“If nothing ever changed, there’d be no butterflies.” Sunday afternoon with my Little Sister at the Butterfly House and the Faust Park merry-go-round. Almost 60 degrees in February. What a wonderful day. We even spotted snowdrops blooming and a little bee friend. It’s hard to believe she’s been my Little Sister for a year now!
Category: flowers
I’ll Get There Eventually
“Aging is the extraordinary process where you become the person you always should have been.” – David Bowie So I aged a little bit today. Every now and then, it’s possible to catch a glimpse of something in ourselves that really isn’t as it ought to be. Maybe we’re not as patient or kind as we thought we were. Maybe we could…
Sunday Stroll in the Garden
“Autumn…the year’s last, loveliest smile.” – William Cullen Bryant
God is Everywhere
“The presence of God is everywhere, you have only to embrace it with your attention.” – Deepak Chopra LOVED this story in Spirituality & Health by Snatam Kaur called “God is Everywhere.” The contrast between her childhood buddy’s view of God and her own made me laugh. I tend to subscribe to the author’s view. I do…
It’s the Japanese Festival!
Got to spend the afternoon at one of my very favorite places with some of my favorite people. Today our Botanical Garden was host to the annual Japanese Festival. Bonsai displays, art, demonstrations, food, flowers, Japanese product vendors…there was a lot of neat stuff. We were surprised by how many people dressed in ethnic costumes for the…
Long and Short of It
“There is one simple thing wrong with you – you think you have plenty of time.” — Carlos Castaneda, author Getting older has been on my mind a lot lately. I’ve not done anything unusual in the way of self-reflection or anything, but I’ve noticed some changes in myself. People, circumstances, and difficult discussions don’t…
Sometimes
“We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.”
Patterns, Shapes, and Hidden Things
Try to find patterns, interesting shapes, and hidden things. That was my photo challenge to myself early this morning when I went to the Botanical Garden. I also confined myself to the front of the garden, with a boundary of the pools near the climatron. My favorite subject, the Japanese Garden, is beyond that boundary. But…
29 Life Lessons…
…to learn from Thich Nhat Hanh: 1.) Never underestimate the power of a kind word, a touch, or a smile. “The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.” 2.) If you love someone, the greatest gift you can give them is your presence. “The most precious…
Peace
“Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.” — unknown (But a little quiet sure never hurt anybody.)
Hello, July!
First day of July and day 11 of my 21-Day Gratitude Challenge. I start the month grateful for… 1.) The beginning of a three-day weekend! (Duh.) 2.) Seeing a dear friend’s success. 3.) Finally being able to make a (somewhat significant) appliance purchase that I’ve been wanting to make for so long but haven’t been…
Aww Shucks…
“Your words have the power to hurt or heal. Choose to be an encourager; the world already has plenty of discouragers.” Tonight I went for my bike ride along my typical trail. I don’t aspire to be a competitive rider, but I do try to put everything I can into my workouts. But, as with…
Cheat Sheet…
I had to laugh when I received my daily email from Tiny Buddha this morning with the subject “100 Reasons to be Grateful Today.” I had just said in yesterday’s blog post that I wanted to start working on a gratitude list. Only mine wasn’t as ambitious as a list of 100 things. I could…
21 Days of Gratitude
I’ve been slacking on the blog front lately — and on the gratitude front. So I’ve decided to do a 21-day gratitude commitment to help me with both. I’ll list three things each day for which I am grateful for 21 days. (It’s a tool rooted in Shawn Achor’s 5 ways to create positive change.)…
The 10 Rules of Karma
Whether or not you subscribe to the concept, these 10 Rules of Karma are worthwhile words of wisdom that I wanted to pass along. There’s more detail in the original article here. But I’m including the free prize inside, along with photos from a recent visit to our City Garden. You Get What You Give…
Powerful
“I’m convinced that the negative has power – and if you allow it to perch in your house, in your mind, in your life, it can take you over. Those negative words climb into the woodwork, into the furniture, and the next thing you know, they’re on your skin. A negative statement is poison.” –…
In a Word…
“This is why your race times are so bad.” That thought crossed my mind so many times tonight as I took photos along my running route. Including when I took the above photo of what I presume to be a discarded ice cream cone wrapper in the grass. Which was along the same street as this. This…
Lost and Found
“I like gardening – it’s a place where I find myself when I need to lose myself.” – Alice Sebold, writer I would amend this to read, “I like gardens – it’s a place where I find myself when I need to lose myself.” This sums up my visit to the Olbrich Botanical Gardens at the…
Pause
“Learn to pause…or nothing worthwhile will catch up to you.” – Doug King, poet Today is the first day of the 21-Day Reverence Challenge that I’d mentioned in an earlier post (link here). I loved it and wanted to pass along: “Drop Into The Present Moment: Busyness is an epidemic in today’s world. Our calendars have…
What’s the hurry?
I’m pleased to share that I have a Distracted Churchgoer post that does not include photographs from church. It nearly killed me, but I promised myself ahead of time that I’d leave my phone in my purse during the service. First temptation: a man with four children slid into the pew ahead of me —…
We’re All Stories in the End
May every chapter be beautiful.
Well, That Makes Sense.
It’s interesting (and entirely appropriate) that the first day of spring coincides with the International Day of Happiness, don’t you think? (Even if ours did start with an unexpected snow shower.) Hello, Spring. Hello, Happiness. Here’s to the season of renewed hopes, new beginnings, and fresh starts.
Today’s Post is Brought to You By…
…the letter “T.” Tuesday’s trip to Trader Joe’s for truly terrific tulips. (Thanks, folks. I’ll be here all week.)
Art in Bloom
Today brought a trip to the art museum for Art in Bloom, an exhibit featuring floral interpretations of some of the museum’s collection. Gorgeous stuff…
hey there, friends 