Took a trip to North Holland today...

KathiM
KathiM Member Posts: 8,028 Member
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
To a beautiful city from the 15th century named Leeuwarden. With all that has been happening, I really didn't feel much up to it, but went anyway. Two stirring things happened that touched me deeply:

At the swap meet we went to first, I was given the book 'Life Lessons for Women', by the creators of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series... The first chapter is, fittingly, 'Re-collect yourself'....It came from a Freisian gal who, after I bought one English book for a Euro, chased after me and gave me this one, for free....There ARE angels, even when they don't speak the same language!!! (She spoke Fries, with a bit of Dutch...I spoke English, with a bit of Dutch).

After we left the meet, we went to the center of the city. We visited 2 museums, both in old houses. The last one closed at 5pm, and it was already fairly dark out (it starts about 3:30pm this time of year, and is completely dark by 5:30pm). As I left, I was greeted by church bells ringing, calling the faithful to church, flocks of birds flying in and out of the narrow, brick paved streets, and beautiful clouds turned deep pink by the setting sun. I was speechless, and realized that truly what is important in life is to live life to the fullest that you can....

BIG dutch hugs to all of you, Kathi

Comments

  • laurissa
    laurissa Member Posts: 773
    #2
    Kathi
    Wish I could have seen it. I love sunsets. I get some really gorgeous ones from my backyard sometimes and try to get pictures of them.
  • KathiM
    KathiM Member Posts: 8,028 Member
    #3
    laurissa said:

    Kathi
    Wish I could have seen it. I love sunsets. I get some really gorgeous ones from my backyard sometimes and try to get pictures of them.

    Me, too!!!
    I have never lived by a river before...some SPECTACULAR sunsets stretch all the way to the horizon here....and the sunrises in the winter, on a clear morning, light up the entire sky with pinks, and yellows!

    We are currently under flood conditions here, the Ijssel river is the highest it's been in years...already flooded a city up the river from us. We are behind a lock, and a fairly high dike, but it's only got another 1-2 feet to climb before we are in trouble...sounds like big amount, but this river gets it's water from the Rhine, which gets it from the Alps...record snow there...when it melts...welll.....

    Dutch hugs, Kathi
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    #4
    KathiM said:

    Me, too!!!
    I have never lived by a river before...some SPECTACULAR sunsets stretch all the way to the horizon here....and the sunrises in the winter, on a clear morning, light up the entire sky with pinks, and yellows!

    We are currently under flood conditions here, the Ijssel river is the highest it's been in years...already flooded a city up the river from us. We are behind a lock, and a fairly high dike, but it's only got another 1-2 feet to climb before we are in trouble...sounds like big amount, but this river gets it's water from the Rhine, which gets it from the Alps...record snow there...when it melts...welll.....

    Dutch hugs, Kathi

    Sounds beautiful, and just what You needed...
    when we least expected it. Cherishing all your adventures ...


    Thank you for sharing,

    California hugs, Vicki Sam
  • fauxma
    fauxma Member Posts: 3,577 Member
    #5
    VickiSam said:

    Sounds beautiful, and just what You needed...
    when we least expected it. Cherishing all your adventures ...


    Thank you for sharing,

    California hugs, Vicki Sam

    It is these moments that
    It is these moments that renew us. thank you for sharing this with us.
    Stef
  • sausageroll
    sausageroll Member Posts: 415
    #6
    fauxma said:

    It is these moments that
    It is these moments that renew us. thank you for sharing this with us.
    Stef

    Very moving.
    Your 2 incidents remind us all of something very important. Something we all know...but sometimes push behind us when we get caught up in the difficult times. We should all live every minute as fully as we can. I have to admit, that I did really well with this during treatment...but have not done so well recently. My husband loves to travel and I have resisted...but he did win and booked a trip to Australia,New Zealand and Tasmania.I'm not yet excited, but your message and the happenings of the last few weeks have prompted me to get my act in gear.
    I also have a very good friend whose son died a couple of years ago. She would often see a large heron on her pier...she had never seen him before. She believed it was her son returning home....doesn't really matter whether this can be believed or not....I think we are just more open to these experiences when we have been hurt or in trouble.
    Your two moments sound as though they will be ones that remain in your memory for a long time. Enjoy your day and thank you. Take care. Pat
  • Bella Luna
    Bella Luna Member Posts: 1,578 Member
    #7
    I love your Dutch posts.
    I love your Dutch posts. They provide a scenic escape for us during this difficult time. Keep us in the loop about the latest happenings! Take care, God bless.
    BL
  • sausageroll
    sausageroll Member Posts: 415
    #8
    Bella Luna said:

    I love your Dutch posts.
    I love your Dutch posts. They provide a scenic escape for us during this difficult time. Keep us in the loop about the latest happenings! Take care, God bless.
    BL

    Me too!
    I love your posts about Holland too...especially the last one.

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