Tag: love

Our total love and devotion

If you could make your pet understand one thing, what would it be?

As I’m sure, anyone at all that pays any attention to what is written in these posts, will know we lost our best friend Alf, our beloved pet dog on 16th August last year. There’s probably a lot of you out there who are probably saying,“ For gods sake man just get on with it”.

Easier said than done I’m afraid. If you read the facts and figures, animal grief is just so real, especially in an animal loving country such as ours.

I’ve never really experienced it in such a manner before, but this time we’ve really struggled. I think I summed it up at its peak here: Is there a cure for a broken heart 💔 . There are a number of other posts about him but this one sums up the raw feelings when we lost him.

We’ve never been able to have children in our life, it’s complicated. Especially when you spend your life with the most wonderful woman who would have made the most fantastic mother, it really is heartbreaking to see her interactions with children and the love she shows them. Then in the quiet moments I really see how it affects her. All I can do is comfort her.

Alf – our little fellah

This is where Alf strolls in. He was to us, what was always out of reach, a kind of surrogate if you like. It was fate how we found him and he had the starring role in our lives for eleven beautiful years.

To answer the question: If I could make my pet understand one thing? It would be:

You were our love, our confidante our life. Our most precious companion. And we miss you so much.

Yes it’s more than one thing I know. But when a kindly loving soul enters your life and has such an effect on it, you just can’t label them with one singular credit, one word, It just can’t be done.

Life is a strange voyage. Sometimes when you can’t have something, you are blessed with the most perfect alternative. I believe we were blessed. His time came and he had to move on. I just hope some where, another couple who have maybe suffered similar issues as we did, are now experiencing some wonderful “Alfie” time. That little fellah truly had wings.

Love you for always lad.

Peace.

It’s unconditional

Can you share a positive example of where you’ve felt loved?

It was the 14th February 2018. Happy Valentine’s Day. I was told I had a cancerous tumour.

I was numb. We went out the following day for a lovely walk and all we did was discuss the elephant in the room throughout that whole trip. Even looking at the photos of that day I can see the false smile on my face as well as the concern on my wife’s.

False smile, worry in her eyes, not a good day

I went into serious withdrawal from life, as I knew it. I suffered severe depression. I didn’t share my feelings with the one person who knew me best. I kept it all to myself and it was all too much, I broke down. It was my problem, I’ll deal with it. But I couldn’t. I needed help.

That one person, sat beside me, she cried with me and she comforted me. She cuddled me. She stayed with me and she didn’t let me go.

It was at that point I experienced absolute unconditional love. There was a warmth that went through me, it’s as if she had taken all my worries and concerns and put them away for me, I’ve always said she’s an angel and she has this amazing ability to take away my problems and make my whole life better.

And I didn’t even share my feelings with her. That’s so wrong. I felt so guilty.

Guess what, I share absolutely everything with her now, nothing is held back, the silly issues, the concerns and worries. And you know what, her arms encase me again, that love flows through me as it always does and has done. I feel nothing but love, and it is my life’s task to ensure she feels just the same.

We beat the big C, or should I say it’s at the back of our minds and doesn’t overwhelm us anymore. When we talk about it we use the name “Fred”. The “C” word is no longer used in our home. It’s banished. It’s a horrible word, and my lovely lady did this to make our life less stressful.

My Angel. My Wife. My life.

Peace.

Rinse and repeat..

What is your favorite animal?

Just like a record on repeat or just like a commercial radio station, or even like a moon orbiting a planet WP starts repeating its daily prompts, you could almost set a clock to it as it has such amazing regularity. This particular prompt was last listed on 23rd November 2024, not that long ago.

So unlike WP I will save the bother of re writing my answer, and just post links to the relevant blogs below. If you are busy and don’t have the time the simple answer is: Dogs are my domesticated favourite whilst Hedgehogs are my wild favourite. There, I’ve saved you some time and gotten myself some brownie points with you.

For anyone interested in hanging around here are some links to previous blog posts including that one for the same question in November last year.

The humble Hedgehog

My World

Is there a cure for a broken heart 💔

These are just three of many posts on the subject. The last one really sums up how I feel after the loss of a wonderful family member. The struggle goes on.

Peace

Mental photographs

Think back on your most memorable road trip.

My wife and I have always had a great understanding of what we class as memorable moments. We don’t even have to tell each other it’s memorable, we usually say to each other, “I’ve taken a picture”.

This isn’t a physical picture where you’ve lined up a camera for a snap, this is a mental picture, one of those special moments you store in your mind and in your life forever.

Akamas peninsula- Cyprus

One particular moment comes to mind one fine September day many years ago on the island of Cyprus. We were staying at a beachside hotel in the area of Chlorakas a few miles to the west of Paphos. We had gotten through a particularly bad period of our life and were away on holiday, just resting. This day we just grabbed a couple of chairs, a couple of drinks and then walked up on to a small hill to watch a glorious Cypriot sunset, and believe me there are not many better sights to view in your life. Here we sat alone, holding hands watching this glorious sight until the light faded and the dusk took hold. We continued just talking until it was time to make our way back for dinner. It is probably the most beautiful and peaceful moment I can ever remember, where for a fleeting moment we were the only two people on this wonderful planet enjoying a beautiful moment in time.

Mental pictures, that is what we collect, and we often both recollect these wonderful moments in our lives.

If you have wonderful memories, you need very little else in life, memories make you rich beyond your wildest dreams.

Have a wonderful day people.

Falling Up

I read this and thought it should be shared. Perspectives

You will never fall in love with me. Don’t try to convince me That I will always wait for you. If you really look, you’ll see I’m not here for the …

Falling Up

No Regrets

What could you do differently?

Even as i approach the more senior years of my time here, i ask this question on a regular basis, pretty much every time i do something. I think when you are younger you’re more gung ho and devil may care, where as in your later years (especially in my case) you start to question yourself a lot more.

When age is challenging you, you tend to look back and think “I wish I’d done this or that differently” but hind site is a wonderful thing for bringing on guilt.

I think the best way to deal with it is this, life is for learning, you have to do something wrong to learn how to do it right. Don’t beat yourself up over how you have run your life, if you’ve been good to those you love and to people in general you haven’t done much wrong.

Just enjoy life and carry on making mistakes, that way you are still learning. No regrets.

Stay safe and happy.

Past & Present

Do you spend more time thinking about the future or the past? Why?

Anyone who reads anything on this site will know I am a glass half full kind of guy, most of the time.

Do I think about the future? I plan like most people and that’s about it, I don’t really dwell on the future as i kind of have a tomorrow never comes attitude. I’ve developed a live for today way of life because too much sorrow and heartbreak has hit me in the past, and what you have today, may well be taken from you tomorrow, so take what you have now and cherish and appreciate whatever that may be, as the future is a thief that steals everything of importance from you.

Do I think about the past? Again, I try not to dwell on it but when you are a fan of most things “antique” it’s hard. Fantastic memories and people you have met along the way, why would you not reminisce on how they have shaped your life. If you have loved, it’s built on what has happened in the past and determines how you feel about that relationship in the present.

So in summary I am a thinker of the past and present. Life is a precious gift, what’s the point of worrying yourself about the future, we all know what the outcome is. Enjoy what you have had and what you have at this moment. That’s all that matters.

Peace to you all.

Time

What is the greatest gift someone could give you?

Now don’t get me all wrong, I’m not demanding that my life be extended, all I am saying is the best gift you could give me is your time.

A simple, “How are you?” A “Good morning” or even a smile, it sets a scene, we don’t have to rush, let’s talk a while but it rarely occurs. Probably the only person you speak to in the morning is the barista, when you give them your name to put on your coffee cup on the way to work.

Society has changed to the extent that we hold everyone in suspicion, we don’t trust anyone, not for any particular reason apart from society dictating that we should all be suspicious of one another. It’s just ingrained into society right now.

What Gift? Speak to anyone who knows me and you will see that I’m a person that likes gifts that have had thought go into them. I do not need items of materialistic value, you could just as well pass me an old battered book or a pair of socks, of no particular monetary value, if they mean something to me I will cherish them.

And that is where time is important. We all have an undefined amount available to us, it costs nothing to give it, and it has a value that is priceless.

Give your time, and you will be rewarded equally, it’s so simplistic that it’s crazy. If only society would sit up and pay attention.

Stay safe.

2024-2025

Probably one of hundreds of thousands of similar posts that will go out around midnight as the clock strikes 12, I’m loving this year seeing some blogs I follow calling up “Happy new year” many hours prior to us even getting there. It’s lovely to see and I return the compliment of Happy new year, I sincerely hope that the coming year is kind to you and that you achieve all that you set out to do. I really do.

When discussing the years, we normally say it’s a good or a bad one, I’ve had one of those years where I’ve suffered loss, it has really hurt and still does. But it wasn’t a bad year. The last four months have been awful I won’t deny that, but the eight prior ones were fantastic as we spent good, quality time with that family member, and fantastic life long memories were made forever. I am so thankful for being blessed with having that individual in my life. He was a gift to us, and the Lord called him home to be at his side. We were blessed, you can really have too much of a good thing.

Going forward into 2025 we have a lot of plans, and hopefully these will come to fruition along the way. We don’t plan too strictly as plans often fail but they can always be scheduled for a more appropriate time. Happiness and contentment are all we really want, we don’t want anything material, we have all we need. We are by no way rich, far from it, but we are extremely wealthy where it comes to love and appreciation for what we have, what we have had, and whatever is coming our way in the future.

We are all blessed, I’ve stated in an earlier post that the fact we are all on this small planet in a vast universe, is outstanding, the odds on you being here are 40 Trillion to one. You are a very special and important person. It’s an exclusive club for sure.

Don’t cringe at this next statement, its corny but let’s hope the year brings less war and hate and more peace and compassion. I doubt it will, but we can all dream.

I send greetings to you, your family and friends and sincerely wish you all the most happy and joyful of years.

Be the special person, help that one person in need. Change the world, if only for that one person.

Love and peace to you all.

Pinch Pottery Pt:2

Back in September 2024 I wrote this post about pinch Pottery: Pinch pottery

It’s been a few months and I’ve just decided to finish it off and give it some bright colouring and a sealant coat or two. I want it to represent a bright sun if I can, but when I get to actually paint it, it could well turn out looking totally different. Here we go.

This is one of those things I think my wife dislikes but she knows it means a lot to me, even though it is a poor quality and there are probably kids of 5 or 6 years of age that could produce something a lot better. But I made it, it was made at a time when I was grieving and gave me a lot of pleasure. It still does and this will probably remain in my workshop when I eventually get it up and running. It makes me smile when I look at it and i love it. It’s simple, it’s how life should be.

This is how it originally looked:

Alf
Reminder

I started painting the base Yellow, and the inside Orange, with the dog done in white with a black outline. This is what I have so far.

Just started to paint.

I’m using acrylic paints here. I’m going to put a line of vine type effects around where the yellow joins the orange. At the moment I’m letting the piece dry for the next 24hrs and then I will try some touching up and repainting what I have already done. The yellow coat is quite dull as it is being absorbed quite literally into the clay base. I’m kind of hoping that the next coat will not be absorbed so much, fingers crossed.

Multicoloured madness

I’ve gone with a yellow scheme for the underneath and a red – orange on the inside. I’ve tried the same type of painting that you find on narrowboats on Uk Canals, when they paint the buckets and metalwork with flowers. I’ve used this effect around the rim and from one angle it looks like he is looking over a hedgerow. It’s exceptionally basic, but it’s brightened up a piece of pottery that would otherwise sit in the corner unnoticed, discarded and unloved. You can’t miss this now, it just stands out.

First coat of lacquer
Fast drying enamel clear coat lacquer

The final task is to give a nice coat of lacquer to protect the acrylic paint. I’m going to use some fast drying lacquer that I have sitting in the shed at home. About two coats will be sufficient.

Before and after
Side decorations

I’m pleased with the outcome, it’s made me happy, and I smile whenever I see it. It’s kept me occupied and busy, It’s special to me and that is all that matters. It’s adult pottering and nonsense at its best. But it’s my nonsense.

Thanks for stopping by.