Whilst many of the snow birds flew south I continue my northern diversions this holiday week, starting by visiting two fabulous artists and their events. I am delighted to have first caught Michael Mahnke’s “Memory in Materials” show with the vertical diptych “Noble” and then Valerie Hammond’s pieces in The Current’s fabulous “In the Garden” collective show. Inspiration is a much sought after sensation these days, especially in its absence, but drinking in these images did the trick. Light and color and movement usually does; these two paintings are elixirs, starting my week on a high.

Of course seeing old friends who knew you when the color in your hair was original and the lines on your face hadn’t become a multitude of tales, that is another sort of elixir, and one that I will always long to drink. We may have been filled with more spontaneity and yearning in our twenties but we do still laugh with the same ease and can tease out instant hope as we step forward into the next unknown decades.

Of course meeting a new friend was yet another highlight of the week. This little angel fell into the very best of arms with her sweet momma and papa who have created quite a cozy nest for her to bloom. She’s an absolute winner and her momma is badass.

I am finding time to read for pleasure, an absolute rarity for this particular teacher, who finds herself reading student writing most every second of most every day. Both these books were gifts, and highly recommended, so diving in is a delicious treat this week.

Getting outside with the sun at its zenith another pleasure. Trudging up this particularly snowy road yet another cause for celebration. Robin’s egg sky and nearly 50 degrees just keeps me smiling all the while up and back down the incline. A mountain pass is no joke but every step feels like a gift straight towards the heart, expanding and pounding.

A dirty chai in a coffee shop is gold. Time to sit and enjoy the local paper just added jewels. That’s it, isn’t it? Time is the gift we all need during a vacation week.

Time for all of it. Even admiring the grocery store tulips which are filling even the most dreary of days with dazzle. Never one to waste a good week off, I am soaking the pink in!