Right Here

Right here, I sit and write, and wonder whether I ought to be doing something else.
Like laundry.
Or dishes.
Or at least supervising those types of things...
Out there.
I do have responsibilities after all.
But I remember what I heard today...
that creativity is a thing to be used and nurtured.
So I sit,
Determined to continue sitting,
Right here,
Under the big round mirror,
Where the yellow chair is comfortable sometimes,
Bitingly uncomfortable at other times,
Where the laptop is all mine
And I can write
Or edit pictures.
To my heart's content.
I can create.
And it does make my heart content!
Sitting
Right here
In my yellow room,
Where sunshine comes in softly,
comfortable and inspiring.
Where the antique bed stands ready in case of guests,
But right now empty,
Freeing this room for me to play,
To nurture the creative,
Under its friendly gaze...
In this room,
Right here.

~klm~



(in response to the suggestion at
http://seedlingsinstone.blogspot.com/2010/08/on-in-and-around-mondays-room-with-view.html )

By the Campfire

- Star Flower -
Full moon rising over her shoulder
She sits by the fire, her long braids hanging.
Moonlight and firelight shine
On my beautiful daughter.

~klm~
8.30.10

Camping

Beautiful place! Near the junction of two slow-moving rivers, on an island... we had the place practically to ourselves.

The morning sun rising behind my sweet daughter helping with her little nephew Caleb.

Sweet Abigail in the morning.




Breakfast outdoors...
Hot coffee is the best first thing on a cool morning, sitting outdoors while the sausage cooks over the fire, eggs on the camp stove.




Watermelon at lunchtime!


Grandgirls everywhere!


Husband and son lumberjacking together, felling a dead tree for firewood. I love seeing the strength in them both.



Turns out I loved the boat!

I loved the feel of flying over the water, with the breeze blowing in my face, and the occasional cool spray on my skin.
I loved it when we went back over our wake, making our boat rise and fall in the water.
I loved seeing the beauty on both sides of me - the trees, the sand, the green, the cloudless blue above.
I loved seeing the bald eagle flying to the top of a tree and the swans on the water, and the egrets standing on long legs.
It made me laugh right out loud for the sheer joy of it all.
I loved the boat rides!

Solace and jazz

Today was busy
almost frantic
and solace was hard to find.
I sat and calmed
but only a minute -
quiet was hard to find.
I took a nap but even then,
peace ran right away.
I wanted solace but couldn't grasp it,
until tonight, when
I found some smooth, sweet jazz, and drank it down
with a cup of hot tea,
a speck of sugar, and milk.


(this post is in response to a suggestion at
http://seedlingsinstone.blogspot.com/
who I only just recently discovered.
You should go visit!)

Weary, but usable

I feel tired. Weary.
I was starting do feel pretty discouraged in this state,
feeling like I couldn't accomplish anything, and like everything was huge and tragic,
until I remembered that those times that I am useful,
it is not because I have strength, or energy, or beauty, or brains.
I am useful to God, free to do great things, free to help change the world,
when I am just willing to be useful.
Wow.

If I am willing, He will do great things through me, regardless of how I feel.

Amazing!

And when the difficult times come along,
I consider that if He is allowing these days, then He must be preparing me for something great. Something with a good that is bigger than this bad day is bad.
Because that is how God is.

And I am encouraged.
Still tired, and still weary, and still feeling too small for the day ahead. But confident that how I feel does not limit God and what he can do through me, if I choose to be usable.




2 Corinthians 12:10 - Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Bird Accomplishment!

The babies have learned to fly! Fat, feathered babies crowded into the nest so full of them that I thought they would fall out (how DO they sleep at night!) and finally they are flying.

The air over the back yard filled with birds they day they learned. It seemed the entire barn swallow community came to celebrate, to show them how it should be done, this flying business.

One bird stayed behind that day, huddled in the nest, watching. Noone bothered him. The next day or so, he was out there in the sky, indistinguishable from the others making circles in the air.

Each one learns at his own pace. Even in the bird world.

August Pleasures

383. second round of baby birds (the first, of course, was in the spring), squeezed tight in their little nest waiting for dinner to be delivered, clamoring in high pitched baby voices when it comes.

384. my birthday... all month! Claiming every celebration as my own!

385. basil and mint growing friendly together


386. hearing fireworks, from somewhere, celebrating something. I don't even know what... but isn't it fun to know someone, somewhere is celebrating?

387. Sunday night, family watching a movie all together

388. Hot temperatures calming down. Opening up my house to feel breezes again.

389. cicadas singing loud hot songs on long hot days

390. planning a party! for a beloved son who has earned it.

391. being proud of my kids in a mom sort of way, not proud of myself, but thrilled at the good qualities I see growing in them. I like these kids of mine!

Rainy morning pleasures

371. slow, gentle rain

372. raindrops gathering in puddles on the glass





373. or gathering in little rivulets and running down together





374. thirsty flowers happy





375. mist rising behind the trees across the valley

376. stone path shining wet





377. driving through a puddle and splashing water high, like an upsidedown waterfall spraying all over... and then being glad the brakes still work afterward

378. going out to breakfast with husband on a wet, drippy, dark, comfy morning

379. Eggs done just the way I like them, with fried potatoes perfectly crispy around the edges, and just right in the middle. (and having them cooked for me.)

379. coffee with cream, because I can. Just this once. Probably.

380. thunder... and even a little lightning

381. getting wet and not caring, even if it makes me cold. It is so good to actually feel the rain once in a while

382. tiny crystal raindrops hanging, sparkling ornaments everywhere. The whole world is decorated now.

Can you see them? Fuzzy in the photo, but crystal clear in real life, just imagine!


There is so much beauty everywhere, and so often I don't see it...
I have to choose where to focus.

Day at the Zoo

Yesterday, Husband was handling some paperwork here, and came to a question regarding our membership at the zoo. He called to talk to someone about it, who answered his question and then told him about all the cool things at the zoo this summer. By the time he got off the phone, he had decided we all should go to the zoo for the day!


Spontaneity rules the day!


We had a great time.


This is Mighty Mike, the zoo's huge new alligator. He was a nuisance alligator in Florida. The man who caught him (I'd love to hear that story!) was so impressed with him that instead of putting him down, he worked and worked until he found a place that would take him. Our zoo was wishing for an alligator, so it was a perfect fit!




Mighty Mike is said to weigh at least 500 pounds, and is somewhere around 15 feet long. They keep him separated from the other alligators, because given the chance he would eat them.


Husband was pretty impressed with the size of that alligator!


We all enjoyed the zoo. I enjoyed watching my children.



The flamingos were pretty cool.

(Ok, these are not flamingos, are they... but I don't know their names. Are they storks? Pelicans? I think they might be pelicans.)

They were looking at the Bald Eagles when they noticed a lost pacifier in the enclosure.
We laughed about that, imagining the scene when it happened.


One of the zoo's special attractions this summer is a Monarch exhibit.





They will release these butterflies in the fall so they can migrate.... so pretty!


I liked the turtles.


I think turtles are cool anyway.



These are my kids.

And this is my husband, who is pretty handsome, I think.

But I am not related to this guy...

He was just chillin' on this hot day.


Yeah, it was a good day.


I'm so glad Husband thought of it!