Stealing Wheat and Barley...

- July 18, 2016

Well then... the last time we talked I believe I was sitting on a train on my way to London after experiencing a wonderful couple of days in Edinburgh. It has definitely been quite some time. I would like to say that I was too busy in London to take the time to write, which is partially true, but it was honestly too frustrating to write more posts on my cellphone. I really did mean to catch up after I returned home, but life got in the way... as it so often does.

I have been feeling very lethargic lately, and of course I've had that constant wanderlust to deal with as well. Though the summers are beautiful in Saskatchewan, and ours came very early this year, I can't help but feel like I'm ready to get out again. That being said, I may have already gone on two wonderful trips to the west coast since I returned from the UK, but to me that doesn't count. Have I REALLY travelled if I haven't spent more than five hours consecutively in the air? No. I haven't.

I will be catching up on the last two weeks that I spent in London with my mom, but first I thought i would introduce you quickly to the place that I call home. Not many people around the world are aware of it or its unique characteristics. This wonderful, unpredictable landscape that we call Saskatchewan is in the centre of the Canadian prairies. We are known for our patchwork quilt fields of crops, our constantly changing and extreme weather cycles, our CFL team (The Roughriders), and, of course, that we are the land of the living skies. Just read our license plates - it says so right on them.

Yes, in Canada we get pretty chilly winters. But the beauty of Saskatchewan is that we experience a full four seasons per year. In Autumn, starting in September or October, The leaves turn a million shades of red and slowly fall off of the trees as the temperature drops and the farmers work to pull in the Harvest. When all of the dust from the fields is it the air we get a beautiful view at night of the "Harvest Moon". When the time comes I will be sure to share a photo. Sometimes too soon, the snow falls. Usually a little at first, and it might melt by midday, but eventually we'll get a dump and it will stay and haunt our dreams for the next six months. Winter is long, but there are definitely ways to make the best of it. With a full days drive you can be in the Rockies with your skies or your snowboard. We have some local hills as well, but since we are the prairies I need to emphasize the word hill. There's nothing quite like sitting in front of the fireplace with hot chocolate and a good book while the snow falls, building snowmen when the snow is sticky enough, or walking outside and feeling the oxygen freeze in your lungs when its -40 with the windchill. Why do I live where it gets so cold it is hard to breathe? I may never be able to answer that. But you know what is worth it? Waking up to a white Christmas. Every. Single. Year.

Next comes my second favourite season, Spring. When the snow is finally melting and you can't ever seem to have enough washer fluid in your car. Slush is everywhere, but you can actually feel the warmth of the sun on your skin again. Eventually, after what seems like a million years, the trees start to grown tiny green leaves and the plants start poking up out of the dirt. People start wearing shorts after the temperature goes above zero, and swimming in lakes with ice still covering parts of the surface is most definitely a thing. When Summer finally rolls around you will find everyone soaking up every ounce of Vitamin D they missed over the past 6 months of Winter. Patio season will be in full swing and the heaters will make even chilly nights feel like a warm Mexican evening.

I've saved the best for last, though. If there is one thing that I will always love about this place that I so often take for granted, it is this. These sunsets. These amazing swirls of colours, different every night, that light up our skies in ways that would make Van Gough proud. On the prairies you can see for miles on end with no obstructions. These sunsets are something out of a child's imagination, so vibrant that people of any age will get giddy with excitement when the sun starts to go down.

In fact, I'm about to take off to watch another one.

Enjoy these photos of my home.

Im happy to be back.