If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you rather be?
My answer would be my paternal grandmother's home - let's call her Grandma Soyala. In Cherokee, that means "time of the winter solstice." That's right - she's one hundred percent Native-American, specifically Cherokee Indian, and I'm more than proud to have that as part of my heritage. xD (This was me outside near her house, Summer 2008)
I just love being at Grandma Soyala's, really. It's the most self-liberating, peaceful experience I ever get there. The house is literally right smack in the woods, an hour north of the northernmost civilized city in Canada. There's a lake not far from the house, after a little beautiful hike through the trees, and also a river on the other side. You see bears, moose, deer, raccoons, squirrels, wolves, snakes, snow leopards, foxes... welcome to Mother Nature in wildlife! No kidding about living it real simple. Where she lives is basically isolated, technologically cut off from the modern society except for the old-fashioned telephone. No internet, no television, no computer, nothing else except the one other thing, snail mail. Below you see the lake behind me. xD (This picture is old, from Summer 2008).
This is the view of the lake. Ahhhh so peaceful....
There I get my own refugee where I calm down and with a blank canvas of notebook paper and pen in hand, I get to think, ponder the deep meanings of life and everything else in between. In the meantime, also read really good books too. On the second floor of her house, which is all built out of wood, there is a balcony overlooking gorgeous landscape - with a comfy woo den chair where Grandma Soyala kicks back to relax, think, write, paint, or read. Yes, she's an artist as well - she's a Master's in English and Literature as well as art. She's so creative - she produces beautiful works of writings and art! Art happens to be my other passion, yippee! Not to mention, she makes her own blankets, clothes, scarves, socks, quilts all from knitting , croqueting, sewing, and weaving. There's this authentic weaving loom that she has, which has been pass ed down from generation to generation through the Cherokee family. Awesome, right?
Grandma Soyala even has an amazing huge garden where she grows her own vegetables and fruits that are later used for her fabulous meals. There's goats that she has where she gets the milk from, and from milk, she makes cheese and butter the old-fashioned way of churning. There's wheat crops too so she makes bread from it. She has five beautiful horses, a couple of chicken s, three dog s, a few cats, and sheep to go along with the goats on a very spacious ranch around her house. It's basically an oasis right in the forest, you could say. As you can see, this is a snapshot of her garden below:
I've been there a couple of times - both in the winter time and summer time. It's always beautiful there, and I never get tired of being there. Last year, I was having a difficult time during my s enior year as I had extensive problems with my family which was causing me some serious depression. I needed to get away, so I booked a flight and went up there for three months. No cell phone, no laptop, no computer - nothing. Just me, my trusty notebook and pen, and a couple of clothes. Best three months of my life. I was up there, just myself, with my cousin Neva. For a short time, her friend - I'll call him Cervante - would come by. This picture below is of Neva, Cervante and Polly (Grandma Soyala's friend).
We would go out on night adventures in the dark, running with the raccoons, howling with the wolves, chasing squirrels and laughing. Some nights we had bonfires while Cervante played the guitar as Neva and I would be dancing together, singing away merrily. Other times we raced to the lake to swim together and observe the beavers constructing their lovely homes of dam s. There was horseback riding, mud sliding, games in the tree house, reading, painting, art, writing, fencing, playing with the dogs and cats, card games, laughter, joking, family gatherings around the fire in the winter, working on the ranch and gardens, cooking, walks to savor the beautiful landscapes, sleeping under the stars, and observing the Northern Lights. Life there is so simple, really. I don't think I ever have experienced anything so carefree, so blissful as my time there. It was, and still is, a place I would call home away from home.
Here are some of the following pictures for you - enjoy!
That was during a sunset in Canada at winter time.
This is me along with some of my cousins. xD
During one of the winter nights - this is where we would go sledding. Isn't it so beautiful!?
Now, in the winter time it can reach all the way to - 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Brrrr - can you say freezing! Back then when I was there for the Holidays in the '07-'08 Winter, I had to wear the following: three layers of thick sockings, a longhorn, jeans, shoes, winter boots over the shoes, long layers of shirts, a sweater, a sweatershirt, a jacket, a coat, mittens, then this really thick, heavy green body suit. I looked like a puffy eskimo, but be the judge:
Oh, the pride of being Canadian.....
Now it's your turn. SoulCasters, where would you rather be right now, right at this moment?
Oh yeah, I'm finally getting this down with the pictures... woop woop. xD
