Welcome . . . to another Friday in the Sanctuary.

May you find a few moments of peace and respite here today. Life is tough. We all need to protect our peace.

C’mon in.
Take a break with me.

First, let me explain where I am . . . right now.

I’ve been starting my Sanctuary posts with this bit of explanation lately . . . about “where I am . . . right now.” Why? Well . . . I collect little bits and bobs and things . . . to share here in the Sanctuary all the time. Things that recently brought me some wonder or peace, things that made me smile or laugh out loud. Things that I thought might do the same for you. Y’know . . . as we try to collectively protect our peace. So knowing – for myself – “where I am . . . right now” (basically, my current state of mind) helps me pick through all the bits and bobs to choose the best ones – for me, and maybe for you, too.

And this week? Hoo boy, friends. I don’t quite know where I am . . . right now. But I do know I’m tired and worn out from the constant, unrelenting outrage. Every day, more outrage. More crisis. More things breaking down or falling apart or just . . . revealing themselves in ugliness and a sense of chaos.

So “where I am. . . right now” . . . is desperately in need of quiet. Personally, I feel like just sitting outside all day and watching the bird migration as it moves through my garden. Or practicing my mahjong game by playing round after round with my online “bot” friends. Or tearing up bits of pretty paper and gluing them on some kind of substrate. Or even doing just the most mundane things . . . like helping Tom find his missing AirPods (which I found, inexplicably, on the garage floor . . . where one was, unfortunately, smashed under his front tire). I just need . . . to pull into myself for a little while. So I can steel myself for whatever comes next.

So I guess the context for my Sanctuary post today can best be summed up by one word . . . ESCAPE. As in . . . let’s escape together into the Sanctuary.

Escape with me . . . down a rabbit hole of beautiful cakes!

My mom . . . came into her “homemaking years” at the same time “convenience cooking” was being promoted as the best way to care for your busy family. Shake-and-Bake. Hamburger Helper. Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup. Jiffy mixes. Instant pudding. These were all staples in my mom’s kitchen – and regular answers to “what’s for dinner” when I was a child. As you might guess, ALL of my birthday cakes were boxed cakes.

BUT. All of those boxed cakes were special cakes. Not only because my mom baked them for me – with love – but also because my mom could decorate a beautiful cake! (And she could do it with canned frosting, no less.) Her cakes may have been made from a box, but they were even and perfectly formed. Beautifully frosted. And . . . she could make a cake . . . look like a basket, with lovely piped flowers and leaves spilling over the basketweave sides. Magical!

She’d have marvelled over the cakes created by Corrine Morrison, cake artist!

Just take a look at this one! And then I invite you to . . . fall into this rabbit hole on Instagram . . . and escape into more incredibly beautiful cakes.

Now . . . escape with me to the streets of Paris . . .

and spend 6 minutes watching a magical flashmob. (Actually, I dare you to just watch it once . . . )

Finally . . .  escape with me into poetry . . .

I know many of you don’t share my love of poetry (and I know a lot of you do!), but whenever life feels overwhelming and out of control, I can always count on the words of poets to help center myself again.

Here’s a lovely poem I read yesterday that just feels right . . . right now. (The photo is from my garden, and the poet is L.E. Bowman.)


The World Crumbles

And still, we keep it together.
Rebuild, replenish, love, hope, dream.
The weight settles, and still, we keep breathing.
The pain growls, and still, we find ways to quiet the ache.
Open arms, hands reaching for each other.

How are you?
Me too.
I’ll help you carry the day.

L.E. Bowman

And that’ll do it for this week, my friends.

I hope you’ve found some . . . Sanctuary. . . here today.
At least for a few minutes.

Enjoy your weekend.
Rest.
Escape . . .
Fall into some rabbit holes.
(But maybe not the news or social media.)

Protect your peace!