Hello, again...

It’s been awhile since I’ve visited any of my blogging friends or posted anything, I know. And I’m sorry for that. It’s been a tumultuous time, for a few reasons...  but I think I may have finally landed on my feet. Fingers crossed!

Despite the holiday rush, this year the season seems particularly magical to me. Maybe it’s because I’ve finished my shopping early and am now more focused on preparing for celebrations with family and friends. Or it could be because it’s been a relatively long and warm fall - so this morning when I woke to find a light snow falling it made me smile, rather than cringe; afterall, what’s Christmas without snow (at least in the Northern hemisphere)?!

Wishing everyone a blessed Winter Solstice and a wonderful Christmas!

160 - The View

Backward views 
All remembered
Through distorted lenses:
Magnified or diminished
By varying degrees.

Looking forward,
Conscious of
That creeping haze: 
Our only escape. 

Sunday 160 is a creation of Monkey Man. If you’d like to participate or check out other 160s visit him here! 

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24117329@N06/2780334551/

Opal Wing Creations

I wanted to share with you some of the beautiful handcrafted works of jewellery designer Naomi Assenheim. You can find more of her gorgeous pieces at Opal Wing Creations or on Etsy.

"Green Evolution" - Sterling silver, variscite.

"Unity Consciousness" - Sterling silver, 14kt gold, blue opal, blue tourmaline.

"Found Treasures" - Sterling silver, Bronze, fresh water pearl.

Reflection

You turned your back,

And the whole world

Disappeared from view,

Its purpose suddenly faded

In sepia-tinted memories.

You walked away,

And I saw myself alone

Rooted in unforgiving earth,

A diminished spirit,

Resistant to forward motion.

I turned inside

To look beyond illusion

Searching for my connection;

The glow of inner knowing

Reflected back to me in love.

I now stand tall

To view beyond the clearing

A universe possible and true;

The mirror of my heart

No longer shadowed by you.

Images:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrigu/237043616/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vangorkumphotography/5593491421/

Do Something

"We are what we do, not what we say." 

- David Suzuki 

The time has come for all of us, as global citizens, to step up our game. We need to be more conscious of the fact that everything we do or don't do affects us and the planet in some way 

- so please, make your actions count!

Below is a very powerful speech given by 13 year old Severn Suzuki to the United Nations on behalf of ECO, the Environmental Children's Organization.

Stuff

This weekend, my 14 year old asked me why he’s only allowed two pairs of running shoes - one for school, as required for his uniform, and the other for everything else – when so many other people he knows have a different pair for every outfit. My response? It's unnecessary and wasteful. And although I'm pretty sure he's still at least halfway convinced I’m just really cheap, on another level, I know he gets it... and either way, that is that.

Just because we can have something, doesn't mean we should. Yet living when and where we do, exposed to such an unlimited wealth of material possibilities, it's often very difficult to know where to draw the line. So when is enough, enough? And why do so many of us feel compelled to surround ourselves with so much "stuff"?

In some cases, I think it stems from an ingrained need to "keep up with the Joneses" - in fear of being judged less worthy. In other instances, it’s simply the excitement of acquiring the latest greatest thing driving us. And if we can afford it in that moment we think, “Why not?” But the reality of all this stuff we collect is that it's bogging us down; it's cluttering our minds, our homes and eventually, our landfills.

While I am certainly no paragon of anti-clutter virtue, I love the idea of home as a sanctuary containing only those things truly necessary to happiness and wellbeing. To this end, I am trying hard not to make so many impulse purchases and to be more aware of what my family and I need, versus what we may want, for a whole assortment of unimportant reasons. And if it turns out that this new way of living makes it easier to put the kids through college, then that’s all the better!

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/magdalengreen/3138710017/

Enough Already!

It’s almost the end of February… and not a moment too soon! I haven’t been able to think of anything nice to write lately and I’m blaming winter (mostly) for the deep freeze of my imagination.

So in an attempt to inspire myself and anyone else who may be in need of a good thawing out, here are some nice things that other people have created to remind us that Spring is only 24 days away!

Everything is blooming most recklessly; if it were voices instead of colors, there would be an unbelievable shrieking into the heart of the night.  ~Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters of Rainer Maria Rilke

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/barbdpics/4561612781/lightbox/

I love spring anywhere, but if I could choose I would always greet it in a garden.  ~Ruth Stout

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24117029@N07/2516787209/

Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.  ~Doug Larson

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27840777@N06/5465140808/

No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn.  

~Hal Borland

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardpeters/499329541/

Spring shows what God can do with a drab and dirty world.  ~Virgil A. Kraft

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lorax9203/2399703522/

And Spring arose on the garden fair,


Like the Spirit of Love felt everywhere;


And each flower and herb on Earth's dark breast


Rose from the dreams of its wintry rest.


~Percy Bysshe Shelley, "The Sensitive Plant"

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/44175404@N03/4063757430/

Yesterday the twig was brown and bare;


To-day the glint of green is there;


Tomorrow will be leaflets spare;


I know no thing so wondrous fair,


No miracle so strangely rare.


I wonder what will next be there!


~L.H. Bailey

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/1bluecanoe/3410348208/

If you've never been thrilled to the very edges of your soul by a flower in spring bloom, maybe your soul has never been in bloom.  ~Terri Guillemets

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/halifaxlight/4382792243/

If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall.  ~Nadine Stair

 Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/billtam/474358655/

The world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful. 

~ E.E. Cummings.

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cdreyes/2219418451/

55-Over

Enveloped in bitter night,

We walk silently along our separate paths,

Time for any discussion long since gone.

The waning moon, near invisible,

Behind drifting patches

Of blackened clouds,

Illuminating briefly, though well enough

For all the grim reminders

Of both our indiscretions, to appear

Cast in unfortunate shadows

Laid bare across an icy trail.

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/purpleman/4453626488/

55 Flash Fiction Friday: Compose a story in 55 words and report back
to the G-Man at http://g-man-mrknowitall.blogspot.com/ …every Friday.

55-Recipe for Success

A reasonable amount of talent;

A lot of hard work;

A knack for improvisation;

A decent bit of humility;

At least a show of respect;

And a large pinch of gratitude.

But most importantly: The ability to walk away with grace if things don't work out, knowing you already have everything needed to be successful.

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sweetcaroline13/2941682132/

55 Flash Fiction Friday: Compose a story in 55 words and report back
to the G-Man at http://g-man-mrknowitall.blogspot.com/ …every Friday.

The Journey

The open road

Projected before us,

Awaiting life,

Undisturbed.

Through dimly cast light,

We imagine

What's there,

While squinting

Toward signposts

Too distant and blurred.

Shadowy paths

Veering off

Beyond sight,

Flanked by forests

Of dark indecision.

Impulses quelled

By illusions of past

Keep us focused

On views

Smooth, yet narrow.

Looking back

What we see

Is shrouded in mist,

True memory

Forever eludes us.

Just one way to go,

Though the route

Is our choice,

And adventure

Our tireless friend.

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/harmweitering/5090608352/

Winter's Gift

A crystalline beauty

Enfolds us

In its delicate pallet

Of glassy hues;

Charmingly cool,

Deceptively inviting.

Diamond-encrusted

Throughways,

Defying brisk resolve;

A veiled admonition

To our reluctant embrace

Of nature's respite.

The gift of the season:

Perhaps as much

About what lies within,

As without;

A well-timed invitation

For reflective pause.

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/garent/4382503120/