be strong and be brave...

 

you know who you are...

 

 

For a New Beginning

In out-of-the-way places of the heart,

Where your thoughts never think to wander,
This beginning has been quietly forming,
Waiting until you were ready to emerge.

For a long time it has watched your desire,
Feeling the emptiness growing inside you,
Noticing how you willed yourself on,
Still unable to leave what you had outgrown.

It watched you play with the seduction of safety
And the gray promises that sameness whispered,
Heard the waves of turmoil rise and relent,
Wondered would you always live like this.

Then the delight, when your courage kindled,
And out you stepped onto new ground,
Your eyes young again with energy and dream,
A path of plenitude opening before you.

Though your destination is not yet clear
You can trust the promise of this opening;
Unfurl yourself into the grace of beginning
That is at one with your life’s desire.

Awaken your spirit to adventure;
Hold nothing back, learn to find ease in risk;
Soon you will be home in a new rhythm,
For your soul senses the world that awaits you.

- John O’Donohue

love sent, xo

moments in january...

               because there was something in this exact sliver of time that  i want to remember

                                                     some winter days are magical

                                                          finally feeling back to herself

                                                   some days call for long slow breakfasts

 celebrating the new found love for the dominican and of course their beer

                                                                              cold days

                                                                  and warm nights

so sweet

 
                                                            the beautiful wolf moon

                                             heading back to school for the final semester.

                                                               banana crepes

                                                              decadent drinks

                                                           surprise snow falls

wii competitions

we celebrated birthdays

had time outs

some days call for cozy blankets and long movies  

and then...    tulips remind us spring is coming.

                                                    that pretty much sums up January


love sent, xo  

because life has been challenging...

i remind myself of the simple things that can make my day better.

the amazing sunsets at this time of year.

warm sheets out of the dryer.

small tea lights all over the house.

our cozy fireplace.

unexpected hugs from behind.

special coffee.

a phone call with a friend i miss every day.  love you patti.

sirius radio

warm socks.  love love these.

this quote

love sent, xo

so touching...

seriously thought my heart would collapse reading this beautiful story

today...

keep your faith in all beautiful things;

in the sun when it is hidden,

in the Spring when it is gone.

 

~Roy Rolfe Gilson, American Writer, (1875 – 1933)

difficult balance.

the past two months i have learned a lot.   a lot about patience and fear.  i have always admitted to
struggling with the unknown.  i would rather know what i am up against than to not really have answers to my questions.  when someone gets sick especially unexpectedly the first response is usually panic, fear, etc. when a very independent elderly parent suddenly has to depend on others it is a little blindsiding at first. even tho with age it should not have come as a total surprise, somehow it still does.
when an elderly person gets an illness that might usually call for a short recovery, advanced age changes everything.   everything takes longer,  to heal, to do, to prepare. we avoid thinking ahead of  the what if.
right now the ground is icy and uncertain beneath me.

i am learning to live with what could happen, while letting things take their course.

i'm treading the line between now and then, what will come next, between here, and wherever there is.

so here i am, learning to exist at the edge of the unknown, where my fears rise up again and again. i am afraid of what i can’t control, of the things i do not know, of outcomes that aren’t certain.  of edges i don’t know how to trust and their isn't much i can do about it.

we are all here briefly, this i know. my prayers become profound in their simplicity:
please watch over us.

love sent,  xo

comfort for the soul...

doesn't my life look so calm and quiet?
it is totally the opposite at the moment.
the up and down days are so stressful.
life is a story with so many levels.
i am trying to roll with the punches and find my way through this timeless challenge.

i  remind myself what i so often say to others, one day at a time.

this picture makes me happy.


love sent, xo