EMBRACE CHANGE

One thing is for sure.  Nothing remains the same.  Everything changes.  

The seasons come and the seasons go.  Waves wash in with the tide, and they wash out again.  The darkest hours are always followed by a fresh ray of light.  One chapter ends and another begins. One door closes and another door swings open, presenting new opportunities. We grow older, our bodies change.  Time passes and tomorrow is a new day with a new beginning. 

Love deeply, laugh hard, play often, color outside the lines, make up your own rules, remain a curious mind, keep an open heart, take chances, do what you love, embrace difference, walk to the beat of your own drum, remain open to possibility. 

Because in the end, change happens, whether we like it or not.  Even on the worst days, "this too shall pass."  And what might we be missing if our eyes, hearts and bodies were not open to the sweet beauty that lies ahead? 

SAGITTARIUS

Life is short. I want to leave this world having ingested every little thing with passion, excitement and no regrets. I want to reach for the sky and feel the breath of life.  

Because I am curious by nature.  Because I am a Sagittarius and I like variety and tire of routine.  Because I like to keep things new and interesting.  Because I have an insatiable desire to learn and grow. Because the journey is more important than the destination.  Because I like adventure.  Because I learned at a young age to color outside the lines.  Because one idea leads to 100 more, and those 99 steps to the last were just about the learning, and less about the outcome. Because... because...because. 

For all these reasons,  I've been absent from my blog.  I know.  It doesn't bode well with blogging "etiquette."  But it wasn't intentional.  I got side-tracked.  I've been having fun and learning new things.  I've been adding to my repertoire of creative knowledge :)  

I've been experimenting and playing with some new ideas, new techniques, and new projects.  And just this week, I've begun to FINALLY enter into the world of surface design, combining many of my creative interests!!!  This has been a dream since I learned to sew and fell in love with fabric when I was 7.   

In keeping with the theme, I bought a new iphone app this week for taking photographs and started playing with it in the woods.  And as with most things, I see in colors, lines, shapes and forms, textures, and patterns.  I'm still learning all of the technical details of the program, but had a blast laying on the forest floor looking for interesting things to sketch for my surface design classroom assignment.  Many of these photos were not even in focus, because I was too busy moving from subject to subject, just trying to capture the essence of what I was seeing so I could later begin sketching out designs from that.  

Thirsty for more, drenched in wonder.  One destination becomes the beginning of a new adventure,  a quick stop along this continuous journey.  And so it goes.....

WATERCOLORS........

I wake each day,  

open to unexpected possibilities.  

Patient to see what unfolds. 

It's March and there is no telling what the days might be like this time of year.  Dull, grey skies.  Changing temperatures.  And occasionally, a hint of sunshine.  

I start my hike, just like any other day, observing, 

waiting for something big, that "aaaaaah" moment, that one experience that grabs me and catches my breath.

I stand in the quiet and I wait.  And there it is. 

The big, bold beautiful brush strokes of color. It's as if I have been invited to the most magnificent art show. 

Canvas after canvas being created before me. 

Breathtaking watercolors.

And so it was, just another day, with that "aaaaah" moment, the one that catches my breath. 

WISDOM

Sometimes....It helps to remember that there is more way than one to do something. 

Sometimes....I have to nudge myself to remain curious, to ask questions, to explore. 

Sometimes....I need to "de-clutter" to make room for new ideas, new experiences.  

Sometimes....I have to remember to walk tall, engage with my surroundings, 

breathe deep and make room for more of everything.

Sometimes....It is challenging to live bravely and with intention in all that I do.  

Sometimes.... I believe that anything is possible. 

Sometimes....I must remove facades, masks, and expectations.

Always, it's important for me to remain OPEN.

FIRE AND ICE

Carl Heilman is an Adirondack photographer that has been teaching and sharing his love of the outdoors for many years.  I've now had the pleasure of joining him twice for outdoor adventures with my camera.  

This weekend, we ventured into the Lake Brant region.  The temperatures were frigid, with high winds, almost to the point of unbearable. Ok, so maybe I wasn't completely dressed for the occasion, and I was just coming off being sick for a week, which didn't help. 

In any case, the time in the outdoors was beautiful, inspiring, and left me, as usual, wanting more. 

I didn't get as many amazing shots as I would have liked.  My fingers were numb from the cold. And dancing behind the camera to keep my toes from freezing, didn't bode well for "in focus" shots, even with my remote. 

Despite the lack of images I was able to collect, 

 I was able to just "be" with mother nature once again, awe struck at the formations of ice, the "golden hour" mountains draped in purple, and quite simply, the gratitude of being blessed with such incredible beauty right before my eyes. 

WHAT IS LOVE.......

It's Valentine's Day. 

Expressions of love all packed into one day. 

I am not one for commercialism.  As a matter of fact, I rebel against it.  Candy coated hearts, a dozen roses, a box of expensive chocolates - all lovely, heart-felt gestures, but don't seem to really define love as I see it. 

There is the deep love of "other". And sometimes the hardest, is self-love.  To welcome, embrace, and celebrate the good, the bad, and the ugly within.  To find love, compassion, and joy in one another and in ourselves, in spite of our flaws, our mistakes, and our failures. 

  

To notice, to express, to share the simple gestures of love that we are granted each and every day, often in the most unexpected places, and in the most unsuspecting ways.

To feel the swelling in one's heart when these gifts are given, granted, and received. 

To love unconditionally 

This is love. 

May your day be filled with all the many little gifts of love.

SEEDLINGS........

The burst of a new year, 

the bustling of activity,

out with the old, in with the new.

I sit and ponder,

ideas, projects, goals and aspirations for this 2013 chapter.

I wallow in the meanderings of my creative energy,

planting many different types of seedlings in the rich soil of my space.

Waiting patiently to see which of them make their way through the earth. 

Some seedlings will have more potency than others, planting themselves deeply with untethered roots. 

Some will die out. 
Others will continue to grow and develop into something more interesting and captivating,

reaching into my spirit and grabbing ahold of my attention, with a demand for more nourishment and nurturance.

Some will just be sprouts for another layer of seedlings for the future. 
Growth comes from the most unexpected places. 

Inspiration comes with the process of growth. 

As most people are already living out their goals for the new year, I am in the midst of planting, watering and nourishing my fertile field, 
waiting and watching for new growth,
 deciding which of my creative seedlings will become new projects for 2013. 
 Already I can see some of those that are going to take me in new directions, 
demand more food from the soul, 
and become a thing of beauty.