickly sometimes. Here is what happened Friday night during supper. This video is Morgan and Coffee Dog’s version of “Jaws,” click on the arrow in the centre to start the video if you have a minute and 30 seconds. Volume is neccesary for full effect for sure.

If you follow the blog you will know how much I go on about “being seen” at times, you will know the blog address (iseeyouyouseeme.ca) has meaning to me. This week a few things have come my way that say “I see you”, each in their own way. There is humor and wisdom in them.

This screenshot captures a picture and quick message I received. I love it. It tells me that someone is thinking about me. It tells me that this person is not afraid to tease me. I love being teased. I see it as a sign of acceptance and that life is not deadly serious, we can play. This really did have me grinning ear to ear, I might have looked silly, I was alone at the time. Feeling seen does this to a person!

One of my people sent me home with this. In the days prior she had heard me say that I love peanut butter marshmallow cake but I haven’t had it in ages because it was one of my mother in laws specialties and she is not here to make it anymore. This is the kind of gift that feels just perfect, it definitely gave me the message, “I see you”, but furthermore, “I want to give you a bit of comfort.” Very very lovely.

This jar of Haskap Jam was waiting for me in town this morning. I don’t even remember the conversation some time ago that led to me getting this. But someone else did. We must have been discussing my love of peanut butter and jam on toast. It worked out perfectly that I could come straight home and make myself this decadent feeling brunch. I think another piece of helping someone to feel seen is when you remember what they tell you, especially when its about what they love. Oh why do I love peanut butter layered with other numminess so very much? The Haskap jam was a first for me and I really really enjoyed it.

In one of my recent blogs I featured a picture of one of the personalized ornaments I made last year. It was for Gina and it celebrated her accomplishments in stage combat. One of the readers mentioned they would like to see more of our ornaments. In the last week I got the package at the post office that held our ornaments for this year. I feel a little guilty but I think mine is the cutest. So thinking about that reader’s request…..Marj this picture is for you! We order from personalizedornamentsforyou.com and find they do a great job of supplying ornaments that work for our annual highlights of each year. Noone else in the family has seen their ornament for this year so I can’t feature them. Unfortunately I broke Jill’s when I held it up to take a picture of it and it slipped out of my hand, it was a very fragile one. I couldn’t believe what I had done. So…my ornament for 2023.

I am curious what you see when you look around the places where you live. I have two things on my mind alot these days. I am worried about our postal workers. With online shopping the volumes of bulky parcels that they are dealing with every day seems overwhelming. Amid it all, our local staff are staying kind and patient and I admire them so much. I feel like I could easily become aggressive if I was to be in there and find anyone treating them with anything but respect. But who am I kidding, I would probably just come home and blog about it versus finding the strength to stand up for my postal heroes. I suspect all customer service jobs are trickier in this season, there are so many people burning the candle at both ends in our world, healthcare workers for sure, for always, and right now, these warrior women in the post office. I need to tuck them all into my prayers in a more vivid way.

We also have a terrific team working on something in our community called “Santa Cause.” Their mandate is to create a Christmas gift experience for children whose families are challenged to do so. In what feels like one of the most trickiest seasons, emotionally, time-wise and more, they are finding the time to think through and make happen the collection, preparation and distribution of these gifts. I can’t deal with what is in front of me let alone take on other families. To me these women and the community generosity behind them is one of the most important “I see you” messages out there. It says to burdened adults and hopeful children, you are seen and you matter. The leaders and the generous community members giving to the cause are living one of the essential truths of the Christmas message. That God became one of us, and the whole way it unfolded affirmed that we are all of great value, our needs matter and we each have a place in the story. That last sentence basically sums up why I am a minister. Before this turns into a sermon, which it could….I will sign off. By the time I write again Christmas will have passed. I wish all you beautiful supporters a Christmas experience that really touches your soul and fills your cup and gives you something to grin from ear to ear about. God bless you.

Okay, not done. I read it to Russ and he said this very cute picture of Buster really needs to be included. They “held hands” for a long time.

Russ also objected to the fact that the cows we love are barely even mentioned. So, one little ditty, late on Sunday afternoon we ran 9 calves through the chute. We had been at a concert where absolutely beautiful sounds were made, and we got to see our friend Lori doing what she loves to do. Lori and her family had us in a tender heart space.

This is Lori at the piano, she also sang powerfully for us.

We came home to those calves. They had been in the barn recuperating from sickness when the rest of the herd was treated last week. It was hilarious how daunting it was to face going out to do 9 animals. We were slow, we couldn’t care less about taking a picture, we were on the verge of cranky and we made mistakes. I think we definitely need a rest! However we can now say that all the Bar MW cows have had Ivomec!

One last thing….really…..A picture of cows to make Russ happy and because I love it. Do you see what I see? Tenley and Jordanna are on either side of the picture and they are having a conversation across a herd of cows. Liz Griffin’s picture captured something so beautiful and also typical of these two. A good friend can see you and hear you, even across distances.

Now….Merry Christmas and God Bless!

The Shoe Story

Last Friday I was getting supper ready, puttering in my kitchen when my niece Brodie posed a question. She had arrived a couples hour earlier, with her Dad, cousin and friend, they were at the ranch to chase some cows. After sitting visiting with me while I prepped things something made her think about an odd sight she had seen and she said, “hey Auntie K, why is there a shoe on top of your Bronco?” “Hmmm?” I pondered for a split second before I realized what I had done and a light version of sadness hit me. One shoe on top of the car eh? Oh no. Russell came into the kitchen, I told him what we had just figured out. He got a little quiet. About one minute later he said, “okay Kath, I put it on facebook and I tagged a bunch of people I think might see it in their travels.” I was a little bit, tiny bit, ticked off. Thats my shoe and I should be the boss of asking for help for it, I thought. I might want to think through what a help me post would be worded like. Realistically though I was in the middle of making supper and had other fussing about to do, so, it was a darn good thing that Russell took matters into his own hands and made that post. Here is the post.

This post was meant to raise awareness of this lost item but it seems to have connected with people’s sense of humor. Something about it brought out the best in people and we had so much fun reading the comments that came in when we got a chance.

It was bedtime before I opened my phone and found a text with a pretty exact location of where the shoe could be found. Then when we looked at Facebook Bonnie’s tip confirmed that. It was dark but I wondered if I should go searching, Russ told me to go to bed, the alarm was going off at 4:15am.

Knowing that there were some folks looking for the next episode I started a video as I pulled out of the yard the next morning. I thought it would be pretty nice to have video coverage of the discovery. An initial 14 seconds with the sun rising seemed to be good cinemaphotography.

Only minutes later as I was driving down the low level road Russell called me, “Barrett has your shoe!” At that exact minute a truck was approaching and slowing down and my shoe was being extended from the window. It was not Barrett, it was his Uncle Curt and he was making a delivery, at 7:05 in the morning. I was very happy and asked Curt to pose for this picture.

So what happened?

I woke up Friday morning at Last Mountain Lake. I had been on a writing retreat there, joined for a couple days by my cousin and one day by Jill. I was cutting the timing of my life very tight. I had only spent one full day in my house in the last three weeks between some travels and events near home I had to be at. I had company coming and with the cow chase the next day I had many mouths to feed. I had a lot on my mind. After leaving the lake at 8:30am I made a trip to the Wholesale Club in Regina and then Costco. I really value shopping local but when purchasing large volumes of food I find it so helpful to have access to these stores. Anyways, my Bronco is the small version and with $1400 worth of groceries on board it was loaded to the hilt. I tried to place things strategically for keeping food cold and also so that a collision would not cause a jar of pickles to jet forward and take my head off. I think about these things. This meant that my favorite shoes were tucked in a good spot, but, were in the way when shortly after 3pm I pulled into the driveway and began to unload. I took the shoes and placed them on top of the car and I went in the house with my first load. At that exact time my company arrived. “Can we help you Auntie K?” Sure! Logan, Brodie, Gary and Claire made the many trips that brought everything in and I kept busting my butt putting things away, never thinking about those shoes again. By 4:30 everything was stowed but I still needed a few things at the Carnduff Co-op and a stop at the drugstore so I headed into town. At one point I thought, “did the kids leave something in the back, that is a weird noise.” It never dawned on me that a pair of shoes was bouncing around on the roof and one was bouncing off. Nothing whatsoever dawned on me until I thought about Brodie’s observation and her question for me.

Russ called these my favorite shoes and that is not an exaggeration. They are comfortable and have their own vibe. In addition they have a little history. In 2020 when travel was limited Russ and I drove to Gimli for a few days to recharge. I usually dress a little boring but one particular day I felt inspired to go with a vibe that felt a little like Pippi Longstocking. I rolled up my pants, wore fun socks and these shoes. My purse kind’ve matched my socks. That day Russ named my shoes. They were from that day forward, my “so cute shoes.” That is how we refer to them. What is crazy is that my feet are huge, the style of shoe is masculine and in no way are these shoes in the “cute” category. But they are to us. Losing one of my “so cute shoes” off the roof of the car, somewhere over a 12 km stretch of road just felt like a write off. I would never see it again. But with the help of the community, a few with very observant eyes, the rest to be our cheerleaders, the lost shoe found its way back home. Thanks to all, but especially to those Paton men!

The “so cute shoes” the day they were named.

Carnduff for the Win

Sitting among the spectators in the Carnduff school gym on Tuesday night it was incredibly obvious that something very special was happening. Three strands of story were coming together to create a sturdy net, catching our community in its fold. It was the “Feel the Heat” challenge, the Carnduff Fire Department playing against the CEC Sr. Boys basketball team, as the evening unfolded it became clear that we all won just by having the chance to be there.

The home team has a short history. For the first time in 20 years the Carnduff school has put together a seniors boys basketball team. With little experience, aside from a few members who have played with other teams, they came in as the underdogs in every league game. With unswerving enthusiasm, growing skill and good sportsmanship they tackled each game, however there was not a game victory to be had. This was the backstory for the home team part of the net being woven this night.

The guests on the court were men aged 19 to fifty something and one female firefighter. They are the men and woman we call in some of our most vulnerable moments, and they rise to the task with resolve and skill every time. They are a group who bring out deep feelings of gratitude and admiration from the community. On this night they rose to the challenge put before them and showed up to the game with smiles, easy going spirits, hard running efforts and a few unforgettable fashion statements.

The third strand of the story was this moment in time we are living. A community that has not had many opportunities to gather for fun in a long time was more than ready for what this night held. A hearty mix of things that are good for the soul was being caught up in that net. There was much laughter, delight, awe, and cheering that crossed team lines, all through the game. It felt good……very good, with the only obvious downside being the possibility of some sore muscles come morning. The audience that filled nearly every spare and safe spot in the gym had a great time.

So what happened? The boys basketball team ended their season with the taste of victory. They beat the firefighters, in a match that was never considered close in terms of score, but in terms of effort, the firemen really outdid themselves.

There were so many things that people might be talking about or posting to social media as they do the replay of what we saw and heard at this inaugural “feel the heat” challenge.

There will be much amusement in recollecting the uniform of fire chief Clint Paton. Decked out in a neon orange headband, black tights of some kind with knee length shorts overtop, neon orange socks and last but not least croc sandals, (in sports mode), he made a statement as soon as he entered the gym. We all cheered when Clint sunk a basket.

Those who love to see good basketball form will be delighting over the magic as Raf dribbled the ball, as if he was an elusive fly, always close but not stoppable, encountering every member of the firemans team within seconds it seemed, and moving right past them to get that ball one way or another into the key for CEC or the hands of a teammate .

There is so much action and some definite smiles going on here as Raf deals with this ball.

In the crowd it was a remarkable night for a few reasons. Its not very often that spectators in the stands at CEC are heard yelling out, “you got this Dad!” That was the nature of much of the cheering and the signs seen. Before the game one of the CEC basketball team was told by his father “pay attention, cause when the ol’ guys get tired they are going to start playing dirty and rough.” It wasn’t far from the truth. It was a more aggressive game than usual and rules became quite flexible as time went on. In the last minute of the game the firemen had eight players on the court to CEC’s traditional 5. No one was offended. It was funny and seemed symbolic of their all in spirit for this game. The crowd was privy to a very relaxed approach to the art of basketball.

Seven firefighters are seen playing in this shot!

Here a few other great moments caught on film…..

Jenn Meredith jumps high and gives the firefighters an awesome chance to get the play here.

There are alot of feet off the ground in this moment.

I think Barrett Paton should get an award for this moment.

Thinking back over what we experienced in the CEC gym on Tuesday night, it just doesn’t seem possible to say that anyone walked away having lost anything, we were all winners.