a spirit of simplicity

"our life is frittered away by detail, simplify, simplify..." -Thoreau as thoreau i am inspired most by the beauty of the world i live in  and the richness of the people that fill it inspire me monday macro monday amaze me monday nature notes texture tuesday sweet shot tuesday our world tuesday

did you think she had a map of the universe and that by chance she would show you what you thought was so integral did you swallow her tincture  synchronize your watches to time the blast in the end she tinted her answer so softly you had to tip your world just to hear the words sunday whirl

full moon shimmering on the dark sea the saturday photo hunt

my favorite christmas tradition is the big love 'tis the sweetest thing i am looking forward to the quiet months of winter i will be in school 4 days a week and doing an internship 2 days a week I haven't been walking at all lately i can feel my body stiffening up and my my head getting wobbly walking is good for my soul i am going to undecorate our tree this weekend and put it out on the porch loaded with  pine cones, seed and fruit for the birds i'll keep the lights on so we can light it at night at least for a week or so our house is trashed i so need to clean random 5 friday friday finds friday photo journal my town friday

~ and I heard him exclaim as he drove out of sight happy Christmas to all and to all a goodnight little things thursday

the earth has grown old with its burden of care but at christmas it always is young the heart of the jewel burns lustrous and fair and its soul full of music breaks the air when the song of angels is sung phillips brooks texture tuesday

sing the song the bells call, loudly chiming ring out those bells ring out, ring solstice bells ring solstice bells ring on, ring out ring on, ring out Ian Anderson mosaic monday nature notes macro monday inspire me monday amaze me monday

listen in a split second all that really matters could be clear to you we shuttle to and fro we pulverize what it means to love leaving nothing intact we preach about following our hearts but we have no idea what that means  all we really get are levels of echoes that are never very clear ...and the teensy weensy spider went up the spout again... ATTEND YOUR LIFE poetry whirl poetry pantry

big this is a life size Santa... He's really big on the door tree makes you feel merry (silver bells) when i was a young girl i lived for a time in Boston with my father we lived on Newbury Street and also on Commenwealth Avenue at christmas time carolers would stand outside our brownhouse and sing silver bells -it's christmas time in the city- scavenger hunt sunday songagraphy silver bells

mellow is a pinecone from a jack pine tree tossed onto a tablecloth that my nana once used illuminated by morning sunlight blessing our season with its tiny grace  saturday photo hunt the saturday photo hunt

its beginning to look a lot like christmas  ~ my daughter came over to watch It's a wonderful life time is the most precious gift you can give to some one ~ i am ready to start shopping for gifts  i am giving every one candlesticks from the charity shop along with pretty candles and a  photograph and poem i may even bake a few things ~ i find that the older i get the more understated and simple i like things to be next year i want to decorate our tree with just lights and some shells or pinecones  ~  we had two snow storms last week socked in don't leave the island or even the house kind of snowstorms  the first storm was a wintery mix so we don't have so very much snow just enough to make every thing look like a magical fairy land until it melts....and then we get the muddy slush my town shoot out colors of the season friday finds random 5 friday friday photo jour

 through the window Every day he picks up the same passengers, drives the same route through the dirty city. Every morning he stops his bus in front of her house at 6:15. He thinks it would be nice to leave the city - move the kids out here. He waits 5 minutes. She never sees anyone get on.  poetry jam  55 word challenge this is my first time at 55 word challenge...I think I interpreted the photo prompt a bit...oh well...I will do better next time

LET US KEEP CHRISTMAS Whatever else be lost among the years, Let us keep Christmas still a shining thing: whatever doubts assail us, or what fears, Let us hold close one day, remembering Its poignant meaning for the hearts of men. Let us get back our childlike faith again. Grace Noll Crowell little things thursday favorite things thursday

within our windows warm and wonderful wild wind wicked winter  watery  waves without abc wednesday outdoor wednesday watery wednesday

every year they come out one by one her time worn hands gently unwrapping the faded tissue paper little fingers hastily looking through the old box of glittery treasures just to find their favorite one to hang on a tree in the exact right spot ~ let the storm blow as it will beyond these windows the icy atlantic crashes against our rather tiny island the snowy winds blast against our cozy home all is well this night as we make memories have yourself a merry little christmas let your heart be light from now on  our troubles will be out of sight texture tuesday sweet shot

Only yesterday it had been too warm for snow but now it was twilight and the snow had been falling since mid afternoon. As he walked through the wood the snow fell softly on the silvery mittens his wife had knit for him last Christmas and it fell on his boots which left footprints in the snowy path.  It covered the dark branches he trudged past and it landed gently on the frozen river he had crossed on the wooden bridge back by the road. Chipmunks and squirrels skittered about here and there in the trees above him, birds sang to him as he passed under them, and he answered them all with a song of his own which he sung quietly so as not to break the stillness of the forest. He had started this walk alone but as he stood in the middle of the high hay field the skies cleared long enough for the moon to shine down and glisten on the snow covered field that was spinning in a vast universe which he was, in fact, a part of. five sentence fiction

they call it stormy monday nature notes mosaic monday

when i was a young woman i went to live near Seattle, WA. my mother sent us a package of Christmas ornaments and this little bird was included in the box. There was also a wooden heart, a porcelain angel and a knitted child.  I still have all of them.  Since then I have lived 31 years, in 8 places, had 2 children of my own, 2 marriages, a long-term committed relationship (or whatever we are calling those things these days) with my best friend and the love of my life, 5 step-children, 2 dogs, at least a half a dozen cats and 4 birds. it's been a bumpy ride recently we celebrated my mum's 79th birthday she still continues to amaze and inspire me macro monday inspire me monday amaze me monday mellow yellow monday

the weather today sorry it is a little crooked. It's very windy and cold. That is the Atlantic Ocean behind the old Coast Guard building. The storm waves are pretty intense. If it stops raining/snowing later I will go back out to get a better shot. Right now the salty spray from the ocean is hitting the windows on our house so I think I'll stay inside for a while. R is for...reflection Green joy being with the ones i love drink scavenger hunt Sunday

they said she could be molded by his hand like clay but it as it turned out she was no angel  so she blew the cover of that box apart snatched up her brain and other stuff  and walked  back into simplicity where the wind blew the snow over the fields like waves and the moon reflected off of the snowy world because you can't fix the world with a pair of lies imaginary garden with real toads sunday whirl

lights  on a tree magical to see in a world filled with  strife it's still a wonderful life we have wills that are free hang lights on the trees and the world fills with peace the snow gently falls and true love conquers all peace poetry jam childhood beliefs my town shoot out lights

in the early morning i sit solitude in my living room and enjoy the stillness of the lights on the tree our beautiful world friday finds friday photo journal

The reason for the season I had to drive the chick-lets to school this morning. It's not a bad drive but there are 6 lights in a 2.5 mile stretch so you do need to be a bit patient. I stopped at the market on my way home and realized after I got in there that I had the wrong list...for the second time! This is not all that unusual of a thing for me and I do realize that it is pretty far down the list of things that could go wrong. Still, it's kind of a pain since it means I must get back to the store at some point, do some baking, cleaning and get to work on time...blah, blah, blah. So, I'm sitting at the 5th light, which is really the 10th since this is my second go round, and I'm thinking about all the things I need to get done and that Christmas is only 2 days away...blah, blah, blah. I'm a little stressed and I'm wishing that I could get to the "special place" where I'm calm and remembering the peace that this time of

Vermouth Vodka and a Velvety Vino abc wednesday

oh christmas tree, oh christmas tree of all the trees most lovely in the early morning just before the sun comes up or at twilight when the darkness steals into our little house i sit in hushed softness brought on by the wondrous awe of tiny white lights in an evergreen tree and for a time the natural world is standing in my living room sharing its beauty texture tuesday sweet shot nature notes

mussel shells on the beach amaze me monday mosaic monday macro monday inspire me monday

where i stood on the edge of temptation silver tiny present in the cupboard I just realized how much that cream of mushroom soup stands out like a sore thumb. I don't even eat it. I had to buy it to make that nasty green bean casserole to bring to my mother's on Thanksgiving. It will sit there till next Thanksgiving. shadow scavenger hunt sunday

he had become his own prison  pursuing the cold cruel cash as if it could be a beloved he cloaked the wild in himself he looked through a lens  -a box on the wall - that skirted the real issues and he reached for goods as if they were stars   like a venus in the sky trying to shine but he never never looked up sunday whirl  

this santa ornament is glass and I have been very creative in my image of it creativity a glass the saturday photo hunt saturday photo hunting

  In family life, be completely present. Lao Tzu 6 word friday present my town shoot out rush hour In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present. Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/l/laotzu132303.html#qA8ICOUtk2VSltHr.99 In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present. Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/present.html#Ll9aJChD1J6G2GIL.99 In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present. Read more at http://www.brainyqu

December morning on a rather tiny island  the old coast guard station is shrouded in fog just beyond the christmas lights glistening on the porch friday finds our beautiful world friday photo journal

The large tractor trailer was met by one of the mothers in front of the Old Coast Guard Station. She directed it toward the lowland parking lot just across the way. All over the rather tiny island other PTO families had been waiting for her call. The Christmas trees are here! It wasn't long before the gravel lot began to fill up with cars. Fathers and mothers, aunts and uncles and even a  few grandparents began to form lines from the back of the open truck to unload the trees that were tied up tightly. The edge of the lot and the grassy park was full of children running about. The older children were watching over the younger ones and the teenagers were watching over them all. Someone strung up a set of Christmas lights and at twilight they began to blink red, yellow, green and blue over the scene. There was plenty of hot cocoa and cookies to go around. The smell of pine trees and the salty sea mingled together in the tiny lot and townsfolk beeped as they drove by on their wa

under the layers abc wednesday