July 28, 2010

nova scotia thistle

whenever i see a thistle here i think about the brooch

the scottish wear on their kilts or the ladies on their sweaters

thistles are synonymous with nova scotia and scottish heritage

i remember the first time we came here back in 1995 i 

felt like i was home

it just felt right

now you might think that is because i am scottish

-- not so --

we have english and german in our background.

i am not sure why i resonate so well with the

culture here, the music, the food, the foggy days by the sea

where the wind would blow away all cobwebs and worries from 

my soul.

we had a golden retriever when we used to live here and i 

would take sandy frequently to the sea for a swim

and the roar from the sea smoothed stones rolling back and forth from shore to sea
would somehow

strangely sooth my soul.

bob and i used to frequent ceilidh's

either on a friday night in halifax

or drive to cape breton for a weekend of music and dancing

it was there that i learned to dance the scottish step dancing

and the iona and inverness style of square dancing.

 it would bless my heart with so much joy to do the gigs!

i was often mistaken for a gal from cape breton

and to me that is the greatest compliment anyone has ever given me

i bought bob a fiddle that once belonged to  an amazing cape breton fiddler

called dwayne cote
but it had a beautiful rich tone to it
dwayne cote
some toe tapping music

 everyday for years at around 5:30 in the evening
bob would practice his fiddle
at first it was a little hard on the ears but after awhile
 the dog and i would find ourselves dancing in the kitchen
i kid you not, whenever sandy heard celtic music she would jump
up and dance.
no lie.
great dog!

the people here are notably more friendly then canadians

in the middle or the west coast

if i were to settle in canada again i would 

find myself drawn to a smallish seatown spot

perhaps baddeck

where people still have time to 

sit for tea,

they make their living simply by fishing at the banks

and find themselves dancing wildly when the fiddle

is 'close to the floor.'

what does that mean you ask?

well there is a certain note that is so deep, like a drone,

that it resonates to the very core and causes one 

to jump up and start to dance without any reservation

or thought.

i want to live close to the floor more often....