embrace the unexpected...

What started out as a rainy Memorial day turned pleasantly summer like.  I chose to forego the four wheeler ride and just meander around on foot to take photos of whatever appeared in my path.  I'm so glad I did!  My white lilac was bursting with blossoms and a butterfly was taking full advantage of it.  Greenery was exploding in every fashion in the woods.  And the unexpected

Sparking a memory...

It's funny how one certain thing can immediately spark a memory. It is instant.  It could be a song you heard, or a scent that triggers a particular place or event you attended.  It is memory in its most simple form.  It sits there in our brain, just waiting for the opportunity to remind us of something that we experienced.  If it was very enjoyable or even the opposite, our memory is at the ready with that one spark to trigger it.  I had just that spark this morning while cutting into a fresh pineapple.  I rarely buy them fresh, and it is unfortunate because they are simply delicious!  (Note to self....buy more fresh pineapple).  This spark brought me right back to sitting on a carpeted living room floor with my teen boyfriend while his mother prepared fresh pineapple for us to snack on. She brought it out to us and set it on the coffee table where we sat on the floor.  I thought how luxurious and royal this simple moment felt.  I thought how beautiful and considerate this mother was for giving us this wonderful treat.  Tell me, what has sparked your memory recently?

Soul food....

green tea

oatmeal

and my mom's bible

This was my morning.

I miss her so.

new moons and celebrations....

changing 
seasons..
renewed 
hopes...
life's moments
to celebrate

Springtime always seems a new start, a fresh beginning.  We rake up weathered leaves to unearth the green sprouts of new that were hiding in waiting.  We plow, we plant, we start over again.  We rely on seasons to carry on.  We hope for better.  We feel confident to stride forward.  Better harvests and grasps are right ahead... 

Spring. 

Let's step back and notice...and celebrate. 

 

The year of......

"use it up,
wear it out,
make it do,
or do without"  Boyd K. Packer

The year of cleaning.  The year of purging.  The year of organizing.
 
It's like a resolution, however those are rarely kept.  It's more like a determined effort to really, really get down to business and clean, purge, and organize to make my home and my mind feel less cluttered and at ease.  I once read that if you clean your desk before you leave work, the next day you will be more productive to start with a clean desk.  I believe this is true.  I want to apply this same philosophy at home.  I am a clutter bug, I admit it.  I want to stop being that person.  Like I said, this will be a determined effort.  

Here is my new mantra...  "Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without".   This will help me in my effort to keep "things" at a minimum.  Things, you know...the stuff that gets stuffed into spaces.  Things that you forgot you had because they are stuffed into those spaces that rarely, if ever, get looked at again.  Yesterday, I organized, purged and cleaned my coat rack cubby.  I feel good with that start.  I won't attempt to do the whole house in a day or a weekend.  I will tackle one chunk of space at a time, and feel great accomplishment in that one chunk.  One chunk at a time...will eventually become the entire space.  Just one chunk at a time.  I'll be happy with that. 

December 31st 2015....

In the blink of an eye it's behind us...  

 With a new year ahead....

Here's wishing everyone peace and happiness.

God Bless

 

Merry Christmas...

Wishing all my family and all my friends

a very wonderful Christmas.

Here's hoping our new year brings all good things

for a bright tomorrow.

God Bless.