• nature,  quotes

    The Cosmic Dance

    When we are alone on a starlit night, when by chance we see the migrating birds in autumn descending on a grove of junipers to rest and eat; when we see children in a moment when they are really children, when we know love in our own hearts; or when, like the Japanese poet, Basho, we hear an old frog land in a quiet pond with a solitary splash – at such times the awakening, the turning inside out of all values, the “newness,” the emptiness and the purity of vision that make themselves evident, all these provide a glimpse of the cosmic dance.

    Thomas Merton

    And today is National Coffee Day.

  • animals,  nature,  quotes

    Those Brown Eyes

    I want not only to observe but to know living beings, and this implies a dimension of primordial familiarity which is simple and primitive and religious and poor.

    Thomas Merton, The Trees Say Nothing

    I would add that this familiarity needs to be in their natural environment; the city park, the mountains, prairie, desert, yards, and gardens. All living beings share this world with me so spending time with them is the gift.

  • bicycle rides,  nature,  quotes

    A gift to others

    … to be human is to become visible while carrying what is hidden as a gift to others…

    David Whyte

    It was a 2.2 mile ride to coffee this morning but I decided to take the long-cut home and added 9.3 miles. It was wonderful! We had another beautiful day here in Colorado. I spent time at Reservoir Ridge this afternoon for some much needed reading and journaling. It was one of those days. Nature is a gift!

  • bicycle rides,  quotes

    Bring it on…

    CSU Oval

    “I’ll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside the box when there’s evidence of any thinking going on inside it.”

    Terry Pratchett

    Snow fell in the high country over the weekend which probably elevated the heart rate on a few snow skiers. As predicated this morning was the coldest morning this season. So, I bundled up and enjoyed my bicycle ride to coffee and conversation. I am grateful that this last two hundred yards of my ride are through this CSU Oval which leads me directly to Mugs at CSU. We are expecting beautiful weather the rest of this week!

  • coffee life,  quotes,  shadows

    A Divine Masterpiece

    Meg’s shadow at the coffee shop

    Behind each face there is a unique world that no one else can see. This is the mystery of individuality. The shape of each soul is different. No one else feels your life the way you do. No one else sees or hears the world as you do. The creation of the individual is a divine masterpiece.

    John O’Donohue
  • landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  sunsets

    I needed the silence…

    “A mind devoid of insight into its own nature is a chaotic mind, a mind of unease.”

    Kathleen Dowling-Singh

    Yesterday was one of those evenings where I wanted nature’s touch of silence and light. I arrived early and did some journaling in the quiet. Then, just as the day gave way to night, I setup my camera and tripod and pressed the shutter.