• landscape,  mountains,  natural areas,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area,  sunsets

    Routines and Habits

    January 13, 2023

    I have not had much energy or motivation the past 3 weeks. The infection, anemia and the weak heart have slowed me down. I feel like I need to move more even though I may not feel like it nor have the energy. Laying around is not good for my physical and emotional well-being. I ate a small late lunch of Mugs Classic Mac and Cheese yesterday afternoon then drove to Reservoir Ridge Natural Area to watch the sun set. Most of the natural areas are closed due to wet and muddy conditions. I chose this location because there are good opportunities just outside the gate. I’m feeling the need to get back into routines and habits that nurture me and which I feel help in my healing. Not only that but these moments with nature always provide and remind me of the awe and wonder of this world. Creation at work every moment of the day. Happy Friday the 13th!

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  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  sunrises

    This Simple Prayer

    December 31, 2022
    Sunrise over Dixon Reservoir at Pineridge Natural Area – June 2022

    I want to end this year of blogging with an image from this past year that depicts where I took my camera on a regular basis. My focus over the past year was spending time in the natural areas and coffee shops with my journals and camera. This connection with nature and people has been invaluable for me.

    This year’s end has brought me unexpected challenges for my physical and emotional healing that needs to be met in this coming year. Seems much of our world is in a similar crisis, facing challenges for its own healing. I believe we must fundamentally reconnect to a God of our understanding, to nature, to one another, and ourselves for any healing. Seems many in my circles, young and old, are awakening to this reality. I also hope many will awaken to the reality that we are created out of love to be love. So, I’m moving into the new year with a thin thread of hope that all will be well! Hope just may be the key in transforming our world. Each sunrise offers a new day, a new beginning, a promise of hope, and an opportunity of living a life of love. Maybe the world needs to begin more days witnessing the new sunrise and contemplating their connection to creation. 

    I’ll end with this simple prayer: May we live a life of serenity, courage, wisdom, strength, compassion, healing, love, the help of family and friends in facing the reality of life. I love you!

    I hope you have a wonderful coming year full of good health, family time and sunrises. Happy New Year!

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  • People/Portraits,  quotes,  Self-portraits

    Today’s Discovery

    October 4, 2022

    “… when we write in a journaling mode we are getting in touch with the many selves inside our self.”

    Naomi Shihab Nye

    I enjoy this process of self-reflection in my life. I’m finding it to be an exciting inward journey and yet outward, vitally connected to all of creation. My journaling and photography are tools I use in that journey. Today’s discovery, I need a haircut. Now for some homemade vegetable soup.

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  • landscape,  moon,  natural areas,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area,  silence

    Silence…

    September 20, 2022

    Now at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area. Sun has set and the moon sits in the southern sky. Silence. This is why I come here. Full of gratitude for its gifts. Blackbirds and meadowlarks sing good night. Magpies fly above heading for the cottonwood trees along Claymore Lake to roost for the night. Such a lovely ecosystem that man made noise has a difficult time reaching. I am full of love for you and all of creation. Silence…

    ms, journal: /30/2022
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  • clouds,  horizons,  journal,  journaling,  landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  sunrises,  writing/reading

    A Sacred Place

    September 17, 2022
    The still waters of Dixon Reservoir

    A photo and excerpt from my journal this past July:

    Tuesday morning at Pineridge Natural Area. Sun just rose on an almost cloudless horizon. Our meadowlarks sing joyfully. Thank you! Bless this day. Love the birds. I awoke early this morning so had a short night of sleep and may need a power nap later today. The sun is a blinding bright orange orb. It will soon heat up this July day. It is a glorious time of the day for me. My young friend, Kate’s car is here, so she is already up on Viewpoint Spur practicing her morning yoga/meditation. It is also a glorious time of the day for her. This is a sacred place for many. Yet, even in this sacredness I find my mind wandering away to the busyness of the day, fretting, planning and no longer present to the sounds and beauty of creation. I take a deep breath and return. I believe these mornings transform the core of who I am and is an integral part of my own evolution, becoming who I was created to be. A process I will continue to take until my final breath.

    ms
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  • leaves,  Plants,  quotes

    Endless Chatter

    August 10, 2022

    “What deadens us most to God’s presence within us, I think, is the inner dialogue that we are continuously engaged in with ourselves, the endless chatter of human thought. I suspect that there is nothing more crucial to true spiritual comfort . . . than being able from time to time to stop that chatter . . . ”

    Frederick Buechner

    While waiting for a friend at the park I wandered around a tree and took a dozen photos of assorted leaves. I realized how accurate Paulo Coelho is when he states, “In a forest of a hundred thousand trees, no two leaves are alike. And no two journeys along the same path are alike.” In the past I may have wandered around in my head waiting for my friend rather than noticing the leaves. I find it enjoyable at this stage in my life to have tools to let go of the chatter, allowing me to stay more present to the world around me. And when that happens I’m more engaged in spiritual comfort.

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

    The New Story

    July 13, 2022

    “We are between stories. The old story is no longer effective. Yet we have not learned ‘the new story.’ We are talking only to ourselves. We are not talking to the rivers, we are not listening to the wind and stars. We have broken the great conversation. By breaking that conversation we have shattered the universe.”

    Thomas Berry

    I talk to birds. I also listen to birds. The above quote made me think about my old story which said I could only talk at birds and they could only talk at me. Having a conversation was impossible. I’m realizing how that story is evolving for me. Although birds and I do not speak one anothers language, I wonder, is there a conversation going on?

    Conversation happens between humans without words. Many will attest to having conversations with their pets. So, can there be a conversation with all of creation, without words? When making eye contact with the cottontail, is that a form of conversation? Can there be a conversation going on between the wind and trees as they dance together. Is the sweet scent of honeysuckle a form of conversation with all who will pay attention? And, could it be that just paying attention and observing creation is a form of conversation? I do not have a solid answer to those questions but at this stage of my life, I am experiencing conversations with creation at new levels, a conversation that goes deeper than human words. Maybe, this is the new story!

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  • landscape,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  sunrises

    Early Mornings

    June 13, 2022

    I pulled into the parking area right at 5:00 am. Sun would not rise for another 20-30 minutes. No one else there but the song birds, a couple pelicans, and a few ducks. A warm light breeze blew from the southwest. Nary a cloud in the sky. I felt the presence of creation around and within me. These early mornings excite my spirit! I feel alive. Have a great day!

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  • animals,  natural areas,  Pineridge Natural Area,  quotes

    They Teach Us

    May 17, 2022

    In the Western tradition there is a recognized hierarchy of beings, with, of course, the human being on top—the pinnacle of evolution, the darling of Creation—and the plants at the bottom. But in Native ways of knowing, human people are often referred to as “the younger brothers of Creation.” We say that humans have the least experience with how to live and thus the most to learn—we must look to our teachers among the other species for guidance. Their wisdom is apparent in the way that they live. They teach us by example. They’ve been on the earth far longer than we have been, and have had time to figure things out.

    Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass

    What a beautiful morning we have here in Colorado. Blue skies and sunshine. I have not read her book but think it’s one I do want to absorb some of her words and spirit. I also noticed Krista Tippett has a podcast with her that I want to listen to. Hope everyone has a wonderful day, enjoy it!

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