July 14, 2005
-
Sérénité dans la nature
Calm in the nature .
English version below the pictures
Une partie d ' Amiens ( ma ville , France ) est un marais de la rivière Somme transformé par l ' Homme depuis des siècles en une grande quantité de petites îles entourées de petits canaux et cultivées comme jardins maraîchers . Les jardiniers transportaient et transportent encore leur légumes au marché d ' Amiens par bateaux
En Juin dernier nous avons navigué dans ces canaux avec quelques amis Anglais ( xangans bien connus ) sur une de ces bateaux à forme un peu spéciale , ressemblant à une gondole . Quel calme ! Nous n ' entendions même pas le bruit du moteur électrique . Le silence était total seulement rompu par le chant des oiseaux . Ce calme puissant nous apporta une paix intérieure indicible . Les parcelles de terrains sont utilisées comme jardins maraîchers mais e plus en plus comme propriété pour résidence s secondaires avec jardins fleuris .
La première photo ci - dessous montre l ' embarquement de Marie ( MSB ) aidée par sa fille Julie( Englishjuls ) et son beau - fils John . La seconde photo suggère le silence de l ' endroit et la paix à bord .
Marie going on boat Photo Janine Fauquet June 2005
Calm photo Janine Fauquet June 2005
A part of Amiens ( my town , France ) is a marsh of the river Somme transformed by the Man for centuries in a lot of tiny islands surrounded by small canals and used as floating market gardens . The gardeners shipped and always ship their vegetables to the open market of Amiens by boats .
Last June we sail on those canals with some English friends ( well known Xangans ) in one of those boats looking like a gondola . What a calm ! We didn' t even hear the noise of the electric motor . Silence was total only broken by birds songs . This poweful calm brought to us an inexpressible inner peace . . The parcels are used as vegetable gardens but more and more they become properties for bungalows with flowered gardens .
The first photo above shows Marie ( MSB ) going on board helped by her daughter Julie ( englishjuls ) and her son in law John . The second photo suggests the silence of the place and peace on board .
Dans notre vie il y a des moments privilégiés qu 'on aime partager .
In our life there are some privilegied moments that we like to share .
Comments (95)
Looks lovely! I just got back from Europe a few weeks ago and I loved it and can't wait to go back!
,
Amy
I am so glad to see you back here on xanga for very selfish reasons...I miss reading your posts. I am also glad that you had the opportunity to meet Marie and her children. They said you and Janine were excellent hosts. The boat ride looks wonderful as do your pictures of it. Welcome back to xanga!
Isn't it the best to share those moments with loved ones...
How beautiful the water looks so calm. Those are much more attractive then our duck boats that sail in the Charles River
I am so glad you all got together and had a lovely time 
Love
C
actually i was lucky enough that I was able to visit UK, France, Italy and Greece
i'm so glad you're back on xanga. i missed your posts about the beauty of life. great pics. hope you're doing well. talk to you later.
b.
I was just thinking of you, and hoping that you were doing well. Welcome back to xanga!!!
How nice that you got to meet some xanga friends. Appears that you enjoyed a very pleasant time out in the boat with your friends. I can almost hear those birds singing around you.
Really nice to have you back.
Love
Edie Rose
it's nice to see you again, michel. the boat ride looks like so much fun~!
~janny
How wonderful it all looks...the peacefulness and the sharing of good times with old friends in person at last. I was there with all of you in spirit
Nancy
Lovely pictures of you all sailing down the Somme
un jour j'aimerais bien voir les canaux du Saint-Laurent aux E-U et au Canada... je comprends que c'est un systeme magnifique...
Merci, Michel, pour les nouvelles de MuSe. Je suis tres triste de lui dire "au revoir" mais je suis sure de sa place avec les anges...
Calming... Hope you had fun..
Oh.. and Happy Bastille.
It is so nice to read your blog again. What delightful pictures you share. Thanks, Michel !
Welcome back. The peace is captured wonderfully on film.
How wonderful! So nice to share good times with friend's! Enjoyed the photos that Julie shared on her site! Karolyn
so nice to see a post from you! oh i wish i could go on a boat ride like that right now! all of my stress would just float right away!!! thank you so much for sharing =) i hope you have a beautiful day! thanks for brightening mine!
I hope you and Janine had a lovely restful holiday - after the stress of having to think in French and speak in English
Thanks for the card too. Seeing the photos took me back to the lovely calm ride we had, it's so hot here I could do with being on cooling water now ! My favourite photo is the one of the five of us by the garden of wild flowers in Thiepval 
Marie
How beautiful!
It's so wonderful to connect with xanga friends.
I, too, was saddened to hear about Muse's passing.
You're not alone.
This is so very neat that you guys got to meet up while they were in France! I'm also very jealous because I would LOVE to come over and meet you guys sometime!
I'm so glad you're back! You were extremely missed around here Michel!! I'm glad you've been enjoying life while you were away - that's why we're here on this beautiful earth!
the Crimson Room is a little puzzle type online game where you look for clues to escape the room.
Zach is 16 and still getting teeth~! we thought his two eye teeth might not drop down, so we were considering braces. but we had to wait so long for the appointment that one is partially in now, and the other looks like it will be ok, too.
These are beautiful pictures, Michel. Thank you for sharing a little of this lovely day.
I hope you are feeling well and having a nice summer
Michel, it is always with pleasure that I read your civilized and poetic posts. You remind me how important it is to pay attention and appreciate flowers and natural places. I have always loved rivers and streams which can be navigated by small boats--lakes too. One of my professors motored the canals of France in his sailboat after sailing across the Atlantic.
My favorite story was the day they anchored in a small town, cleaned up, and went to look for something to eat. They walked right into a restaurant a couple of blocks from their boat. They later learned it was one of the most highly rated restaurants in France. They had one of the best meals of their lives.
Glad to see you! Is the garden harvested?
Remember our friend, Tom? He posted pictures on a canal. Yours are grand ~ what fun! My blog is about nature today too: baby birds.
Heureux de vous voir! Le jardin est-il moissonné? Rappelez-vous notre ami, Tom? Il a signalé des images sur un canal. Vôtre est ~ grand quel amusement! Mon blog est au sujet de nature aujourd'hui trop: oiseaux de bébé.
I think Calm In Nature describes you. I so enjoy reading your site and seeing how alike and different our countries are.
Well, I had fun trying to read that from the top, but I'm afraid the French I studied in high school lo those many years ago failed me. Pathetically monolingual, I am, so thanks for translating!
WELCOME BACK, MICHEL! Je suis hereuse avoir vu toi ici encore une fois. What a wonderful entry to kick-start the return to your blog!
In friendship,
Caroline
Such beautiful pictures!! They make me feel the calm. I'm glad that you are back with us. I have missed your thoughts and pictures. I hope you had a good day and have a very special week.
(((hugs))) and smiles ~Char
I am glad to see you blogging again. I was just starting to get to know you when you stopped for a while. Am looking forward to get to know you better.
Followed Marie and Julie's journey to France. It is wonderful that you all got to meet each other. Amiens looks beautiful--especially the boat ride.
Everything looks so fresh and green.
Wonderful pictures!
It does look very peaceful on that boat, and I know how much Juls, Marie and John enjoyed their visit with you and Janine, Michel. 
I can imagine you would have made the perfect tour guide! Lots of very interesting places and things to see in your beautiful country. I also enjoyed looking at Jul's blogs on their visit with you.
Lovely post, and glad to see you back blogging!
Wow. That's fantastic. I wish I could meet Xangans I know at a place like that.
I'm so glad you are back. You have been missed! It certainly looks peaceful in those pictures. I think you're probably the best unofficial ambassador for your town
great to see you back, Michel
Yes. I love to share my moments at the winery. Our region in Pennsylvania is great for agriculture.
I need to take more photos. Recently I've been blogging about boring personal stuff.
Cher Michel,
Bonjour! Merci pour le blog de tes moments precieuses! My sincere condolences for your loss. It is strange how deeply it hurts when we lose someone dear on xanga.
Maintenant, j'ai travaille avec quelqu'un qui a fait des mal choses a moi. Il est un hypocrite et je dois reseter maintenant et parce qu'il etait la pour plusieurs ans...il a le "seniority" et j'ai le "short end of the stick" comme il dit.
J'espere que tu vas bien et Janine aussi
Amities,
Clementine
I am so glad your back! I've missed you and your lovely posts and pictures. I pray for you and Janine. And as always, wish for you both...the very best!
wow.. not even the sound of the motors... what abt the water?? hmmm talking about the small islands reminds me of the zhujiang delta where the river washes all kinds of mud over to our place
Nice to see you back, Lucky Marie and Co. to get to see you ,the boat ride looks really good . Love marjie
Salut Michel le francais
,
Je vais garder mon nom sur xanga pour que je puisse mettre mes commentaires sur les sites que j'aime bien (comme ce site!) et garder contact avec mes amis... mais je vais mettre mes blogs sur blogger maintenant. Je peux mettre des photos dans mes "blogs" sans payer (ca j'adore), et j'aime bien le "look" sur Blogger.
Amite a vous aussi Michel!
Emily l'americaine
PS - je suis desolee de ne pas avoir mes accents, mais je les ai perdus dans mon ordinateur...
How beautiful!! And you were able to enjoy company with Xanga friends. I miss being on the water.
Hugs,
Lisa
I wish we were still there
Thank you for such a great time 
. I will send you my photos soon 
Just beautiful, Michel. Welcome back.
-matt
It's so nice to see you posting again, Michel! Isn't Marie a lovely woman, inside and out? I think very highly of her. I love seeing the pictures of your beautiful country!
Amiens like Venice. The water gives always a very special peaceful feeling.
Nice to see you are posting again.
My pc is in trouble, so I am writing from work.( my boss time).
Beautifully descriptive, thank you for sharing.
il me semble les touristes (Marie et Julie) profitent des bonnes vacances.
si seulement j'étais là!
How fun! We're planning on going to a spring in Florida. By the way, I got an A in statistics.
i did not even realize you were back! welcome back, my friend! the pictures are wonderful, and I love that last comment you made about privledged moments to share...
so good to be back reading your posts, Michel, and to see photos of some of my favorite Xangans as well. I hope to see you at my new place.
Cyndee
Bonjour Michel! J'espère que tu as passé de très belles vacances.. Il paraîtrait que oui, si ces photos et cette histoire en sont un indice.
Oui, je déménage, mais c'est presque dans ma cour arrière. Je peux voir mon nouveau condominium de ma fenêtre, donc je n'aurai pas loin à trainer mes choses! En ce qui est du mariage, je parlais d'un film que je veux voir au cinéma.. Malheureusement les gars de mon coin ne semblent pas trop intéressés à m'avoir comme épouse. Il semblerait que j'ai des défauts! Difficile à croire, je sais..
J'espère que tout va bien dans ton petit coin du monde. Lise x
BRAVO Michel
That looks like a lot of fun, you sure do a lot of interesting things. It's so cool to see you take advantage of all the beauty in things around you!
~Aubrey
i can imagine the calm quiet. it is why i love to kayak so much! thank you for the wonderful pictures of our of you day and your adventure!
It looks like you all had a wonderful time and became great friends!
Sounds absolutely wonderful. I love to sit on my porch swing on the back arbor and just listen to the birds. I wish I could recognize songs better so that I could identify the birds. Silence can be glorious when you just want to hold hands and think about those you love.
Thank you for your kind words. LPN school is for nursing. Yes, I have been sad. I will cheer up soon with God's help.
Lovely is the only words. Hope you have a great weekend.
lol haha actually i do live in the northern hemisphere... mr tang's my pe teacher, but he also coaches me in athletics.
that boat ride must have been so beautiful Michael!!!
wow...man can do so many things,
and this time,
he did something beautiful.
you look so cute in the boat!!
and your wife looks absolutely lovely..:)
I'm so happy you're back on Xanga!!!
*hugs*!
I bet that was a delighful visit.
Hey sweety good seeing you back also.I'm doing fine trying to Quit smokingagain hope I make it this time I'm going cold turkey its been one week so far a day at a time .God Bless sweety .
http://media.euniverse.com/www_castlemountains_net/images/02_2003/miss_you_much.gif
i just visited you and was so excited that you were back...welcome home to xangaland dear friend...but your news of MuSe upset me...I will pray that her Spirit always soars...huggs...Sassy
to answer your question, they say i should have my baby boy around january 4th! =)hope you are having a great weekend!
Lovely! I can feel the cool water running through my fingers as I dangle my hand over the side of the boat, and hear the warbling songs of the birds ... how wonderfully peaceful ...
Thank you for sharing the words and pictures.
Have a great weekend!
TBB
What a lovely way to spend an afternoon. I would like so much to someday meet you and your wife. Who knows what the future may hold.
Your friend in California, Carol Suzanne
Hello Michel! It looks like a wonderful time on the water. You know I love the water because I often have spoken of the lake that Mike's family has in northern Ontario and how I love to go there.
Things are well here, but I have had much less time to write (in any form, blogging or otherwise) so I am not able to post on Xanga much for now. Summer is much busier outside and there are so many things to do besides sit at the desk and so I am out more. Also, my oldest daughter, Jesci, and her family are living with us for a bit to help them get a bit more stable, financially. This makes for less quiet time to do the writing. (I htink I need to go on a boat in a calm water too!)
I am also a part of the small, but quickly growing church, Four Corners and we just purchased our first building! Exciting times!! Pray we do as well in this new place as we have in the building we were leasing.
Have a wonderful week Michel!
Love,
Deb
It is wonderful to see you back! I hope your eyes are feeling some better. Your pictures were wonderful to see. Thank you for sharing your adventures. It is always special to peek into someone elses world....you can feel as if you are there.
Take care of you and have a fantastic week.
Karen
oh no we ARE actually on holidays but well for extracurricular activities and such we go to school.... and we go to other schools and borrow their venues.
I have missed your blogs. Wonderful photos of a treasured meeting with old xanga friends.
Thank you this was awesome to read. I could just feel myself there. I close my eyes and I could feel the calm. Who knows life has many roads maybe one day this road I will find my self on visiting you. Thank you for sharing this with me. God Bless
Dorothy
Cher Michel, il me fait plaisir de lire ton nouveau blog. J'espère que tu as passé un bon jour national. L'environ d'Amiens a l'air très tranquil. C'est merveilleux qu'on ne peut qu'écouter les chanson des oiseux.
Je suis très surpris et triste d'apprendre que MuSe est morte. AM et moi, nous avons envoyé qq cartes de postales à elle. Depuis que j'ai quité xanga, je n'ai pas lu les blog sauf le tien. Je regrète beaucoup mais comme tu a dit, je suis sur que MuSe est dans le realm d'amour.
Amitié à toi
I really love coming to your site and seeing what you have to say and to see your pictures
Michel, I'm so very glad you are back. Lovely pictures. What a peaceful looking moment. I remember peaceful times swimming at the lake, cooking hot dogs on the grill and then taking a nap. I wanted to go to the beach this weekend but since Hurricane Emily is coming in, it really wasn't a good idea. So very glad you are back. Hope your eyes are feeling better, too. Blessings, kc
Quelle Vie!. Votre poste toujours me fait heureuse. Merci Michel.....
The forces of nature are powerful especially when the heart is calm enuf to appreciate it!
How r you Michel lately? Hope all is well!
junjun
bonjour. I'm mark, matt's brother, and I came across your site. I am learning french in school and am very interesting in reading your site, which is why I subscribed. I very much enjoy your site. very beautiful and poetic.
-mark
http://media.euniverse.com/www_castlemountains_net/images/02_2003/monday_hug.gif
sometimes i crave for the peace and quiet but i'm never a person who's comfortable with silence. i'm back. well, sort off. been busy with school and my other blog. i update in xanga once in a while. i hope you're doing alright.
~aLiAh
Oh you're back, you're back! *jumping for joy*
What a fun boat ride! Looks like a beautiful area. And I got the postcard it was perfect! I had sent an email recently about it, I hope that you got it. I hope you and Janine are well and having LOTS of fun!
I was worried you hadn't received my email! LOL! And Solon looks really peaceful in the field. He loves hanging out with his pals.
I'm hoping they find something regarding my neck and can figure out a way to slow down the migraines. Even if they never stop, but I only have a couple here and there, that would make me happy!
Have a wonderful day!
Michel,your blog inspires togetherness and comradeship.the fact that all of us are connected in feeling loss and sorrow as well as joy and peace.. it feels like one world despite differences.
bonjour Michel !! quelle joie de vous revoir écrire
j’espère que vous avez bien reposé vos yeux et que vous profitez pleinement des activités en dehors de l’internet, hehehe…’faut savoir conserver la forme, n’est-ce pas !
Ce calme puissant nous apporta une paix intérieure indicible <-- c’est grâce à la force de notre silence intérieur apprivoisé que l’on réussi à garder cette sérénité face aux boucans émotionels et autres épreuves tsunamiques de la vie
It's great to see you blogging again and enjoying life. Especially on the water!
Cheers, my friend!
the peace of nature and spending time with good friends in this kind of beauty is lovely... being on the water and seeing life along the shores is wonderful.. I like it when we take our boat out on a warm summer day and sight see... Thank you for sharing with us..
I am so glad to see you back! I missed you! Your river trip sounds and looks wonderful and peaceful! Such a pleasant trip and adventure. As usual your explanation of it is as wonderful as the pictures. Welcome back to xanga. The passing of Muse was so sudden and so little warning before she passed. We will all miss her. Have a great day and a wonderful tomorrow ! ! ! ! Much love and many hugs ! ! ! ! May you and Janine sleep with the angels and wake up fully rested and ready for a new day ! ! ! ! ! Take care of you!
j'aurais bien besoin d'une jolie promenade sur les paisibles canaux de la doulce France en ce moment ...
joyeuses retrouvailles avec vos amis anglais ici
bises et amitiés à tous
AM
Good to see you enjoying life.
Glad to see you back in style again. Hope all is well with your eyesight now. The pictures are lovely as usual.
how lovely to see you back
i am glad you enjoyed the visit with your xanga friends! how neat !!
il y a toujours les moments qu'on aime partager
j'aime que tu partages toujours avec nous 
Damn.... I just wrote a big old comment in french and it got deleted by the me clicking the back thingie...
That's a lie.... But it was fun reading ur post and translating other folks words....
That's a lie too.... Was just fun dropping by....
Looks like it was a good day in June................
hey! welcome back. didnt see your posts again. hope all is well mate..
Thanks for sharing the pictures of the time you spent with Julie and her family. I enjoyed seeing the pictures that she had on her site, also.
What a fun trip! The scenery looks lovely & the company must've been as well. It looks like a perfect way to relax.
Comments are closed.