Victor E. Frankl

Between stimulus and response 

there is a space. 

In that space is our power to choose our response. 

In our response lies our

growth and our freedom. 

This is the verse I will try to keep in my mind in 2020. If by doing so I improve my use of the space after the stimulus, I hope to limit the number of knee jerk verbal responses that I make. As I write this I'm laughing because my knees are  the source of some physical pain at the moment, so this resolution might help them too. Also the silence that will inevitably fill the void might give me a certain gravitas that I have never had. This makes me think of Don MacMillan's expression, which I never gave him the space to direct at me,

"Ya look sa grave,

  Na doot yer wise."

So far this has been a weird winter in Vernon. I spent Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 shovelling slush, doing physio and reading Joan Didion's, The Last Thing He Wanted and MIRIAM Toews', All My Puny Sorrows. I did go to Jane's New Year's Eve party and dinner on New Year's Day with Miriam and Bill, so l'm not complaining. But I was getting discouraged about the weather. Today, however, I went up to Sovereign with Jane and had a wonderful ski. Jane takes lessons and skis with the Masters, so I went by myself for a good run and then had the fun of seeing many people from the VOC who are also in the Masters programme and wishing each other a Happy New Year. As always, it was worth while going up for a ski. Last night I was wakened by wind blowing icy rain against my window and this morning I walked gingerly on ice to the car, but at Sovereign the snow was puffy and perfect. 

Jay's version of, ' Out with the old.'

Jay and his crew at their New Year's dinner

Snow at Sovereign