'Hop in KId!'

It was early morning, and I was on my way home from dropping my boy, Steele off at school, when I saw her standing outside the local cafe.

Looking pretty as always, as she stood on the sidewalk, it seemed perfect timing for me to pull up next to the curb, roll down the window and say, 'Hop in, kid!'

And she did.

'Come' I said, 'I'll give you a lift to your car.'

We only had to turn the corner, and we were there.

And so we sat talking, in the parked car, with the bustle of the neighborhood around us. And there was a lot that my friend needed to talk about. So much that needed to be said. Needed to be heard.

Pain that had been spilling out of her on the sidewalk, found a refuge in my car.

All I had to do was listen. Hear. Care...

And then she was gone, and I went on to claim the day.

Later, my friend sent me a message. 'Thank you for stopping today', she wrote. 'G-d sent you. You are my angel.'

The universe is full of synchronicity.

When it happens for you, I hope that you notice and give thanks...

xxx elle

ashes to ashes

The world was moved this week by the images of thousands of mourners in Warsaw, who had gathered to pay homage to those who lost their lives in a tragic presidential plane crash, that took place in Russia last Saturday.

As the names of those who perished were read out one by one, and as their faces were shown on the wall of remembrance erected in their honour, I could not help thinking of the many who had been buried in Polish soil, with much less ceremony.

The billowing clouds of volcanic ash that have shrouded Europe this past week, are for me a strange and ironic reminder of the Warsaw Ghetto, and of Auschwitz-Birkenau. How long I wondered, would it take to show the faces, and read the names of the millions that died there.

There are of course, many memorials to those who lost their lives in the Holocaust but few can be as poignant, as the one in the forests of Plunge, a small town in Lithuania.

Jacob Bunka, who is the last remaining Jew in the little town, carved these beautiful works out of cedar wood, in memory of the many thousands of his community who were murdered there during the Holocaust.

Of the almost 2300 Jews who remained in Plunge after 1941, only 6 survived.

In the quiet of the forest, with the dappled light and bird song, they are a glorious testimony to the human spirit...

xxx elle

Rock a bye Baby

Mr Nielson better known as Sid, spent a long time in the old oak tree in our garden one summer, hammering away at his idea of a tree house.

Eventually I was invited up to see the beauty of his handiwork, only to discover that even in a tree, I don't feel altogether comfortable more then a few feet up, above the ground.

I was never seen in Mr Nielson's treehouse again.

And no-one else was allowed up there either, until Mr Nielson better known as Sid had put a little fencing up, to protect the small visitors who frequent its dizzy heights!

Still, I can't stop loving the idea of a treehouse. Not the higgledy piggledy, wall-less wander that is Mr Nielson's, but something more closely resembling one of these little beauties.

Bruce Attwood, who was once married to the extraordinary artist Judith Mason, has built a little villiage of them on his farm in the Natal midlands, and best of all he hires them out to tree lovers from all over. The one below is an example of their charm and romance...

I feel sure that I could manage a few days holed up in one of these darlings. Give me a few books, a pot of tea and my very own treehouse builder, that is Mr Nielson, and I'd feel dizzy for all the right reasons! Of course.

xxx elle

With new eyes...

Mr Nielson better known as Sid, always encourages me to look very closely at my shadow.

'Shadow' is central to The Mankind Project philosophy, and nary a day goes by when one is not made conscious of the play of shadow in a world deserving of more Light. We learn from shadow, it is our teacher.

Oftentimes I come upon Muslim ladies dressed in their black Burka's, peering from a thin slit out into the world. Amidst the colourful diversity of women surrounding them, they appear grim and menacing to my prejudiced eye. Magazines hint at the expensive lingerie worn under their protective facade, and tales are told of the designer clothes worn in the privacy of their homes.

The truth is, I find them vaguely disturbing. There is something about a persons eyes, and the open page of their face that feels honest and necessary. I confess to sometimes staring at them with a hint of hostility, and obvious disapproval.

Sometimes, when I am in my Light, I see them in the fullness of their humanity.

That is why I love these photos...

Aren't they Beautiful.

They are full of Light!

xxx elle

South Easter Weekend!

Well, it's the Easter weekend, and we are off to the cottage to lounge around,( although hopefully not as suggestively as Charlotte Rampling) and enjoy a little family bonding.

There is nothing better.

No doubt the South Easter will be howling its way across the sea to the cottage but it is Easter after all, so its to be forgiven!

xxx elle

AromAttic!

I have always loved attic rooms.

They appeal to the well hidden, sensible side of me. After all, growing up in South Africa, I was always advised to not waste the food on my plate, for fear of starving more Biafrans. This prudent counsel must be why I am fixated on getting 2 ply toilet paper ( only the best for Mr Nielson better known as Sid ), at the cheapest price in town! In addition I have a thing about making a weak cup of tea, without sharing the tea-bag! In any event, I digress.

Attic rooms conjour up all kinds of wonderful images for me. Of course, it must be said that my mind can veer off to Mr Rochester, and poor Bertha groaning in her roof-room. Worse still I might consider just for a moment, that irritating Kate Hudson trapped in a circle of satanic fire, between the rafters in The Skeleton Key.

But mostly attic rooms for me, are filled with nostalgia. They make me think of Mary Poppins and Bedknobs and broomsticks (both directed by Robert Stevenson), two of my favourite childhood movies.

Rooms beneath the rafters, can be airy and full of light, with sheer drapes that dance with an early morning breeze.

They can be wall-papered and cosy, ( think Laura Ashley here ) so that you feel held and comforted by the sloping ceilings and dormer windows.

You can squeeze a bathroom into the littlest roof space, and it's a perfect place to make use of a slipper bath from which to gaze out the window while you soak!

Attic rooms can be wonderfully romantic; the low ceilings can provide a kind of built in four poster effect to even the most modest bed. Just add a little chandelier and you've got honeymoon written all over you.

In fact they are perfect to brood in alone, ( hopefully not as miserably as Bertha in Jane Eyre ) or better still to share with a sibling ( think The Railway children here, ) or a best friend.

xxx elle

Singing in Stanford to the Bailey blues.

No visit to Blue Gum is complete without stopping in at Stanford, the little village that is close by.


And no visit to Stanford would be worth it's salt, without knocking at the door of Tom and Su, and finding them home.

Behind that unassuming front door, lies a little piece of country heaven, and Tom, Su and their beautiful daughter Ella manage to come through several weekends a month to enjoy its celestial delights.

Su, brother Grant and their sister Lulu, who owns Lucky Fish (everyone's favourite lifestyle shop at 44 on Stanley), have more style then any one family should have! There is something about the warmth, comfort and colour of all their homes that make them immeasurably charming and covetable.

Best of all, the sisters are as lovely as their interiors and just as welcoming...

xxx elle

Under bluegums...

Every now and then Mr Nielson better known as Sid, and I make a quick getaway to the country for a few days. Blue Gum Lodge is one of our favourite boltholes. We have sampled almost all of its delightful accomodation; mountain family suites, romantic 'elephant' and 'lion' boudiors and even the private 'villa'.

All of them keep us yearning to return, not just for Blue Gum's expansive gentleness and comforting silence but also for the delicious cuisine and adorable staff. The previous owners made social upliftment in the area a priority, and Moira our waitress, who once hid in the ladies room in terror of the guests, now confidently regales us with mirth-filled local tales and country gossip!


New owner Graham, has thankfully maintained its welcoming ambience along with all the little nuances, that make Blue Gum so addictive. After breakfast, his son Simon arrived, with bass from the river to release into the Blue Gum dam!

An historic moment no doubt, caught on my camera, for Kingfishers and future guests to enjoy!

In just the few days that we visited, Sid and I saw glorious porcupine scuttling through the thicket, and huge barn owls that eyed us wearily from their lookout posts along the gravel roads. Shy buck grazed close by late at night, and troops of baboon thundered down through the vineyards during our breakfast, all the while chased by the live 'scarecrow', employed to keep them away!

Can you blame us for coming back for more...

xxx elle

If only...

My son Steele and I were driving through downtown Cape Town today, when someone offered us a leaflet, as we stopped at the traffic light'

I always open my window and take one, even though I thankfully don't need car repairs, or short term loans which is what they usually advertise.

I take one and smile, because that is what you do for someone, who is forced to hand out leaflets at the robots for a pittance everyday.

Steele and I mused over today's offering:

Fortune Teller

Prof Moi From Kenya Consultation: fee R50. 00

The professor uses 'pure natural herbal medicine from the masaai land to heal his patients' He also makes use of his spiritual powers to treat problems like:

Bring back lost lover

Settling your debts

Worried about court cases

Employment difficulties

Penis enlargement

Bad luck

Enemies

Ghosts and demons in your house

Gambling

Heavy drinking and smoking

To perform at school...

The Prof also has the cure for 'heave (sic) woman flow, body pains and boils', as well as many other disturbing ailments!

We both thought it was very funny but of course, it also made us think of all the many countless people, ready to pay their R50. 00, in the gullible hope that such things are possible.

It made me think of journalist John Diamond's book, 'Snake oil and other preoccupations'. John, who (in a stroke of Divine irony) was married to Nigella Lawson, died of throat and tongue cancer some years back, and his book included an examination of the countless alternative healings offered to the desperate, and the dying.

Healing is a mystery. Death an inevitability. And. Life. An extraordinary possibility! That's why we should live it with every ounce of our being, as best we can. And if you are on a 'grape cure', eating shark cartilage, making Castor oil poultices or meeting with Prof Moi:

Please keep seeing your doctor too!

xxx elle