Sunday, January 1, 2012

A New Year has begun . . .


The old year is washed away, a mixture of joy and pain, of
hope and utter frustration.


On New Year's Eve 2010, my beloved 22 year old cat Millie
left for good . . . no more moonlit rides on my broomstick.
A cat of distinction, my very personal friend and companion.
My broomstick sulks in a corner, I have no heart for flying solo.



Thank God for all my blogging friends who have kept me
partially sane through the shoals and shipwrecks of the past
year. I don't know what I would have done without those of
you who have become very special friends and all of you who
have left comments and/or are following my meagre
photographic efforts. My trusty Nikon became unfocused and
had to be sent to hospital. In some ways a good thing since I
replaced it by a Canon with slightly better optics. Yet both
cameras have their good and not so good points and I am looking
forward to my Nikon being resuscitated.

This year has many challenges ahead, both with the Prof and
my darling sister, I will be yo-yoing to Melbourne again shortly
to see her.

When things get too gloomy, I check out the wormholes, both
on Windy Hill, as well as a few other locations nearby.

Who knows when the call will come to step through one of them?


I wish you all the wonders that this world can provide if we just
keep our eyes and minds open. Stay well, be happy and dream . . .

27 comments:

  1. Wow, amo la prima foto !
    Happy new days.
    Happy new dreams.
    Happy New Year 2012 :))
    Myriam

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  2. Happy New Year Blessings dear Arija. I appreciate you, your sweet heart, your spirit, the messages of warmth you send my way. I so love stopping in to see what you have shared. May the new year bring you good health, a sweet peace and an understanding that all shall work out in the end~ Hugs to you my friend and a grateful heart for your amazing encouragement along the way~

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  3. may 2012 bring you warmth, comfort, good health, and a quiet happiness.

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  4. Lovely post, Arija! I do wish you and your family all the best in 2012. Prayers will continue for your dear sister. Take care and Happy New Year!

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  5. I can understand you having no desire to Take flight on your broomstick solo - Dear Millie will be sadly missed.
    Wishing you a good measure of peace and good health in the New Year.and I look forward to seeing more of your wonderful pics in 2012.

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  6. Happy New Year!!!

    Another year! What a blessing!

    Thank you for being my beloved friend.

    Wishing you and your loved ones the best.

    Tsup!

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  7. Happy and Healthy 2012 to you and yours and strength to bear the joys and the trials.

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  8. So sorry about Millie. Best wishes for 2012!

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  9. i can always count on you for sharing beauty, wisdom and a good dose of reality, too. sometimes life hurts. i wish you a blessed 2012.

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  10. We have both surely had our ups and downs this year, Arija, hopefully we'll move past them to a better year with lots of love and joy and warmth! I do so appreciate your support and kind words! Have a beautiful first week -- may it be the beginning of many in this new year!

    Sylvia

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  11. i wish you a very nice 2012, Arija! lovely post and photos! take care...

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  12. 2011 was like a roller coaster ride, a little wilder than I'd like for sure. We have to make 2012 a better time for all. I thank you for bringing light into the shadows. With enough positive human energy we can do anything. Let's all love together.

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  13. Yes...we need to have some wormholes in our lives....hugs...Michelle

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  14. I'm so sorry about your cat.

    Happy New Year to you and yours! Beautiful shots. I love the one with the ripples in the water.

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  15. May 2012 bring joy as well as the inevitable sadness, photographic highlites, and garden excitements, new places to explore and old to rediscover.

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  16. Hi Arija...I am so far behind ....you are a dear sweet lady that I have meet this past year ....I do know how you feel about your kitty because I lost my 19 years old faithful friend this past year!!
    Life goes on..and "It is..what it is" is my latest saying!
    I do wish for you,the very best of everything...you desire that for the person you are giving and kind !!
    Bless you and much happiness in 2012!!
    Grace

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  17. Happy New Year to you Arija! I am sorry for the loss of your dear cat and fellow broom rider. You have been blessed with many wonderful years and memories together. Wishing you a new year of joys, peace and garden delights. I wish you and your family the best in 2012.

    Shirley
    @ The Gardening Life

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  18. Beautiful blog and amazing pictures!

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  19. Arija - I am catching up and reading backwards and I am so sorry to hear about your beautiful Millie. I want you to know that I really appreciate your ability to share the ups and the downs of life -- your writing makes me feel as if we are next door neighbors instead of a world apart. But I wish I could offer a real hug and a real shoulder, but my thoughts are with you.

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  20. I'm sorry to hear about your sweet cat. As the owner of two old dogs myself, I know how animals work their way into our hearts and become, at times, our best companions. May the new year bring you much joy.

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  21. Dear Aria, indeed the old year was tough with its ups and downs but as every new year, I hope it will be better.
    I do hope you will manage to cope with all challenges ahead. I also hope and wish for your sister to feel better with each and every day.
    I am sorry about your cat. I lost mine too. He went missing just one day after my son's wedding. It's been seven months since then. I have no longer hope in his comeback.
    Dear Aria, thank you from the bottom of my heart for every visit to my blog and for every comment you left there. I do appreciate it a lot.
    May new year bring all the best to you and to your family. You really deserve that.

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  22. I am SO sorry to hear about Millie Arija. I know all to well how you feel. I have an old cat Maggie that is going on 24 years old, and I always wonder if she'll make it another winter. She lives in the barn, and so far so good.
    Thank you too for all the wise words and wonderful emails you send me. They are more valuable than you know. I feel blessed to have "met" you.
    Take care my friend, and God Bless.
    B.

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  23. Happy New Year from Southern California!

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  24. Hello, again, Arija! So sorry for your loss of loved cat and I hope your sister will get better and better. I can relate to as I’ve rememberd the time when my loved dog Lynne passed away.

    Regarding your comment on my post:
    Birds like Nandina berries. On the other hand, seeing from the fact that Manryo berries stay long in winter, I don’t think birds are fond of them.

    The northeast quarter was once termed “kimon (demon gate)”, and was considered an unlucky direction through which evil spirits passed. The concept of “Kimon” is from China. In the floor planning, some people avoid entrance, kitchen, and bathroom in this direction while some are not so superstitious. I’m afraid I don’t know why and I think there must be practical reasons behind it as you wrote.

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  25. I am so sorry to hear about the passing of your cat Millie. It is so difficult to lose a beloved pet. I miss every cat I've ever had the great luck to share my life with every day. But my memories of them are happy. My best to you and yours in the New Year!

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  26. Wunderschöne Fotos zeigst du hier, ich gratuliere.

    Vielen Dank für Dein Besuch in meinem Märchenblog. Du kannst den Musikplayer ausschalten, siehe den Vermerk oben rechts :

    Zum Betrachten der Video-Filme bitte diesen Musikplayer ausschalten ... To view the video please turn off these movies music player ...

    Versuchs doch nochmal, ist wirklich ein schönes Video...

    Liebe Grüsse aus der Schweiz

    Hans-Peter

    Beautiful photos you show here, I congratulate you.

    Thank you for your visit to my blog stories. You can turn off the music player, see the note above on the right:

    To view the video please turn off these movies music player ... To view the video please turn off these movies music player ...

    Try again but, really is a nice video ...

    Best regards from Switzerland

    Hans-Peter

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  27. Arija, I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your dear cat. I am sure she lived a full and loved life with you. I hope your heart is healing but I know there will always be a cat-shaped hole there which only she can fill. I love the picture of the trees at the end. They look like they are dancing. Perhaps you can dance with them. Perhaps she is dancing there as well!

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