Kim Neville

January. My least favourite month. The month of dark. The month of cold. The month with no holidays in the near future to anticipate. To cheer myself up I went out walking one morning and looked for beautiful things. Sunlight though frosty bauble was one; below are a few more. They didn’t change my mind about January, but they did make me smile.

Icy logs on the beach.

Sunbeams and melting pond.

Golden light with ducks.

I can’t believe that in all the years I’ve lived in Vancouver I’ve never been to Pacific Spirit Regional Park. Last night was my first visit, and now that I know how beautiful it is, I’ll be back soon. I love how the sounds of the city fall away so completely there.

We were drawn to Pacific Spirit by Forest Symphony, an evening event hosted by Metro Vancouver. Singers, guitarists, violinists and harpists were tucked into clearings along the park’s paths, filling the forest with music. Gorgeous.

One of the many wonderful ways that having a child has changed me is introducing a wider range of experience into my life. Before Cassandra, our Vancouver outings fell mostly into four categories: dinner, movies, shopping, visiting friends.

Now that Cass is in our lives, we get outside a lot more.  I search out new parks to visit and free events to attend. Since we moved back to Vancouver in December, I’ve had so many city firsts: taking the Aquabus, visiting the Bloedel Conservatory, riding the Stanley Park Train, communing with bunnies at Jericho Beach, jumping in the fountain at Queen Elizabeth Park, and now, walking trails at Pacific Spirit Park.

All these moments were designed to add variety, richness and beauty to my daughter’s life. I never anticipated the joy they would bring to my own.

You may think, based on my last post, that I’m spending the next two months hiding in a dark room with my laptop. I *may* have exaggerated. A little.

I am working hard but the work is fun. Also, I’m beginning to see the fruits of my labour, and that’s gratifying. I received the proofs for Meriel’s Brownie from Leading Edge this week. Complete with illustrations! Seeing the print version with my name at the top — that felt good. Issue #59 of Leading Edge will be available soon. I will keep you posted.

I’m still having a summer. There’s still time to play at the Granville Island Water Park. There’s time to stop by the Market for fresh local raspberries to put on my cereal and Maui ribs to put on my BBQ. There are, occasionally, long lunches with old friends. There are evening walks on the beach.

And I may not be swinging in a hammock, but I did just spend half an hour rocking in a chair while my child’s head grew heavy against my chest. Which is at least as good as a hammock session. Probably better.

It’s a beautiful evening in Vancouver. We had our first meal on the patio tonight, and in about ten minutes I’ll be back out there with another glass of wine and a book. Happy May Day!