Offering

Their offering? Love, Honor, Protection. Forever.

My offering? A glimpse of that
very special day...my daughter's wedding.






Melissa 's word today? Offering

Video thanks to: McElroy Weddings

The Sum of our Parts {A Bigger Picture Moment}

Stepping back, I saw a bush. A bush dusted with antique white.
Focus in, and there are bells. Sweet, delicate bells!

Stepping back, I saw a tree. A tree with branches of white reaching towards the gray sky.
Focus in, and each flower shows off, calls out, dances cheerfully on the breeze.

Stepping back, I saw a sapling. A sapling draped in cottony white.
Focus in, and notice that flowers and buds nestle together on every bowing branch.

A morning walk.

Stepping back, I see years of time. Time shared that spreads like a blanket that comforts.
Focus in, and there are moments. Thousands of sweet, cherished moments!

Stepping back, I see a family. A family that's whole, that's connected.
Focus in, and each one has a part to play. A gift to share. A life to live.

Stepping back, I see a room. A room full of familiar people and belongings.
Focus in, and notice the laughter. And the stories. And the meal. And the hugs.

An evening at home.



This week's Bigger Picture Link up is hosted by Peanut Butter In My Hair

...and special thanks to Alita
who is celebrating spring one color at a time this week!
I've enjoyed hunting for springs colors...today's is White!

Windows of the Soul

My little book group met for the second time on Monday evening.

This month's read?
            Windows of the Soul
                       ~ Hearing God in the Everyday Moments of Your Life
             by, Ken Gire

This is a beautiful book, written to remind us that "our search for God and his search for us meet at the windows of our everyday experiences." As we read, our eyes are opened to "a fresh way of seeing, hearing, and enjoying the presence of God in our lives."

Through a series of personal experiences and encounters, the author takes us on a wonderful journey of discovery. He takes us to museums, to the movies and on business trips ~ and lets us peer through the windows that God opens for him along the way. His stories are poignant....but, as he points out...they are his  stories and not ours. And his encouragement to us is to learn to hear God in OUR lives...to grow in our awareness of the many ways God reveals himself to us. We've got to quiet down, tune in, ask good questions and we'll become aware of God - the God who's tapping at the windowpane of our souls.  For anyone looking to "make a little more sense of it all" or "live more fully in the moment" this is a really good read!

Writing Me...I am {Adrienne}

Over at Bigger Picture Blogs 

they are celebrating 

Writing Me: Part III 

{a community writing project}

And they asked me to join them!

So....

Today I am at Bigger Picture Blogs sharing my "I am" piece

Please click here to read my poem.

Yellow

Forsythia ~ after the rain.

Skies were gray, but the pretty branch was bright yellow.

Forsythia ~ reminds me....

...of my childhood home ~ the path around the side was overrun each spring.

...of a dear friend in France who brought me fresh branches from her garden each spring.

...of the first wreath I ever bought for myself early one spring.

...that yellow is my very favorite color - no matter what the season.

"my" place

"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread,

places to play in and pray in,

where nature may heal 

and give strength to body and soul alike."

John Muir

I'm grateful to have such a place so near to my home!

Linking up with 

Tabitha

for 

 

Love Me Some Scraps!

I love to sit down with my "scraps"

and let them "speak" to me.

I know, not normal.

But all you scrapbookers out there know how many extras there are

after we've finished a project.

There are sticker sheets left ~ with only a few stickers.

Extra strips and morsels of paper left after mats and borders were made.

Well, I like to take those scraps and make border sets.

I combine the strips into borders

and decorate them with some of the unused stickers.

I make a title or a journal box

and some photo mats.

These make great gifts for other scrappers.

I always have some for sale at my workshops.

And they're easy to use later when you have a page to finish that fits one of these themes.

I do love me some scraps!

Ode to Spring!

Spring awakens all our senses. I...

...hear birds chirping and kids playing.

...feel the gentle breeze and sunlight.

...smell grilled meat and wet leaves.

...taste lime pops and pink lemonade.

...see buds, green leaves and SKY!

Linking up with Melissa.

Our word this week: Sense

At His Feet {A Bigger Picture Moment}

This is an illustration I heard years ago, that stuck with me...and has helped me this week:

Picture a little girl, sitting on the floor.
Maybe she's coloring, or dressing a doll baby.
Next to her, in a comfortable rocking chair is her grandmother -
Rocking back and forth just a little bit as she carefully works her needlepoint.
As the little girl looks up over her shoulder, she sees colors - lots of bright colors.
And there are the knotted fingers, moving the needle in and out of the canvas.
She sees the knotted threads, and the dangling threads.
And she sees the hint of the pattern her grandmother creates.
She's a little curious.
Glances up from time to time to see what grandma's doing, making sure she's still there.
She doesn't worry about the fact that the colors don't seem to be in the lines.
She isn't anxious that it doesn't all make sense.
She just plays and takes comfort in the presence of her grandmother....
a grandmother who sees the canvas from the other side.
The finished and perfected side.

This week I've been acutely aware that I'm like the little girl.
When I look up, and try to focus on the bigger picture, I just seem to see knots.
And a very unclear, unfinished picture.
Dangling threads abound.

The week began with the very sad news of the death of beautiful young woman.
An acquaintance of mine.
She was seven months pregnant and on the verge of realizing many personal dreams.
Her death left a huge hole in the heart of someone I cherish.
And...
I am restless.
I'm a bit mad about some things.
I'm bored - and that, to me, is inexcusable!

So, I seek to have the heart of the little girl.
Trusting that what I can't understand or make sense of right now
is clear to the weaver, the creator of the tapestry that is my life.
With tragedy comes questions of fairness and an attack of the "whys?"
I feel called to take comfort in my crafters presence.
And the fact that the bigger picture isn't finished yet.

A week of...

...reflection.

The Swan

I watched this beautiful swan swim to shore from far beyond the middle of the pond.

The water was glistening.

The swan was gliding.

It was very nearly magical.

Once close to shore, there was a lot of stretching, cleaning and posing.

I was pleased.

It was quite the show!

Blessing

"May the road rise up to meet you,

may the wind be ever at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face

and the rain fall softly on your fields.

And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the hollow of his hand."
Irish Blessing


As I walked through a pretty New England town on a sunny day last weekend
I noticed the sun reflecting off of this weather vane as the wind played with it.
First one direction,
then another.
Each time the soft breeze changed slightly, the sun would catch the copper 
and 
a sparkle of light would flash against the clear sky.
This added an extra bit of whimsy to an already charming church steeple.


I love the simplicity of these New England chapels.
I love the gentle cadence and kind wishes of the Irish blessing.


May we always hold these thoughts in our hearts for one another.

Spring's Promise!

Every branch. Each bud. Every seed.

Seeking sunlight. Yearning to bloom and

to become. Spring holds such promise.

Here come the reds, the yellows,

the purples, blues and greens! Bursting

forth from the dry, wintered ground.

We clean and plant and open
the long sealed windows to the
fresh air ~ our own hope renewed.

Melissa's word for us today?

Spring

Finding a Piece of Me {A Bigger Picture Moment}

He had fallen asleep.
His 6' 1" frame, curled up under two hospital blankets, sought strength and warmth.
The IV was putting back what the flu had stolen during the night.
As I watched him breath - easily, steadily - I knew we were OK. Beyond OK.
Blessed.
A nasty flu, a little dehydration. Annoying and painful. But no big deal.
The clock said said 2:55, but my body said "later than that".
The halls were filled with subdued conversations, beeping monitors and racing footsteps.
The tension had settled between my shoulder blades.
In the quiet of our dimly lit room, my own breathing slowed.
And I was glad to be alone with my thoughts.
I reached into my purse and found a scrap of paper and a pen.
I started to write.
As the ink met the page, I felt the tension drain from my back.
I wrote out some angry feelings.
I wrote out some questions and worries and {what a surprise} a few more angry feelings.
Nothing to do with being a mom in the ER.
I'm easily at peace with whatever's asked of me as a mom.
Just thoughts from the day.
Whatever thoughts surfaced, I let them out ~ allowed them to take form on the page.
Like I have so many times before.
But for some reason, in that unplanned moment and in that unlikely space....
I felt more strongly connected to writing than I ever have.
In the middle of a very bad day, I felt sure of something.
Something about me. For the very first time.
There's a piece of me that is a writer.
And it feels a bit scary, but somehow better, to put that out there.

The quiet, sleeping company of a child. My child.
The simple act of putting words on a page.

Quiet. Simple. Better.



This week the Bigger Picture blog link up is
at Hyacynth's Place.

Birthday Boy

happy birthday to 

my

star gazing

wave catching

music writing

body stretching

heart following

favorite

one and only

baby brother

Linking up with Heidi!

Scenes From a Weekend Away

Every year my husband's boss treats us to a weekend away at his ski condo.

Time for children and pets to relax and enjoy a change of scenery.

We're treated to outdoor fun.

Walks and talks.

Beautiful scenery.

Quiet moments.

And some adult treats by the fire.

"We make a living by what we get,

but we make a life by what we give."

Winston Churchill

And we've been given to this weekend!
We've been spoiled this weekend.
Cooked for, served and surrounded by friends.
The 'bosses wife' has treated us to delicious food and welcomed us with warm, open arms.
She's amazing.
We're very blessed to share the making a living part of our lives
                                      with generous people who also know how to make a life!




 

Wish

Hope whispers to us in wishes.

I Don't Design the Bigger Picture

I'm a planner. Last week, when my husband had a business meeting in Norwalk, CT, I planned to use the time he was in a meeting to take a walk. To explore. I found this map on the Norwalk website, and thought that it looked like a really pretty harbor walk. An old house, an old cemetery, a trail through a little park and a view of the harbor. Well, it was a nice idea. And I did walk. There was a cool house (used to film the recent Stepford Wives movie) and an old cemetery. After that there was nothing but construction, old railroad tracks, the city dump and some dirty, marshy water. I walked for a while, but then turned back. I had spotted an Artist's Market as I was driving to my 'scenic' walk, so I decided I'd go look at crafts while I waited for my husband's call.

Here's the pretty old house.

Here's the old graveyard.

Here's the rest of the "scenic" walk.

Do you see why I left?

Walking into the Artist's Market was about what I expected. A beautiful collection of hand made, one of a kind jewelry, wood pieces, pottery...etc., etc.

It wasn't until I made it to the back corner of the store that I understood why I was there.

Why things hadn't turned out exactly as I planned.

Why I'd been led from plan A to "plan" B.

The owner of this market has an astounding collection of signed MC Escher prints.

He has some of his tools.

And some of his original pencil sketches that would later become carvings for a print.

My brother LOVES Escher.

I spent a long time gazing at each print.

I got to speak with the owner and collector and ask lots of questions.

It was easy to get lost in the genius of this artist.

I'm glad I'm a planner ~ because if I hadn't planned a walk, 

I would have never have noticed this place or seen these prints.

I'm also glad that I'm learning, more and more, to go with the flow.

I felt led here.

The hour that I spent in this gallery was a gift.

A gift from the One who sees and understands the bigger picture.

Who knows that a walk was good.

But there was something better waiting for me.

The One who gave me time in a place that connected me to my brother who's half a world away.

I was reminded that I'm not the designer or architect of the Bigger Picture.

From time to time we all experience a moment when we know that we're

EXACTLY

where we're meant to be.

And that getting there had little to nothing to do with us.

Puddle

image source

Every Thursday we share the harvest of intentional living 

by capturing a glimpse of the bigger picture through a simple moment.

This week we're linking up at Hyacynth's place.