Inspired

Floating

 

I love soaking in the bath.  It’s therapeutic, regenerative and downright heavenly and it’s no coincidence that I have a wonderful bathtub…it’s extra deep and long enough that I can actually float in it!  It was a priority on my building “wish list”!

When was the last time you lay in water and relaxed enough that your body actually floated?  Not moving to stay afloat, not swimming but…completely…and...totally…relaxing…every…muscle…releasing…all…tension.

As a child, I lived on a lake when I was growing up.  I was in the water so much that my skin was almost permanently prune-like and I remember even then, being intrigued with the feeling of complete relaxation that comes with floating.  The little girl who played in the water...all day, every day...seems long ago and far away now.  It’s been years since I’ve let myself play and relax like that.

Floating requires all or nothing.  If there’s any tension or resistance, we quickly sink. It occurred to me as I was relaxing in my bubbles the other morning, that the same thing was true in other areas of my life…the more resistance I create, the more likely I am to tire and “sink”. 

Epiphanies can happen in the most unexpected places!

 

Everything that we want is downstream...  And you don't have even have to turn the boat and paddle downstream…just let go of the oars and the current will carry you.

Abraham/Hicks

I’ll be posting next from the sunshine…floating somewhere downstream…

Come On In

We’ve been in our new home for a year now and over the past several months there have been a few requests to have a peak or two.  Yesterday I walked through the house with the iphone and snapped a corner here and a window there…not great pictures…more like little “impressions” of casa de madrona.

 

A crow pursued by two sparrows will greet you at the front door and yet another crow (unseen) peers down from a window above.

 

Come on in…and don’t forget to pick an angel card from the hall table as you walk past.

 

Lets put the kettle on for tea and catch up.  What have you been up to recently?

 

We’ll get comfy and cozy as the sunshine pours in.

 

`

If I happen to disappear, I won’t be hard to find…look for me over here in the corner, basking in the sunlight by the windows. (I hang out here with my laptop…quite a lot…on winter days!)

 

Ahh…as the day comes to an end, I sit with my feet up, listening to a webinar on the internet…gotta love that technology!

 

These photographs were very impromtu…no tidying up, no “stageing”.  My daffodils on the counter are quite dead but I loved their faded, paper thin fragility, so they lingered a little longer than they should have!

Thanks for the visit dear friends and I'm so glad you stopped by.

Five Senses Friday

 

Five Senses Friday is a way to either weekly...or like me, sporadically…reflect on “where I am right now”.  Another great series of prompts that I sometimes use is “A Woman's Daybook Journal”. This is something I do on my own rather than join in with the group called  “A Simple Womans Daybook Journal”.

 

Seeing:  a million shades of grey. We’ve had lots of rain recently and the soft, subdued, greys are everywhere…blue greys, green greys, red greys and purple greys…all beautiful in their own way.  I’ve also been working playing with my camera in manual mode, (yay, I’m finally getting it off automatic!) partly because of a fantastic course I took last weekend and partly because I’ve been inspired by the technique of  “In Camera Movement”…more on that in another post…so because of that, I’ve really been paying attention to the shades and tones of the colours around me.

 

tasting:  right now it’s dark chocolate covered almonds.  Yum!  Since I eliminated wheat from my diet last September, I’ve not had any pasteries, cookies, breads or anything even remotely on the decadent side of yummy…but I can still eat chocolate…oh yes! So, chocolate covered almonds are my not so guilty pleasure right now.  (I have a small window of opportunity even for chocolate, as I can’t eat anything with caffeine after 2:00 pm or it keeps me awake at night… ‘ya think the universe is trying to tell me something?)  But I do feel so much better not eating wheat and I fought this for years.

 

smelling:  paint.  house paint.  This week we painted two rooms…a bathroom that was never quite finished (and still isn’t...it needs some tiling done) and the den.  It tore the house apart for a week and it’s a small house to begin with, so all the “stuff”…art supplies, furniture etc…had to go somewhere!  All is now finished and restored to it’s rightful place and the the new colours are making me very happy.

 

hearing:  I’ve been listening to my ipod a lot.  But not to music.  Last November I began researching brain entrainment programs and am using one now which requires 1 1/2 – 2 hours of listening a day.  I call it my happy time!

 

feeling:  lots of raindrops and crisp, cool wind on my cheeks.  I’ve been walking…rain or no rain and although it doesn’t do a lot for my hair, it really helps me to stay connected to the “rightness” of life.

 

Wishing you an inspired weekend,

 

Reflection on Direction

 

"I held out my hands
and asked where I could help
and somebody grabbed me
and pointed me toward the future
and said, 'You've got your work cut out for you'
and I said, 'Isn't there anything easier?'
and he laughed and said,
'You could dig around in the past,
but it's just busywork'
and that made perfect sense
so I shrugged and started right where I was
along with everyone else."

Story People

 

Today

...and every day,

I emerge anew to my potential,

turning slowly, finding true north

facing forward, 

living by insight

 rather than eyesight.

 

Blessings to all, right here, right now, right where you are.

 

Hands Down Wonderful

 

We sat together, waiting for a bowl of noodles…a shared bowl.  It was the noon rush and we watched as those who worked nearby, hurried in with a sense of urgency and purpose.  As they furtively glanced at their watches, it brought back memories of when I too counted the minutes on my lunch hour…20 minutes to get food and eat, 30 minutes for walking, 10 minutes to quickly shop for dinner…always measuring my actions by the clock. 

We were in no hurry. No desks to return to, no meetings to rush back for, no piles of paper to attend to.  We had time to leisurely peruse the menu on the wall, time to watch people come and go, time to talk about our day and what needs to be done before we leave again for the sunshine. We had just picked up our paint that morning for the downstairs bathroom…sea glass blue and calabash green…and then dashed through the rain to the restaurant…no more than a cafe really… enticed in by the fragrances of curry, lemongrass and hot chillies.

 

I picked up his iphone and began taking pictures…a row of stools with curved wrought iron legs, a stack of glasses, even a selfie…when I saw his hands, clasped and resting on the table before me.  These hands represent so much to me….strength, gentleness and kindness.  Solid and dependable steadfastness.

 

 

Hands.  So simple.  So everyday.  So taken for granted. So meaningful.  So loved.

It was just a moment…but it was one of those moments that sweep away all but immense love and gratitude.

I snapped the picture and emailed it to myself, just as our noodles arrived at the table.  The moment had passed but was not forgotten when, feeling full and warmed by the heat of the chillies, we headed back out into the rain. 

As we walked away, I quietly slipped my hand into his.

 

Blessings of beautiful moments to you, this weekend,

(the photo's were taken using the hipstamitic app for iphone. You can change the "film", the "lens" and the "flash" to get different effects or as I did here, you can simply shake it to randomize the effect.  So much fun!)

Artichokes and Hearts

 

 

This artichoke was in my garden and thriving when I left for Hawaii in November.  By the time I came home at the end of the month, the temperature had dropped below freezing and it was covered in snow.  I dragged it out of the snow looking limp and dead…and tossed it into the oven to slow bake it and dry it out. It’s beautiful in an interesting-decaying-disintegrating kind of way!

I’m away from home again…no, not in the warm and sunny south but in the interior of British Columbia...the cold and snowy north!  I’m enjoying the little bit of snow we have here, knowing I’ll be leaving it behind in a few days.   We’re celebrating my father’s 95th birthday this Sunday.  Amazing…he's 95, still healthy and very “with it”!  I truly hope he passed on his healthy genes! 

Dad still lives in his own home and just bought a new car. He has not one but two computers and still travels frequently.  If you’ve been reading here for awhile, you may remember that he travelled to Mexico to visit us two years ago.

He was born in 1917…and here’s what was going on in the world the year he was born…

the First World War was still being waged

Tsar Nicholas of Russia abdicated the throne to his son

Short wave radio had just been invented…which ended up being his life long passion and shaped his career in aviation electronics

in 1917 a Model T Ford cost $300 (and was his first car in 1939)

The War Industries Board asked women to stop buying corsets to make more metal available for war production.

women still wore long dresses, although they’d been shortened from floor length to ankle length

There have been amazing changes in the world since he was born but he's kept up with it all.  He started a blog in 2007 but just wrote a few posts…he was too busy to keep it up!  I feel so very blessed to have had my dad with me for so many years.

I hope the first week of January has been a good one for you!  I’m still having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that it’s 2011!

And Then There Was The Word...

 

 

…and the word was BOLD.

That's it.  That’s my word for the year…no more tippy-toeing around. 

No more “could I or or should I?”  No more wondering if I can or I can’t. 

No more peeking through the crack in the door...I’ll be standing there with it flung wide open. 

No more waiting to be asked...I’ll be the one madly waving her arm in the air saying “pick me, pick me!”.

I plan to boldly go where Kate has never gone before…and don’t ask me where that is because I have nooooo idea. But if it's fun, exciting and feels good, I'll be standing at the front of the line.

I’m ready for it.  I’m feeling plucky…resolute…intrepid…audacious even!

I plan on having a lot of fun with BOLD…oh, it may flatten me a few times, but it won’t stop me!

And I'm sending outrageously bold blessings to all you beautiful bloggers (and readers-of-blogs) today.  Have you  chosen a word to help shape your year?  I'd love to know what it is!

(my BOLD picture was created with a handful of mossy twigs, grasses, tiny pinecones and a hydrangea blossom that was never dead-headed, from my garden.  They were layed on a white background and then layered with a Kim Klassen texture.)

A New Beginning

 

Every day is a New Beginning.

 

A new cycle begins this day,

yet a new cycle begins every day.

 Indeed, every moment.

So if you recognize anything on this day,

recognize what it symbolizes:

The miracle of the endlessly continuing Cycle of Life. 

What a grand day!

What a time for celebration!

We begin again today!

We turn the page!

And so,

let go of all that you do not wish to carry with you any further.

Any fear,

any sadness,

any anger,

any resentment,

any disappointment,

any lament...let it all go.

And now, using the specialness of this day as a springboard,

let's get on with Life!

Neale Donald Walsh

We don’t know how this year will unfold…or each day or even each moment…but my intention is to live them all boldly, accepting embracing and relaxing into the uncertainty of life and all the possibilities that it brings.

I want to thank everyone who stops by here…whether you ever leave a comment or not…I am truly grateful for each of you.  I wish for all, a year that unfolds with new and exciting possibilities!