After ten days of packing, cleaning and saying goodbye
to our home of thirty years, 
Fred and I arrive back in Vernon, 
the snow globe of our lives
shaken and set down again.

What do I see as the snow swirls and falls?

Fires out of control, 
the sun a small red ball in the sky. 
A storage unit full, the rental truck returned.
Fred relieved and recovering. 

My siblings gathered around the table,
having travelled thousands of kilometres to be 
together while our mother still lives. 
We’re talking about high school,
making decisions, 
savouring food and wine,
kidding each other– 
gratitude, a holy presence. 

Our mother is here and not here,
sitting in her chair, legs raised, 
tapping her feet together from time to time
as if she’s Dorothy. 
There’s no place like home, 
no place like this.

No magic spell needed, 
no desire to return to the past,
only the wonder
of discovering what each moment reveals 
and the grace given to hold it. 

Watch closely: I am preparing something new;
it’s happening now, even as I speak, and you’re about to see it.
–Isaiah 43:19 (The Voice)

Credits and References:
Snowglobe 2 by  remediate.this. Used with permission. 
No Place Like This by Esther Hizsa, 2025.
Fisheye Snowscape by  Lauren Waterman. Used with permission.

© Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim, 2025.
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without permission from Esther Hizsa is prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used provided there is a link to the original content and credit is given as follows: © Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim 2013-2025.  http://www.estherhizsa.com