I did actually pinch myself yesterday as I couldn't really believe where I was and what I was doing! Being away from home always means you reflect more - but I live in astonishment at where I am and what I'm doing - but to be in Columbia, speaking in Spanish - to 400 people in a huge auditorium at a conference which was arranged just for me - was amazing. But the wierd and wonderful thing is - that I am just so at home here!
Tonight I'm at Ana's and Pablo's - we're all pretty tired after the last couple of very hectic days - Ana has gone to bed with the beatifically content baby Fidel and the mariposa hermosa (beautiful butterfly) Simona. Pablo has to finish off a video for Monday - so I am just relaxing and reflecting on the last couple of wonderful days. I am also very excited about the next week of my holiday - which starts tomorrow..... how did all this happen??? No idea - but it's wonderful and I'm revelling in every treasured second of it - with a heart just full of gratitude and love.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Wow moments!!!!!
I'm on my own in Raul's flat in Sao Paulo - he had to go to Brazilia - and I leave for Medellin tomorrow morning - so I'm sat in the front room watching as a storm cloud full of rain rolls in - the flat is on the top of a hill and on the ninth floor - so you see over a part of the city - it is a very big city - so only a part! And I have just watched the rain coming - rolling over the high rise blocks of flats like a grey blanket of mistiness with lots of wild wind banging noises - and now it is really starting to rain - like a huge breath being exhaled - a magical soft noise - the soft sound of the grey blanket! As the windows are always open the freshness of the rain is all around me. So a beautiful Wow moment - life is sooooo amazing!!!!!!
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Loving Brasil......
Have been here for a few fantastic, wonderful, jam packed days of Carnaval, parties, meeting and connecting with amazing people and children.... and lots and lots of dancing! This is a holiday and a half!!!!
Yesterday we went to a Samba bar and we drank beer and ate traditonal food and danced to hours of wonderful music - I was in my element.... I am not able to really talk with many people except when Raul translates - as I find Portugese very different to Spanish - but it didn't matter - I have loved listening and focusing on the conversations as you can see much without understanding all the words - that has come out of the last few days very strongly to me. When we understand the language I think we can make assumptions about what people are saying and don't really 'see' them when we are talking...... and of course the language of dance is universal! I think it's my first language - next time I fill a form in which asks Which languages do you have? I think I'll say Dance, English and some Spanish.
The day before was truly extra-ordinary - I was very honoured to be welcomed into a community - meeting open hearted people who work with passion, commitment and politics and of course children...... it was so inspiring... I am crying as I write this - I loved the honesty I met - truth seekers... the difference between 'Working with passion and soul' and 'Doing a job' is huge. It is something that the distance of being here is really showing me...... why do we do anything in this life unless it is with passion and soul?
Bufff - big thoughts here - but beautiful ones! So my journey in South America continues and I will do my very best cherish every precious second and to live every moment with total passion and soul - as it is the only way to live!
And oh yes - I was in the Carnaval!!!! X9 Samba School in a truly mind blowing costume, dancing in a block of about 50 people dressed like me - there was about 50 Blocks and floats in the X9 school parade - truly wonderful experience - my friend Raul has welcomed me into his life and world, for which I am truly grateful - how blessed am I!!!
Yesterday we went to a Samba bar and we drank beer and ate traditonal food and danced to hours of wonderful music - I was in my element.... I am not able to really talk with many people except when Raul translates - as I find Portugese very different to Spanish - but it didn't matter - I have loved listening and focusing on the conversations as you can see much without understanding all the words - that has come out of the last few days very strongly to me. When we understand the language I think we can make assumptions about what people are saying and don't really 'see' them when we are talking...... and of course the language of dance is universal! I think it's my first language - next time I fill a form in which asks Which languages do you have? I think I'll say Dance, English and some Spanish.
The day before was truly extra-ordinary - I was very honoured to be welcomed into a community - meeting open hearted people who work with passion, commitment and politics and of course children...... it was so inspiring... I am crying as I write this - I loved the honesty I met - truth seekers... the difference between 'Working with passion and soul' and 'Doing a job' is huge. It is something that the distance of being here is really showing me...... why do we do anything in this life unless it is with passion and soul?
Bufff - big thoughts here - but beautiful ones! So my journey in South America continues and I will do my very best cherish every precious second and to live every moment with total passion and soul - as it is the only way to live!
And oh yes - I was in the Carnaval!!!! X9 Samba School in a truly mind blowing costume, dancing in a block of about 50 people dressed like me - there was about 50 Blocks and floats in the X9 school parade - truly wonderful experience - my friend Raul has welcomed me into his life and world, for which I am truly grateful - how blessed am I!!!
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Getting ready to go to Brazil....
Joyously excited about going to Brazil and Colombia - on holiday - though with some work in there - but with my life and job it isn't possible to separate the two! Have spend all weekend cleaning my flat and doing a Prezi presentation in Spanish - and having Gilly and Jim for tea tonight and sorting out my summer clothes - and getting excited!!!!
Spoke just now to someone about the feeling of change and movement in my life - which I also think is happening in all our lives - I also talked about having a very strong feeling of moving on - and of certainty. It's a bit weird really as I have this huge feeling of certainty - a profound sense of knowing that I am doing what I should be doing - using the happiness litmus test as I go along - but also a beautifully strong feeling of not actually having a clue of what I'm doing or where I am going - delicious!!!
I think I am increasingly childlike in this - several people have called me childlike recently - childlike - not childish. I read the other day: 'In general, Children see the World through Eyes of Courage, Adventure, Fun, Wonder, Fascination, Love, Compassion and Fantasy.' If that what being childlike means then I am all for it!!
So on Wednesday I'm off on an adventure - how very exciting is that!!!!!
Spoke just now to someone about the feeling of change and movement in my life - which I also think is happening in all our lives - I also talked about having a very strong feeling of moving on - and of certainty. It's a bit weird really as I have this huge feeling of certainty - a profound sense of knowing that I am doing what I should be doing - using the happiness litmus test as I go along - but also a beautifully strong feeling of not actually having a clue of what I'm doing or where I am going - delicious!!!
I think I am increasingly childlike in this - several people have called me childlike recently - childlike - not childish. I read the other day: 'In general, Children see the World through Eyes of Courage, Adventure, Fun, Wonder, Fascination, Love, Compassion and Fantasy.' If that what being childlike means then I am all for it!!
So on Wednesday I'm off on an adventure - how very exciting is that!!!!!
Sunday, February 05, 2012
happiness is....
... spoke to my Mum tonight - didn't get over because of weather - but phoned her - and she was happy (good day) Read my blogg of yesterday to her over the phone - and we both cried - lovely healing tears of love - proud of both us!
... and we both had a bouquet of Evie & Michael flowers smiling in front of us xxxx
... and we both had a bouquet of Evie & Michael flowers smiling in front of us xxxx
Happy to blogg.................
.... in fact I have been looking forward to it all day - in that nice warm - close to the heart feeling - this evening I will sit in my cosy little flat and blogg!!!
Have had a truly beautiful day - apart from driving my Mum back on icy, slippery roads - horrible - I do NOT like driving on icy roads!
But a lovely Saturday - 'a memorable day' - according to my Mother which is special.... She is finding it so hard at the moment - selling her house - her home of 55 years - and passing on all her furniture and most everything else - as she now lives in a single room - moving on ..... so very, very hard.........
It was decided a few weeks ago that I would have Evie and Michael round for lunch on this Saturday - and this grew to include my Mum, Jimmy and Florian also came - (with Rob on Gplus and Alex on phone!)... wonderful technology!
So today I made a lovely lunch for 6 of us in Liverpool - steak and kidney pie, mushy peas followed by rhubarb and ginger crunchy crumble and custard - very British! And as my Mum said very memorable.....
Writing my blogg is all about me thinking and reflecting - and I have been thinking tonight - and looking back over my blogg to 5 years ago when I was a widow of 4 months - where my Mum is now ... and looking back IT WAS SO HARD!
My Mum is amazing - we were telling her after lunch - how inspirational she is - and she is - truly inspirational....
A year ago she was living her life - getting older with my Dad but living at home, and getting on with her life - I think I could see how fragile it was - but I don't think she did..... then 8 months ago a tsunami hit her ... starting with my Dad going to hospital after Jim's 21st.... her own major surgery.... my Dad running out of energy.... her breaking her hip.... my Dad's death, funeral and then her move home to Abbeyfield..... a tsunami indeed my lovely Mum - and as we told her today – she has come through all this change extraordinarily.........
She is now living semi-independently (in a home she set up and nurtured for over 40 year ) living an active life - in London last week for Bryony's graduation, holiday booked for July - cruise to Norway (with Fiona, Evie and Jenny) - just living her life - 91 and amazing - yes my Mum is truly inspirational!
Tonight I looked back on my blogg to where I was 4 months after Chris's death - I remember with heartache that January - Good Days and Bad Days - I was just living day by day... and it was really, really hard - but I also see that I was moving on.....
'Final thought re the Good/Bad Day thing - I do feel very loved - and how lucky is that - I was loved by Chris for 35 years and I continue to feel very loved now - after he has gone - so again how lucky is that - to feel loved is to feel special and that means you can cope with the Bad Days. ' Posted by Tricia Alegra Jenkins at Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Reading that makes me so proud of myself !!! I was in a hard place but I was holding on to the positive and moving on - on my own, but with love - moving on - painfully but also joyously ..... bufff ... my Mum and I have a lot in common xxxxxxxxxxxx
Have had a truly beautiful day - apart from driving my Mum back on icy, slippery roads - horrible - I do NOT like driving on icy roads!
But a lovely Saturday - 'a memorable day' - according to my Mother which is special.... She is finding it so hard at the moment - selling her house - her home of 55 years - and passing on all her furniture and most everything else - as she now lives in a single room - moving on ..... so very, very hard.........
It was decided a few weeks ago that I would have Evie and Michael round for lunch on this Saturday - and this grew to include my Mum, Jimmy and Florian also came - (with Rob on Gplus and Alex on phone!)... wonderful technology!
So today I made a lovely lunch for 6 of us in Liverpool - steak and kidney pie, mushy peas followed by rhubarb and ginger crunchy crumble and custard - very British! And as my Mum said very memorable.....
Writing my blogg is all about me thinking and reflecting - and I have been thinking tonight - and looking back over my blogg to 5 years ago when I was a widow of 4 months - where my Mum is now ... and looking back IT WAS SO HARD!
My Mum is amazing - we were telling her after lunch - how inspirational she is - and she is - truly inspirational....
A year ago she was living her life - getting older with my Dad but living at home, and getting on with her life - I think I could see how fragile it was - but I don't think she did..... then 8 months ago a tsunami hit her ... starting with my Dad going to hospital after Jim's 21st.... her own major surgery.... my Dad running out of energy.... her breaking her hip.... my Dad's death, funeral and then her move home to Abbeyfield..... a tsunami indeed my lovely Mum - and as we told her today – she has come through all this change extraordinarily.........
She is now living semi-independently (in a home she set up and nurtured for over 40 year ) living an active life - in London last week for Bryony's graduation, holiday booked for July - cruise to Norway (with Fiona, Evie and Jenny) - just living her life - 91 and amazing - yes my Mum is truly inspirational!
Tonight I looked back on my blogg to where I was 4 months after Chris's death - I remember with heartache that January - Good Days and Bad Days - I was just living day by day... and it was really, really hard - but I also see that I was moving on.....
'Final thought re the Good/Bad Day thing - I do feel very loved - and how lucky is that - I was loved by Chris for 35 years and I continue to feel very loved now - after he has gone - so again how lucky is that - to feel loved is to feel special and that means you can cope with the Bad Days. ' Posted by Tricia Alegra Jenkins at Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Reading that makes me so proud of myself !!! I was in a hard place but I was holding on to the positive and moving on - on my own, but with love - moving on - painfully but also joyously ..... bufff ... my Mum and I have a lot in common xxxxxxxxxxxx
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