4 MORE RAMBLINGS

Smile

This holiday season can I be greener? Is there a way to bring in the cheer that I once had with Thanks giving, Christmas, and the New Year that I’ve seemed to have lost. I feel that the bigger meanings have been lost in the shuffle of corporate mainstreaming, and I long for the days that me bringing a drawing home and giving it away as a present meant a lot more than a gift card to J.C. Pennys. I want to craft this winter, and I want to be greener. I want my eco footprint to shrink. I was thinking if I could just find the time to make something for people. I want this holiday season to be special. I want this Christmas to sweep people off of their feet, and I want the worries of a tough year to be washed away. I called my family, and told them that I am moving home for this Christmas, and we are going to have a great time! I am going to spend time with my grandparents, decorating their fake and real trees, getting out the Christmas carols, sing them really loud, we will cook a delicious feast, and I am going to take my brothers on a walk in the woods. We all need to be closer, and spend a lot less.
This year I need to work harder at giving a gift that means so much more, something that someone can read, look at, warm up in, reuse, and something that shows how much they mean to me. I do not care if there is anything under that tree for me, because all of my family has been there for me in times of need. All I want for Christmas is for my family to be smiling, and happy to be blessed with a family that all love us. What does this have to do with nature? It has a lot to do with nature in the way that I am trying to bring back the natural, and whole feeling of a holiday season. I am stripping away the corporate greed, and I am sharing something that is sometimes lost in the mix…the most natural thing that I can do. Love.


Warmer

My thermos has little pink, and purple bears holding hands. This thermos can be filled with soups, coffee, tea, or my personal favorite hot coco. It has a yellow top that can be used as a cup for a beverage, or a bowl for soup. I have had this thermos for twenty years. This thermos reminds me of cold snowy days, snowsuits that I could barely move in because my mother would bundle me up with so many layers, and many snow fights with my brothers. The thermos reminds me of building snowmen, sledding down hills, eating snowflakes, falling backwards into fresh blankets of snow, and staring into the sky as snow flakes would brisk my face. This thermos reminds me of my parents yelling for me to come inside, and that it was time for a hot supper, and some late night television.
When I look at this old contraption that looks as if it has seen better years, and there is probably a newer and improved version of it somewhere I feel completely warmed up. I’ve got the thermos out, and I am ready for a new winter, of snowboarding, maybe ice-skating, and going for a walks on the beach.




Warm Like a Sheep
Wool is so neat. I love the thought of the majestic sheep that is covered in his curly wooly fur. His fur is my warmth. I own so many things that are made out of wool. My pea-coat, my socks, my hats, scarves, mittens, blankets that were made by my grandmother, and sweaters. The sheep are sheered in the spring months, and amount to millions of pounds of textile material that we use in countless things. Wool on a sheep’s back is many sophisticated fibers, which we sheer, spin into a thread, and than knit into sweaters, scarves, and other warm textile creations. I am amazed at how lucky we are to be able to have this liaison with sheep.
I have been spoiled to have a grandmother who can knit. She has made me countless wonderful blankets, scarves, and hats. I love the way that wool feels. Yes, it is a little scratchy, but I enjoy the organic feel of it. I guess I am in love with being warm in the winter, and having the opportunity to enjoy being cozy to the fullest. Realizing that I am so lucky, and that others are not I have decided to participate In the warm coat drive that Crossroads Mall is having. It makes me feel great to know that I am going to be able to give coats, scarves, mittens, and warmth to a person who is in serious need of it. The seasons are harsh, and we all must get together to bring the sheep’s gift of warmth to all this holiday season.

Adventure
In response to our last class, and if we had ever gone on a “Great” American adventure with our parents- sadly I must say no. However, I was a very lucky girl in the way that my parents did take me camping all over Michigan. I have seen and stayed at many of our wonderful Michigan State Parks. I am glad, because I think that so many people have no idea what is hidden in their back yards. Michigan has so many spectacular sights to see, such as Silver Lake Sand Dunes, Ludington State Park, Sleepy Bear Dunes, and the Upper Peninsula is almost like a lost world of gorgeousness. I am forever grateful that I was born and raised in this fantastic state in the majestic U.S.A.
I was Ozark Mountain bound this summer in my mini-van with a group of childhood friends. We were driving 15 hours down south for the music festival of the summer. We had no idea what we were going to come across, and the excitement could not be contained. This had been a dream of mine for all my life to go on a road trip with some friends and have a wild time! I know it is not good for the environment to make a mad dash in a car to go see something you have never seen before, but it is just too much of a good thing to not get out and do every now and again. This trip changed me, by giving me some independence, excitement, and will be remembered as one of the greatest trips I’ve ever taken. I hope that I can live out this experience again, but hopefully with a new destination.