Finally I am back on track working daily on my northern memoir,
and it is such a great feeling!
and it is such a great feeling!
I put my word-for-the-year, incrementalism, to work
and promised myself that I would write at least 10 minutes a day.
I've been pretty consistent since April 1st, missing only a few days
when we needed to go to Florida and when I had eye surgery.
Many days my 10 minutes turned into hours,
so I was feeling pretty good about myself!
Just Me and the Laughing Gulls ~ Only Journal Writing
T. H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park
Port St. Joe, Florida, USA
April 8, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
Until, on Monday, when I had a long chat with my youngest sister Bertie on FaceTime.
She is the only published author of books among we five siblings.
Bertie with Her First Book at Colorado's CCIRA Conference
Denver, Colorado USA
February, 2009
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
CCIRA ~ Colorado Council of the International Reading Association
Bertie and I Presenting at Colorado's CCIRA Conference
Denver, Colorado USA
February, 2009
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
CCIRA ~ Colorado Council of the International Reading Association
One of the things we chatted about was how we would feel if we died right now.
That sounds morbid, but it really wasn't. We were discussing where we were in life
and if we were happy with how things had turned out so far.
Bertie Surrounded by Natalie's Partner Jake, Daughter Natalie,
Might-as-Well-Be-Daughter Olivia,
and Niece Heather
Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada
August 1, 2016
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
Peter and Bertie Celebrating Daughter Sara's Birthday with Sambuca Shots
Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada
August 8, 2015
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
and that she had pretty much accomplished everything she had wanted to in life.
She said, "Yah, if I kicked off today I'd be okay with it, unlike you."
"What???" I exclaimed.
"Well, you're running around all over the place, doing this, doing that.
I'm happy to be at home right here in the Cove.
I don't have to go anywhere else or do anything else."
She told me that when our mother was dying she had said to Bertie,
"Don't feel sad for me. I've lived a good long life, and I'm not afraid to die."
"I feel that way too," Bertie said.
Our Last Picture with Mom
Bertie, Roy, Me, Barb, and Donnie with Mom and dachshund Daxie
Mom had insisted on having a big family get together and Sunday barbecue.
She died early in the morning four days later.
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
May 19, 202
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
"I'm not afraid to die!" I protested.
"But I definitely want to be around longer.
I still have things I want to accomplish."
"See," she said.
Barista Bertie Ready to Go with Sunday Morning Lattes for a Houseful
Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada
August 2, 2023
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
"Like, I'd be really upset if I died before I finished my memoir.
I mean, really. That would bother me."
My sister Bertie was in an expansive mood,
perhaps because my FaceTime call had interrupted her mopping the floor.
She said, "I know you. You and I are alike. We're perfectionists.
You need to get that book out, perfect or not!"
"I am a perfectionist," I agreed reluctantly. "But my memoir isn't finished."
"I spent 14 years writing my book on spelling," Bertie said.
"I could have published it several years sooner,
but I kept letting perfect get in the way of good.
You're doing the same thing."
"You don't understand, Bertie. I've got a God-awful mess on my hands.
Hundreds and hundreds of pages. A dozen manuscripts,
almost two hundred blog posts, all those family letters..."
Then she interrupted me with a so-Bertie move, one she's notorious for.
She challenged me ~ She likes to challenge people! ~
She challenged me to promise her,
that one year from that day, Monday, on April 20, 2025,
I'd have my book in somebody else's hands.
"I might not have it finished. It might not be ready for a publisher."
"Then if you don't have it finished, you have it in the hands of someone who can help you.
Just get it out there!"
"Um, ..." At least I can remember the date. It celebrates smoking pot.
Enjoying Sunday Morning Lattes on Bertie's Deck
Roy, Me (Louise), Donnie, and Bertie
Smith's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada
August 2, 2023
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
"I'm serious, Louise! Write this down!
'One year from today, on April 20, 2025, I will have my book in somebody else's hands.'"
"Okay, okay, I'm writing it down. I'll put it in my journal,"
I said, scribbling on a big yellow sticky note.
"Write it down, every month, in your calendar.
No matter what shape it's in, you're going to get it to an editor to help you, by that day,
or to a publisher."
"I was thinking of self-publishing it."
"No, go for traditional. Like, say, Nimbus in Halifax.
They're a good publisher, and they specialize in books for the Atlantic provinces.
That way you don't have to do everything yourself."
Bertie Shares her Picture Book with Friend Penny Graham
who started Mariner Cruises with her husband
On Chad and Sisters Two, Brier Island, Digby County, Nova Scotia, Canada
July 31, 2014
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
Oscar the Herring Gull by Roberta HeembrockNova Scotia, Canada
August 3, 2015
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
"But, my book is about the North."
Bertie and I at the Fish House
Two Point, Lac Seul, Ontario, Canada
Summer of 1962
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
"You're Nova Scotian. Dad's from Prince Edward Island.
Your story happened here too. In Nova Scotia. I say Nimbus."
"I was thinking about Lakewood University. They have an indigenous program there.
I was even thinking of donating Dad's papers there."
"I don't care who you get it to! Just get it out there!"
"Aye, aye, ma'am!" She's as bad as Dad!
📚 📚 📚
Said I to my sister Barb on FaceTime the next day:
"You know Bertie's going to be on me. She's so stubborn!
There's a reason I call her The Mule."
"Oh, she'll be on you!" Barb agreed.
She's probably already written a reminder down in every month of her calendar.
Have you done it, yet?"
"No," I said sheepishly.
"Then, I'd get busy, if I were you!"
Barb and I at a Fundraiser for Digby's and Smith's Cove's Museums
Digby County, Nova Scotia, Canada
August 3, 2019
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
📚 📚 📚
"You've got to love sisters!
They're always ready to kick you in the butt if they think you need it!
Donnie and Me (front)
Just Because ~ I can't leave her out!
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
December 24, 2016
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
I'm linking to Rain's Thursday Art and Dinner Date, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Nicole's Friday Face Off.
For Rain: Disco ~ On Christmas Night in 2016 Bertie, Peter, and their daughters Sara and Natalie, created Club 98 in their basement for a big family get together. All of us have been to the real Club 98 in the Fundy Restaurant in Digby, Nova Scotia, over the years.
Club 98 and a Disco Ball
The Heembrock Basement
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
December 25, 2016
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
After a great dinner, we all went downstairs for games, activities, and dancing.
Peter had a sound system, playlist, and disco lights all set up.
Peter Gets the Lights and Music Going and Donnie Tries a Move or Two
The Heembrock Basement
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
December 25, 2016
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
Peter's music provided a great background for a competitive game of beer pong.
We took a break from dancing to play beer pong ~
and Lisa (Donnie and Martin's daughter) takes a shot.
Blair (Roy and Sue's son), Roy, Donnie, Terry, and Sara (Bertie and Peter's daughter)
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserve
Terry's Team Loses a Round ~
Sara, Terry, Barb, and Pat
(Roy and Sue's son)
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserve
For Tom: Aloha ~ Honolulu has a great zoo in Waikiki. It has three endangered, reticulated giraffes in its African Savanna exhibit.
A Reticulated Giraffe
The Honolulu Zoo
Honolulu, O'ahu, Hawai'i
February 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
For Nicole: A loopy face ~ Terry gets back at me for all the goofy photos I've taken of him.
I had just surfaced from general anesthesia after the operation on my eyes.
I Return to Consciousness
Sue Anschutz-Rodgers Eye Center
Denver, Colorado, USA
April 15, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue. All Rights Reserved
Have a great weekend!
Till next time ~
Fundy Blue
My next post will be
Wednesday, May 1st. 🤞
On the Bay of Fundy
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved
Notes:
Heembrock, Roberta. (2008) Why Kids Can't Spell: A Practical Guide to the Missing Component in Language Proficiency. R&L Education.
Why Kids Can't Spell is a resource reference book for parents and educators who have an interest in and a concern for children's spelling ability. The purpose of this book is to encourage and foster good spelling practices in the home and at school to reflect modern teaching methods. ... Google Books
Heembrock, Roberta. (2010) Oscar the Herring Gull. Illustrated by Adam Murray. Bryler Publications.
Meet Oscar, a bold and adventurous Herring Gull who befriends Grammie Sara, a caring woman in a small seaside town in Nova Scotia. His dive-bombing antics and charming personality quickly win her heart. When Oscar doesn't show up for his daily feeding of scraps one day, Grammie Sara becomes very worried and fears the worst. She scours the beaches for weeks, listening for Oscar's unique call but he is nowhere to be found. Will Grammie Sara find Oscar? Follow Grammie Sara as she searches for Oscar and learn why Herring Gulls are important sea birds. Oscar may even have a surprise for you!
