Smell the roses, see the butterfly's wings… slow to a snail's pace but not so slow as to sleepwalk through the day. Read on in today's story. (Photo taken with this camera at Domaine du Mas de Martin, not far from the village of Saint Bauzille de Montmel)

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~EVEILLER~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
éveiller
(ay-veh-yay) verb
  : to wake up, to excite

Literally "to pull from
sleep" (tirer du
sommeil)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hear my daughter pronounce today's
word and quote: Download eveiller.mp3 . Download eveiller.wav   
    On ne
force pas une curiosité, on l'éveille.
    We don't force curiosity, we
awaken it.  –Daniel Pennac

Never miss a word : get yourself a French
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"Présent!" It is what my son replies when his teacher
reads aloud his name for roll call. Every French child answers the same
life-affirming way: "Présent!"*

The affirmative "Présent!" is so much
more lively than bland ol' "Here!," don't you think? And did you ever notice
the word's dual meaning: present/present which, whether in French or English,
hints that when we are "here," present in the moment, we receive the "gift"
of clarity – where even the mundane takes on magnificence.

I would
like to shout "Présente!" to somebody each day or, better yet, each hour!–if
only to remind myself that I am truly awake. An hourly roll call might pull
me out of this mental slumber. Lately, fueled by caffeine and routine,
I manage to get by on automatic. The not-so-sensational sensation could
be compared to sleepwalking through sauerkraut, though my mother-in-law would
call it "pedaling through choucroute."* The vivid imagery that her words call
forth is enough to wake my senses–if only that of sight, and if only in the
mind's eye–otherwise, it's the same old grind, day after day, though it be a
Gallic one and who am I to complain?

Recently, I decided to throw that
old foe "Predicable Routine" for a loop. I began by tying my shoes… Next, I
headed for the door instead of the coffee pot… and so marched, one foot
after the other, out of the house and into the countryside's
"classroom".

"Présente! Présente! Présente!" I affirmed, to the
whispering reeds and leaf-chattering trees that agreed, enthusiastically, to
take roll call for sluggish ol' me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~References~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
présent(e) =
here; la choucroute (f) = sauerkraut

~~~~~~~~~~~~~Ooh, là
là!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Good News!: You can now order our wine online:
   
* Domaine Rouge-Bleu ("Dentelle" 2007) *
    Click here: http://union-square.notlong.com

~~~~~~~~~~~Shopping~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For
the francophile who has everything: Eiffel Tower sink strainer / drain
Plug

Merci
Pour le Chocolat (2000) Starring: Isabelle Huppert, Jacques Dutronc
http://www.amazon.com/o/asin/B00008AOTB/frencwordaday-20

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Imported from France.

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