pumpkin party

the other day my dear friend ben had the lovely idea of hosting a pumpkin party. everyone was instructed to bring their own pumpkin and pumpkin treats were encouraged.

every once in a while

i look back at jack layton's final letter to canadians before he died. i know he wasn't a perfect man in his lifetime, but he managed to inspire so many young canadians and his strength at the end of his life was truly admirable.

"Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one – a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity. We can build a prosperous economy and a society that shares its benefits more fairly. We can look after our seniors. We can offer better futures for our children. We can do our part to save the world’s environment. We can restore our good name in the world. "

"To young Canadians: All my life I have worked to make things better. Hope and optimism have defined my political career, and I continue to be hopeful and optimistic about Canada. Young people have been a great source of inspiration for me. I have met and talked with so many of you about your dreams, your frustrations, and your ideas for change. More and more, you are engaging in politics because you want to change things for the better. Many of you have placed your trust in our party. As my time in political life draws to a close I want to share with you my belief in your power to change this country and this world. There are great challenges before you, from the overwhelming nature of climate change to the unfairness of an economy that excludes so many from our collective wealth, and the changes necessary to build a more inclusive and generous Canada. I believe in you. Your energy, your vision, your passion for justice are exactly what this country needs today. You need to be at the heart of our economy, our political life, and our plans for the present and the future."

and finally,

"My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world."

he wrote that two days before he died of cancer. some food for thought on a tuesday morning.

calm, love & ted talks

i keep hearing from people over and over - your twenties are such a hard time of life. which seems funny, doesn't it? we're all probably at our most attractive stage of our lives, a lot of us have the luxury of being in school, we don't have huge familial obligations... we have a lot of freedom! however, they have proved to have their stresses! and as this ted talk, why thirty is not the new twenty points out, maybe that's for the best. 

as someone who managed to be happy-go-lucky for the first twenty years of her life, these past few years of twenty-dom have been filled with finding ways to rediscover that happy-go-lucky-ness. 

my favourite relaxation techniques lately have included:

aujourd'hui, ca commence avec toi.

it's been an edith piaf sort of weekend. from surprising myself by singing la vie en rose at a gay karaoke bar after a few too many drinks to rewatching the movie of the same name with my roommates this afternoon... it all seems to come back to that inspiring, strong parisienne woman.

edith piaf's life can teach us a lot about empathy and compassion. people's lives are not cookie cutter. i'm sure edith piaf would've been a piece of work to collaborate with, and had i encountered her i might have judged her as someone inconsiderate and impossible to work with. however, she had a hard life and a strong, good heart despite all of that. a nurturing childhood is so important to who we become later in life. i have so much admiration for marion cotillard after seeing her brilliant portrayal of piaf. what a taxing role that she embodied with so much rawness, kinesthetic commitment and refinement.

late summer in chicago

the garden of sara

do you ever wish you lived in a garden? this article in the nytimes about mileece petre's garden home in los angeles sounds so perect and idyllic. eating a nectarine off a tree while you shower? i've been working on redecorating my room/house lately, and it's all turning into the garden of sara....

readings lately

i've been doing a lot of reading lately, and wanted to share a few memorable things.