the pond

Ponds aren't playgrounds just for courting frogs. Little did these love hungry swooners know that this pond came with it's own babysitter, one who will sit and play with their offspring for at least an hour, no charge...

xx oo

Linking with Bella's 52 Photos Project "in the garden" theme this week...

Lost and found

I have been too fortunate. Lately, I have been engulfed and hypnotized by brilliant stories, addictive stories, too unrelenting to put down.

Last night, I just finished the annotated version of Pride and Prejudice. It was wonderful to have learned more about the customs, manners, and expectations required of individuals and families during those times, not to mention reliving the beauty that is Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy.

Soon, I'll be finished with the Book Thief. This book is haunting me--the characters are so pure, so rich, so spellbinding, I just want to hold them close... keep them safe. Written from Death's perspective and set in Nazi Germany, this story will be following me around day and night I believe, long after the last page is turned. Then, as if in an addicted daze and looking for my next fix, I walked into a bankrupted bookstore that is selling everything for 60% off or more. I don't need anymore books. I just found a stack of unread books last week, and I have more free ones coming from Paperback Swap. I was only suppose to...you know, just look around...

Well, you can see the result of me just "looking around". These will be joining the other found books in the "to read and re-read" pile. I admit, I am completely and hopelessly lost in my found books. Such a beautiful place to be...

And you?

Linking with Amanda for Weekending,

xx oo

Silhouette

Joining Bella's 52 photo projects today, with the theme "silhouettes".

I realize that August is coming to a close in a week, and with it the August break, and even the Index Card a Day challenge (which I've been neglecting a bit). In the last couple weeks, I seemed to have taken a break from nearly everything--the knitting, the journaling, the icads, even photos have become sparse (only the reading hasn't suffered--that never seems to suffer ;). There's been a lot of thinking though, and a lot of angst.

I know all the right words and principles about living in the moment, keeping awareness and having gratitude for what I have. I've learned enough about those things to know in my head and heart what's important. But sometimes the knowing just isn't enough. Sometimes the feelings still sit, simmering in that distant corner of my mind. Sometimes it hurts to know exactly what I want and not be able to reach it quite yet. And when I slow down, those distant feelings bulldoze to the forefront saying "remember me?"

My last post with Desiderata was a reminder to myself about what to do with those feelings.  My father loved that poem, yet he died with so much sadness. I guess that is maybe why I have been so militant about defining my own feelings, analyzing them, finding the reasons and trying to fix them. What slowing down does though, is it allows me to just sit with them, shake hands maybe, and make peace. It allows me to say "I know you are there and I know you have something to say." And that's it.

"Whether or not it is clear to you, the universe is unfolding as it should..."  ~ from Desiderata 

much love
xx oo

Quiet

Desiderata

"Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, 

and remember what peace there may be in silence. 

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.

 Speak your truth quietly and clearly,
and listen to others, 

even to the dull and ignorant; 

they too have their story. 

Avoid loud and aggressive persons; 

they are vexatious to the spirit. 

If you compare yourself with others, 

you may become vain or bitter, 

for always there will be 

greater and lesser persons than yourself. 

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. 

Keep interested in your own career 

however humble;

it is a real possession in the

changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,

for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you

to what virtue there is;

many persons strive for high ideals,

and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.

Especially do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love,

for in the face of all aridity 

and disenchantment,

it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel 

of the years,

gracefully surrendering 

the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit

to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself
with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of 

fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,

be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe

no less than the trees and the stars;

you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,

no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore, be at peace with God,

whatever you conceive Him to be.

And whatever your labors and aspirations,

in the noisy confusion of life,

keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham,

drudgery, and broken dreams,

it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful.

Strive to be happy."

~ Max Ehrmann

dedicated to my father
who first read this to me
when I was just a girl

much love

xx oo

Something new

After seeing so many wonderful bloggers participate, I finally visited the galleries at Bella's 52 photos projects. The photos and photographers on those gallery pages are oh so talented and beautiful. To see so much inspiration in one place is fantastic.

So I am joining in, with a little shyness I might add, as I'm afraid my own caliber doesn't quite match up to theirs. It's always nice being on the newbie side of things though. I get to feel again that possibilities are endless, and I just haven't stopped growing yet :)...

"Always walk through life as if you have something new to learn, and you will."
~Vernon Howard

much love 

xx oo

Notice

What I have been enjoying during this August break is not only the beautiful photos being shared, but the resonant quotes posted everywhere.  I am reminded daily of the brilliance of the human mind, the compassion of the human heart, and the likenesses of our human spirits...
so thank you...
xx oo

"You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
call to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting –
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things."
~ Mary Oliver

"From that time on, the world was hers for the reading. She would never be lonely again, never miss the lack of intimate friends. Books became her friends and there was one for every mood. There was poetry for quiet companionship. There was adventure when she tired of quiet hours. There would be love stories when she came into adolescence and when she wanted to feel a closeness to someone she could read a biography. On that day when she first knew she could read, she made a vow to read one book a day as long as she lived."
 ~ Betty Smith (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn)

xx oo

The swell

The swell began with a newly 9 year old boy and his friends, about to competitively swim, bike, then run, with nearly 200 other children.

The excitement, the nervousness, the anticipation gripped everyone around us. As I watched this boy's father pace back and forth, back and forth, reminding me of a time 9 years ago (only then, the swell existed less in my chest but more in my belly). And then it's time, and before we know it...

a blur, a whirl, a crescendo...

thanks Nana for the last two pics :)

and it's over, as quick as it all started, foreshadowing all that I have to look forward to, and all that I have yet to experience in this beautiful life of his. It's happening too fast and I can't hold onto it long enough. Nine years has slipped through my fingers like sand. What's left is a swell, a swell that has filled every corner of my soul with love, pride, and joy. How I deserved such a boy, I will never know. All I can do is continue to hope that I do right by him as he deserves nothing less but the best of me. And this is when it hits me square between the eyes again, that this is the gift of parenthood, when we see we played some small part in showing a young life how to find joy.

much love and may many swells fill you up this week
xx oo

Linking with Amanda today :)...

Roadster

I don't covet cars that much, until I run across something like this. A 1967 Honda roadster. I would love one, even for just a day. I would drive it along a winding, tree-lined road, in the mountains, during the peak of fall :)...

Oh yes, I would...:)

xx oo

Butterfly

"Awaken to the universe's simple gift of the butterfly. Watch with fascination and joy as a jeweled treasure glides by and gently touches your soul." ~ K.D'Angelo

I have never held a butterfly before. This beautiful butterfly is a Giant Swallowtail. He was found fully intact, but lifeless, in our front yard this past weekend. I loved him from the moment I saw him, so lovely, so perfect, and so very fragile...

I think I am in good company when I say "I love butterflies." Every butterfly I see has the power to draw my gaze, stop my thoughts and distract my mind. Every single one is a reminder that now is the time in need of my attention...

"Butterfly flutters tickle the drowsy heart, awakening imaginations, curiosities, wonders and dreams. Where will you fly once touched by a Butterfly’s wing?" ~K. D’Angelo

much love

xx oo

Flashes

Another weekend flashes by and I do my best to slow it down. Images present themselves and I say "alright... I'll give it a try."

Shadows, a bracelet, an old downtown hotel...

Raindrops, a rainbow, and a boy turning 9...

There is more to show, more to say, and more to contemplate. But, then I remember, oh yes... I am on August Break....

Welcome week 2 :)

xx oo

Linking with Amanda, too

Girls: 8.4.11

"It's about a girl who is on the cusp of becoming someone.. A girl who may not know what she wants right now, and she may not know who she is right now, but who deserves the chance to find out." 

~ Jodi Piccoult (My Sister's Keeper)

xx oo

p.s. more about the iphone tomorrow, for joy pockets (hint)

(not) at home: signs

Bugs are cool, but not when they land on my leg, and not when they are big, black horse flies that are known to fly at people and bite looking for a blood meal. And definitely not when I just stepped out of the pool to check my email messages with my handy and oh so dandy iphone. You all know how much I love and use my iphone. 

Fight or flight. The problem with it is that there is no time to think before you jump. I jumped. In the pool. With my iphone. Because of a black horse fly on my leg :(. 

This photo was the last one I took before my iphone went for a swim. Coincidence?!! I think not. 

We go visit the iphone doctor today to see if she can be recovered. Meanwhile a pumpkin spice cake sounds mighty good right now, don't you think?

xx oo

at home: a salute to Rube

It began with Mouse Trap...

 which led to watching Ok-Go's This Too Shall Pass again (LOVE, take the time if you haven't seen it please, and make sure the kids are with you)...

which led to an all day salute to Rube...

xx oo

icad #44