Word for the Year

 Celebrating the light in me this past March with a dear friend.

This year my word(s) were Trust the Adventure

Some years the adventure is a difficult one

and this just felt like that.

I wasn't sure I saw the results of it

until in one day this fall two different people

commented that I looked like I was on an adventure.

Sometimes life adventures don't reveal themselves

except in small ways and then only if we really

open ourselves to notice.

When I received those comments I saw it,

I saw the life adventure I was on and wrapped myself

in it's JOY.

Next year my word is LIGHT, which I am very excited about.

There were many words that came along, but they just didn't feel right.

Then as I reflected on Winter Solstice I thought of the light.

I thought about paying attention to the light in my photography.

I thought about the light within me.

I started noticing the word light in things I read.

The last line of the last book I read in 2019:

"the light shimmered, settled, held."

~author, Nora Roberts 

May the light shimmer for each of us in the new year.

May each of us be blessed beyond measure. 

May each bump in the road bring us more fully into the light.

For we must let our light shine in a dark world.

Delight in the day and SHINE.

The light will guide us.

The light will teach us.

And the light will shine upon us.

Notice as the light surrounds you.

Embrace it.

Yes, light will shine for each of us in 2020!

I just know it!

I also read just today to focus ahead and you won't
notice the shadows.
I see the light in this picture and will focus there.
Looking forward to sharing the adventure with you in 2020.

Garden Quotes 2019

The final garden quote for 2019.

 I thought we could take a walk through the rose garden.

 Peninsula Park Rose Garden is near my home,

a place I savor often, a perfect place to walk and reflect.

One of my favorite people to quote is Rumi.

"If your thought is a rose,

 you are a rose garden;

and if it is a thistle,

you are fuel for the fire."

~Rumi

Hope you enjoyed the garden quotes in 2019.

Now onto a new year and a new adventure in quotes  and words with pictures.

These pictures were taken this past June 2019.

Christmas Day

Christmas morning buffet to nibble the morning away.

Family with grandson arrived for gifts, nibbles, sipping, and hugs.

Then off for a drive along the Columbia River for our Christmas meal.

As Jeanie from The Marmalade Gypsy blog says, these are my "drive by shootings".

I just couldn't resist snapping some pictures on our drive.

Yes, there were even some waterfalls,

but this one is the grandfather of all waterfalls along the highway,

Multnomah Falls.

The clouds were so low they touched the earth in beauty,

but very few sprinkles.

Across the Bridge of the Gods.

And we arrived at Christmas at Skamania Lodge.

Now we went to the lodge last year for Christmas dinner

and the family enjoyed it so much we decided to return again this year.

Not sure, but this may become a new tradition for us.

I guess as life changes, new traditions come along.

I am not showing our meal, but it is buffet style and quite delicious.

After the meal there was time for some walking outdoors,

some playing too.

Another family had their new puppy

and my D loved playing with it.

Uncle to nephew chat I presume.

The river is so gorgeous from here.

D and his parents taking their dog for a walk.

It was amazing how many families included their dogs in the day.

When I first started snapping pictures I said my goal was to take

pictures of Adirondack chairs by water;

so how could I resist this shot.

Family sharing the day and sitting by the fire is the very best thing to do.

There were many families enjoying the day, the beauty, and the peacefulness of 

Christmas at the lodge along the river.

And as we headed home after a very special day the sky joined in the celebration.

Once more before we leave this season,

Merry Christmas to you all.

Have a terrific weekend, dear friends!

Merry Christmas - Light

In the midst of winter we celebrate the son of light being born.

May you each take a few moments.

Make yourself something warm to hold in your hand and sip.

Focus on the light of a candle.

Now close your eyes, rest in some quiet time today.

Then let the warmth of those around you delight and warm your heart.

It is Christmas day!

Sending you love and thankfulness for each of you

that visit me. You are dear to me and I treasure your visits.

Now blow the candles out and watch as the smoke finds it way upward.

Let our love float and fill the world with love on this day and everyday

as we enter the new year coming.

I am reminded of the song, "What the world needs now is love, sweet love".

Yes, let our love fly and fill the world on this day and every day.

Merry Christmas to you all!!!

Garden Quotes 2019

 Pictures taken on a recent walk at the Portland Japanese Gardens.

 I often walk at the Lan Su Chinese Gardens, but rarely do I visit these gardens.

The camellia was stunning.

The light divine!

"Very gay they were with snow and sleigh-bells, holly-boughs, and garlands, 

 below, and Christmas sunshine in the winter sky above. 

All faces shone, all voices had a cheery ring, 

and everybody stepped briskly on errands of good-will."

  ~Louisa May Alcott, "Seamstress," Work: A Story of Experience, 1873

 

              There was an art show and I thought these ceramic camellias rather festive.
                                Wouldn't they be pretty stuck in greenery for Christmas? 
                                    There is something so glorious in winter sunshine! 
                                  And faces do shine while walking on a crisp winter day. 

   I will post a Christmas greeting in a couple days, but 

if you are busy and don't come on by I will understand.

Have a very special week of celebration.

May you be surrounded by those you love.

                                            May the light of Christmas shine down on you.

Chair and Winter Solstice?!

There is no doubt when I go through my pictures that I love chairs.

When I go out to the antique mall I always photograph them.

I would buy them and take them home if I didn't already have plenty.

The image of a chair reminds me to sit for awhile,

dream, and share time with a friend.

So as the winter solstice is here this very day,

the shortest day of the year,

I am dreaming of just that.

Grab a cup or glass of whatever you enjoy.

For me I will have a warm cup of tea in my hands.

Let's look back on the year as the warmth of your cup permeates.

We started the year dreaming of flowers, watching the buds come up 

from the ground in new life. We dreamed of the year to come.

Did you pick a word for the year and open your heart to it?

We are ending by celebrating Christmas.

Is that warm cup doing the trick?

Is it soaking into your hands and warming your soul?

Did your word for the year have an impact on you?

Was it a wild ride?

A hard one?

Did you get moments to sit in the sun?

Winter solstice, a warm cup in my hand, a chair,

and maybe a sit down by the fire always makes me contemplate.

Thoughts swirl through my mind in remembrance, sadness, JOY,

laughter, and dreams.

So come along with me, sit awhile, dream, and remember.

Happy Winter Solstice!

Happy Weekend, dear friends!

Find some time to sit awhile.