“To be rich in admiration and free from envy, to rejoice greatly in the good of others, to love with such generosity of heart that your love is still a dear possession in absence or unkindness – these are the gifts which money cannot buy.” ~Robert Louis Stevenson
See more (nearly) Wordless Wednesday here.
I wandered over to the fishing pond across the street to take a few pictures and two swans were conveniently floating around enjoying the bright sunny day. It’s finally starting to feel like spring around here. I must admit to feeling a little blue today however, it was a year ago this week that we lost our first granddaughter at only five months gestation. Last spring was tough with my mom being so ill and then the baby’s death. Thinking about those days and weeks reminds me that I have so much to be grateful for; that Meagan is pregnant again and doing well, that my mother is no longer suffering and my dad is adjusting as well as can be expected to living alone.
I suppose what they say is true, time heals all wounds. Or perhaps it just puts some much needed space between you and the pain. And in that space, if you are lucky, you may find a little peace. Near the end of one of my books I write …when the earthly lives of my daddy and brother had safely made that transformation from flesh and blood to mist and memory, when the grief had finally settled itself comfortably into the undercurrent of my days and nights, my voice came back to me. I wrote that not long after losing my beloved father-in-law Hank, and I was remembering that shift, that soft gray place where grief slips quietly into the background and we begin again. That is the joy and wonder of spring too, and it is here at long last.
| You Are Blooming Flowers |
 You are an optimistic person by nature. In even the darkest times, you are hopeful about the future.You feel truly blessed in life and can sometimes be overwhelmed with emotions.You have an artist’s eye. You are always looking for beauty in the mundane.You have a good sense of aesthetics, especially when it comes to shapes and color.
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Shot this a few minutes ago out my bathroom window, my Bradford Pear tree is budding, getting ready to officially announce spring. It’s sunny and fairly mild today, when it warms up a bit I think I’ll go walk around the yard and look for more signs of spring, maybe cut back some of the plants I didn’t get to last fall. I feel like I’m a little out of balance lately. I think I’m watching too many cable news shows and worrying too much; about the economy, about Meagan and baby Brooklyn, about how my dad is dealing with being alone, about my ginormous Visa bill…etc. Things that are basically out of my hands (except my darn Visa bill, if only I’d actually kept that card out of my hands in the first place!). Worrying really is just a bad habit, isn’t it? It accomplishes nothing, changes nothing. I remember my mom doing her spring cleaning every year when we were kids, washing walls, wiping away dangling cobwebs, cleaning out closets and moving furniture so she could vacuum up the hidden dust and crumbs that accumulate after a long, dark winter. I feel like I need to that with myself this spring, cut away some of that cluttered old growth and give my spirit a good sprucing up:)
I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which never happened. ~Winston Churchill
The last few days have been lovely here in Michigan. We’ve had lots of golden sunshine and warm temperatures, it felt soo good after such a long, snowy winter. The other day I spotted that photo of the cranes on flickr leech and I don’t know why but it just made me really happy! I’m posting it with permission from Kishore. I just thought of a fun game. Click on the flickr leech link (you have to click the Go button next to the date when you get there to get the pics), click on a photo that represents spring to you (or one that just makes you smile), then copy and paste the web address as a link in your comment. I can’t wait to see what inspires y’all! I’ll do one too just to start us out:)
I realized that if I had to choose, I would rather have birds than airplanes. ~Charles Lindbergh
So today is the first day of spring and I couldn’t be happier. Really, I’m happy, whoo hoo it’s spring! The problem is (you knew that was coming didn’t you?) no one told the weather here in Michigan. We still have some snow on the ground, the temperature was 25 when I got up this morning, and we have a Winter Storm Warning for tomorrow. What the #%*? Now I try not to let the weather effect my mood, I’ve lived in Michigan all my life, I should be accustomed to snow and cold and cloudy days. But the older I get the less tolerant I’m becoming of the local weatherman and his gloomy forecasts. When I was younger I used to snicker at all the “snowbirds”, the older folks who took off for warmer climates the minute the first snowflake fluttered to the ground. But I get it now. Time is flying by and spending five months bundled up against the cold, shoveling snow, feeling like you’re taking your life in your hands getting to the end of an icy driveway just to retrieve your morning paper is getting old, oh heck, I guess I must be getting old! My question is, how much does the weather influence your mood?
Click here to take a quiz and see what kind of flower you are, I’m a Snapdragon (funny, I thought I’d be a Lily) .
In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, a photograph with plenty of green in it to remind those of us in northern climates what’s to come. Three more days until Spring!
Walk tall as the trees,
live strong as the mountains,
be gentle as the spring winds,
keep the warmth of the summer sun
in your heart, and the great spirit
will always be with you. ~American Indian Proverb
bookbabie 