Saturday, February 14, 2015

Polski

These are *not* doughnut holes. Not even close! Read on!

People used to ask me if "Daisy" was my nickname. Nope. That's my true blue, through and through bona fide birth-given name. My Mum's highschool friend was named Daisy and she looooooved her friend's name and wanted this name for me. 

I've had few nicknames throughout my life but a good friend, who wanted to highlight my Polish heritage, would call me "Polski".

"Polski" made sense.

My last name (at the time) was Podeszwa (pronounced POh-dEz-wAh in English. pronounced POh-dEsh-vAh in Polish). 

I loved my last name. It took me awhile to love it. Growing up, on the first day of school, I would sit with my head down on my desk, filled with anxiety, while the teacher went down the class list:

Sarah Adams? "here!"....Karen Brown? "here!" Jason MacDonald? "here!"....Daisy Po...Po...Po-desk...Po-zed...Po-zzzzwah (in my younger years, roars of laughter would erupt from the class depending on the phoenetic acrobatics that would come out of the teacher's jumbled mouth) "PODESZWA!" I would call to help out. The teacher would stick to "Daisy" and quickly move on.

Growing up I was told that "Podeszwa" meant "heel of the shoe". Our close teenage friends would bug us saying that's why my brother's and my teenage feet stunk so bad. Hahahaha! Good times!

I wasn't sure if the translation to English of Podeszwa was really true, so, I just googled "Podeszwa" to see what I would find. I cried from laughing SO hard! In "google images", there's a seemingly endless supply of pictures of the bottom of shoes or heels of fancy shoes/boots. So. Many. Different. Kinds. Of. Shoes. Once again, I literally "LOL"! Try it! What images come up for your last name?


I have SO many pictures of my brothers and I working in a garden & Dad's stories of his trips to Poland, 
visiting all the farms, that this picture perfectly defines being Polish to me.
Here are the Podeszwa kids, with Dad Podeszwa, soles of our feet covered in a garden, working. 
I bet my younger brother "watered" the plants after this pic!

I also found an "English translation" on the net for "Podeszwa". Here it is: 
sole {noun} [sports]
So there were no longer shoe makers, but now there are people slapping soles on people's shoes.
sole (of the foot and of shoe) {noun}
So there you go! "Podeszwa" is the "Smith" of Poland! Funny short story: my brother married a Smith. Yup! True short story!

On Feb.12th, 2015, I popped onto Facebook. Two interesting things happened:

1. A friend of mine, who served her Mormon mission in Poland, began posting "Fat Thursday" (in Polish, Tłusty Czwartekpictures. She smothered her Facebook page full of Pączki (Polish pastries, very much like doughnuts) pictures. My mouth was certainly watering by now and with every picture, this treat was looking very familiar. I thought I never tried this treat before but my watering mouth told me that this treat was familiar.

2. My brother's Mother-in-law, yup, the "Smith", posted a website to my brother with a photo of my Dad's older brother's gravestone on it. My brother has been gathering his family history and his Mother-in-law found the gravestone, of my Uncle that died as an infant, online. Weird! How could it be "Fat Thursday" and my Uncle's discovery day in one? I was particularly excited because I had just recently gathered information about my Uncle Charles from my Dad. I could confirm the identity of this grave stone because I had just written down my Uncle Charles' birth & death years and the cemetery that he was buried in. Everything on the site was correct. 

I then shared with my bro's Mother-in-law the story behind that stone. You see, my Dad had recently replaced his older brother's stone. I thought he replaced it because it was worn down. My Dad is 75, so that would make his brother 77. I called my Dad again and my Dad shared that he replaced the stone because "Podeszwa" was not spelled correctly (no surprise there!). Also, My Uncle's first name, Charles, was not included on the stone. My Dad did this for his older brother, the brother he had not even met. This story had always touched me. After hearing about it again recently, I was even more determined to get back to my home-town, in London, ON, to see my Uncle's new stone but here I was seeing it for the first time on the internet. A stranger had taken a picture of it and uploaded it online for this exact purpose. So that people looking for their lost loved ones, can find them online. I told my Dad that the stone for his brother was now online. I wasn't sure what he would think of that. He simply said that it was amazing. Just amazing. At the time that my Dad put this stone together, I was busy with little ones and did not have time to support him in this worthy cause. His efforts seemed to go unnoticed and unheralded. That bothered him. In fact, he wanted to be there when that stone was laid but the nuns at the cemetery had neglected to notify him of the stone's replacement. This never sat well with him but all seemed to wash away when his efforts were validated by a volunteer who took time to take that picture, upload it online and now his son, who lives on the other side of the country, and his daughter, have viewed the stone.

Many of you know that I lost my fourth baby, Isoefa Alofa. It has been six years since we lost him and I have not yet had the heart to put his stone together and placed at his grave site. I felt like the time was getting closer and this would probably be the year. When I saw my Uncle Charles' stone, I knew for sure this would be the year. I want my baby's stone to reflect my Uncle Charles' stone. I'm ready and I now look forward to this special moment. 

Through my baby's loss and the loss of my Uncle Charles, I feel closer to my Nana, my Dad's Mother. She died when I was little but I remember her very well. I feel her loss. I feel for her loss and now I feel that much closer to her.


I Love this picture of my Nana. She looks SO Polish to me.
The dress, the hat, her strong body.
Nice legs Nana!

So, when I jumped on twitter later in the day and saw this tweet from one of my favourite local European bakeries, Nougat Bakery,



I couldn't take it any more! I called the bakery, made sure they still had Paczki (they did!), and then called my husband to pick them up on his way home from work.

My husband arrived soon after and our family sat around the table learning about Paczki (pronounced pawnch-ki). This Polish delicacy is traditionally served on Fat Thursday, the last Thursday before the Catholic Ash Wednesday, where Lent begins along with the ban of lard, sugar, eggs and fruit, until Easter. These beautifully simple ingredients are used up together to create this brilliant fruit-filled bun. I must learn how to make them. I carry all these ingredients in my home. All-the-time. Why wouldn't I? I'm Polish!


Paczki!

We tried 3 different kinds of Paczki; Rose (rose-hip jam.lovely!), Raspberry and Advocat (like a boston cream but better).

The table favourite? Without a doubt, it was the raspberry. Each Paczki was beautiful and delicious and would win my dessert heart. However, the raspberry seemed to burst in our mouths with depths of flavour that perfectly complimented the fluffy pastry. It made us all wish there was more raspberry!


Raspberry Paczki.
Heaven!
For me personally, it was a rich taste of something familiar. I think my Dad has bought a cheaper version in the past or I had them as a young child with my staunchly Catholic Nana. Either way, the taste was a taste of home and on Fat Thursday, I felt closer to my Nana and my Uncle Charles. It was a special day and I thank my friend for honouring her time in Poland by posting those pictures and I thank my adopted Mother-in-law for finding Uncle Charles on Fat Thursday. It truly was a Fat Thursday - fat with the spirit of loved ones and cultural heritage. 


My Valentines Day is dedicated to my Nana Podeszwa, 
who suffered the loss of a child, 
on her own, in a strange new country where she began building 
her new home and future. My Valentines Day is also dedicated to my Uncle Charles, who I know enjoys eternal glory 
with his humble Mother and Father. 
Much Love,
your little,
Polski





 





Saturday, January 17, 2015

Northern Falé

This year, 2015, will be the début
of our
"Northern Falé"
house design

Creative process, inspiration, plans, renderings, sketches 
and even "minecraft renderings" 
(c/o our children) 
will début here in 

The design will be orchestrated by our 
"in-house Architect"



We look forward to sharing 
with you the evolution of our 
Uptown Waterloo Home

*Update: the Northern Falé journey continues... II, III, IV, V & VI.

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Old Acquaintance


There's a saying,

"Yesterday is history, 
tomorrow is a mystery
but today is a gift. 
That is why it's called
"the present.""

I try to live by these words of wisdom. I have embraced my present. Two wonderful boys. One darling daughter. That's five of us in our present family. I wanted more of us. At least two more but it wasn't meant to be. So, the five of us carry on quite happily.

Then subtle reminders stop me in my tracks. Like the sweet neighbour boy who seemed about the age of my lost boy, our fourth baby, that died at 24 weeks gestation. My daughter would come home from school and tell me how our little neighbour hugs her every time he see's her in school. I immediately think of what could have been. She could've had a little brother relying on his big sister for comfort and assurance at school. But this is not our life. That's history.

Then the same sweet little boy has his sixth birthday at the beginning of the same month that we will honour our little lost boy's sixth birth-day.

History collides with the present. 

Is it still a gift? It is! I can assure you that it is! Our neighbour's little boy has a sweet little brother and two wonderful parents that come with him. They have entered our lives unexpectedly and have enriched our present. They are a gift! In fact, that sweet little boy's Mother provided a Christmas miracle for me this year. In a very personal and weak moment this month, I felt overwhelmed with sadness and longed to be thought of and cared for in the midst of caring for so many others. The Mother of this sweet boy, not knowing the depth of my feelings, was an answer to that prayer and provided a literal "present" for me that was both unexpected and deeply meaningful. A gift that represented her past and was now blessing my present. A true Christmas gift and like my lost little boy, a Christmas miracle.

My little boy will never be forgotten. Isoefa Alofa Arseneault. Samoan for "Joseph Love". Joseph because he is a Christmas baby. We discovered his death via ultrasound on Christmas day 2008. I wanted to honour the incredible man that is the earthly father of the baby Jesus, Joseph. I have such deep respect for Joseph and the gentle ways he seemed to have with both Mary and Jesus as a baby and then as a growing child. Such an exemplary Father and parent. This is how I imagine my Isoefa. Gentle, strong and loving.

Alofa, meaning love, because of all the love we feel for him and all the love we imagine he feels for us. My younger brother suggested Alofa for a middle name and it is most appropriate. Honouring our Samoan heritage and the love that is abundant there.



What I didn't expect from his birth is the Love that would surround our family then and continues today.

Thank you! Thank you friends, family, strangers, angels and especially my Father in Heaven for all the Love that you have delivered to our family in so many different ways since that historical day. Small or big, it matters not. You were and are a gift to us. 

One such gift was given to me by my friend, Meaghan Smith, who kept up with my story & viewed my photos of the sad events of that day on Facebook. She comforted me in my grief at the time through the words that she reached out to me with. I was then floored to receive an email from this busy Canadian singer/songwriter right before the year anniversary of my baby's death. She had written a song about my Isoefa and did a rough recording of it with her husband, Jason Mingo. This music soothed my broken soul & heart and captured all the emotions of my experience that I could not capture for myself. Just like any gift that was received at that time or since, it continues to bring divine comfort to my aching Mother heart. Grab another tissue and have a listen:




Guess what Meags? After a very green & dry Christmas, a dusting of snow drifted down on our roof & ground today. I was so pleased for snow while listening again to your song. :)

I'm humbly grateful for the gift that is my present life.

As for my history, it shall never be forgotten. 




**This post is dedicated to all who have 
experienced the pains of loss. 
I wish you peace as you 
walk this difficult journey and find your new life 
carrying your loved one in your heart.**

"Your joy is your sorrow unmasked. And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears. And how else can it be? The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight" (Gibran, 1923).

Saturday, November 29, 2014

A Poet and Didn't Know It

I'd like you to meet my Dad.


His life has been simple but packed full of experience. Most of my life I knew he was an amateur Astronomer. My Dad doesn't have a framed University degree or College diploma hanging from his wall but has boxes of 75 years of life experience hidden somewhere from my Mum so she doesn't throw it out mistaking them as "junk".

It was my amateur astronomer Dad that introduced me to Halley's comet when I was a young child. He taught me that Miss Halley doesn't grace our skies with her presence very often and my Dad wouldn't be alive anymore the next time she comes around. However, I may still be alive to see her again as well as my children and maybe even my grandchildren would be able to catch a glimpse of her when she visits again.

That's what my Dad shared with me on that chilly night where I caught a brief look of Miss Halley's speckled tail through a fellow amateur astronomer's telescope. From my childish perspective, the fuss surrounding the event seemed greater than what I viewed through the telescope but it stuck with me. I can still see my Dad peeling over the newspaper articles of her every space move. I can almost smell the chilled air of that evening of our viewing and my Dad's excitement over the entire time period that Miss Halley visited. It's still a palpable memory, even after 28 years.

It was no surprise to me when my Dad began planning his trip to view the full eclipse of the sun that would be celebrated around Cairns, Australia in 2012. If I remember correctly, he called to ask me to help him research some information "on the line" in 2011. Why Australia, Dad? Because it was expected to be the best place in the world to catch a front row view of the eclipse - as long as they're no clouds in the sky that day. That was a risk my Dad was willing to take for this monumental event. Nothing that I said about travelling alone at his ripe age of 73 would convince him from taking a detour onto the comforts of the internet to view this eclipse. He was going to be there in person and continued making his plans and I began the prayers in my heart that there would be a clear sky for my Dad to view the solar eclipse in Port Douglas, Australia (close to Cairns).

Almost two years after his return home, Dad wanted to put together his photos of his trip in a scrap book of some kind. I told my Dad that I would be happy to make a book for him of his experience but thought that it would be nice if he could put together a summary of his trip to go along with his pictures.

I did't know what to expect when my Dad handed me the summary of his experience. I can tell you that I didn't expect to be that little girl watching Halley's comet all over again with the eyes of a mature adult that could recognize the brilliance and wisdom of my Father within his own words. My Dad!

I'm very excited to share with you the beautiful account of my Dad's trip to Port Douglas, Australia on November 14th, 2012 along 4 Mile Beach. The following account is in his own words along with photos taken with his disposable camera...

November 14th, 2012
Full Eclipse of the Sun from Port Douglas, Australia

At 3:30AM November 14th, 2012, 
I awake in my motel room. 
I start my walk to four mile beach in complete darkness 
for approximately 12-15 minutes. 
I arrive at 5:00AM. 
Many people have now gathered on the beach and 
are awaiting sunrise at 5:36am. 
First contact occurs at 5:44am.
The eastern sky is very cloudy 
the sun is only 20% visible than 
cloud moved into 60% visibility 
as the moon's shadow progressed into the sun.
As the minutes went by, 
visibility increased to 85%, 90%, 95%, 98%,
then a flash, a very bright light occurs 
and the sun is 100% covered by the moon's shadow
and we are in complete darkness for 2 minutes and 3 seconds.
Full and total eclipse of the sun has occurred.
I look up and view planet venus and some star's overhead 
- just as I had seen at 5:00am,
when it was completely dark, 
when I first arrived at the beach.
As the moon's shadow begins to leave the sun,
after 123 seconds, 
once again daylight emerges than by 6:30am or so.
It's daylight and the sun was all visible and back to normal 
as the earth traveled east and the sun rose higher into the sky.
I then walked slowly back to my motel room.
For the remainder of the day 
I was excited as the action of a stimulant on an organ of the body or of a plant.










"Just a menu on the sidewalk
in 
Port Douglas town."




















"Just a minute before full eclipse of the sun."














"Full eclipse of the sun.
It's now complete darkness for a few minutes."













"Complete darkness when the moon completely 
covers the sun."













"It's now almost back to daylight after full eclipse of the sun."











The above poses that my Dad strikes are pretty classic of his character. I now look at them with new, mature and informed eyes versus rolled eyes of annoyance or embarrassment.

I now look at my Dad in the above pictures and appropriately recall the song,

"Stayin' Alive!"


Friday, October 31, 2014

Scary Throwback

Time flies when you're having fun, 
sometimes, 
it's scary how fast.

Our oldest is almost 13 years old.
He's handing out candy instead of going out for Halloween this year.
When my kids were babies, everyone said,

"enjoy every minute as it goes by so fast."

Those sleepless nights seemed to prove them wrong

but those people were right.

Here's a walk down our Halloween Lane...



You will notice a strong theme as the years go by.

My André is the Halloween Master!


Halloween is a great time for full sensory discovery.

For me, it was a fabulous Educational exploration. I LOVED watching the kids take it all in.


Yvon's bus (which opened at the front to collect candy) was whipped up by André.
It's a memory fave as Yvon was pretty stoked to collect his candy.
Did you notice my Canadian Olympian?
André won a few Gold medals in making Halloween happen in our house!




To be honest, Halloween stresses me right out.

What will everyone wear?
The pumpkins, the mess, the clean-up, the costumes,
the candy, the tantrums (take a close-up of Melaia in-between the piano pics above),
the sugar rushes, the craziness.

We have three Halloween traditions in my home:

#1. I threaten to cancel Halloween
#2. André makes Halloween happen 
#3. I fall in Love with my husband & Halloween every year.

The kids have a blast.
The whole community comes alive & comes together in pure fun.
Memories are made & cherished.

I hope you also had a most delightful Halloween celebration with your loved ones.

Don't cancel it. Enjoy the smiles & celebration of community!

Happy Halloween!




Thursday, September 18, 2014

Knock Knock. Doors Open!

Doors Open Waterloo Region 2014


From Left: AirBoss Rubber Compounding (former Dominion Tire/Uniroyal Goodrich Plant) in Kitchener, School of Optometry in Waterloo, School of Architecture in Cambrdige and School of Pharmacy in Kitchener.
All images kindly provided by Doors Open Waterloo Region 

except School of Pharmacy image taken from @UWPharmacy on twitter

In an earlier blog post, I wrote about how I grew up with very little. No money was budgeted for entertainment in the community. My family never attended the local fair, rib-fest, busker-fest or whatever other kind of festival was going on in my hometown of London, Ontario Canada that involved money.

I didn't feel like I was missing out on too much because if there was something FREE happening in the community, my Dad seemed to know about it and we were there. Church events were FREE! Canada day events were FREE! The beach was FREE! Springbank park was FREE! The wading pool was FREE! (Are you hearing Adam Sandler from "Bedtime stories" say FREE?! I can clearly imagine my kids quoting that movie as they read my blog.) Visiting Santa was FREE! Skating at Victoria Park in the winter was FREE! The opening event of a new grocery store, or any other kind of grand-opening event was FREE! Hanging out with amateur astronomers and watching Halley's comet whiz by earth was FREEEEE! 

I know, you get it!

If there was a "Doors Open" back in the day, I gaurantee you, my Dad would be taking me to these events because you guessed it, Doors Open events are FREEEEE!!


From Left: Sun Life Financial in Waterloo, Floralane Produce in Woolwhich Township, Quarry in St. Jacobs and Martin's Family Fruit Farm in Woolwhich Township.
All images kindly provided by Doors Open Waterloo Region

What is Doors Open?


I remember a Doctor telling me that a cup of yogurt had more culture in it than he had.


Well, Doors Open would be the prescription for him.


The diversity of doors that open during this event is enough to fill your culture cravings.


If you're new to Doors Open, you might want to follow the following "5 Steps Up to Open the Door" advice. If you've attended Doors Open in the past, read on any ways because if you're anything like me, I need this advice every year.



5 Steps Up to Open the Door

#1. Get your hands on a Doors Open Waterloo Region Event Map & Guide. You can find one at your local library or check out the online version here. If you haven't recycled your Saturday, Sept. 13th Waterloo Region Record, there's one in there too.


#2. Read thoroughly.


#3. Don't fall into the temptation to visit every single site that looks interesting to you. This will be hard. 2-3 sites can easily be a full day depending on the locations. It's really, really easy to lose time at one site and before you know it, 2 hours has flown by. This is the beauty of Doors Open. Embrace it!


#4. Scrap my advice and do whatever the heck you want. I've already picked out 5 sites (which are in 3 different cities and 1 village) and I'm just going for it. You can't stop me!


#5. If you feel the anxiety attack coming on, go back to steps 1-3 and have yourself a great morning, afternoon or day.


Here's a small taste of recent Doors Open events that my family has attended:



When my husband worked at Cannon Design, Toronto, his office participated in Doors Open. They have a creative office with stunning views of the city! This was also an opportunity for Cannon Design to showcase their work to the greater community and my kids enjoyed imagining working there too.
We stopped at the 19th century St. Andrew's Church in Toronto - A congregation of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. We were serenaded by the accomplished organist and also explored The 48th Highlanders Museum  downstairs.

Our Doors Open Toronto adventures also took us to the Architectural offices of Diamond Schmitt Architects but we did not take any photos there because their office was bursting at the seams with people admiring their work and listening to on-site lectures by the architects. The mini workshop in their office stood out to me. Diamond Schmitt Architects continue to make hand-made models of their buildings for their clients. We had to hurry the kids away from that exciting little workshop with so many fun looking toys tools.



My son Rémi loves films, so, off we went to the Open Doors of TIFF! We got some behind the scenes tours (no photos allowed) and learned that we could go into the community resource area anytime and watch pretty much any movie that has ever existed. For FREEEE! (not on big screen. nice computer screen. with headphones. research area.) Just Wow! Lovely historical exhibitions there too. An enlightening visit!
Last years Doors Open Waterloo Region took us down the street from our house to Creative Enterprise Initiative (CEI) where local artists rent out studios. These artists showcased their work for us and it was enriching to see what kind of magic was happening just up the street from our home.
Left to Right: Fun lego homes by Artist Dan Schumacher, CEI's sign - taken from their Facebook page - and gorgeous wood sculpturing by local artist Nicole Waddick.


Last years Doors Open in Waterloo Region also took us to the new Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum Nano-Centre that houses Nanotechnology Engineering at the University of Waterloo. The architecture is stunning and is as intelligent as the scientists it houses. My kids were enamoured by the Engineering Science Quest team where they were actively engaged with fun science experiments. Doors Open Waterloo Region was also the perfect place to bring a visiting friend. We even got FREEEE yo-yo's!

A Pre-Doors Open Event  in my family goes something like this:



Kids: What are we doing today?
Us: We're going to Doors Open!! Yay!!!
Kids: AWWWWWWW!! This SUCKS! It sounds SO BORING!! 
Us: Well, we're all going as a family outing and we want you guys to be careful because you just might have fun!
**We leave and attend a Doors Open site**
Kids: THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!!!

(Perhaps this is a conversation some of us have with our inner-child sometimes?!)

You're going to Love Doors Open Waterloo Region. Whether you're a local resident, or coming in from out of town, there's lots to do and see and there's something for all ages. You will see all kinds of people playing "tourist" for the day, peeling through the map & guide and wondering what door to open next. All you need to bring with you is your curiosity and expect to walk away with new stories to add to your very own. 


The doors open this Saturday, September 20th, 2014 all across Waterloo Region. 
Most doors are open from 10am - 5pm. The weather looks perfect!

If you're participating in #livelocalkw here in Waterloo Region, this event will definitely put a notch or two on your local belt. 

As a special treat, my husband was voluntold to fill in for local Architect and Chair of the Grand Valley Society of Architects (GVSA), David Thompson, who is currently under one of those tight architecture deadlines. André Arseneault, executive member & tweeter of the GVSA, is honoured to share a few words with you about the value of Doors Open to this region: 

"Doors Open allows us the opportunity to fully experience Architecture in an intimate way. Typically, only the architect and the occupants of the architect's design get to fully enjoy and celebrate the spacial experience of the finished product. When architects begin the design process, the hope is that people that inhabit the space or experience the building from the street, will feel those special moments that were orchestrated to embrace the unique architectural narrative that was customized by the place and people that the building was planned to host. When you attend Doors Open Waterloo Region, pay particular attention to the way the light shapes the spaces, how the materials evoke feelings within you, the way the building frames the outdoor views from the interior and how the building connects to it's exterior surroundings. I wish you all the very best in your Doors Open adventures and hope the "common threads" of this year's thematic studies help to create strong memories for you to carry forward in the year to come. Until our next Doors Open in 2015, enjoy!"   
 ~ André Arseneault, B.A.S, MArch, MRAIC 

I guarantee you one thing about Doors Open: Doors Open will surprise you!


Left to Right: Independent Living Center of Waterloo Region, Schnurr's Hall in Linwood, Desire to Learn in Lang Tannery and West Montrose Covered Bridge, 
"The Kissing Bridge".

** Potential Door (Open?!) Prize! **

If you choose to visit "The Kissing Bridge", you may be lucky enough to spot Dee Brun/Cocktail Deeva on her riverside home patio beside the Grand River. Be sure to wave! Also, take an outside peek at her new Bed & Breakfast, "Olde Bridge Place" right beside the bridge. If you like what you see, you just might be invited to spend two FREEEE nights at this darling little country retreat. All you have to do is enter Dee's AMAZING contest and if you win, the FREEEE continues with more first class prizes that add up to total $1585.00. In other words, if you like FREEEE, you're going to like DEE! This historic bridge has a special place in my heart and I'm enjoying watching Dee showcase it's charming beauty through "Olde Bridge Place". Good luck to you if you enter!