Taste in views can change.
I remember when in the throes of romantic love, I craved the crashing waves of an ocean view. When raising children, I preferred the serenity of a lake. In my meditative years, I loved the shade of trees or the open prairies – and that dreamy sky.
I remember when my father was about to retire, he chose to build his retirement home close to a school. “When one is in a rocking chair one needs to see children playing," he said. Around 3:30 in the afternoon he would sit down and watch the children walk home. When I asked him what he saw - he described the children to me. "That boy is a bully scaring the girls, but that girl over there is a feisty one and will have none of it.”
From my apartment, I now have the perfect view for me without even knowing in advance what that would be. To my right –I can see the curve of the Red River - now a ribbon of white. In the distance I can see the Winnipeg cityscape – which lit up with fire works on New Years Eve. In front of me are two apartment buildings. The one closer to me has balconies with patio window that allow me to see my neighbors inside. Somehow it doesn’t feel like an invasion of privacy – just a sense that we are doing life together, And then to my left, I see the transit busses on their rails and industrial smoke stacks – that I did not know existed this far into the city.
My view holds it all. And to top it all off, all of this is set against the beautiful blue sky that is sometimes decorated with ribbons of jet streams, shape shifting clouds, and the moving sun that highlights it all with a rising shine in the morning and a setting glow at night.
Then I realize why I love my apartment view. It is teaming with life and connection – just what I need at this time of life.
We are social beings. It is all about connection.
“Connection gives us the grace and grit to unleash our potential and endure the challenge of our daily mess.” Karen Joy Hardwick
I remember when in the throes of romantic love, I craved the crashing waves of an ocean view. When raising children, I preferred the serenity of a lake. In my meditative years, I loved the shade of trees or the open prairies – and that dreamy sky.
I remember when my father was about to retire, he chose to build his retirement home close to a school. “When one is in a rocking chair one needs to see children playing," he said. Around 3:30 in the afternoon he would sit down and watch the children walk home. When I asked him what he saw - he described the children to me. "That boy is a bully scaring the girls, but that girl over there is a feisty one and will have none of it.”
From my apartment, I now have the perfect view for me without even knowing in advance what that would be. To my right –I can see the curve of the Red River - now a ribbon of white. In the distance I can see the Winnipeg cityscape – which lit up with fire works on New Years Eve. In front of me are two apartment buildings. The one closer to me has balconies with patio window that allow me to see my neighbors inside. Somehow it doesn’t feel like an invasion of privacy – just a sense that we are doing life together, And then to my left, I see the transit busses on their rails and industrial smoke stacks – that I did not know existed this far into the city.
My view holds it all. And to top it all off, all of this is set against the beautiful blue sky that is sometimes decorated with ribbons of jet streams, shape shifting clouds, and the moving sun that highlights it all with a rising shine in the morning and a setting glow at night.
Then I realize why I love my apartment view. It is teaming with life and connection – just what I need at this time of life.
We are social beings. It is all about connection.
“Connection gives us the grace and grit to unleash our potential and endure the challenge of our daily mess.” Karen Joy Hardwick
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