Returning to Where My Heart Races and Quiets by Heather Michet

Oh, Europe!  Ah, l’Italia!!!  Thank you for welcoming me home once again.  It’s been waaaaaay too long, 22 years exactly.

While I currently reside in the US, my soul belongs in, or to, Western Europe.  If you went by my DNA chart, you’d think I’d be landed somewhere in Deutschland.  But that’s not where my heart simultaneously slows down and speeds up: I relax into a less frenetic pace, a deeper and broader view of the world that’s more in accord with my personal culture and practices when I’m in Italy.  At the same time, I’m giddy to hear multiple languages as I meander through the streets, eat the best foods, marvel at ancient sites and architecture.  It is the sweetest bliss.

During this last trip, I didn’t have the usual opportunity to sit at a café and write my observations and reflections that always stream in during travels.

I did, however, take a small notebook that fit easily into my sling bag, making it simple to whip it out and jot down several gems while on the bus or at the end of my day.

Reading through my travel notes from the October 2021 Italy trip recently, I immediately knew that I wanted to share a few choice ones in this piece.

SOUNDS:

• EEEEEE-EWWWWW EEEEEE-EWWWWW EEEEEE-EWWWWW, the unmistakable Polizia siren.  The sound of first responder vehicles across Europe is loud & clear!

• Soaking in Italian, Russian, German, French, English, Dutch and other languages while walking through big city streets

• Mass being sung in Latin inside St. Peter’s Basilica.  All of that stone makes for the BEST acoustics!

Altar frontispiece: mosaic made of tiny stone pieces.  Zoom in for detail.

TASTES:

• First Day in Italy tradition: Sit at an outside café drinking a magnificent coffee along with a baked treat.  YUM!

• Another First Day in Italy tradition: Slowly delight in and devour a Rocket Salad = arugula and cherry-type tomatoes with a simple olive oil and vinegar dressing

• Gelato.  Our first gelato spot had 150 flavors!!!  Not kidding.  (This was an anomaly, however.  Most shops have between 5 and 10.)  How the heck does one decide?  We picked 3 flavors each.

• European butter.  Enough said.

• Whatever the region’s specialty dish is must be sampled.

SIGHTS:

• Traffic - LOTS of cars, scooters, pedestrians, bicycles and buses in the bigger cities.  As a pedestrian wanting to cross a street, look for an opening in the traffic flow and GO with determination and no hesitation.  It’s up to you to cross safely, not the drivers.

• Art.  Architecture.  Antiquities.  Oh my!

• The sight and comfort of people truly engaging with one another, whether walking arm in arm down the street or sitting at a café with friends.  It was so pleasant and welcome to witness folks with a lighter/freer attitude vs. the deep anger and hostility I sense in the US these days.

Trevi Fountain, Rome

From senses to sensibilities, here are a few of my observations and reflections that I noted on this trip, which you may find interesting, helpful for your own travels or just a “quirky Heather thing.”

• The best way to learn or remember another language, customs and practices of another culture is to dive in!  Always ask for help.  Most people love that you want to learn about their language and country.

• Complainers abound in the tourist (I call them tourons) crowd.  If you want it the way it is at home, stay there and don’t travel.

• I love being a curious and considerate traveler!  I really dislike being a touron.

• When dining in a restaurant, including a simple café, the customer asks for la cuenta (the check) when they are ready to leave.  The wait staff will/should NEVER leave a tab on the table, anticipating your departure. This is considered rude behavior.  The point is for the customer to luxuriate over their meal, not for the restaurant to maximize the number of times a table is “turned”.

• Yes, you can stay fit and healthy during your travels!  Part of my daily notes log was writing down how many miles I walked.  The first day was 6.2!!  A huge highlight of the trip was swimming in the Ligurian Sea.  Wow.

I cannot emphasize this last point enough: Getting or staying in good physical shape before traveling is key to maximizing the enjoyment and pleasure one experiences.  Good health and stamina mean you can explore more and not be sidelined with feeling funky.

One way I ensure this is by using Fresh Air Fare during air travel and each day I’m “on the road.”  It helps boost the immune system and gives a physical barrier to the nasties around us.

No matter where you reside, I hope you make yourself at home in the places you travel to and bask in every experience with your senses and sensibilities.

May your travels be joyful, invigorating, enlightening and healthful!

All photos taken and copyrighted by Heather Michet. ©2022

Heather Michet is an impassioned healing artist, traveler, wellness guide and Ceremonial Songstress who weaves lyrical, a cappella vocals throughout a wide array of ceremonies in a myriad of settings.  From weddings in the woods, graveside memorials, and ashes scatterings at the shore, her Celtic style voice embraces the heart and stirs the spirit of all who gather honoring life events.  You can connect with Heather and her work in any (or all!) of these ways:

• Learn about her wellness tools (including Fresh Air Fare) and services rooted in nature at Iris Healing Arts

• Listen to her music on YouTube 

• Read about her Ceremonial Songstressing at Purple Crow Sings

• Facebook – Heather Facebook – Purple Crow Sings   Facebook – Iris Healing Arts

• Instagram - @heathermichet

 Your Best Self-care Tip May Be Doing Nothing by Heather Michet

We’re at the crossroads again: a new year, new promises, new shoulds and pressures to strive higher and harder to “be more, do more and have more.”  

We’re told that bigger dreams and bodacious goals get realized when we push the limit.

But is this really the only way to get there?

I mean seriously: Are your body and spirit deeply crying out to hop on the treadmill, both literally and figuratively right now?

Mine aren’t.

Think how out of sync a busy calendar and pushy task list really are in the month of January.  Are Mother Earth and her creatures scrambling around like maniacs to get everything done while they hunker down?  Nope.

We’ve just bustled through a full and hectic holiday season (ok, perhaps less so than those of 2 years+ ago, but still).  Winter weather has set in which means snow and cold for many of us.

Then January 1st hits the books and we’re supposed to wake up bright, perky, and fired up to set the world, our business, and our health on fire to the highest and healthiest heights.

Are you sensing a disconnect and incongruency here?  Some cross-purposed energies, perhaps?

Think about this for a moment: December 21st was the first day of WINTER.  Not Spring.  Not Summer.  Winter - a time to pull in, tuck under the covers, reflect, get quieter, sit still, rest, recharge and engage in gentler, slower activities like reading, sipping a great mug of tea, writing, handicrafts and naps!!

What if easing into the new calendar year this way was the ticket to more fulfillment, enjoyment, peace and prosperity?  

What if savoring our days and their offerings by being fully present for each experience vs. hustling through the task list every waking moment brought us closer to ourselves, our dreams and our world?

What if taking stretches of doing nothing (however brief or extended) resulted in richer outcomes than we ever imagined?

What if, indeed.

I experienced this quite intensely in November after returning from 2 marvelous weeks in Italy.

Part of any “away” time I take is followed by a day or two (or more), of a blank calendar; a time when there are no ‘out there’ commitments, no To-Do lists, and little to no connecting with other people.  This delicious time is all mine to simply BE as I soak in, reflect upon, and write about my experiences and perceptions garnered while away.  

During this integration and recovery time, I allow my body, mind and spirit to dictate what’s next: It’s 3:30 p.m. and I’m so wiped out that I have to lie down and sleep?  Sweet dreams.  It’s 1:40 a.m., I’m wide awake and famished?  Chow down!  Muscles and limbs feel stiff and yearning to stretch and strut?  Get on the hiking boots and head out the door!

This “after party” time following my Italy trip was blissful and rich.  No social media, no phone calls, no work agenda.  And boy howdy did the slow and quiet time provide space to receive some big abundance!!

One phone call from an acquaintance resulted in 2 new healing clients, followed by 2 ceremonial clients confirmed a week later.  WOW, this practice works!!!

Now I’m not advocating for a slothful, undirected or mindless life with this occasional practice of slowing down and quieting.  Nor am I guaranteeing spectacular gifts to roll in like those I received.  

But I know these periods of quiet stillness help us come back to our center to see, feel and discern what is essential.  And I propose there’s no better time to do this than amidst winter’s unhurried season.

So, in addition to visioning your year ahead with its goals and dreams, pull out your planner and schedule in some nothing time that’s free of the external noise.  You never know what goodness may come to grace you.

You never know what goodness may come to grace you.

_________________________________________________________

Here are two great resources to guide and support you in taking slow, quiet and restorative time:

Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May

Daring to Rest by Karen Brody

All photos Copyright © Heather Michet 2021

Heather Michet is an impassioned healing artist, wellness guide and Ceremonial Songstress who weaves lyrical, a cappella vocals throughout a wide array of ceremonies in a myriad of settings.  From weddings in the woods, graveside memorials, and ashes scatterings at the shore, to house blessings and birthday parties, her Celtic style voice embraces the heart and stirs the spirit of all who gather honoring life events.  

You can connect with Heather and her work in any (or all!) of these ways:

• Listen to her music on YouTube 

• Read about her Ceremonial Songstressing at Purple Crow Sings

• Learn about her wellness tools and services rooted in nature at Iris Healing Arts 

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie…

My fantasy vacation is this month’s theme on Romancing the Genres. I love to travel, although I don’t get to take-off as often as I’d like these days. So, for me and all the other armchair travellers out there…this is a perfect excuse to wallow a while in fantasy-land.

If I had to choose only one perfect vacation spot…I’d choose two. Ha! I cheated. It’s my fantasy and I’ll make up the rules as I go along. Italy and Spain are at the top of my list of amazing countries I’ve visited. Any fantasy vacation would have to include visiting those two destinations again…

That’s amore!

Once I had my bags packed and managed to round up my husband and two boys, I’d be off to Italy. In First Class, of course. I’ve never actually sat in First Class but it’s on my bucket list. Why not travel across the globe in style, sipping Champagne, then actually lie down on an overnight flight?

Photo of Florence – the city at sunset

The city of Florence in Tuscany, Italy, is arguably the most gorgeous and romantic city in the world. I had a chance to travel there twice so far, once in 1999 as part of a university study tour to several European companies. I spent a lot of my spare time there just wandering through cobblestone alleys and winding streets and eating gelati ice-cream.

Then in 2005, I got to travel back with my husband on our honeymoon. One of my favourite things to do there is climb the hill on one side of the river Arno, for the view right over the famous bridge, Ponte Vecchio, and the whole city. I took some photos and stumbled across a small chapel with a group of monks inside singing Gregorian chants, like I'd stepped back in time to the middle ages.

Both times I visited, the city hit me with a double-whammy of romance and history. I’d go back to the Uffizi gallery in a heartbeat to admire one of my favourite paintings in the world – Botticelli’s Primavera. And of course I’d say hello to the statue of David and tour the renaissance buildings such as the palaces and old monasteries in the Tuscan countryside.

Detail of woman in a Botticelli painting

Since this is my fantasy, I’d also eat as much as possible without putting on any weight. The best gelati ice-cream in the world, delicious pasta and steak, and the Chianti wine made by traditional winemakers in the hills. While I’m imagining, I’d stay at a luxurious palazzo with a swimming pool and enjoy the summer sunshine without the heat we get in Australia.

Fiestas of fun

I visited Spain for a month in 2010 when a family member got married there. On this trip I had both my husband and our little 13 month old son in tow! He actually learned to walk in the El Retiro Park in central Madrid, toddling around on the grass. Later, he had hours of fun running up and down the pedestrian mall outside our hotel.

Royal Palace – Madrid

On my fantasy trip, I’d spend hours or maybe days wandering around the Royal Palace in Madrid, before making my way down south to the equally magical south of Spain. I’d let my boys run wild in the acres of park land and then take a trip down to the wonderful Medieval hilltop city of Toledo about an hour away by train. We'd stay somewhere with banquets of paella and Spanish flan, then go see some flamenco dancing.

When I visited Barcelona with my family, the city was in full-swing summer festival mode. A massive stage had been setup by the waterfront for free concerts, the popular boulevard La Rambla was packed with people rambling each night, browsing market stalls and eating tapas. And there were random art shows and performances around every corner. I loved wandering around discovering things such as a parade of giant marionette puppets representing historical characters.

I’d take my boys to the Gaudi-designed cathedral, La Sagrada Familia, which looks like something conjured from a fairytale. We’d buy swords from the traditional armour-makers in some of the old parts of the city and play pretend knights in an old-world hotel that used to belong to nobility.

La Sagrada Familia  – Barcelona

No fantasy trip of mine would be complete without shopping, so I’d be ready with indestructible credit cards to hit all the Italian and Spanish boutiques. Especially shoes, boots and handbags. Don’t ask how many pairs of shoes I brought back from my last European trip…but considering I only have two feet, and I had to buy a new suitcase, it was a few.

Finally, I’d stop off at a few places I didn’t get enough time to see last time, like the seaside resort town of Malaga or the island of Majorca and just relax at the beach.

P.S. – Remind me to actually finish writing the book I have in draft, with a few chapters set in Spain!

P.P.S – My debut novel, Girl on a Plane, has a lot of travel in it too. It's on sale now for 99 cents US! Buy links - www.books2read.com/girlonaplane 

 

About Cassandra O’Leary

**Winner of the global We Heart New Talent contest run by HarperCollins UK. Nominated for BEST NEW AUTHOR in AusRomToday 2016 Reader's Choice Awards for excellence in Australian romance fiction**

Cassandra O’Leary is a romance and women’s fiction author, communications specialist, avid reader, film and TV fangirl and admirer of pretty, shiny things. Her debut novel, Girl on a Plane, was published in July 2016. 

Cassandra is a mother of two gorgeous, high-energy mini ninjas and wife to a spunky superhero. Living in Melbourne, Australia, she’s also travelled the world. If you want to send her to Italy or Spain on any food or wine tasting ‘research’ trips, that would be splendiferous. 

Read more or sign-up for Cassandra's newsletter at cassandraolearyauthor.com

Catching up with Deanne Wilsted

If life is a journey, then the Genre-istas can certainly celebrate having enjoyed every mile along the way. Thank you so much to the crew for having me back to help celebrate this Sixth Blog-O-Versary! I am so proud to be counted among the amazing group of writers that have helped contribute to the blog’s success. 

To help celebrate the success of Romancing the Genres, I’m offering all of my Kindle books for just $.99 on Amazon for a short time from May  22^nd. You can find them here: amazon.com/author/deannewilsted

Throughout the ups and downs of parenting, moving, and publishing, my characters have continued to inspire my writing and driven me to get their stories out there. 

I completed and published my third novel, Molto Mayhem, set entirely in Italy. It has received great 4 and 5 Star reviews on Amazon… especially for my descriptions of Italy. Part Letters to Juliet, part Notting Hill, Molto Mayhem captures the reader's heart with quirky characters and delicious descriptions of food and setting. I tried to treat perceptions of grief, religion, and Italy in the book with my usual trademarks of humor and honesty. 

After receiving my rights back from my publisher for my second novel, Untangling the Knot, I have redesigned the cover and re-published so people can continue to find this sweet romantic story about Gabriella the church wedding coordinator who unintentionally gets all the plans wrong due to her growing attraction to the groom and his kids. In particular readers have really resonated with my depiction of the kids and the church priest in the story. And I wanted to make sure the novel would continue to be available (with some edits, but otherwise unchanged) along with my first novel, Betting Jessica, and my newer one, Molto Mayhem. 

Finally, my creative brain is back in gear with the start of a new novel set in England. It is a mother daughter journey this time…. With a little romance thrown in. The conflict? Mother wants to visit Jane Austen tourist sites, while her daughter is only interested in Harry Potter. Can commercial and literary fiction co-exist for this mother daughter duo? Or are the two genres, and the two characters’ personalities, perhaps not as far apart as they might imagine? 

I’m writing my own journey as I go along but love to share it with fellow travelers. 

You can drop me a note at dwilstedauthor@outlook.com or follow along on my journeys inspired by love at:  

Twitter  - https://twitter.com/dwilsted 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/DeanneWilstedAuthor/ 

Website - http://www.deannewilsted.com 

Overheard on . . . Romancing the Genres

“Ciao…”

Being that I was in Italy for this overhear, I certainly could have chosen many other Italian phrases. But, aside from the fact the most of them I didn’t understand and couldn’t duplicate, this word just fit my post today in many ways.

First, next month Romancing the Genres will spotlight guest authors of YA (or young writers themselves). Now for me there are three times when you do not want to get language usage wrong while writing. 1. When you are using foreign terms, like Ciao. 2. When you are writing for the young adult audience. (Which, let’s face it, can often sound more foreign than another country’s language.) and 3. Anytime you reference another literary world. (Do not, for example, use Thumping Willow when referring to the Harry Potter Tree that tries to smash people.)

Of these three situations, I think the most difficult to get right is the language of youth. For one thing, it is entirely fluid, changing rapidly with both geography and time. More importantly, they don’t really like to share it with us mere adult mortals. Seriously! Ask a teenager what salty means and you are sure to get an eye roll rather than an answer. BTW – according to an article on Huiffington Post it is; “Someone or something who is overly pissed off, angry or annoying.” (Find more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/12/19/slang-words-2013-_n_4461422.html)

The best YA authors use slang that will stand the test of time, at least for a little while; like hashtag. Otherwise, they know that language isn’t simply the words we use, but how we frame sentences and conversations.  Tight, abrupt, short, could all be used to describe language as used by teenagers. Life feels too short and too busy to speak in long, flowing sentences. But don’t, please, take my word on this as I don’t write YA. Do come back in September when our YA authors can, I’m sure, talk more about it.

Since my post is getting long… I'll only say a bit about the other two reasons I chose the word ciao. As I mentioned, I was in Italy when I overheard it… and I have a lot, (a lot) more to say on the topic. Too much for here in fact! But now that my jetlag is finished, I’ll be spending lots of time with my computer posting all about my amazing trip on my personal blog, http://www.deannewilsted.com/my-world---blog.

Which… I do hope you’ll find. Since, I am sad to say, this is my final official post as a Genreista! I’ve decided, after a couple of years  of being part of this amazing group of bloggers, that it is time to let a new author have their chance at writing about Romance and genres and for me to focus on the reason for my European trip- my next book.

I truly appreciate all of the support for both my writing and my words over the last two years. And I plan to be a guest for RTG whenever I get the chance. I hope you’ve enjoyed my overhears… and for now, rather than say ciao I will say Arrivederci – which means, goodbye until we meet again.

Deanne Wilsted
www.deannewilsted.com
@dwilsted