J\u2019ai beaucoup h\u00e9sit\u00e9 \u00e0 publier l\u2019histoire de la GROSSE PATATE SUR LE DIVAN ROUGE. Bien que je l\u2019aie \u00e9crite tout de go, allais-je oser publier mes acc\u00e8s de fain\u00e9antise aussi facilement? J\u2019ai donc choisi de fermer mon ordinateur et une fois la t\u00eate sur l\u2019oreiller, de demander \u00e0 la nuit un bon conseil.<\/p>\n
\u00c9trangement, j\u2019ai dormi comme un poupon. Et au r\u00e9veil, j\u2019avais le sourire aux l\u00e8vres. Je n\u2019avais plus l\u2019impression de vous avouer un quelconque travers de ma personnalit\u00e9, mais plut\u00f4t une v\u00e9rit\u00e9 toute simple, un r\u00e9flexe peut-\u00eatre, une fa\u00e7on de compenser l\u2019enfermement et l\u2019immense solitude que nous cause cette affreuse pand\u00e9mie.<\/p>\n
La lettre a \u00e9t\u00e9 publi\u00e9e le dimanche\u00a023\u00a0janvier dernier et vous m\u2019avez tous et toutes accueillie avec respect, compassion et amiti\u00e9. En lisant vos commentaires, je n\u2019\u00e9tais plus isol\u00e9e dans ma maison ni d\u00e9confite sur le divan rouge. J\u2019avais plut\u00f4t\u00a0l\u2019impression d\u2019\u00eatre assise avec vous, \u00e0 votre table de cuisine, comme deux copines discourant des faits divers de la r\u00e9gion.<\/p>\n
Vos multiples commentaires sont entr\u00e9s dans mon c\u0153ur tel un h\u00e2tif printemps arriv\u00e9 sans crier gare. Plus que\u00a0jamais, vos d\u00e9licieux commentaires m\u2019encouragent \u00e0 continuer d\u2019\u00e9crire. Sachez que chaque semaine votre ind\u00e9fectible pr\u00e9sence me rassure.<\/p>\n
Bien souvent, j\u2019ai l\u2019impression de vous avoir tout racont\u00e9 de l\u2019entreprise, des ouvertures de restos, de la cr\u00e9ation des plats au menu et des aventures de l\u2019enfance. Et pourtant, chaque fois que je pense \u00e0 vous, chers\u00a0lecteurs et ch\u00e8res lectrices, on dirait qu\u2019un miracle se produit. Une histoire oubli\u00e9e refait surface; un souvenir ressuscite tout d\u2019un coup, une corneille converse avec moi, un loup entre dans ma cuisine. Oui, oui, on dirait que votre constance \u00e0 me lire attise ma verve et mon imagination cr\u00e9atrice. Comme si une bonne f\u00e9e tirait vers moi les ficelles magiques de l\u2019\u00e9criture.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Mille mercis \u00e0 chacun de vous, chers lecteurs. Et UN GROS BRAVO\u00a0\u00e0 madame Madeline R. qui m\u2019a donn\u00e9 la tr\u00e8s bonne id\u00e9e de commencer \u00e0 apprendre quelque chose de nouveau; une technique qu\u2019elle-m\u00eame a mise en pratique en s\u2019inscrivant \u00e0 des cours de guitare \u00e0 69\u00a0ans. Elle\u00a0en est bien fi\u00e8re.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Merci \u00e0 dame Jennifer\u00a0R. qui me sugg\u00e8re un abonnement \u00e0 un lot de magazines populaires. Je d\u00e9vore les magazines et je n\u2019ai jamais eu l\u2019id\u00e9e de r\u00e9fl\u00e9chir \u00e0 un abonnement, mais je vais me renseigner. Comme je vis \u00e0 la campagne avec une petite case postale, je devrai \u00eatre plut\u00f4t raisonnable.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Merci \u00e0 Doris\u00a0S. pour ses bons mots. Moi aussi je fais des casse-t\u00eates. J\u2019adore \u00e7a et comme vous j\u2019en choisis maintenant des 500\u00a0morceaux un peu plus gros que la moyenne. On dirait que faire des casse-t\u00eates tranquillise mon esprit. Et j\u2019en profite pour \u00e9couter de la grande musique, surtout du baroque.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Merci \u00e0 miss Kathy S. qui m\u2019a fait r\u00e9aliser que, sans la pand\u00e9mie, je n\u2019aurais peut-\u00eatre jamais eu l\u2019occasion d\u2019\u00e9crire ces \u00ab\u2009Lettres du dimanche\u2009\u00bb ni de reconnecter avec ma passion de jadis pour l\u2019\u00e9criture. Vous avez tellement raison, ch\u00e8re Kathy.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Un gros merci\u00a0\u00e0 Mireille\u00a0T. qui me supplie d\u2019\u00eatre moins s\u00e9v\u00e8re avec moi-m\u00eame. Toute ma vie, j\u2019ai mis la barre tr\u00e8s haut comme une fofolle qui pensait avoir quelque chose \u00e0 prouver. Il est temps de me calmer et d\u2019appr\u00e9cier, \u00e0 l\u2019occasion, un tr\u00e8s bon film.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Bravo, Michelle, M. pour votre v\u00e9lo stationnaire. \u00c7a fait depuis le d\u00e9but de la pand\u00e9mie que j\u2019en veux un, mais je ne fais que penser. Vous \u00eates une v\u00e9ritable active!<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Merci, Louise\u00a0M. pour vos bons conseils. Comme vous dites\u2009\u00ab\u2009lorsqu\u2019on est un peu plus \u00e2g\u00e9e, on doit \u00eatre plus vigilante car on est sur le pilote automatique. Il faut activer\u00a0la machine car elle risque de s\u2019encrasser et de s\u2019arr\u00eater.\u2009\u00bb\u00a0<\/i>Je vais m\u2019activer, je vous le promets.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Merci, cher Jonathan\u00a0K. de Red Deer (Alberta) pour votre pr\u00e9cieux conseil. Mais, serai-je un jour capable de donner ma t\u00e9l\u00e9vision aux bonnes \u0153uvres de la paroisse? J\u2019en doute.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Merci Michelle\u00a0D. Vous m\u2019avez donn\u00e9 une excellente suggestion. Lorsque le divan rouge devient trop confortable, je vais me lever et marcher dans la maison. Quitte \u00e0 faire plusieurs fois le tour de ma grande table de cuisine. Votre grand-p\u00e8re marchait dans le corridor, dites-vous? Le mien faisait exactement la m\u00eame chose lorsqu\u2019il venait nous visiter en hiver. Je vais m\u2019y mettre, je vous le promets.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Merci Murielle\u00a0G. pour cet adorable bouquet virtuel tout rempli de jolis papillons. On dirait un beau clin d\u2019\u0153il \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e9t\u00e9. Dieu que j\u2019ai h\u00e2te qu\u2019il fasse chaud.<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0Ch\u00e8re Irene\u00a0S., vous qui avez \u00e9t\u00e9 active toute votre vie \u00e0 titre de conseill\u00e8re en voyage et h\u00f4tesse pour les groupes d\u2019a\u00een\u00e9s, vous avez raison de consid\u00e9rer votre vie actuelle comme assez path\u00e9tique. Je pense, comme vous, que cette saudite pand\u00e9mie nous vole de pr\u00e9cieuses ann\u00e9es. Mais, comme vous le dites si bien :<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u2009SOYONS B\u00c9NIS D\u2019\u00caTRE ENCORE VIVANTS\u2009\u00bb<\/p>\n
Cora<\/p>\n
\u2764<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
J\u2019ai beaucoup h\u00e9sit\u00e9 \u00e0 publier l\u2019histoire de la GROSSE PATATE SUR LE […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2159,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lettre-mme-cora"],"acf":{"img_en":"","contenu_en":"I was very unsure whether to publish the story A BIG RED COUCH POTATO. Although it came to me in one go, was it really a good idea to reveal my bouts of laziness so easily? So I turned off the computer, put my head on the pillow and asked the night for guidance.<\/span>\r\n\r\nStrangely enough, I slept like a baby and awoke with a smile.\u00a0I didn't feel like I was confessing an embarrassing personal flaw, but rather a simple truth: a reflex of sorts, a way of making up for the confinement and immense sense of loneliness brought on by this relentless pandemic.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nThe letter was published on Sunday, January 23, and you all responded with respect, compassion and friendship. As I read your comments, I no longer felt isolated in my home or inconsolable on the red couch. Instead I felt like I was sitting with you at your kitchen table, like two friends discussing the local news.<\/span>\r\n\r\nYour many comments entered my heart like an early spring that arrives without warning. Your delightful comments encourage me more than ever to continue writing. Each week your unfailing presence reassures me.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\nI\u2019ve told you all about the Company, the restaurant openings, the creation of the menu items and my childhood adventures. And yet, every time I think of you, dear readers, a miracle seems to transpire. A forgotten story resurfaces; a lifeless memory is resurrected; a crow strikes up a conversation with me; a wolf enters my kitchen. Yes, it seems as if your constant reading of my work is nourishing my expressiveness and creative imagination... As if a good fairy was pulling the magical threads of the written word towards me.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Many thanks to all of you, dear readers. And a BIG CONGRATULATIONS to Ms. Madeline R., who gave me the very good idea to try learning something new. A technique she employed herself when she signed up for guitar lessons at the age of 69. An accomplishment she is rightly proud of.<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Thank you to Jennifer R., for suggesting a subscription to a few popular magazines.\u00a0I devour magazines and never thought to consider a subscription, but I will now. Thankfully my small country post office box will ensure I remain sensible.<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Thank you to Doris S. for her kind words. I do puzzles too. I love them, and like you, I now do 500-piece puzzles that are slightly bigger than average. It seems doing puzzles soothes my mind. And I listen to wonderful music, especially from the Baroque era, as I do them.<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Thank you to Kathy S., who made me realize that without the pandemic, I might never have had the opportunity to write these \u201cSunday Letters,\u201d nor the opportunity to reconnect with my old passion for writing. You are so right, dear Kathy.<\/span>\r\n\r\n- A big thank you to Mireille T., who urges me to be less severe with myself. All my life I have set the bar very high like someone possessed with the need to succeed. It\u2019s time to calm down and enjoy a good movie from time to time.<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Congratulations, Michelle M., on your stationary bike. I've been wanting one since the beginning of the pandemic, but I\u2019ve only ever thought about it. You, on the other hand, are a doer!<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Thank you, Louise M., for your great advice. As you say, \u201cwhen you get a bit older, you have to be more vigilant because you\u2019re on auto pilot. If you don\u2019t restart the machine it may clog up and stop.\u201d I'm going to turn it back on, I promise you.<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Thank you, Jonathan K. of Red Deer, Alberta, for your valuable advice. But will I ever be able to donate my television to goodwill? I fear I won\u2019t have the willpower. \u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Thank you, Michelle D., you have given me an excellent suggestion. When the red couch gets too comfortable, I will get up and walk around the house. Even if it simply means a few turns around my big kitchen table. Your grandfather walked down the hall, you say? Mine did exactly the same thing when he came to visit us in winter. I'll get on with it, I promise!<\/span>\r\n\r\n- Thank you, Murielle G., for the lovely virtual bouquet full of pretty butterflies. A delightful nod to summer. Oh, how I can't wait for the warm weather to return!<\/span>\r\n\r\nDear Irene S., who has been active all her life as a travel consultant and hostess for senior groups, you are right to regard your present life as rather pathetic; I agree with you that this pandemic is robbing us of precious years. But, as you say so well:<\/span>\u00a0\u201cWE ARE BLESSED TO BE ALIVE.\u201d<\/span>\r\n\r\nCora\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n\u2764<\/span>"},"yoast_head":"\n