• landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  quotes,  reflections,  sunrises

    Resting in Solitude…

    February 19, 2024

    Resting in solitude, I could sit in the silence of my own being and drink deeply from the well spring of divine love that sustained me.

    Ilia Delio

    Nothing like sitting in silence while taking in a beautiful predawn sky over Dixon Reservoir. Well, to be honest with you, I was not resting in solitude so much as freezing my buns off! I took this image last week.

    I spent part of yesterday afternoon sitting along Strauss Cabin Road, watching a bald eagle and journaling. There is power in being with others, getting outside of myself, while there is also power in solitude, being with myself. I pray for the balance! 🙏 Have a wonderful Monday.

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  • Plants,  shadows,  snow,  trees,  winter scenes

    The Oval’s Shadows

    February 18, 2024
    Shadows at the CSU Oval

    A bit warmer this morning at 14 degrees but still cold enough. Blue skies and sunshine predicted for today and maybe 43 degrees. Made my way to Mugs for an Old Town Moch made by the lovely Emma. Always a good start to my day. As I left the coffee shop I noticed the shadows stretching across the CSU Oval and felt compelled to pull into the parking area for a quick photo. The trees encircling the Oval and lining the inner sidewalks are all American elms. Many of the trees date from the 1880s and 1920s. There are 99 elms circling the Oval and lining its walkways. Some of the trees are 80 to 90 feet high, with roots that are one-and-a-half times their height. Many of the large elm trees that circle Oval Drive were planted in 1922, as 1-inch saplings, and until 1924, the center Oval was an alfalfa and grain field. In 1925, a grass lawn was planted. It was interesting to research the history of the trees and the oval this morning. I now have a bit more connection to them and those early morning shadows they offer. Have a wonderful Sunday!

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  • poems,  poetry,  seasons,  shadows,  snow,  winter scenes

    The Source Within

    February 13, 2024

    Everything you see has its roots
    In the unseen world.
    The forms may change
    Yet the essence remains the same.
    Every wondrous site will vanish,
    Every sweet word will fade,
    But do not be disheartened,
    The Source they come from is Eternal,
    Growing, branching out,
    Giving new life and new joy.
    Why do you weep?
    That source is within you
    And this whole world
    Is springing up from it.

    Rumi
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  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area

    Receiving Photographs

    January 23, 2024
    Clouds over Claymore Lake

    The diffused light late in the afternoon seems to play magic with clouds. I’m drawn to their beauty. So I drove out to Reservoir Ridge Natural Area late yesterday afternoon to watch nature play with the clouds and listen to the quiet. The air was still. I stood motionless, watching it all take shape. The quiet descended. It was a time for contemplation and for allowing myself to be touched at some deep level – a time for receiving photographs. I headed home knowing there would soon be a mysterious transformation into the darkness of night. And, it would happen without me.

    We have a beautiful day with clear skies and sunshine. May see temperatures into the upper 40s.

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  • Canada Goose,  gratitude,  Humor,  winter scenes

    Sleeping-in

    January 15, 2024

    At 6:37 am my weather app said it was 0°, wind was out of the north at 11 mph, humidity was at 83%, wind chill at −17° and light snow was falling. Later at 7:13 am I was enjoying a mocha latte at Mugs and had to snicker at the insane individuals who would be out in this weather, unless they were my barista or the city snowplow driver. Told my baristas, Emma and Jess, that I needed to have a conversation with McCabe and Marlie (the owners) about paying them double-time for working on days like this. They thought it was a great idea! When I got home I noticed the geese were sleeping in late so I quietly took three images. They looked so comfortable I didn’t want to wake them. Now at my computer, slippers on, furnace running, sipping on a hot chai tea and have a grateful heart! ❤️ Going to be a day for reading and writing. Looks like most of the country is cold today so stay warm!!!

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  • quotes,  shadows,  winter scenes

    Ain’t No Sunshine…

    January 14, 2024

    “We begin to find and become ourselves when we notice how we are already found, already truly, entirely, wildly, messily, marvelously who we were born to be.”

    Anne Lamott

    Well, if it did get above zero yesterday it had to have only lasted for a couple blinks of eye. I heard a handful of people say they saw it, then it was gone. I wasn’t one of them. I took this image just outside my door. It is warmer this morning at -5° but there is no sunshine. And, we are expecting clouds and light snowfall all day and maybe a high of + 7°. It will be a soup kinda day along with reading and journaling.

    I like how Anne Lamott does not say that we find and become ourselves but that we begin. This makes it a journey. I never thought about deep questions like that when I was younger, my focus was on things rather than my very nature. But there came a day when questions like who I am and what’s my purpose began popping up on my radar. Thankfully, I can report that for me finding who we were born to be has become quite the adventure. I find it exciting and makes life enjoyable for me. I’ve heard it said that life’s journey is to uncover, discover and discard all that keeps us from becoming who we already are. What a beautiful journey to walk! Thanks for listening and stay warm!

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