Have you ever noticed how many stars there are in the season’s traditions? Venus calls out in the night sky as we pretend it is the Star that lead the wise men. Christmas carols sing out the magic of a holy night with stars brightly shining, treetop decorations twinkle everywhere and Hanukkah’s star of David shines its indigo beauty.

You know I love stars by the bazillion I painted in “Mother Nature’s Kiss”! My daughters and grandbabies went to Vallea Lumina in Pemberton, BC and just look at the stars in the forest! Spectacular!

Kind of looks like a page from my book, doesn’t it?

On this New Year’s Eve, there is a palpable yearning of hope all over the world. We make wishes and resolutions, which are all based on hope. We take stock of our lives and the state of our world and hope, wish, resolve to make things better.

As I began my lists for presents this year, I tallied up the number of gifts I wanted to buy. Jack and I have 6 kids between us, which turns into 12 with significant others. Seven grandchildren and a couple of other family members turns into a large number fast and I thought through giving socially conscious gifts, our family could make a positive impact.

I research different companies and in the end landed on Tentree Check them out here. who sell high-quality clothes and plant ten trees in the fire-ravaged areas of B.C and California for every item sold. I loved the colourful sock choices at Bombas where they donate a pair to homeless shelters for every pair sold. Here is their fun site. Then I bought the 12 pack Clean Ocean Collection bracelets from 4Ocean, where they clean 1 pound of garbage from the oceans for every bracelet bought. The 12 were even more special as the funds also go towards the preservation of ocean coral reefs, mangroves, dolphins, seahorses, sharks, whales, polar bears, penguins and waterfowl, just to name a few. Their website sucks you in, in the most wonderful way as you want to jump in and support the movement. Pun intended.

This brings me to who make the bracelets. Women in Bali are able to join the workforce and, as primary caregivers, can work from home to assemble the bracelets. This goes for so many Free Trade and sustainably made goods. I gathered baskets, chocolate bars oven mitts (made from repurposed saris) and tree decorations, all made by women who work to bring home wages to feed their families.

It was a rewarding challenge to pull it together and through my big family, we touched the lives of people all over the world, planted 100 trees and gave some love back to the ocean.

Oh, it was also a season of elves!!

I chuckled as I hung the elves on the painting and purposely slanted it as a reminder to myself that life isn’t perfect and that’s ok. My stress skyrocketed, though, when I realized I lost my wallet 5 minutes before boarding the plane on Christmas day – but that’s another story!

As the year closes, I would like to reach out and thank all of you who supported me this year by buying my books. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your positive impact on me! When you put yourself on the line and create something from the heart, you never know how it will fly. “Mother Nature’s Kiss” certainly did and “Gifts of the Crysnix” is still a favourite of the slightly older crowd. They are both books of stars and hope and I absolutely love sharing them!

Best wishes to you all for the best year yet!

A complete stranger came up to me and asked, “Do you like purple?”

I swallowed and looked down at my purple glasses. Glancing sideways, at the purple tablecloth with two stacks of different purple books, behind me at two predominantly purple standing banners, posters, flowers and even a purple pen, I answered quietly, “Yes, I guess I do.”

“Your outfit even matches your book.”

“Yes, yes it does…”

Geez.

Yes, I have worn a lot of purple over the last two years while promoting my books, “Gifts of the Crysnix” and “Mother Nature’s Kiss”. I just want people to know who the author is.

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I have been seeing a lot of purple out there since that stranger’s question. I just love when my lilacs bloom and I make a huge bouquet in my beautiful antique vase. It is the happy colour of pure joy while Poppy swings on a sunny day and the hopeful colour of pansies popping up from the winter soil.

But more than all that, I feel it is the colour of compromise. Looking at a colour wheel, purple is the tempering of a hot red with a dash of cool blue or opposite the excitement of bright orange, is the calm violet. I chose purple for the cover of my books so they would appeal to anyone. Not blue for boys or pink for girls, but a neutral purple for everyone.

With Canada Day tomorrow and Independence Day coming up in a couple of days, I want to celebrate the love I have for my American friends and their country as well as my beautiful life in Canada. We are all so fortunate to live in North America. Our cultures are as stable as they are by the strategic acts of compromise. That’s as political as I will get but I know you will read between the lines.

Let’s just say that if we blended all the colours of our flags, we would end up with a beautiful shade of purple!

I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend celebrating what makes our lives, homes and countries so special. It is in our uniqueness that we find tolerance and compromise, and that is what makes our countries strong.

Even if you don’t like purple, I respect our differences and that’s a cool way to live.

Have a positively and perfectly purple day!

xox Lisa