Brought Back to a Place in Time

Hi there,

Today I wanted to tell a few little stories. On their own, they wouldn't be enough for a blog post. But, compiled they will be. They all have a theme. Do you ever hear a song, smell a flower, feel a fabric, taste food or see a place that instantly brings you back to a specific place in time? That's what these stories are about. 

The first story is what made me think about all this in the first place. One day last week I was walking to work when something caught my eye. There in the side of the path was a tree with some berries hanging from it; mulberries to be exact. This made my heart jump with joy. I gently pick a handful and popped them in my mouth one by one as I continued on my way. As I bit into them by taste buds brought me back to Alice Springs, Australia when I was about nine years old. There in my cousins' back yard was a mulberry tree. The 4-6 of us cousins would all climb up into that tree. There we would sit and eat berries until our hands and mouths were stained and sticky. we would laugh, tell stories and play until our tummies where full and our hearts were happy. So, as I strolled down the path on my way to work I often stop and think about those days while a pick a few berries. And when I'm done my handfull my hands are left a little red with their juices as a reminder of just much we had to scrub our hands of them so we could sit down for dinner. 

Before

After

My second revolves around a different kind of berry. Sometimes on my way home from work, I'll take a different path. this one is more of a trail through the woods. This time I spotted raspberries. The sight of their bushes lining the trail brought me back to Chertsey, Canada when I was maybe seven. My grandparents used to own some acreage out in the country. On their property was some woods and through those woods were trails. My grandfather is quite the handyman. He had built us a buggy thing using a lawnmower engine. It wouldn't go very fast at all but that was perfect for us younger cousins who weren't allowed to drive the four-wheeler on our own yet. Together my siblings and sometimes cousins and I would drive painstakingly slowly through the trails in the woods. We knew exactly where we were going and sometimes we would make a pitstop to pluck from the raspberry bushes lining this one specific section of one of the trails. The Raspberries on the bushes lining the trail here arent quite ready for the picking yet. But just seeing them brought me back to the giggles with my family in rural Quebec. 

The last story doesn't have to do with berries. But it does revolve around food. The other day a friend of mine and I were out and about when we decided it was time for lunch. She asked me what kind of food I wanted and I said some kind of Asian food. So we looked at what was around and found a little Tha place with good reviews. So, we went there. But as soon as we went through the doors I was taken back to Cambodia just a year or two ago. they had the same kind of seating I would expect in Cambodia or Thailand, the same kind of artwork and the same kind of music playing. They even had a photo of the kind and Queen of Thailand hung up at the front. I have been in many restaurants similar to this with my family. It could have been for a birthday or farewell. we could be in another town or visiting friends. But I don't think I have a bad memory of these restaurants. We got some yummy pad Thai and chatted for a while. It filled my heart with so much joy just being there. 

Freshly picked strawberries!

Strawberry lemonade made with them!

So those are a couple of my little stories of times I've been brought back to a place in time. Please feel free to share your own in the comments! I'd love to read them! Also, if you're waiting for my book update, I'll do that at the end of this month. And finally, if you're looking for life updates, here we go...

I just have three major things to do before I go; Pay for my visa, get an ID and a background check. Other than that I am in the processing of figuring out if I'll be road-tripping to Texas with a friend or two or if I'll be flying solo. There's positives and negatives to both so we're just figuring logistics. I'll be heading south somewhere between the 23rd and 28th of August. That's about a month and a bit away! It's coming so fast. I'm simultaneously scared and stoked. I'm scared that I won't be ready. But, I'm excited to start yet another new chapter of my life. I know God has a perfect plan and it'll all turn out. I just have to trust Him. I will be visiting my family in Quebec from the 19th to the 24th of July and for the rest of the summer, I'll just be trying to work every shift I can get. 

Well, that's all for today folks. I hope that you enjoyed my little short stories and that my update answered any questions you may have. Until next time and God bless,

Darcy-Rea

P.S. Here are a few beautiful summer skies...