It’s time for 2016’s first entry: SHARE YOUR WORLD – 2016 WEEK 1.
As a child, who was your favorite relative?
My maternal grandmother, after whom I am named. She was the one person in whose eyes I could do no wrong. The best years of my childhood were the two years (ages 9–11) I spent living on the farm with my grandparents. Grandma taught me how to make biscuits. Her love and encouragement gave me the resilience I needed to make it through adolescence in a dysfunctional family relatively unscathed. I still think about her almost every day because so much of who I am today has resulted from her influence.
If you could be a tree or plant, what would you be?
I had never thought about myself as something as immobile as a plant or tree. In fact, I’ve always thought of questions like this—“If you were an animal, what animal would you be?”; “If you were a color, what color would you be?”—as rather silly.
But then I found Spiritual Dragonfly’s response to this question. She has links to finding both your birthday tree and your Celtic tree. This approach intrigued me, especially the Celtic tree because I have Irish ancestry on both sides of my family.
This is my birth tree:
Pine Tree (Feb 19 to Feb 28,Aug 24 to Sep 02):
Pine tree signifies vivacity, inventiveness and life. You are passionate, but are very susceptible to distractions. This makes you not bale to finish things at times. You are always trying to improve your life and can come up with many ways to keep you and others interested. You like sharing whatever you have with others and get along fabulously with like-minded people.
This is my Celtic tree:
Hazel – The Knower
August 5 – September 1
If you are born under the energy of the Hazel, you are highly intelligent, organized and efficient. Like the Holly, you are naturally gifted in academia, and excel in the classroom. You also have the ability to retain information and can recall, recite and expound on subjects you’ve memorized with amazing accuracy. You know your facts, and you are always well informed. This sometimes makes you appear like a know-it-all to others, but you can’t help that; you’re genuinely smart and usually know the right course of action because of your impressive knowledge base. You have an eye for detail, and like things to be “just so.” Sometimes this need for order and control can lead to compulsive behaviors if left unchecked. You have a knack for numbers, science and things that utilize your analytical skills. You like rules, although you are typically making them rather than playing by them.
Now this question doesn’t seem so silly to me.
What would be your preference, awake before dawn or awake before noon?
Definitely awake before noon. I am a night owl. Anything before 10:00 AM seems like the middle of the night to me.
Would you like to sleep in a human size nest in a tree or be snuggled in a burrowed spot underground?
This is a tough one. While I often dream that I am either flying or standing on high ground observing the scenery below, I don’t think I’d like to commit to sleeping in a nest in a tree.
On the other hand, I am just a slight bit claustrophobic, so I don’t relish the thought of sleeping underground, either. Edgar Allan Poe knew what he was doing when he wrote about being buried alive as an archetypal fear.
So I’m going to compromise here. I’d rather sleep in a human-size nest on the ground, out in the open, where I can look up at the stars.
Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?*
I’m grateful for the start of a new year. I look forward to starting 2016 on a positive note.
Have a good week, everyone!