Reflections on 2011

What better topic can there be on New Year's Eve than looking back on the year about to drift away into the history books?  I feel fortunate because I have a great timeline of events, ideas, stories and images contained right here in the Middle Age Bulge blog.

Started two years ago as a weight loss incentive program after getting inspired from the Julie and Julia movie, I have carried it on as a forum for creative expression and for sharing with a growing audience.  Over 400 posts and 50,000-plus page views later, it just seems silly to think about stopping.  Much like my recent rediscovery of my visual art passion, this blog has been a catalyst for exploring my interest in writing.

SHADOW OF MY FORMER SELF

I started this thing to lose weight.  While I dropped 20 pounds on the first go around, the lifestyle didn't stick and eventually, ever so slowly, the weight returned.  Seeing one of my oldest friends over the summer in the best shape of his adult life, I made an unanticipated and very unexpected decision to go on the Ideal Protein program.  Through the first of my weekly updates (Battle of the Bulge, Part 2) to the most recent post (Ideal Protein Update) 100 days into the program illustrating how much my eating habits have changed, you can't help but notice that the results have been dramatic.  There is no question that this has been one of the most significant threads in my story line of 2011.

FAMILY MOMENTS

Looking back on long forgotten posts from almost a year ago, there are several nuggets that capture slices of family life that might normally be lost to the recesses of memory.  Ben brilliantly shared the lingering after effects of a bad dream in I Just Wanted To Come Home.  Dylan shared one of life's milestone moments in First Kiss.  Heather and I shared many evenings enjoying our nightly offerings of great tv shows: Six Feet Under, Breaking Bad, Weeds, Deadwood, and The Big Bang Theory.  We were watching a rare movie when we had some delightful interlopers in our flower bed (Deer in the Tulips).

CROSSROADS

When my dad ended up in the hospital for the first time in three decades, battling some digestive issues, I sensed that we had potentially reached a crossroads. I have been blessed with aging parents who have remained active, vigorous, and enormously healthy.  "They shovel the sidewalks in the neighborhood," I like to say, "for all the seniors."  But when a hospital stay for digestive issues morphed into emergency surgery for colon cancer everything changed on a dime.  The Great Equalizer captured the idea that illness levels the playing field, a sharp reminder that "death comes for us all, even for kings he comes." (Robert Bolt, A Man For All Seasons).  As the year waves goodbye, Dad is recovering at home, going for daily walks to the senior centre, getting lots of rest, gathering strength for the inevitable chemo and radiation treatments to come in 2012.

THE MOST READ

There are four blog posts from the past year that sit atop "most read" list.  Two of them, Growing up KISS (#3) and Meeting Mr. Simmons (#4), provide a personal perspective on what it meant to have one of the greatest rock band in the world here in Fort McMurray.  Meeting the men behind the make-up remains one of the exciting 45 seconds of my life.  The second most read blog post reflects one of the most positive stories of 2011, the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.  I'm convinced that the only reason it was viewed by over a thousand unique visitors was that for a period of several days, the photograph of the couple located within the post was a top-level result in the Google search for "Royal Wedding 2011".  In a query that produced over 60 million hits, the photograph located in the Middle Age Bulge blog was third.

THE MOST READ blog post was unquestionably Slave Lake is Burning.  It was a story that captured the attention of the nation and much of the world as fierce winds turned a neighboring forest fire into a near death knell for a small Alberta community.

MY FAVOURITES

There were two blog posts that were published at a time when the system wasn't working particularly well and I have no idea of how many unique visitors they attracted.  Both stories are about connections.  Remembering Julius highlights a touching interaction between my father in the 1940s and a farm hand that turns out is the late uncle of our current Minister of Finance in Alberta, Ron Liepert.  Searching for Dave Rodney is a fun little piece about my quest to find the MLA for Calgary-Lougheed at the Premier's Dinner in October.  I was sitting in Boston Pizza in Vermillion on my long trip home to be with my father for his surgery when Dave and I finally reconnected by phone.  The last time we had talked was February of 1986 when we partied late into the night celebrating the successful run of A Man For All Seasons with Newman Players at St. Thomas More College in Saskatoon.  I went on to a career in radio; he went on to climb mountains.  Eventually, we both ended up in public life in the great province of Alberta.

IMAGES

There are many images scattered through the 161 blog posts in 2011.  I'm going to close off this retrospection with a new one, and arguably, the picture that seared itself to my soul the most.  As the surgeon gave us the news after Dad's surgery, this was the image that popped into my mind along with an overwhelming sense of gratitude.  While Heather and I were enjoying the wonders of New York City with Claude and Tiffany, Dad worked with Ben to paint the tree house in the back.  That he was able to spend quality time with both of our sons before embarking on the fight of his life and that Mom captured this moment on film, I am so grateful.

This one's for Dad, visualizing a story of remarkable healing that I will write one year from now.

Artist at heart

If there is one thing that this Christmas holiday has reminded me of, it is that I am an artist at heart.  I am so far removed from your quintessential Canadian male who watches bowl games till they atrophy, drinking beer, yelling, and crying like a petulant baby when their team falls to defeat.  Don't get me wrong, I've been there once or twice in my life, the few times that the Saskatchewan Roughriders have made it to the Grey Cup.

I gravitate to the creative when time is on my hands: to the computer early in the morning to write a new blog post, to the carpentry shop a few hours later to build a frame for the painting I had done the previous evening.  These are my happy pursuits, my time well spent.

My Happy Place, 2011

As I began painting again a couple of months ago, initially as a father-son project to get Ben away from the screen for a few hours, I had no idea the result would be so interesting or that it would spark additional projects in the approaching weeks.

Mayor Blake asked me how long it had been since I had painted.

"It's been at least 10 years," I said.  What I didn't realize at the time is that I have painted more recently than I realized.  While there had been a little lull in activity in recent years, the number of pieces scattered around the house surprised me.

Eric Clapton, 1993

This is the project that really got me going, during the personally turbulent years shortly after the end of my first marriage.  Eric Clapton.  This portrait was done on a small piece a scratch art paper.  Using an X-Acto knife, I turned a 3" x 7" scrap of this black substrate into a compelling picture of the famous guitarist. It was one of only a few pieces that I attempted to monetize by making and selling some limited edition prints.  Ray Charles and Willie Nelson followed in close succession.

Willie Nelson, 1994

I descended into the long and laborious process of creating these intricate portraits as a way of filling my time and soothing my broken heart.  The combination of grief and unexpected free time proved to be a creative cocktail.

Many of the original drawings and paintings are scattered across the country.  I have a vague idea of where some of them are; others I've lost track of as people have drifted in and out of my life.  One of my favourites, a portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. is on the wall at my sister Corinne's house in Trenton, Ontario.  This portrait of Wynonna Judd hangs in the television room in my brother Greg's home in Kamsack, Saskatchewan.

Wynonna Judd, 1993

I know my cousin Rachel has a shockingly colourful attempt at painting Anthony Hopkins in Humboldt, Saskatchewan and Dylan's grandma Patsy has a number of more recent paintings in her new home in Fort McKay, among those, Marcel Marceau.

Marcel Marceau, 1998

I told my mom that I had started painting again.

"Are things not going so well?" she asked.

"No, quite the opposite," I said. "Things are one hundred per cent."

In reflecting on her instinctual assumption that I was going through a creative streak as a reaction to something bad, I realized that I am inspired by both edges of the emotional spectrum.  When I am blissfully happy, the ideas pour out of me like an endless fountain.  When I am desolately depressed, I find solace in my creative pursuits and am able to lift myself up off the floor with the help of the pen or paint brush.

As I ran around the house gathering paintings scattered hither and thither and snapping their picture, an interesting timeline emerges.  I hope that some of the pieces that have been given as gifts come back to me in the form of digital images.  It would be great to be surprised by a few that I've completely forgotten about.

Bob Dylan, 1995

Allen Ginsberg, 1996

Ella Fitzgerald, 1997

Bob Dylan, 1998

Young Frank Sinatra, 1999

Daffodils, 2003

Benny Carter, 2004

Dawn at Keyano, 2011

Christopher Hitchens, 2011

Steve Jobs, 2011

Wilfred Grandjamb (pencil), 2011

Wilfred Grandjamb (watercolour), 2011

Leonard Cohen, 2012

It's been fun putting this representative collection of drawings and paintings together for this blog post, if only to put them all in one safe place.  I hope this collection grows as more treasures are unearthed.

Portrait of Hitchens as a dying man

One of the great writers left us last week - Christopher Hitchens.  A regular columnist with Vanity Fair, Hitch lived out his final chapter and finally succumbed to esophageal cancer after 18 grueling months.

A man of words, often irascible, commonly curmudgeonly, he was as revered as he was reviled.

Neil Wagner

My father-in-law gave Ben and I a lesson in water colours yesterday.  Neil spent the bulk of his working life as a high school art teacher and effortlessly shed some light on a form of painting that has, till now, eluded me.

I started playing around with the colours, watching them blend together on the surface of the paper.  Eventually this picture started to take shape.

Neil could tell I was getting into it and dug into his backpack full of supplies and pulled out a large piece of water colour paper - the real deal, almost stiff, very substantial.

"How much does something like this cost?" I asked.

"This is handmade," he said.  "It's been awhile since I bought it, but it wouldn't surprise me if that sheet is eighteen dollars or so."

Wow!  I thought to myself.  He wanted me to dig right in and paint something right then and there.  But I couldn't bear the thought of potentially ruining this very expensive piece of paper.

But as we waved goodbye to Neil and his wife Susan this morning, an idea of what to paint started to form in my mind.

Photo by Chris Bolin

I was reading a recent edition of Maclean's and discovered the Bad Portraits Project (www.badportraitsproject.com).  The brainchild of Mandy Strobo of Calgary, the series of works involves the artist painting large neo-expressionist paintings.  In the past six months she has created more than 800 Bad Portraits which I think are pretty awesome.  If you want to read the article click here.

Looking at those incredible creations provided the spark for my interpretation of the following picture of Christopher Hitchens:

Christopher Hitchens by Michael Stravato/The New York Times/Redux

I probably spent longer than the average 45 minutes that Strobo spends on her masterpieces, but here is the result.

It's kind of creepy, but evocative and interesting.  I liked it so much that I popped it into an extra frame we had lying around and put it up in my study, my man-cave where I do all my writing.

Having Mr. Hitchens on my wall is comforting in a way, a close reminder that life, and words well-written, are precious; we should never take either for granted.

Because it's there...

The Christmas season is particularly hard for those of us trying to be disciplined about our diets.  More chocolates, salted nuts, and assorted sugar-soaked goodies are lying around than at any other time of year.  The temptations to turn the other cheek are everywhere, taking my dietary stoicism and smashing it against the serving plate.

I've been munching on salted pistachio nuts, chocolate covered fruit (there has to be some enduring qualities to those portions, right?), and ginger cookies.  I've also had the odd sip of red wine and a couple gulps of sherry.

"I hate it when we have all these goodies lying around," said Heather.  "Because I can't help myself."

I feel the same way, although I feel an overwhelming need to practice instant forgiveness - it was fun to imbibe with impunity, if only for a few days.

Now that Boxing Day, Christmas Day and the long lead up to the season are over, it is GAME ON.  I stepped on the scale this morning and found out that I had climbed about the 180-pound plateau for the first time in months.  I had been hovering between 176 and 177 for weeks, with a few forays above 178.

So, it's back to Phase 1 of the Ideal Protein program to reset the pancreas and get back to my ideal weight. This will be good practice for me as a week long trip to Mexico is looming in my future, along with a couple of jaunts to the States.

While I enjoyed the many cheats over the past few weeks, especially those of the sweet variety, I enjoy the feeling of being healthy more, of knowing that my body is in balance, that all the right things are going in.  When I'm on track with my eating, my brain is sharper, I have more energy, and all feels right with the world.

It's nice having a program like this to come back to.  I'm looking forward to a trip to BACK on TRACK with BARB so that I can stock up on supplies.  It'll be nice having my program-approved munchies to help me combat the assorted temptations that are still around, lingering after-effects of the holidays.

Meanwhile, it's time to do some work on my wardrobe.  Despite the small weight gain of the past few days, too many of my pants, shirts and suits are way too big, even my newest pair of jeans that seemed to fit perfectly when I bought them in October.  Today's primary agenda item is a trip to Bob Barrett's Men Apparel to make a significant investment in my wardrobe, and a further commitment to this healthy journey that I embarked on back in August.

Winter Walking

There isn't enough snow to justify pulling out the snowshoes, so we make our way to the other side of the river with only our boots.  Boxing Day has proven to be more winter-like than the previous day which felt a little on the too warm side.  A concerted breeze is blowing, especially out on the open expanse of the frozen Clearwater River, making the -10.0 C feel quite a bit colder.

When we're out on the ice, the river feels much bigger, more voluminous than it does in the months when the water is flowing freely.  I'm not sure what it is about the muted palette of winter that changes the sense of space and scope.  But crossing from one side to the other always seems to take longer than it should.

There is an old road that cuts up into the hills of what may one day become Forest Heights, or another such  named neighborhood, if we ever build a permanent bridge across our heritage waterway.  I'm not sure where the road leads, but in the summer we sometimes see activity across the way, when I'm fishing in my familiar spot at the confluence of the Snye and Clearwater.

We decide to dart up a small trail that cuts more directly up the hill, intent on trying something a little different.  The path resembles what might be called an animal highway, as tracks of all kinds seem to converge from different points in the forest.

Ben is huffing and puffing as we make it to the top of the first rise, despite his years, which are substantially less than the the rest of ours.  He's at that age where being at the top of the mountain is fun, but the journey to get there is rather tiresome.  Every couple of metres he plops down into the snow, stretches out, and rekindles his resolve to keep moving forward.

Neil and Susan love to get outside and adeptly traverse the steep incline.

Heather is in her glory, enjoying the fresh cold air and the brief escape into the wild.

"We should do this more often," she says, realizing that we rarely seem to make time for these kind of adventures.

What strikes me is how quiet it is out here.  The sound of the city is distant, dulled, barely perceptible.  We are near, yet so far.  The cold, snow and ice seem to grab the sound waves and bring them to slow crawl.

Through the break in the trees we can just see Jubilee Centre, a mere brush stroke in God's masterpiece, the beautiful boreal forest.

We stop. We listen. We look.

So close, yet so far - infinitely beautiful.

From the TYPOS YOU WISH YOU COULD TAKE BACK file

I had the best of intentions when I sent a personal email invitation to hundreds of contacts to attend The Global Address with best-selling author and political pundit Ezra Levant.

I took my time going through my entire digital Rolodex to pick out the folks in our region who might be interested in attending what promises to be an entertaining and enlightening speech about the importance of our oil sands development, or our "Ethical Oil", as Levant describes it in his book of the same name.

Ezra spoke in our community at a Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce luncheon last year.  I got to sit next to him at the event and found him to be both interesting and interested.  When he got up to the microphone when it was finally his time to speak, the words he used and the way he delivered them completely captivated the influential audience of business, industry and community leaders.

I thought it would be fun to start the body of the email message with the words he used to start the presentation, words that were meant to be presented like this:

"I love you guys," said Ezra Levant, as he began his speech during a Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce luncheon event in November 2010.  "I love everything you are doing, your passion, the size of your development, your innovative thinking..."

Leaving out one word gives the message a completely different meaning.

"I love guys," said Ezra Levant, as he began his speech during a Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce luncheon event in November 2010.  "I love everything you are doing, your passion, the size of your development, your innovative thinking..."

It took about 20 seconds to get an email from a colleague pointing out my unfortunate error.

EEEEKKKK!

I scrambled to my Outlook trying to figure out how to recall the message.  Always difficult to do under duress, especially in the version of the Microsoft email program that I'm using, several very long minutes passed before I was able "take back" my mistake and send out a second corrected message that started with: "Oops. Let me fix the first line. Can you see my red face?"

Fortunately or unfortunately - being one of the final days of work before the holidays - a lot of people were sitting at their computers with time on their hands and were treated to some unintended levity.

"Needed a laugh this morning."

"I actually quite enjoyed the first version."

"I think it is safe to say that you grabbed everyone's attention with the first line of your original email."

"Thanks for the giggle on a VERY quiet day at work."

"A lot of double entendres appear in the rest of the intro with that as the first line."

"I thought is was hilarious....lol."

"I know you recalled it, but too late! Thanks for the chuckle!"

"My face is red too, from laughing for the last 5 minutes."

My deepest apologies to Mr. Levant.  It was an honest mistake that unintentionally brightened up the morning for many of your fans in Fort McMurray.  We look forward to your inspiring presentation at Keyano College on January 19th.  My suggestion for those reading this and wanting to attend would be to buy your tickets early.

Leadership

On the growing list of Facebook questions that inspired tremendous response is the one from a few days ago: What is the LEADERSHIP QUALITY that you most ADMIRE?

What I like about crowd-sourcing these universal questions is that the medium inspires gut-level answers.  People see the question, an answer pops into their head, and in some cases, they are willing to share.  The response rate isn't terribly high, about 1.5 per cent, but when you have a large number in your network, the results can be pretty interesting.

CARING - ENCOURAGE THE HEART - LISTENING

Former Alberta Energy Minister Murray Smith suggested to us that the best politician is the best listener.  When you feel like you are really being heard, it resonates very differently than when you feel that you're just being allowed to rant.  Active listening is an essential ingredient in being a good leader.

I sometimes struggle with remembering names, which reminds me that I have to do a better job of listening.  There are a number of people in my world whose names I trip over almost every time: Robin, Laura, and Tracy's husband whose name still eludes me.

"What is the first letter in your first name?" I often ask when my mind is blank.

The person either spouts out their full name - which always disappoints - or they give me the letter and my brain sets out to sort the data.  Nine times out of 10 the right name pops into my mind's eye.  It's a simple matter of math.  Before I know the letter, the brain searches through all 26 letters and all possible permutations.  Narrowing the choice of names down to one letter brings the cranial-cogs into brilliant alignment.

I can't remember which boss said it - either Jim Blundell or Stan Taylor - but one of them suggested to "catch someone doing something right." That advice has served me incredibly well over the years, at work, at home and in the community. A compliment, a kind word, encouragement sincerely given,can be so powerful. Try it and see what happens.

The next time you are at the gas station and the attendant attempts to up-sell you a couple of chocolate bars for some extra AirMiles with a bright smile on her face, complement her on doing such an awesome sales job.  I guarantee that even if you decline the offer, you will have encouraged the heart.

SERVANT-HOOD - MODELING THE WAY - HUMBLE - MODESTY

When I think about the leadership moments that matter to me, the ones that rise to the top don't involve a fancy suit, corporate boardroom or top-level meeting.  More often than not they are moments in the trenches, cleaning up after a big event, struggling through a major project, or God help me, making a big mistake (I've made many).

"Model the Way" is one of the pillars in the Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner, published by Jossey-Bass, the book that has been a big part of Leadership Wood Buffalo, the leadership bible for graduates of this community leadership program.  It's really all about doing what you say, living your values.

Don't expect someone to do something you wouldn't be willing to do yourself.  There are a million ways of saying it, but sometimes you need to get your hands dirty.

CONVICTION - INTEGRITY - STRENGTH - LEADING

At the core of the matter, leaders have to believe in what they are doing, with their whole heart.  They need to act and lead with integrity.  They have to be strong.

Martin Luther King Jr. once said that "the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." It's one of my favourites.

COMMUNICATION - COMMUNICATION - COMMUNICATION

I often say that bad communication is the root of all evil.  Great leaders are adept at being understood and taking the time to understand; it truly does go both ways. Part of great leadership in my view is being able to recognize when things are going off the rails because there has been a failure to communicate.  Sometimes all it takes to fix things up is to back up the train so you can get back on the right track, with due apologies for the horrible railway metaphor.

Thank you for the great suggestions and insights about leadership. It is a conversation worth having, often.

Books that Influence

A couple of days ago I asked a very simple question on Facebook: If you were to give a present to someone of the BUSINESS BOOK that MOST INFLUENCED you, what would it be?

I ended up getting 10 very different responses and thought I would share them here.  It is quite likely that through the power of the Google search, someone looking for inspiration may land on this blog and find that for which they have been searching.

(in no particular order, but numbered just the same for the sake of orderliness)

1. The Power of Alpha Thinking - Jess Stearn

This is a book about the art and practice of meditation, specifically exploring the Silva Method, one of the first self improvement courses that utilized subconscious reprogramming and 4-days of mental training.  This one could be hard to find as it been out of print for a long time, but comes highly recommended by many, including a very wise friend of mine.

2. I Had It All The Time - Alan Cohen

Cohen offers some stark advice on how to stop trying to fix yourself and start living your life, the one that nature intended.  He contends that the time is NOW to accomplish everything you've ever dreamed, not after you get that new job, buy that new car, or make a certain amount money.  There is power in the present. I'm completely paraphrasing based on what I'm reading online but this is a book that will go on my TO READ pile.

3. Who Moved My Cheese? - Spencer Johnson

Learning through parables, just like the Bible - which we'll get to shortly as a recommended book of influence - Johnson's Who Moved My Cheese tackles the nuances of managing change and how to come out on top. Based on the volume of change happening in Fort McMurray, this should be a local best-seller!

4. Make Today Count - John C. Maxwell

I like John C. Maxwell.  I was given a gift earlier this year of his Leadership Moments paperback, a collection of inspirational thoughts gleaned from his many published works.  Make Today Count suggests things we can do every day to maximize our success, to make the most out of our lives.  Do you feel scattered, inconsistent, unfocused?  This could be the book you absolutely need.

5. The Holy Bible

I don't know if the suggestion of The Holy Bible was linked to the King James version of the book, but because it gives me a good talking point, let's make that assumption.  The December 2011 edition of National Geographic digs into the history of this historic text and pulls out a large number of sayings or phrases that have been commonplace for hundreds of years but were first seen in 1611 when this version of The Holy Bible was released in England.  "From time to time", "know for a certainty", "turned the world upside down", "the skin of my teeth", and "a man after his own heart", all made their global debuts in this epic work.

6. Good to Great - Jim Collins

I'd been hearing about this book for years.  I finally picked it up and quickly realized why it is on this list.  You've heard the saying about "getting the right people on the bus"?  It was Jim Collins who crafted that wonderful analogy.  He and his colleagues researched a vast numbers of companies to find the commonalities between the ones that went from good to great and stayed there.  This should be mandatory reading for anyone striving for organizational success.

7. Rich Dad Poor Dad - Robert Kiyosaki

The sticker on the cover of this book boasts that it is The #1 Bestselling Personal Finance Book of All Time. I love the sub-headline that might be difficult to read in the above image: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money-That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!  I haven't read this book yet, though it was once recommended to me from a good friend who has been enormously successful.  I did read The Wealthy Barber by David Chilton, which infused in me the idea of paying myself first.  It inspired me to change the way I handle my personal financial affairs.

8. Fierce Conversations - Susan Scott

Bad communication is the root of all evil.  It's amazing how many times interpersonal difficulties - at home and at work - are a direct result of our inability to communicate effectively.  This one is particularly appealing to me, because I've had more than several occasions in recent months when my message was getting lost in translation.  Fierce Conversations is going at the top of the TO BUY list.

9. Persuasion - Arlene Dickinson

You know her you love her, the outspoken business shark in CBC TV's hit Dragon's Den, also CEO of Venture Communications.  How did she go from being a divorced, high school grad with no savings and no idea what she was going to do with her life to one of the most successful business leaders in Canada?  Persuasion, pure and simple.

10. The Four Agreements - Don Miguel Ruiz

Last, and certainly not least, is Don Miguel Ruiz's The Four Agreements.  The friend on Facebook who recommended it described several occasions when she was reading The Four Agreements on a trip and ended up passing it along to a stranger, because she just couldn't help herself.  That is high praise indeed, though perhaps a little tough on the pocketbook as she is on copy five or six now.  I feel fortunate because a copy of this classic is on the shelf in the Ananda Center for Balance, my wife's yoga and massage studio in the basement.  I just might steal it for a few days over the holidays.

So there you go, ten books that inspired ten friends that may inspire you.  Merry Christmas!

Love Actually IS all around

My go to Christmas movie has become Love Actually (2003). In years past it might have been Scrooge (1951) with Alastair Sim or It's a Wonderful Life (1946) with Jimmy Stewart, and certainly when I was a kid A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) was King. Not only do I enjoy movies that have myriad plot lines that flow together as the film reaches its dramatic conclusion - Magnolia (1999) and Crash (2004) are two others that come to mind - but I love the sentiment it successfully captures: that love actually IS all around.

The opening scene is a collage of personal moments from Heathrow Airport in London. I'm not sure how they captured these authentic images of love, then how they subsequently garnered permission to use the images in a major Hollywood movie, but the effect is soul stirring.

Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport.

General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that.

It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends.

When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion love actually is all around.

I like watching Hugh Grant in almost anything, but he's particularly endearing as the British Prime Minister who falls in love with the lady who brings in his tea every day before he finds her in the lascivious claws of the slimy U.S. President and "redistributes" her. I love the fact that she comes from the dodgy end of London and that she's not perfect.

Love Is All Around is actually a song originally done by a British rock group called The Troggs. Actor Bill Nighy, playing a 50-something drugged out rock-star-has-been, records a Christmas version of the tune which becomes the unexpected hit of the holiday season. The song is great, as is the Robert Palmer inspired video.

Colin Firth is wonderful as the jilted writer who comes home from his best friend's wedding to find his brother in bed with his wife. Ouch! He cloisters himself at a far away writing retreat and in a matter of three weeks falls head over heels in love with his Portuguese cleaning lady who speaks not a lick of English. By the time he proposes on Christmas Eve they've magically both become somewhat fluent in each other's language. Plausible? No. Beautiful? You bet.

Alan Rickman plays the boss at an advertising agency who is not necessarily in a loveless marriage - with a lovely lady played by Emma Thompson - but one that has become a little predictable and stale. He almost becomes the cliche, falling for the advances of his devilish and smitten secretary. He gives her a beautiful and expensive gold heart necklace and gives his wife a Joni Mitchell CD. Unbeknownst to him, his better half had sneaked a peek at the little trinket before he had passed it along. Seeing her heart break as she stood stunned in her bedroom to the haunting sound of Joni's "Both Sides Now" is one of the most powerful scenes in the film.

I find myself in tears every time I watch Love Actually, as all the story lines converge at the Christmas pageant, complete with lobsters and octopuses gathered around the manager. Sure it is a fantasy and life can't possibly work itself out so perfectly in the three short weeks before Christmas. But I don't think that's the point. The point is that love truly IS all around us.

It's often not pretty, or glamorous. Sometimes it's downright painful. More often than not though, it's warm and comforting. All you have to do is look for it.

Merry Christmas.