Beans. Yellow beans and tomatoes, actually. I am again coming from our garden, this sunny mid-September Saturday, with bounty. There is also a lot of basil growing so one of these days, in theory, I'll make pesto. We haven't yet made salsa (although my second daughter did at her house) because the tomatoes have been ripening at a pace which allows us to eat them as they ripen. I am also still able to make some fall bouquets; some of the flowers have finished, but I still have a few lingering sunflowers, many zinnias, and a surprise for me (because I forgot that I planted them), more gladiolas of the double orange/yellow variety. They make a gorgeous autumn bouquet, both in the front yard and in an orange vase in the dining room.

Last night I was invited to give a presentation for my cousin and his wife, Baha'is in Ottawa, and did so to a crowd of about twenty. The topic was "the Creative Process" and I was meant to blend my spiritual search with my work as a poet. I enjoyed doing it and it was well received. I especially liked having Bernie's company; he is so seldom able to come to events with me that to have his company there was a real treat.

We had dinner together beforehand at a Mexican restaurant on Bank Street (NOT Mexicali Rosa's, but I forget the name). Very tasty. I miss good corn tortilla (and a lot of other things about Belize) so it was nice to be reminded, with a dinner of chicken, cheese and veggies inside corn tortilla's, accompanied with rice and beans. I was surprised that they were black beans because I tend to associate red kidney beans more with Central America.

I'm back at the beans!