{Posted from} Home

The ordinary arts we practice every day at home are of more importance to the soul than their simplicity might suggest ~ Sir Thomas Moore ~


hOMe is where the heART is …


Showing posts with label Along Country Roads. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Along Country Roads. Show all posts

Thursday, September 21, 2017

Thankful {things I love} Thursday ...

Inukshuk
Canada's symbol of the North

Inuk "man"
Shuk "substitute"

"Every path serves a purpose"
~Gene Oliver~
***
I love spotting Inukshuks along the highway ♥
Built in the image of man and used as a directional marker.
Their strength and presence give  comfort to travelers assuring them they are never alone.
"We can choose
to throw stones
to stumble on them
to climb over them
or
to build with them"
~William Arthur Ward"

Monday, September 4, 2017

Ah, September! ...

hello September...
so happy to see you
loving the change in the weather
and evenings that are drawing in ...
walking through the woods
visiting with some of my ... do I dare say ... "favourite" trees
the ones that are unique and twisted and filled with personality and life ♥
{the same qualities I am drawn to in people} :-D xo
putting my hands on cool bark ...
both energy boosters and soul soothers
some with little doorways ... "Welcome Home"
***
"Ah, September!
You are the Doorway
to the Season
that Awakens
my Soul ..."
~Peggy Toney Horton~

Monday, August 14, 2017

monday musing ...

"It is not easy to walk alone
in the country
without musing
upon something"
~Charles Dickens~

Sunday, August 13, 2017

Take it to the trees ...

Sunday Serenity
forest walking
tree talking
"How dear the woods are!
You beautiful trees!
I love every one of you as a friend"
~Lucy Maud Montgomery~
"Alone with myself,
the trees bend
to caress me.
The shade
hugs my heart"
~Candy Polgar~
"Now we enter the ancient wood.
In which wild forms the gnarled and mossy boughs
are twisted, what a sensation
of sacred repose"
~Henry James Slack~
"He envied the bark,
which had been,
in the course of a lifetime,
both forest
and
fire.
One endured; one destroyed"
~Karen Joy Fowler~

seeing things clearly
and quietly
"I never saw a discontented tree.
They grip the ground as they liked it,
and though fast rooted,
they travel about as far as we do"
~John Muir~
"Knowing trees
I understand the meaning of patience.
Knowing grass
I appreciate persistence.
~Hal Borland~

Friday, June 23, 2017

drawn towards the wanderings of the woods ...

with my bundle of tiny twigs getting bigger by the day
I sat and painted a few
and looked through old discarded/damaged books
for words that spoke to me ...
*her heart was drawn towards the wanderings of the woods*
"the forest and I
was all there was.
In the deep still silence
I could feel
the Earth's
beating heart"
and looked through found treasures from walks past
~heart shaped stones~
owl faced walnut shells keeping me company
{and making me smile}
spotting hearts amongst the beauty of fallen and gathered bark
the trees fingerprint
"you were you
and I was I;
we were two
before our time.
I was yours
before I knew,
and you have always been
mine too"
skeleton leaves
oh how I love finding them
the epitome of life I think
what may look delicate and fragile and aged
has lived to tell a long story
of holding its own
and while some may look and see an old weathered leaf
I see resilience, life lived  and pure beauty ♥
I remember carrying this leaf home ever so carefully thinking it would crumble before I reached the front door
but what a lesson it taught me as it has sat in a bowl now for years  and has not changed :-D
acorns
rattling about
some with caps
others the caps have fallen off
"she lost herself in the trees
among the ever-changing leaves.
she wept beneath the wild sky
as stars told stories of ancient times.
the flowers grew towards her light,
the river called her name at night.
she could not live an ordinary life
with the mysteries of the universe
hidden in her eyes"
~Christy Ann Martine~
~painted bark fairie~
"Forests will always hold your secrets,
for that's what forests are for.
To separate and hide things.
To protect, to comfort, to hold, to envelop, to demonstrate, to slow down, to hold, to teach.
Go to the trees to explore your questions and dreams.
Go to the trees to desire and seek.
The world will listen
as you walk, watch, soften and breath"
~Victoria Erickson~

Thursday, May 4, 2017

Thankful {things I love} Thursday

I absolutely love this little paper.
The Country Register can be found just inside the door of the quaintest little craft shops.
Filled to the brim with stories, recipes, calendar of events/ upcoming festivals  , travel inspiration, gardening tips, and so much more.
We have found so many wonderful cafes and craft shops to visit thanks to The Country Register.
And after years of picking up the paper and enjoying it I am thrilled to be, once again,
*the cover artist*
My painting "A flock of birds" is  the May/April 2017 cover
for The Country Register of Ontario
~ dream ... dream big ...  ... because dreams really do come true ~
{when your sweet supportive family picks up issues} :-D

Sunday, April 23, 2017

treasures from the trail ...

I'm always writing about my love & fascination/admiration with trees
{here on the blog & over on my Instagram account}  -
and how my gathering bag is always filled {as well as pockets} with woodland
finds on our daily walks with Archer.
We have a large bowl on our coffee table that holds my gatherings and where I put them when we arrive home & it is gloriously filled to the brim. Each season brings with it different types of gatherings ~ acorns * pinecones* skeleton leaves * leaves of changing colours* branches * twigs* bark* feathers * rocks*
I also have a weaving/mixed media fabric art wall hanging in my Sparrow studio & I will often tuck in small pieces of  bark, skeleton leaves & feathers that I find here {she is looking really lovely with all her adornments} :-D
I thought I would show some of the ways I use my finds & what I do with some of them.
"The diversity of the phenomena of Nature
is so great,
and the treasures hidden in the heavens
so rich,
precisely in order that the human mind shall never be lacking
in fresh nourishment"
~Johannes Kepler~

I recently found some wonderfully shaped branches
faces were painted
and then larger pieces of bark were added to the back
wrapped with twine & a loop added to the back for hanging
I'm always drawn to and love branches where knots have fallen leaving  natural holes behind
these I've created into little
sparrow spirit sticks
each painted with a nature inspired sentiment/word
wrapped with fabric/twine/ribbons
and embellished with beads
and some with found feathers
"Nature is man's teacher.
She unfolds her treasures to his search,
unseals his eye,
illumines his mind,
and purifies his heart,
an influence breathes from all the sights and sounds
of her existence"
~Alfred Billings Street~
"You will find something
more in woods
than in books.
Trees and stones
will teach you
that which you can never learn from masters"
~St. Bernard~
***
I hope you find some lovely treasures from the trail on your walks too.
d xo

Saturday, April 22, 2017

Happy Earth Day 2017

~every day is earth day ~
Take nothing but pictures
Leave nothing but footprints
Kill nothing but time
Nature is painting for us,
day after day,
pictures of infinite beauty
~John Ruskin~
Be a gentle friend to the trees
and they will give you back
beauty, cool and fragrant shade
and many
singing birds.
~I dream a world~
We do not inherit the Earth
from our ancestors,
we borrow it
from our children
~Native American Proverb~