Chapter 164
So May is the month of Mother’s Day in Canada. In Spain, where my parents reside, Mother’s Day is May 5th, here it’s May 12th, in our birthland of England, it was March 10th. So this year my Mum gets three Mother’s days, and why not? It’s always entertaining to be part of a family spread around the world and capture the different celebratory events that happen in different countries and societies.
The just passed Easter Celebrations are extraordinary in southern Spain. There is a town nearby that hosts the most magical Easter parades, featuring hundreds of Andalusian stallions ridden by people in exotic costumes that take years to make and maintain. There are chariots of from 4-in- hand up to 8 horses abreast… galloping full- tilt down the main street of the town. It is a sight to behold, especially the grooms in traditional garb scurrying along the street behind the chariots, attempting to catch up to handle the horses at the other end.
Here, rather than charioteering, we are busy Skijoring. It’s becoming more well- known each year. There are now Skijoring events in Banff, Millarville and many places around the province. I confess that I was planning to attend Millarville’s event, but at minus 20-something and snowing and blowing, the shine kinda wore off that one.
Come the sudden switch through our rapid and amazing Spring, the fields turn green before our eyes. On an afternoon drive down to Millarville, the hillsides were still brown. The previous day in Calgary I was fascinated to see how much green there was in the shelter of the city. By the time I returned home from Millarville, the hillsides had adopted a distinctly green hue. A mere three hours of good sunshine with all the water on the ground, much of it turning pasture corners into boot-sucking quagmires, and the advent of Spring was very evident. A few days later and the earth is becoming crunchy again, the water runs off and evaporates away so fast here, the illusion of wetlands is largely just that, an illusion. Water runs in the ditches by the roads, but what was a raging torrent dividing the pasture a few days ago has already dried to bare ghost of a creek, a suggestion of what has passed.
In the woods the ice-packed trails soften each afternoon, yet overnight things become encrusted and rigid, early morning walks are loud! This freezing in the yard makes an escape from my current dog- sitting residence an adventure in steering and calculated acceleration. Sometimes multiple runs at the steep driveway are necessary, it’s both entertaining and somewhat stressful.
Perhaps we’ve seen the last of the big snowfalls for this season? Perhaps not. I see the buds on the trees are most definitely in Spring formation, there is a distinct sensation of change everywhere. It is upon us… clear blue skies, beaming sun, birds singing, flora blossoming, blooming, warming earth, a feeling of imminent discovery every day. Love it.
Kat Dancer
bodymudra@gmail.com
403-931-3866 (h) +1 415 525 2630 (c)
