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. 

AWAKENING..................

 I wake early.

I yearn to hear the silence of my surroundings. 

the stillness around me sings sweet lullabies, 

forcing me to relax while the world around me wakens. 

in the quiet, I breathe life inside of me,

no two days are the same.

every morning is like waking up with a new pair of eyes, 

seeing all that surrounds me for the first time.

so many things I could do with my day, 

so many ways to live my life, 

this time right now. 

eyes wide open, 

the wonders of a new day,

miracles I am about to experience,

things I've yet to explore.

the vision of what I have am to find. 

every day is a new little life. 

a plethora of possibilities. 

THE GREATEST GIFT OF ALL......

 A celebration of light,

Birth and renewal of spirit,

Sharing and love among family, friends, and strangers alike.

My gift to all is a wish for peace, love and compassion as we share in the celebration of Solstice, Christmas and Kwanza. 

Happy Holidays!  

BIRTH DAYS........

Today is my birthday.  I am never quite sure how to define this day.  We didn't celebrate birthdays growing up.  But everything tells me they are supposed to be a big deal, according to social norms.  

I like to consider every day a birthday/birth day.  Every day is a celebration of my being. Every day an opportunity to open my eyes to see the world in a new and different light.  Every day a desire to crawl out of my sheltered, comfortable self and expose myself to new ideas, new connections, new experiences.  Every day a time to celebrate and embrace who I am and who I am becoming.  

This year, as with all the others, I will be blessed with ripples and tides - the joys and challenges of life.  I will find adventures and surprises in the cracks and crevices, places that I didn't expect.  I will curse the passing of time, feeling like I never have enough hours, weeks, years to experience all that I wish to experience.  

And yet, I will end each day richer and with a heart more full than the day before, with all the many little miracles I get to be witness to and be a part of, in this simple and complex, mundane and exciting life of mine.