hello friends,
i think that it is time for me to try a little something new. even for just a few weeks. i need to be in this space, but i haven't known how it fits me {or how i fit it} lately.
sometimes i have a great idea for a blog post, and i take a whole bunch of pictures {or even just one}, and i have a grand plan {or a vague one} for how i want to write up a post . . . and then . . . then supper needs to be made, or a load of laundry needs to be done, or a day of teaching needs to be planned, or, well sometimes, i am just simply too tired to do much of anything. and sometimes, what is flooding my mind and heart aren't thoughts that lend themselves well to a big fancy blog post, per se.
there is a blog i follow, called .: hello there, friend :. it is a collaboration by two lovelies who simply write each other a short note every day {or most days}. i love to read their words, their thoughts, their musings to one another. and i like the letter format.
so, friends, i am going to write some letters. here. to you.
not every day. and maybe not always one following the other. but as another option. another template for thinking things through. for sharing. for writing.
today i am tired. but tired in a good way. yesterday was packed full; the kind of packed full i love. our school day went well. and when i returned home, i set the table with some pretty things and started supper and brownies. our company showed up as ben was prepping meat for the grill. ben and davin have fought fire together and i met him some years ago, but neither of us had never met clara {she is lovely and kind and i enjoyed her comraderie immensely.} our evening consisted of easy-going conversation, excellent food, dishes done together, a good brisk walk in the cool darkness, and more visiting interspersed with puppy snuggles. i also found some minutes in which to mix up cinnamon toast bars, so that we would have a tasty treat for breakfast this morning. i crawled in bed next to my husband smiling and ready to sleep.
this morning, we shared those cinnamon toast bars before i headed off to school. ben got to stick around and see our friends off on the next leg of their journey. {ah, road trips. one of these days, we'll plan another one of those!}
late this morning, i savored some words from mary oliver's poetry while i drank my coffee and ate my brownie. the kids were out for recess time, and i gave myself a few moments of feeling the heat of the sun through the window and feeding my mind with beautiful words.
this afternoon, we went to the main county school and listened to an author talk about her book. it's very interesting - the subject is, anyway. i haven't read the book yet. now i will. i had her sign the book i bought, and while she was scratching away with my pen, i asked her if she is working on her next book. no. the right idea hasn't come to her yet. she loves this story and its subject, but i don't know if she loves words. and maybe one needs both of those loves to write and then keep writing; stories that take heart and love and investment, but also a love of words. love creates craft . . . or crafts creativity . . . i think.
so, now, here i am, coming to the close of another day. thinking about heading home and making supper. thinking about lighting a candle and sharing food and words with my family. and thinking that i have enjoyed writing this letter. maybe i will write another tomorrow.
go gently and be wonderful, my friends.
love, e
p.s. find the recipe for cinnamon toast bars here
this makes a huge pan!
i used a different combination of flours each time, making sure i had at least one full cup of tapioca starch. i also used a combination of almond and coconut milk. in the bars, i only used 1 cup of unrefined sugar. in the topping, i used 3/4 cup of butter and 3/4 cup of unrefined sugar. i followed the mixing and baking instructions. these are so. very. tasty! and easy to make. they are wonderful to bake of an evening and enjoy in the morning with a protein and some fruit. happy baking, friends!