To Wander or To Wonder

My mind tends to wander and my mind tends to wonder. My friend Kris was in to see me today. It's always a pleasure to talk with her. She and I have a common interest in that we're both avid readers. She was telling me that one of her dreams has been to have an extensive library in her home. In fact, she has many of the books that she has read over the years and still has in her collection.

She also told me that she recently received a gift of a Kobo reader. When I asked her how she liked it she told me that at first she wondered if she would miss what it feels like to hold a book and manually turn the pages savoring the tactile part of reading a book. To her surprise she found she very much enjoyed it! Having an e-reader had benefits that she hadn't realized including having a large number of books that you could choose from and all fitting into a lightweight little unit smaller than a paperback.

This led me to wander to a book my wife and I are reading as part of a home group study we're part of. The book is called "The Life You've Always Wanted" and the author is John Ortberg.

Ortberg is one of my favorite faith based authors and somehow my mind wandered to a section I had read about our tendency to be a very hurried society. I could relate to so many things he was saying. Sometimes I feel I live my life on a treadmill and to be very honest, I hate that feeling. Trying to get some control back..to be able to stop the rush long enough to be still and savor some of what is happening in my life...well sometimes it seems impossible.

Which led me to wonder how many other people feel this way? My guess is probably a number of us. That's when another thought struck me. You know how when someone asks you what's new in your life we often say something like "Not much really". But one of the things that challenged me in reading John's book was to be more conscious of things that happen in my life. I thought that maybe I should write some of them down to help me remember; otherwise I've used up hours of my life that I can't reclaim. Those hours and the impact they had, must have affected me somehow.

It was at this time that my mind wandered off again and a little voice in my head said "You're beginning to sound like Oprah. Give your head a slap before you sound as goofy in real life as you do in your head!" My mind often brings me back to reality that way.

But there were some really wonderful things that happened to me. Some were so simple, others not. For instance, my wife Leta and I had a great lunch date at Horfrost in the Park at the PCU Centre. We had the best bowl of cabbage borscht that I've ever had. I mean it! It was so, so good! I'd go back any day just for that alone.

Then there was the Aboriginal Gala this past weekend. Musicians and dancers, colorful outfits and drums. It was a wonderful event and it was exciting to be part of it. But a highlight was seeing my friend Edna Nabess again. Edna is an aboriginal fashion designer who works extensively in leather outfits. Edna and I worked on a number of events with the Manitoba Arts Network many years ago. Her creations are incredible! Watching everyone in practice for the evening also made me wonder why, living in a community where we have a large Aboriginal population, I hadn't learned more about their history and their culture. I've determined to change that.

It struck me then that there's lot of things I don't know about Portage. That's when my mind wandered off to my friends Shane Neufeld and Bill Plenty. These guys always bring a smile to my face. What goes on in their heads should be part of a scientific research paper. They are both unique people and I love to be around them. They are brilliant, challenging and they can drive me nuts! They are creative people whose ideas challenge me and admittedly make me feel inadequate. But I like being around them simply because you never know what they're up to. Lately it's a new website called "Hoop and Holler.com" If you haven't been there make a point of checking it out.

So there you go! Was there a point to my story? Not really.

Just aimless wandering on my part. Or should that be wondering?