resurrection fern

In My Mailbox

I have received some fantastic mail this past week. I ordered one of Geninne's awesome bird prints. Her art and life is so inspiring and we share a great love for the natural world.
Then there was a new little bit of wearable art from maria

I could buy all her pins. They are so absolutely fantastic and unique and I know just how much work goes into each little work of art. She is my crochet idol!!!
Next up mail from my best friend and now my paper cutting idol ( sorry rob ryan) elsita . This is what she sent me for the vintage fabric swap I had a few weeks ago. I can't believe she cut that out by hand with tiny scissors. I think some one needs to go to her studio and look for those little elves with teeny tiny scissors that she must have hiding somewhere . It is really unbelievable what she can do with a plain piece of white paper and a pair of scissors.


The best mail of the week came yesterday after a 10 hour day in the office, the best time to get such a special surprise. It was a beautiful picture my daughter drew with her new art pencils of a special mother and daughter. Do you recognize her? I love that she included my favorite garden flowers, sweet peas in the border. The best thing is that I am going to Ottawa for the weekend so I will get to thank her in person and spend special time with her. Lucky me!!!!

A Day with Tia Margie

My sweet adorable 3 year old nephew Roberto from British Columbia is visiting with us and today his parents went to Niagara Falls and I got to spend the entire day with him as well as taking him to the zoo yesterday. I had so much fun .

The highlights of the last 24 hours according to Roberto were seeing his favorite animal the giraffe, playing with his primas ( tamara, deborah and rebekah) , finding a wish ball, playing with the snails and peeing and pooping in the toilet. We ended the day with playing shadows on the bedroom wall. I love it when he calls me tia Margie!!!!

The Most Vulnerable Need Our Protection

You may not recognize this man but I had the great privilege of hearing his address to the graduating class of 2008 at Bishop's University this past weekend. I managed to find him after the event and shake his hand. It was one of those moments when you feel that you are in the presence of a very special, very important person in the world. His name is Stephen Lewis and he is the Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa appointed by the secretary general of the United Nations. He also started the Stephen Lewis Foundation whose moto is "easing the pain of HIV/AIDS in Africa". He spends most of his time in Africa and he most recently returned from Liberia and shared with us the heaviness in his heart from what he witnessed there. I urge you to read the speech on his foundations website because it is very similar to the address he gave us. The link is http://www.stephenlewisfoundation.org/news_item.cfm?news=2400. The message he delivered to the graduating class was that the most important issue for the world was gender equality . The most endangered, most vulnerable people in the world were adolescent girls. He gave a numerous examples of war and conflict being brought to an end but the sexual violence against women and especially young women continues and no one , not even the peace keepers are working to end this crime. In the Congo young women are being mutilated by rape with knives and other weapons and he talked about something I had never heard of "vaginal destruction". I cried when I heard him describe these things. There I was in the audience with my 15 year old daughter sitting by my side. I held her hand tightly. A few days have passed by and I was walking in the woods tonight with my husband. The forest floor was covered in trilliums in various sizes and colors like the people of the world and then we would find the very rare ( in our woods they are rare) , beautiful, delicate yellow lady's slippers or Cypripedium parviflorum .

These rare beauties need our protection . In the entire forest we walked in this evening we only found about 8 of these flowers in bloom. Those beautiful young women in Africa need our protection as well or they will never grow, bloom , reach their potential or live their dreams. They are like rare wildflowers in the forest that is Africa.

In the words of Stephen Lewis "
If all the peacekeepers were women, and the men of a country were under pervasive sexual assault, do you think the women would simply observe the carnage? Not a chance. And they wouldn’t need a Security Council Resolution to tell them what to do." Please pass this message around because there is strength in numbers and we can make a difference . Thank you.

Ms Elsita Mora meet Mr Rob Ryan

I had two wonderful surprises in the mail this week ( wow and its only wednesday) , a present I bought myself for my birthday last month arrived from England and a surprise from sunny California. Ms Elsita Mora I would like you to meet Mister Rob Ryan .

Now don't get jealous Bill but don't they look amazing together! Many years ago when my oldest children were young I used to order kits from england to make children's clothes . I was very excited to hear that this company was making a comeback and even more excited when I heard to celebrate there restart one of my favorite artist rob ryan designed fabric for a skirt ( for women!!!) . The company is clothkits and they are definitely worth checking out. I can't wait to get sewing this weekend to make the skirt. I told elsita how much I loved the buttons she was making and how I would love to knit a sweater around a set of them . I had no idea she was going to send all those fantastic things. Here are some close up shots so you can see what I mean. I love them so much and I know they will make any item I place them on look fresh and unique. They are so inspiring.

The kit comes with everything you need and the pattern is marked directly onto the fabric. It comes with lining, interface, zipper, a custom clothkits label and even thread. How cool is that !

The only thing I am missing is one of those little house elves that can operate my sewing machine or maybe a solar powered machine that I can take out in the woods and enjoy the fresh air, wildflowers and sew at the same time. That might be a good first invention for the lab Dr Elsita and I are starting. I have a 10 hour work day ahead of me so I better post this , finish my coffee and skidaddle out of here.

Happy Birthday Elsita !!!!!

Elsita turns 37 today. It isn't a secret because she has already posted this on her blog. I don't recall the exact day I discovered elsita and her amazing artwork on etsy ( thank you etsy!) but it was less than one year ago. That lead me to her blog where I fell in love with all her art and instantly felt a connection to her writing. I left a comment and we have been friends ever since. I encouraged her to post her pictures on flickr and she encouraged me to start a blog. She and I have commented on every blog post each of us makes ever since that time. We have different methods of posting. I post a comment every day usually during a short break in my office schedule. It always makes me smile and energizes me. Elsita tends to leave 5 or 6 comments at once , usually late at night LA time. In the morning I wake up very early, make coffee and turn on the kitchen imac. I love finding a bunch of elsita comments. What a great start to my day. Everything elsita touches turns to gold. She can do just about anything . The only craft she doesn't know how to do yet is knitting and I hope to change that when we meet sometime this year. So what do you give the girl who can make anything ? I love making dolls in the waldorf style. I have made them for all my children and some very close family members but never for anyone else until this past week. I made a doll for elsita. This doll hasn't got a name yet because I want elsita to name him with one of her sweet cuban names. He loves to spend his time wandering in the woods, talking to the animals , insects and trees. He loves wild flowers and ferns and he always has his little knapsack with him to gather little gifts that the forest offers him on his travels. He brings them home to share with his mother who loves them so much . This little doll and his mushroom companion are on its way to california to give elsita a huge birthday hug .

A girl, a wild flower and a PhD in Chemistry

I promised I would post one day about my chemistry connection. If you have been following this blog you already know that I am a family doctor but what you may not know is that medicine was an afterthought, a very important afterthought. When I entered university at a very young age I only imagined myself being a scientist and doing research in the laboratory for the rest of my life. I started out in biochemistry doing an bachelor of science with honors in biochemistry but along the way I became really interested in synthetic organic chemistry as it pertained to natural products. I was especially interested in natural products of medicinal use. I was so curious as to the chemical structure of bioactive compounds in wild flowers and plants and I wanted to try to make them in the chemistry lab. Instead of pursuing further studies in biochemistry I asked for a transfer to the chemistry department and I was accepted straight into the doctorate program. I didn't realize it at the time but this is almost unheard of . They usually require a masters degree first and if you are transferring from a different department they sometimes require further studies at the undergraduate level in chemistry before transfer. I don't really know why but it seems that they allowed me to break all the rules. I completed the research for my doctorate in 3 years . My research was on the development of a synthetic organic method of making podophylotoxin the active chemical from the wild flower Podophyllum peltatum ,the Mayapple.
This beautiful plant is also known for its umbrella like leaves and grows in the forests in ontario. An extract of the roots has long been used in medicine as a treatment for all types of warts. I was more interested in making analogues that are now used in the treatment of cancer especially the worst forms of lung cancer . I took some pictures of the plants in our local forest. They have not flowered yet but will in the next week.

Isn't it a beautiful plant. I love the way the umbrella like leaves open up and the bud looks like the head of a very shy person. I will definitely take some photos when the flower is in bloom and update the blog/flickr for you. So this wild flower was the subject for my research that led to the publishing of my first and only book. I did the research in 3 years and wrote the book in 3 months. I typed it all myself and did all the chemical diagrams.

I love all those chemical formulas!!! It was so much fun embroidering the structure of podophylotoxin and the mayapple plant . It brought back all sorts of memories of my chemistry days. That was one of the busiest years of my life. I wrote my thesis, got married , went to Europe, started medical school, defended my thesis and had my first child all in the same year. Looking back on it I wouldn't change a thing. I could probably elaborate on this but I really need to go to bed . Tomorrow I have to get up early for another busy day. I will end this post with a picture from one of my very favorite childhood books Wild Flower Children by Elizabeth Gordon. Guess what the picture is? The mayapple of course.

Birthday Wishes , Memories and an Elephant

Raise the banners, warm up the band and bake the cake , today is my mother's birthday!! She is an amazing 92 years old.

That picture was from my mom's 90th birthday two years ago . Isn't that the most wonderful cake you have ever seen. It had all my mom's favorite flowers and insects on it . My mom and I share the same birthday and some people have said we look alike . What I know is that we both love braids and carrying out children on our shoulders. Just look at the next two pictures.

My mom raised a family of seven children and we are all creative in our own individual ways. Here is a picture of a quilt we made for her 80th birthday. Each child made a square and here is a collage we made for her as well .

I am sure all of you know about the second annual softies awards. Well this year is a tribute to the first softie, an elephant made by Margaret Steiff of Germany.
Everyone knows elephants never forget so I made this little elephant to help my mom keep all her wonderful memories safe. The elephant like my mom is so strong but she can hold little birds in delicate branches in her trunk and keep them safe. I would like you to meet Alice the elephant.

Even an elephant brain can only hold so much so Alice has started sewing memory circles onto her coat so she can carry them around with her everywhere she goes. She shares them with the other animals she meets on her travels.

  Happy Birthday Mom with all our love Margie, Ray, Tamara, Benjamin, Rebekah and Deborah.XXOO.... In honor of today's birthdays I am doing a give away . Leave a birthday hello for my mom , Alice, below or a comment and I will pick a name on Sunday. I will let the winner chose between handspun wool, a selection of vintage fabric and trim or a knitted bunny. Don't be shy.

A Little Dutch Girl, A Painting and A Foot Warmer

This little dutch girl is now elderly and has trouble remembering things but she will never forget how to make things with her hands and the stories behind the little ancestral treasures that she managed to bring with her to Canada. The memories are in her hands and in these objects . She told me a story about the war when she was a young woman in holland. She lived in Utrecht across from the university and her father was in the resistance and in hiding. The german soldiers came into her home and her mom was in bed sick with dysentary. They started removing all the families belongings from the house. Minnie stood infront of a very large oil painting painted by her grandfather that hung in the living room and spoke to the eldest soldier. She told him that they could take everything in the house but she was studying to be an artist and a painter and that she had to have that oil painting to inspire her. The older man told her to take it down and put it in the kitchen. It was the only thing they left behind other than the bed her mom was sleeping in. She has this painting hanging in her living room . She shared that story with me a number of months back and only recently shared with me another part of that story. She told me at the same time the soldiers told her to gather some things into a basket that she might need and put them in the kitchen as well because everything else would be removed from the house . Well most little girls hearing this would gather up their doll or a few toys, some favorite clothes or books . This is no ordinary child. She gathered up photographs, and small things that belonged to her grandmother and great grandmother and placed them in a very special "basket" that is actually not a basket at all but a victorian foot warmer that belonged to her grandmother. She wanted me to take some pictures of them for her so I could show others these little treasures. First photograph is of the foot warmer. I had never seen one of these before and from what I gather it held a ceramic dish inside with warm coals and had a handle so that it could be carried with you . She said they always took it to church because it was freezing there.

Here are some of the things she hid in the "basket".

I really love this next one, a solid gold needle in an engraved silver needle case.

My dear friend can make almost anything with her hands such as fully furnished doll houses and knitted doll clothes. She used to spin and dye her own wool and then use it to knit and weave but she can no longer do that because of arthritis. She does still knit but uses tooth picks as knitting needles. I am in awe of every little thing she makes but my absolute favorites are her buttons. She dyed and spun the wool, wove the material and then formed the fabric into these amazing shapes adding some very unique details. Unbelievable skill don't you think? I am working on a present for my mom who turns 92 next tuesday. It is almost done and I will definitely share some pictures of it soon. Have a wonderful weekend !

Three Thoughts for a Tuesday

"Remember, no effort that we make to attain something beautiful is ever lost." HELEN KELLER "Science and everyday life cannot and should not be separated." ROSALIND FRANKLIN

"I am among those who think that science has great beauty. A scientist in his laboratory is not only a technician: he is also a child placed before natural phenomena which impress him like a fairy tale." MARIE CURIE" I really love that photograph of Marie Curie. I think the last of our snow will melt today because it is going to be 16 degrees centigrade. The birds were singing their courtship songs very loudly this morning and are busy building their nests. I really hope they use some of the colorful yarn I left out for them.

Those pictures were all taken in my yard on the weekend while I was out tidying the garden. They are in order a starling, robin, male cardinal and a female cardinal. I really need to figure out where the robins and cardinals are nesting.

Oscar Day and Bluenose Ghosts

I bet this title got your attention and you are scratching your head, struggling to think of the connection and no it has nothing to do with Johnny Depp or pirate movies. The connection is Halifax , Nova Scotia. Nominated for best actress and winner of last evenings Spirit award for best actress is Ellen Philpott-Page from who used to call herself a tomboy from Nova Scotia. She is from Halifax as are my mother's ancestors. So what does this have to do with ghosts? A few weeks ago I was doing a quick visit to the thrift stores and I always check for interesting old books. I found a copy of the book Bluenose Ghosts written by Helen Creighton .

This is a book I had seen as a child at our cottage and I remembered being told that some of our relatives are mentioned in it. It contains the folk tales and stories of a small island off the Halifax harbor called Devil's Island. In the 1800's there were only only two families on the island the Edward's and the Henneberry's . Thomas William Edwards was a fisherman and the second permanent settler to the island. I think he was my great great grandfather . The relative mentioned in the book was his descendant and may have been my great grandfathers brother . My mom is 91 years old now and can't remember the exact relationship but the island was only 27 acres so my guess is that everyone who lived there was related in some way. You can read the excerpt here .

There was a house on the island that was infamous for poltergeists and ghost sightings. Fires were always appearing there but things would never burn down or even feel hot. My relative John Edwards lived in this house and experienced these things first hand. The house was finally demolished but because there was a scarcity of wood on the small island some of the planks ended up being used in other homes and building and brought with them misfortune. I am sure most of you have heard about the six degrees of seperation theory. Simply put it means that any two people in the world are connected by a maximum of 6 interpersonal relationships. Since I have started this blog I have this to be true and that it really is a small world . I will give you an example. About a week ago Louise Murphy from Atlanta left a message on this blog saying she missed shopping at the thrift stores especially value village and frenchy's . Well the only frenchy's I know are in , you guessed it Nova Scotia. She used to live in Halifax and her sister lived in Dartmouth, beside Helen Creighton, the author of Bluenose Ghosts. Her house has been turned into a museum. I will have to visit it next time I find myself in the Dartmouth/Halifax area. Have a great Sunday evening and if you watch the Oscar's tonight look out for Ellen and Elsita Mora in the beautiful dress she made .