The circle of life

On May 13, 2024May 13, 2024 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn gratitude, happiness, life, poem, poetry, storyLeave a comment

I am so thankful I have it all

What has ever happened to me

The spring awakening, winter sleep,

The ups and downs and energy

Which comes with every sunrise and sundown

The buds which will bloom,

The roads we went along and missed too.

I am so grateful we had so much life

Without trying to be who we are not

Being a mother, being a wife

The circle of life, the renewal and the end

I am so happy I have always had it

The future, the past and today

Everything what has happened to me.

From the beginning to eternity

I am so thankful I have it all

The tears, the smiles and tranquility

The highs and lows and feeling of luck

The circle of life

Surrounding me.

In the middle of spring,

In the middle of garden

In the middle of blooms

And listening to songs

Which have no words

Since birds talk another language

In the middle of life

In the middle of sorrow

Hoping we get better as soon as the rain comes

Or the sun shines

Or our hopes come true

In the middle of garden before the dusk

Where the silence is full with wind

And the only words are what birds say

In the middle of eternity

Love, forgiveness and grief

It’s the only place to remain

In the middle of garden

In spring

I hope my poetical writing or poems describe better what I am feeling and what I am up to. Yes, it’s a new awakening, a new cycle in the newer ending renewal of everything and everybody that lives. I’ve been absent for a moment, but that is what happens in this life. It can be very kind to you at some moment and turn the nasty side to you in another moment.

Well, please, read the poems, please try to feel what I am feeling and maybe that inspires you also not only to write something, but planting a garden also.

End of October, the last of colors

On October 31, 2023 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn autumn colors, healthy habits, life, lifestyle, poem, poetry, writing23 Comments

The angry clouds

And sunny gaps of heaven

The gold of leaves now turning into rust.

Ghosts of the past, they love this weather

When days just crawl along.

It’s only memories which linger

Among the shadows of our broken dreams

And wings are put away for winter.

Getting older is like watching seasons change – late fall can be quite tolerable and even enjoyable at times. The last of golden days will be gone tomorrow. It’s very obvious why poetic people like the slight melancholy which comes with the decreasing sunlight and everything becoming grey. Less and less color, until the white of snow covers up all struggles and dirt.

We often live in waiting – waiting for Christmas, waiting for the New Year which might bring something better, waiting for spring, for time when everything becomes perfect, waiting for wedding, waiting for kids to grow up – endlessly. Quite often the waiting is more satisfying than the actual event. Quite often the beauty is in the fact that all good things come with waiting. On the due time.

Nobody is waiting for old age. Lots of people see it as a dread and disaster. However, if you are privileged to experience it, you should be already happy. As somebody who’s spent many decades researching medical issues and finding out how absurdly complex each one of us is, I often wonder how we just slide over and past all diseases and cure what’s curable. I wonder how we still are with all what’s happening around.

Old age is wise and knows what we tried to figure out many decades ago. There’s so much we learn over our lifetime! Consciously or subconsciously, we are aware of what’s ahead. Many books mention how somebody feels scared and old when they are 40 or 50. No need. In my experience 50-60 is a fantastic time. The saying “If youth knew, if age could” is attributed to quite a few wise men. I don’t care who said that, but that briefly descries how we evolve and, regretfully, are unable to carry out what we know is necessary when we reach really old age which I haven’t yet.

I knew this quote always, cannot remember from where, but I recall it here and there. Therefore, I don’t think people around 20 – 30 can be experts. In science or their occupation, sure, in life – no way. Things change drastically, and only decades later we realize what we did right and what were the crucial life-changing mistakes. No point suffering from regrets. Everything becomes experience – every step, every discovery, every loss and gain. I love myself just as much as when I was younger. I’m looking forward to many more years, I’d love to spend this time just as my parents lived – busy, always doing something, always staying firmly on the Earth.

Wishing you good transition into late fall and early winter!

Please, come and sit with me

On October 2, 2023 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn autumn colors, life, memories, poem, poetry, writing10 Comments

While the trees are in flames

While the life feels so good

While I am still blooming

Please, come and sit with me

On the sun-drenched porch

While the days are still plentiful

While the blood runs so hot

While the love remains live

Please, come and sit with me

On the sun-drenched porch

It’s only October, still far until frost

It’s only autumn, it’s far until snow

While the light lives here

While we are intact

Please, come and sit with me

On the sun-drenched porch

In memoriam of my mom.

If I were a musician, I’d put it in tunes. I’m an artist, so I use colors.

My mom was October – colorful, sunny and windy with splashes of rain, putting abundance of harvest on our table. She was talented and wise. October is always my mom’s birthday for me.

Old age isn’t a disaster or bad news. Old age has learned what tolerance means. Old age is forgiving, wise and understanding. Old age knows how to distinct between superficial show-off and true love.

Not all of us are privileged to experience it, but the ones who are, should treat it simply as part of our life cycle.

Wishing everybody fantastic October, the season of poets and artists!

When summer meets fall

On September 13, 2023 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn fall, life, nature, poem, poetry, story, writing2 Comments

I’d like to stay here, on the doorstep of change,

extend this moment before summer meets fall.

While the winds are caring and sun is friendly,

and hopes stand tall.

This summer promised so much, just like always.

What a delusion! It never came true.

Go with the flow, become like trees, –

that’s all I can do.

I’d like to stay here, in the living garden

Extend this moment before summer meets fall.

Before frost and cold come,

Before time takes it all.

I usually write when slight sadness overcomes me, when I get to think about the unforgiving flow of time. We can reverse and mend many things, but what time has taken, never returns.

Happiness is a rare moment when everything falls into place. It doesn’t require extra words. It either is or it isn’t. No point in verbalizing such moments.

This summer was really bad. Mostly, due to the weather and insufficient portable air conditioner. Heat and extreme moisture caused a lot of physical pain. I cannot also neither write, nor paint when I am drenched in sweat. No normal human can or wants to do something when they feel exhausted, tired and off. Therefore, I didn’t even try. Not a big loss.

I would love the early fall to linger on a bit longer. Finally, it feels like it should have felt during the summer. Plants are still growing, flowers still blooming, huge tomato harvest this year. I don’t think I want to make preserves, but there are definitely too many tomatoes to consume right away.

I use time as well as I can. The older we get, the more we understand how fragile and delicate everything is. Losing days to pain is not what we intend to do, so, the only way to conquer pain means we push ourselves more, grow stronger still and use more efficiently the extremely beneficial things around us: fresh air, great, natural food, outdoor walks and keep busy working and creating.

Wishing everybody good fall season and pleasant weather!

October

On October 16, 2022September 13, 2023 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn fall, life, nature photography, poem, writing21 Comments

October is full of mysteries, secrets and wisdom. The October wisdom comes from centuries surviving the unpleasant silence of nature, from always winning the light back in spring. October is a month of poets and philosophers – what else can make us think so deeply about things which go away, but return again and again? In the Northern hemisphere, October becomes our sunlight preserve, the last colorful warmth before we wake up with November chill.

October walk

We could be walking endlessly
In peaceful sunlight
Submerging ourselves
In the sparkling gold of falling leaves,
Breathing fall fragrance and colorful air.
We could be walking endlessly
In this stunning brightness
Under the transparent, distant sky.
Shadow obediently marching behind.
If it wasn’t for darkness and freezing nights.
If it wasn’t this place where we are now.

What about the garden?

It is going to sleep. Blooming plants are stuffed indoors, not that there’s enough space, but they will survive. About half a year is all it takes, but they’re resilient just like we must be. I still have tomatoes, parsley, dill, kale, green onions, chives, last sweet peppers and basil. When the temperature drops below zero Celsius, only parsley and kale will be available for a while. Nature needs a break, plants are done for now, and hopefully, the winter is mild.

What about us?

We wrap ourselves up and hide indoors, too. Thankfully, there are soothing days when the sun sends us warming rays. We pray there’s peace on the Earth. Is it likely? Probably not soon, but at some point, we must come to our senses. Even those who misuse power. The weather has become quite unpredictable, but we cannot complain too much. Most storms passed us so far. Candle time is coming, more self-exploration, more art creation, although, the light is not sufficient.

Balance

All is good enough for now. It can always be better; it can always be worse. It’s nice to be in the middle of the neutral grey, not giving in into black, not being obsessed with only white. Balance is about that: the neutral middle. Let’s hope we get more sunlight this October here, in the small town in Ontario. Frosts are ahead, but the colors will last for a while yet.

Thanks for reading if you did!

Late November

On November 23, 2021March 21, 2023 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn happiness, life, nature, poem, poetry, writing16 Comments

The rusty gold of leaves and rushing winds

Majestic clouds race in the brilliant blue.

Late November. Still sparkling, but

The winter will erase the colors.

The human nature –

It wants to hold, to keep, stick tight,

To grab, to hug and have it safe

And never say good-bye or part.

Yet, by design it all is

Loosing, letting go, releasing,

Forgetting, giving up and separating,

And making space.

Late November. I’m picking up one leaf.

All glory of the fading colors in just one maple leaf.

I place it in a book. I am so human.

I know I can’t, but I am trying to preserve the beauty.

My Life School blog was never only about gardening, green living and growing our own food. I actually started it to publish my writing, life philosophy and stories about surviving aging in a great way, for instance, never gaining extra weight, maintaining bright and good memory and doing things in spite of some health conditions which crawl upon us after 60.

I paint beautiful and light-filled art because my life has been very difficult and painful at some stages back in Europe. That’s to keep everything in balance.

I write thought-provoking and visually-perceivable poems and reminiscent stories since I’ve spent almost 50 years in Europe and the recent 17 years in Canada. Life was very different back in Europe from what it is here in Canada. My articles frequently compare many sensitive areas of both lifestyles.

I dealt with medical research for 4 decades, and these discoveries, too, find their way into this blog. Finally, my strength is visual art and I’m trying to always publish great photos. You can find all of these specific areas if you look at the menu and choose one particular item.

Thanks for reading and I hope you’re having a good transition into late fall and winter.

Take this moment and blossom in it

On September 28, 2020May 9, 2022 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn autumn colors, happiness, life, nature photography, poem, writing30 Comments

The intelligence of plants and trees never stops surprising me. When we are saying: we have time we are cheating ourselves. Time allows us to be and use the moments we are in.

It’s a wonderfully warm and sunny fall morning. Quite rare pleasant warmth and undisturbed sunshine. It’s not interrupted by offensive noises, like loud music or silly human talk. This morning is filled only with birds’ chatter and soft whispers of leaves as they walk down the tree. The garden responds to the gift of the nature: everything that can is in bloom.

We as humans waste our time and do not use it in our favor. Look at the garden plants: they know what time is and they know when to push themselves to the full potential. This morning is magic with all the plants putting out their last blooms before the frost takes them away.

This post is short because words are limiting when it comes to describing beauty. The immense range of great emotions this beauty evokes is to tell us we do not have to go anywhere, but stay in the middle of this breathtaking landscape.

So, take this moment and blossom in it!

Nobody described the fall and our travels in the Universe better than Rainer Maria Rilke:

Herbst

Die Blätter fallen, fallen wie von weit,

als welkten in den Himmeln ferne Gärten;

sie fallen mit verneinender Gebärde.

Und in den Nächten fällt die schwere Erde

aus allen Sternen in die Einsamkeit.

Wir alle fallen. Diese Hand da fällt.

Und sieh dir andre an: es ist in allen.

Und doch ist Einer, welcher dieses Fallen

unendlich sanft in seinen Händen hält.

I encourage you to study German language. Nothing ever replaces the original. I translated this poem into Latvian many years ago, approximately in 1985. Since most people have no idea what Latvian language is like, I won’t insert it here. However, I’m attaching a quick rendering of Rainer Maria Rilke’s poem “Herbst” into English by me:

The leaves are falling as if from the distance,

As if in heavens gardens far-away are wilting.

These leaves are falling with denying motion.

And during nights, the heavy earth is falling

From all the stars into the loneliness.

We all are falling. This hand here is in fall.

And look at other one: it’s all around us.

But yet, there is One, who is holding

This falling never-ending-gently in his hands.

For illustration, I’m adding my garden gallery.

Enjoy the weather if it’s as good in your place!

Life

On December 10, 2017February 17, 2020 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn depression, dreams, life, poem, poetry, writing16 Comments

Life isn’t what we think about it

Life is all the things what it does to us.

We are never in the same place. Ever.

As we stroll through the sky which is actually alive

With the speed that is not approachable even in sleep, even in dream

We do not know what is going to happen the next minute.

How would we know about the next year?

This is an endless flight which might end abruptly at the destiny’s door.

Between grasps of air some face reminds you that there actually was something.

Long ago. Far away.

Was that you setting up the alarm which never went off?

And so, we are flying without the warning system.

Without suggestions. Without instructions.

This flight has no stops.

We literally circle the sky until somebody gets moody or tired.

That’s when the next flood or ice age starts.

It would be unfair to just circle in the sky without ever learning anything.

So, what’s the lesson my dear?

Life isn’t what we think about it

Life is all the things what it does to us.

After extremely tough weeks of all kinds of health concerns and issues, after some sleepless nights and a very disturbing feeling of hopelessness, I am returning with a summary of thoughts about things which did not want to leave me alone.

I would love you to also stop at the art website: https://inesepogagallery.com/2017/12/10/shop-heartwarming-unique-nature-art/

I started an initiative to raise some money, but it got interrupted by different matters, including the lack of internet when construction workers cut off our cable. I’m not thrilled knowing that the next year might start off on the wrong foot with some delayed treatment. I haven’t had any chance to really try or sell anything this year, so, hopefully, you can help spread the word. I do appreciate any purchase of any creation on the art website.

The soothing Sunday thoughts: absolute calm

On July 23, 2017May 9, 2022 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn green living, nature, nature photography, poem, writing10 Comments

The sun is quite low

No wind swirls a leaf

Clouds have flown away and taken

Storms somewhere else

Thoughtfulness in each stem of the grass

Everything is at rest

Including my usually racing thoughts

Rabbit in the evening sun

Lazy and satisfied with the green grass meal

Chipmunk runs along the fence

And disappears in the soft shadows

Squirrel sneaks up on my plants

Bird on the fence, staring onto the sky

Sparrows chatting about a piece of bread

And otherwise it is silence

Too deep to realize

This is also a life

Life at rest

Such absolute undisturbed calm

Soft purple

Dreamy pink andThe happy rabbit

To illustrate the absolute calm, I took a few pictures. Rabbit was the most patient model, and obviously plants were not moving. I later deleted rabbit because of space pressure on WordPress. Chipmunk disappeared before I got my camera, squirrels usually run somewhere and the bird took off.

The soothing Sunday Thoughts: I saw this morning

On November 6, 2016March 17, 2021 By Inese, visual artist, writer and life sciences bloggerIn autumn colors, fall, nature photography, poem, poetry, writing45 Comments

I saw this morning

How cautiously a leaf was swirling

Down to the ground.

And hesitantly,

And as if wanting to make this moment

An endless dance.

The tree had let it go,

To fly, to shine and die.

Small, tiny star, made up of purest gold,

With sunshine in its veins

And rain in every cell.

It had accomplished

Its mission.

Good bye is in the air,

And wisp of smoke from fire,

From burning leaves.

It raises straight to heaven,

To reach the clouds.

The wisp of smoke from tiny burning star.

P. S. We have been awarded with a fantastic, sunny weather. It is so warm, and the air is so full with fall flavors. The sun is dancing in reflections and leaves. The beauty of this season is breathtaking and sad at the same time: this is the feast before the long silence and sleep, yet, there is no way to describe the passionate intensity of colors. My artistic nature enjoys every single one of these colors, every shape of disappearing beauty. These days have been so uplifting, cheerful and inspiring.