Time to dream, good night!

Sometimes when I can't fall asleep I invent bedtimes stories to tell myself. This is one of them. Hope you enjoy it!

Sending a little love your way,


Joyel xo




The time has come
The time to go sleep
Not time for bubble gum
Not time for counting sheep

But wait! Before you go

And fall fast asleep

There's something you need to know

A secret for you to keep

There are better things 

Than counting sheep
On clouds with wings
To get yourself to sleep

Wishes and dreams go hand in hand

When all the lights go out

You just need to go dreamland

No need to blow a candle out

Dreamland is a place, you know

Filled with princes and princesses

Dreamland is a place you go

Where monsters wear silly dresses

Dreamland is place I hope you understand

And that you hear me when I shout

"Wishes are real, wishes are grand

So wish of things to dream about!"

Like giant ice cream cones

Sprinkled with skittles like a rainbow

Magical things like fairy tale gnomes

And the biggest bubbles you could ever blow.

Sitting outside and wishing on stars

That look like millions of fireflies

Finding shapes of cars or even planet Mars

When you look up at the dark skies

My wish tonight for you

Is that you dream your very best

And if a monster says "Boo!"

Just remember the silly dress.

Now lay down your head
It's time to call it a night
It's time for you to go to bed
Time to turn off the light

Time to dream a dream
A dream of great delight
One of giant ice cream
and stars that shine so bright

It's not something you want to miss
So hurry! Get tucked in tight
Close your eyes, here's your kiss
It's time to dream, good night!

Photo Booths

This is a story I wrote a few years ago after I had a dream about Phil. We were not together at the time, obviously. I still remember this dream...




Last night I dreamt that you and I took pictures in a photo booth. I remember this because when I woke up this morning, I was smiling. We took pictures, and then I had to leave. I remember this because you grabbed my hand and asked to never let go. Something about the way you looked at me made me not want to leave. I don't know where I was going or why you held on so tight, but I remember this because it was the pain in my hand that woke me up. There was a woman waiting impatiently outside the photo booth. I remember this because she asked us to hurry up. You laughed and said ''being in love is not meant to be rushed.'' I remember this because a picture was taken at the very moment. You, looking outside the booth and me looking at you and smiling. I have a new found love for photo booths, I do not know why. Maybe it is the choice of curtains. Though, orange is not really my color. Perhaps it is the fact that we have to sit so close to each other; almost as if we are one person. Though, lack of personal space makes me feel claustrophobic. Maybe it is the 5 minutes we get to spend together while waiting for the pictures. Though, I dislike waiting around. Or, perhaps it is not the photo booth at all. Perhaps it is you, and the way you held my hand, or the pictures that were being taken - I can still see them in my mind. I want to delete them but if do, I won't have anything to see as I dream myself to you at night. On the other hand, a part of me does not want to fall asleep because I do not want to dream of photo booths. Or maybe I do not want to dream of you.

''You dream of people you cannot live without'' is what you whispered in my ear as we waited for the pictures to develop. I remember this, because I looked up at you and whispered back ''I always dream of you.'' This is when you held my hand and begged me not to go.

''What do you dream of every night?'' I asked you as you held on tight. ''This'' you said as you showed me the pictures from the photo booth.

I remember this because this is when I woke up, pain in hand, smile on face, and the realization that I do not dislike waiting around when waiting around, is for you.


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The Oceans Inside of me Move for you

Have you ever noticed how ocean waves gush into the form of a half-heart shape?  

I like to believe that if two waves were to hit, they would form the most perfect heart shape.

Today I am sharing a story that was written a while back (2006). Can you guess who it's about? ;)

I'm staring out my window; a part of me wishes you were on the other side - staring back at me; looking into my eyes. With just that one look paralyzing my entire body; head to toe. I want to tell you all my secrets. I want to tell you that I'm scared. I want to tell you everything inside of me - inside of my heart. I want you to somehow magically be inside of it and feel the way I feel when I think of you. I am addicted to it. I think if you felt it, you would be too. I tried to come up with a way to describe it; a tingle, a butterfly, a falling star, a sunrise, a sunset, freshly baked cookies, hand holding, kisses on the forehead, kisses on the nose, or perhaps a smile - on the inside. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I close my eyes and I can almost feel your perfect eyes looking back at me. From the tips of my fingers, and running up and down my spine, I can feel your perfect lips smiling at me. My heart smiles for your heart; for the beauty that you are. For the tingles and smiles that are inside of you. Eyes closed, my entire body feels paralyzed from being filled the most beautiful things you can imagine. From the prettiest flowers to the sweetest candy - to the way that I can only imagine you taste. Like when feeling so hungry you can almost taste the thing you are craving; you close your eyes and you can almost smell it cooking and you can almost imagine how good it would be...if only you could taste it. I want to tell you that it hurts, to feel something so beautiful. It hurts to want something so badly. It hurts to know that it can be this beautiful. It hurts to be the only one feeling it. I want to tell you that I love you, but you make words so hard to find. There's nothing left to say. Except this is what I feel like when I think of you. I want to capture this feeling, put it in a box and send it to you. Maybe then, you would know what it feels like to be me thinking of you. It makes my heartbeat race and pound inside my head. It is deafening.

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Happy reading xo

Waking up to Sunrises of Hope

Today, I am sharing a story that I wrote back in 2007. I re-read every now and then to remind myself of what it's all about. Thought i'd share with you :)


Happy reading xo




I sat by my window and watched the sun come up. Something I haven't really done in a while. There's just something about watching the night turn to day that makes me feel alive. Not in the living and breathing sense, but more like in the falling in love way. Something that is so new but yet always feels so familiar. You almost don't want to look away, just in case you miss something. A feeling. A colour. A moment. And for that moment, it feels like you're seeing it for the first time. Feeling it for the first time. It feels like that first kiss. Anticipated. Yet unexpected. You can never really know what to expect from that first kiss. You've had them before but not one first kiss is the same. If you really watch a sunrise, I mean really look. Watch it. As the colours move and change and dance in the sky. You can almost feel that first moment. Most people prefer sunsets. Most people have seen more sunsets than sunrises. Most people are awake to see the sun set. Most people are either sleeping or too busy getting ready to see the sun rise. Most people take it all for granted; Sunrises. Falling in love. As well as being in love. Not very many people really pay attention to a sunrise. Not very many people take the time to appreciate it. Not very many people get the chance to feel...Sunrises...Falling in love...Or someone they love, loving them back.  Sunrises tend to be forgotten. Rarely seen. Rarely felt. Ignored. Unnoticed. People become so busy they tend to forget to acknowledge; Sunrises...Love. You can imagine a sunrise. A first kiss. But you can't predict the feeling. Of falling in love. You can't predict the intensity. Of the colours. Of the kiss. Or the hope of what today will bring. You can't predict how long it will last. Or if they will ever love you back. Most people prefer Sunsets. Sunrises are growing on me. Maybe it's the hope they carry. That makes me feel alive. That keeps me holding on.




Don't let love go unnoticed. Take a moment. Open your eyes. Acknowledge a sunrise. Open your heart - to a story of love!

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Missing you, my love

This is a little story written in 2004 - my first story ever published - for which I won an award.

To see you again, my love, would be like a dream come true. 

It's been only a few months, but it feels like so much longer than that. 

You know I love you. I love you so warmly and deeply. 

And you know that I miss you.
I miss your lips, your hands, your face, and your smile. 

Reading your words every day is what keeps me going, 

and to know that I will see you again makes me so much stronger. 

But you know, my love, missing you isn't so bad; 

it simply reminds me that you are a part of me. 

Though our love feels like a dream, I know that you are real 

for no one can miss a dream this strongly.

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Thanks for reading xo

Falling in Love with a car Crash

"I hate the winter but I like the snow, it's hard to keep warm when it's cold out." I looked up at him and gave him a half smile.

"If you want I'll spend the rest of my winters keeping you warm."  He sat on the ground looking up at me. 

I was dancing in the snowfall and he was watching me, so intensly, as if taking notes in his mind. I wished that he would stop. The way he was watching me made me want to fall down into his arms. I hate falling. But I like his arms. 

"I wish you could be me, here, watching you." he said. 

I gave him a smile as if it mattered. Did I really want to live through his eyes? 

"I wish it were night and that the stars were out." I said changing the subject. 

He stood up and held me close. "If you're tired of the day, I'll be your night."  he whispered into my ear. 

I pulled away. "That's so cliché. What do like so much about me?" I asked him sincerely. 

He smiled. "Your hipbones and small wrists." he said sarcastically. I turned away and he grabbed my hand. "I don't want to be broken down by the sound of your silence." I couldn't turn to face him. "Why are you pushing me away?" he continued.

I looked at him and asked him if he'd ever been in a car crash. He nodded his head yes. I asked him if he'd ever eaten ice cream so fast that it made his head hurt. He nodded again and I continued. "Then why would you want to fall in love with me?" 

"Are you saying you're a car crash?" 

"Yes." I whispered. 

"I'll get an airbag" he said with a smile. 

"You might want to learn how to read a map before falling in love with me." I said, twirling a strand of hair around my finger and looking down at the snow on my boots."

"I'll stop for directions along the way." 

"But I talk to much." I whined. 

"I live to hear you speak." He thought for a moment and continued "Plus, I have earplugs." He laughed. 

"Are you enjoying this?" I asked him with tears in my eyes. 

He sighed. "What are you afraid of?" 

I heard every single word he said that night, and I fell for every single one of them. There was nothing left to say anymore - only the truth. 

"Of falling in love with you." I finally whispered back. 

"Would that be such a bad thing - to be in love?" He asked me. 

I didn't know what to say. I didn't know what to think.

"I know you're scared" he continued "and I'm scared too." He paused for an answer, but I didn't give one.  "The way you make me feel scares the shit out of me; the way you make me smile, the way you make me feel alive, the way I can't think straight when you're around, the way you make butterflies run up and down my spine, all of it scares me, but what scares me even more is not having any of that." He admitted. 

I pulled myself together. ''But..." I paused and gathered my thoughts before continuing. "If I let myself fall in love with you - then what? I will have nothing left to fear." 

He looked up at me with tears in his eyes and a smile on his face "How do you feel about heights?" 

I laughed and walked closer to him. "I don't know. I can't think straight. I'm in love."

It Smells Like Winter

I went for a walk in the snow today. I looked out the window and saw a thin white blanket on the ground. It wasn't that cold out, but I decided to dress up anyway. There's just something about a walk in the snow that requires tuques, mittens, a scarf, and boots. There wasn't a lot of snow on the sidewalk so I decided to walk on people's lawn instead. I felt the need to see my tracks and hear the sound of my boots hitting the snow. I could smell wood burning away in stoves and fire places. I could see smoke coming out of chimneys. It reminded me of home, of hot chocolate and warmth. Which is odd because mom making a fire in the wood stove somehow always resulted in a smoke filled house, open windows, and me sitting on the couch, watching television in my winter jacket along with the rest of my winter apparel. 
I remember winter walks with my mom. I remember the smell of chimney smoke as we walked by every other house. I remember looking up at her and saying '' Hey Mama, it smells like winter ay?'' 
Every season seems to have its own scent. Every person does not use the same scent to describe a season. To me, the smell of rain is the spring. Sun tan lotion and barbecues smell like the summer. Pumpkin Pie, a roasting turkey, bread in the oven, and basically any type of home cooked meal smells like the fall. Maybe it's because mama used to cook a lot in the fall or maybe it's because of Thanksgiving. I'm not quite sure. But these are my scents and every time they pass me by, I remember. 
Walking today, snow on the ground, I could see my breath. I could smell the chimney smoke. I found myself remembering. I found myself whispering ''Hey Mama, it smells like winter ay?''