French la Vie https://www.frenchlavie.com French la Vie Fri, 18 Sep 2026 21:38:31 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.1 https://www.frenchlavie.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/poppy-1-150x150.png French la Vie https://www.frenchlavie.com 32 32 https://www.frenchlavie.com/2026/09/18/tucking-things-together/ Tucking Things Together https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969282503/0/tongueincheek~Tucking-Things-Together/ https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969282503/0/tongueincheek~Tucking-Things-Together/#respond Fri, 18 Sep 2026 11:00:56 +0000 https://www.frenchlavie.com/?p=86564 I am constantly arriving at the very moment I leave behind. Each moment—a year in seconds, a day held deeply in our foundation. Or sometimes, a single day freeze-frames and becomes who we are. When I was younger, I was eager to welcome the next step, the next door, curious to see what lay ahead, […]
               

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I am constantly arriving at the very moment I leave behind.

Each moment—a year in seconds, a day held deeply in our foundation. Or sometimes, a single day freeze-frames and becomes who we are.

When I was younger, I was eager to welcome the next step, the next door, curious to see what lay ahead, only to realize that most of those thresholds meant closing the door to chapters I held dear. Or maybe, it is just a matter of tucking things together to make room for it all.

There was so much reflection and reminiscing while my cousin was here. We have been close since childhood, sharing many memories, and over these eighteen days, we talked about many of them.

Most of our memories felt close at hand: our cousins—hundreds of them—and our aunts and uncles whom we loved deeply. We recalled camping trips, Christmas, and the beautiful freedom of childhood that we had and held so sweetly. We were fortunate to grow up during that place and time within our rural community. It was such a blessing to recall and to bring it deeper to heart.

The peace of aging comes when I can hold with gentleness the momentum of the days flowing by… the softening of my steps, maybe shifting my priorities, and welcoming wisdom that surfaces while doing ordinary things.

Oh my, to see the person I am becoming, with kindness and the grace of presence.

photos via my cousins.

               

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]]> https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969282503/0/tongueincheek~Tucking-Things-Together/feed/ 0 https://www.frenchlavie.com/2026/09/17/aurevoir-cousin-alma-and-mike/ Aurevoir Cousin Alma and Mike https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969242219/0/tongueincheek~Aurevoir-Cousin-Alma-and-Mike/ https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969242219/0/tongueincheek~Aurevoir-Cousin-Alma-and-Mike/#comments Thu, 17 Sep 2026 11:00:10 +0000 https://www.frenchlavie.com/?p=86557 Every minute, no every second of these last 18 days, I have enjoyed your company. Certainly, the house is going to feel empty without you two xxx]]>

Every minute, no every second of these last 18 days, I have enjoyed your company. Certainly, the house is going to feel empty without you two xxx

]]> https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969242219/0/tongueincheek~Aurevoir-Cousin-Alma-and-Mike/feed/ 7 https://www.frenchlavie.com/2026/09/16/looking-outside-the-louvre/ Looking Outside the Louvre https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969206759/0/tongueincheek~Looking-Outside-the-Louvre/ https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969206759/0/tongueincheek~Looking-Outside-the-Louvre/#comments Wed, 16 Sep 2026 11:00:13 +0000 https://www.frenchlavie.com/?p=86539 Life has been captured in paint, carved from stone, cast in bronze, and passed from one generation to the next. Every canvas, every sculpture, every weathered surface beckons to hold a fragment of who we were—a love, a loss, a triumph, a question… And it continues. moving through the people crossing the courtyard, the laughter […]]]>

Life has been captured in paint, carved from stone, cast in bronze, and passed from one generation to the next. Every canvas, every sculpture, every weathered surface beckons to hold a fragment of who we were—a love, a loss, a triumph, a question…

And it continues. moving through the people crossing the courtyard, the laughter carried by the wind, the changing light on the glass pyramid…

Outside, the brush is still in motion. The colors are wet with desire and depth; the echoes of what we create ripple beyond the walls that hold them. We share life’s stories beyond the physical elements, reaching for something that cannot be touched but long to be felt.

— through the way we love, create, remember, and experience living.

Looking outside the Louvre— ah, what is still being created around us.

]]> https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969206759/0/tongueincheek~Looking-Outside-the-Louvre/feed/ 3 https://www.frenchlavie.com/2026/09/15/seek-goodness/ Seek Goodness https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969158447/0/tongueincheek~Seek-Goodness/ https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969158447/0/tongueincheek~Seek-Goodness/#comments Tue, 15 Sep 2026 11:00:10 +0000 https://www.frenchlavie.com/?p=86525 Be the eyes that see, the voice that speaks.the movement that inspires, the listener who truly hears.Be the catalyst that transforms awareness into action. Whatever source of energy we carry—whether a spark or burning passion use it. Draw upon compassion to ignite the flame. See injustice.Hear the unheard.Speak for peace.Reach out with kindness.Stand together in […]]]>

Be the eyes that see, the voice that speaks.
the movement that inspires,
the listener who truly hears.
Be the catalyst that transforms awareness into action.

Whatever source of energy we carry—whether a spark or burning passion use it. Draw upon compassion to ignite the flame.

See injustice.
Hear the unheard.
Speak for peace.
Reach out with kindness.
Stand together in the light.

Every act, no matter how small, has the power to challenge violence, diminish greed, and overcome domination. Change begins within each of us, and grows through every choice we make.

]]> https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969158447/0/tongueincheek~Seek-Goodness/feed/ 7 https://www.frenchlavie.com/2026/09/14/brocanting-isnt-a-word-i-made-it-up/ Brocanting Isn’t a Word, I Made it Up. https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969114812/0/tongueincheek~Brocanting-Isn%e2%80%99t-a-Word-I-Made-it-Up/ https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969114812/0/tongueincheek~Brocanting-Isn%e2%80%99t-a-Word-I-Made-it-Up/#comments Mon, 14 Sep 2026 11:00:20 +0000 https://www.frenchlavie.com/?p=86524 Lunch after “Brocanting”Brocante is a French word for an upscale flea market, and some brocantes border on antique markets. I borrowed the word and turned it into an English verb—brocanting—to describe spending the day wandering through brocantes, hunting for unique treasures. It has a good ring to it. Did you go brocanting last Sunday? I […]]]>

Lunch after “Brocanting”
Brocante is a French word for an upscale flea market, and some brocantes border on antique markets. I borrowed the word and turned it into an English verb—brocanting—to describe spending the day wandering through brocantes, hunting for unique treasures.
It has a good ring to it.

Did you go brocanting last Sunday?

I certainly did go brocanting last Sunday!

Brocanting (Franglais, n./v.) — To spend the day exploring brocantes and collecting stories, antiques, and curiosities

]]> https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969114812/0/tongueincheek~Brocanting-Isn%e2%80%99t-a-Word-I-Made-it-Up/feed/ 11 https://www.frenchlavie.com/2026/09/13/sunday-antiquing/ Sunday Antiquing https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969069809/0/tongueincheek~Sunday-Antiquing/ https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969069809/0/tongueincheek~Sunday-Antiquing/#comments Sun, 13 Sep 2026 11:00:25 +0000 https://www.frenchlavie.com/?p=86507 Some of the antiques that caught my eye. Their value isn’t what drew me in. They may be rare or common, expensive or inexpensive, practical or completely impractical. I may not need them, and I may not even want to own them. They simply caught my eye. My cousins Alma, Mike, Shelley, and Neil joined […]]]>

Some of the antiques that caught my eye.

Their value isn’t what drew me in. They may be rare or common, expensive or inexpensive, practical or completely impractical. I may not need them, and I may not even want to own them. They simply caught my eye.

My cousins Alma, Mike, Shelley, and Neil joined us this weekend as we wandered through the brocantes in Villeneuve-lès-Avignon, Carpentras, and L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue. We all found something to take home. My cousins mostly chose items that would fit in their suitcases. 

What caught your eye this weekend?

]]> https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969069809/0/tongueincheek~Sunday-Antiquing/feed/ 8 Weekly Top Posts: 2026-09-13https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/969037751/0/tongueincheek<ol><li><a rel="NOFOLLOW" href="http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/968565827/0/tongueincheek/~Sweet-Sunday-to-You">Sweet Sunday to You</a></li> <li><a rel="NOFOLLOW" href="http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/968555492/0/tongueincheek/~The-Man-at-the-Brocante">The Man at the Brocante</a></li> <li><a rel="NOFOLLOW" href="http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/968790764/0/tongueincheek/~What-Do-We-See">What Do We See</a></li> <li><a rel="NOFOLLOW" href="http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/968850986/0/tongueincheek/~Aix-en-Provence">Aix en Provence</a></li> <li><a rel="NOFOLLOW" href="http://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/968545898/0/tongueincheek/~64">64</a></li> </ol><Img align="left" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt="" style="border:0;float:left;margin:0;padding:0;width:1px!important;height:1px!important;" hspace="0" src="https://feeds.feedblitz.com/~/i/969037751/0/tongueincheek"> Sun, 13 Sep 2026 04:00:01 GMTtag:feedblitz.com,2026-09-13:tongueincheek/2026-09-13T04:00:01-00:00 FeedSplice by FeedBlitz