“If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole world would change.” – Buddha I brought this bundle of tulips home recently and I’ve enjoyed watching them from bud to bloom. Each stage has been beautiful – a miracle – in its own way. Even when they were completely faded.
Author: heytherefriends
Hey there, friends. Welcome to my blog.
I'm a mother, animal lover, photo hobbiest, runner, hiker and seeker of beauty and quirkiness in the little things of every day living
A wish for the week ahead
“May you keep waking up every day, even if you have to snooze the alarm a time or ten. May you continue sharing your triumphs, and sorrows, and jokes, and blurry, off-centered photos that bear witness to a life being lived. May you choose to let the other party in a pointless argument have the…
The list goes on
“The more grateful I am, the more beauty I see.” – Mary Davis I realized today that it’s been a hot minute since I sat down and made a gratitude list. It’s certainly not for lack of content. But here are just a few things on my mind. There are so many more things to…
That’s all
I thought it might be a good time for a Finnegan Appreciation Post. Seriously. How can anyone possibly be anything other than cheerful looking at that face. He just makes everything better. And oh my goodness, the love-fest between that dog and my kids is off the charts. So there it is. Today’s Finnegan Appreciation…
Too Much is Just Enough
“If you love something, love it completely. Cherish it, say it, but more importantly, show it. Life is finite and fragile, and just because something is there one day, it might not be there the next. Never take that for granted. Say what you need to say, then say a little more. Say too much….
Shades of Spring
Looking over a few photos from walks in the park over the past week, I noticed a lovely color trend that I thought was worth sharing…
Silent Sunday
I visited a park today that, once I stepped through its gates, it felt like I was walking back in time. It felt like the kind of place where a poet would write…or an artist would paint…or a musician would find inspiration. A magical, hopelessly romantic place. There are several areas in which you can…
Just for now
I will typically tell you that I don’t have a favorite season because there’s so much to be enjoyed with each of them. But spring…oh, spring… Pink dogwoods… Pending robin families… Happy bees… Lots of smiles. I’m going to say that spring is my favorite for now.
Tidy
“Describe one positive change you have made in your life.” Another prompt caught my attention today, mostly because there are so many ways to answer it. You would think that would be easy — name one positive change. But I’ve made a number of changes – particularly in recent years – that have been pretty…
Magic
“Don’t rule out magic in ordinary things. Simply open your heart and believe. Magic is all around for those who see with their souls.” – Melody Lee If ever there was a time to believe in magic, its spring. Photos are just a few from a wonderful holiday visit to the town where I grew…
Much Better
“Be the person who breaks the cycle. If you were judged, choose understanding. If you were rejected, choose acceptance. If you were shamed, choose compassion. Be the person you needed when you were hurting, not the person who hurt you. Vow to be better than what broke you – to heal instead of becoming bitter…
Take hope
“In an increasingly uncertain and uncomfortable world, it helps to remember that there are still soft blankets and warm mugs and kind friends and good people. So many REALLY good-hearted people who want the future to be better. If nothing else, take hope in that.” – Nanea Hoffman And there are really good people (like…
Good day, good life
“Name three good things that happened to you so far today.” I saw a video today that suggested that turning your mood in a more positive direction is as easy as 1-2-3. She interviewed a series of people and asked them to rate how their day was going on a scale of 1-5 — 1…
Sunday with Sculptures
What a perfect day for a long walk in the local sculpture park.
Every storm runs out of rain
Yesterday we had a bit of nasty weather roll through the area…but not before leaving a lovely parting gift. And then how fun is this. Check out the full double rainbow (at least much as I could fit into the frame.) Then look at the exact same frame about 20 minutes later. (Don’t miss the…
To this day
“When you were five, what did you want to be when you grew up?” Another day, another prompt that got my attention. But oh, this one made me so happy — and unlike yesterday, I knew the answer immediately. When I was five, I wanted to be an artist. And when I was ten. And…
Good question
“What’s something most people don’t understand?” Today I got a notification on my phone saying that I had an unusual jump in traffic on my blog. This made me smile a bit, but it also made me super curious. “Traffic” has never been important to me when it comes to writing here. This is mostly…
Howdy, neighbor
After receiving a lovely visitor recently, a new visitor has been making regular appearances out back. So much so that I’m wondering if he’s actually a neighbor/resident. He’s noisy, twitchy and bosses the other birds around. But he’s pretty neat and I hope he’s happy in the neighborhood.
Learn something(s) new every day
Each of these little wildflower blossoms is about the size of a dime, but collectively they look like a massive white carpet. And right now they are all over the park, making the hills look like they have a fresh dusting of snow. But today is the first time I’ve ever really looked at these…
Astonished
“Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.” – Mary Oliver I’ve noticed that the older I get, the more astonished I become with the changing seasons. Have I seen daffodils before? Yep. Did I still gasp and say, “Wowwwww….!!!” when I first saw them blooming in the park this morning?…
Happiness is…
…a warm puppy. Happy National Puppy Day! Yes, Finnegan is two years old. Yes, I still consider him to be a puppy. He is a constant source of joy and I can’t remember what I did without him.
Many happy returns
“There are exactly as many special occasions in life as we choose to celebrate.” Today is National Flower Day! Personally, I think flowers should be celebrated every day, but I’ll take any excuse to make a floral run. Wouldn’t it be great if we could create a day for all of our favorite things? I…
Ultimate trifecta
Thought of the day: So March 20 is the first day of Spring…and International Day of Happiness…and Fred Rogers’ birthday. That is a whole lotta goodness loaded into a single day. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Perfection? No doubt about it.
hey there, friends 