{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 …


Sunday, December 31, 2017

guiding word for the new year ...

~Happy New Years Eve~
For the past few years I've been starting the  New Year with  a  Guiding word ...

I will see the word in the most unexpected places {over and over again}
 & it will resonate with me. 
 Some years I  wonder when my word will appear :-D
For 2017, the  word OPEN/OPENING  appeared over & over again
  leaving no doubt that it was my word.
And it certainly was!!
Live Open ... it was a year that showed me where I "get stuck" being the over thinker that I am :-D
Those lessons learnt have brought me to my 2018 guiding word 
a word that came to me so quickly
it appeared
everywhere
and over and over again.
It felt right the moment I spotted it...
I am ready ...
I would nod each time I saw the word...
ahhh, yes, that's my word I would think ... there it is again ... 
~flow~
the "rooted" resister in me is ready to also flow x
I am rooted
but I flow
"Be still
like a mountain
and flow
like a great river"
~Lao Tzu~
***
"Life is a series
of natural and spontaneous changes.
Don't resist them ~
that only creates sorrow.
Let reality
be reality.
Let things flow naturally forward
in whatever way they like"
~Lao Tzu~
"You're thinking too much,
just let it flow"
~E. Paluszak~
The River of Life has no meaning, no good, no bad,
no better, no worse, no love, no hate, no fear, no anger, no joy.
The River of Life has no judgment, no expectation.
The River of Life just IS.
There is nothing to do.
There is nothing to say.
There is nothing to think.
There is nothing to feel.
The River just flows.
The River is the source of all nourishment -
the source of all obstacles.
The River is the source of all life - the source of all death.
The River is the source of all joy - and the source of all sorrow.
Yet the River has no joy - and the River has no sorrow.
The River is just the River.
One can flow harmoniously with the River -
or one can struggle fearfully against the River -
and the River just flows.
One can accept the River - or one can deny the River -
and the River just flows.
One can worship the River of Life - or one can curse the River of Life -
and the River just flows.
There is nothing to do - and the River flows.
There is nothing to say - and the River flows.
There is nothing to think - and the River flows.
There is nothing to feel - and the River flows.
The River flows - and all else is our drama.
The River flows - and all else is our invention.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Sunday, December 24, 2017

walking in a winter wonderland ...

Archer and I are in our element here ...
in the woods walking for miles
& the quiet hush.

Each season is beautiful,
but for me, there is nothing like Autumn when the leaves are turning
and Winter  
bringing with it ~ lots and lots of snow

What a thrill to have so much snow this year
Yeah! it will be a White Christmas 
I've left a little love note written in the snow x

"When there's snow 
on the ground
I like to pretend
I'm walking
on
clouds"
~Takayuki Ikkaku~
Wishing you a Very Merry Christmas
xo deb 

Thursday, December 21, 2017

Winter Solstice Blessings ...

Winter Solstice
~2017~
"Don't dismiss the elements.
Water soothes and heals.
Earth grounds and holds.
Fire is a burning reminder of our own will and creative power.
Breathe them in.
Swallow their spells.
There's a certain sweet comfort in knowing
that you belong to them all"
~Victoria Erickson~

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

the woods, the wind & the wild ...

With all the busyness of this magical season,
I need to carve out time for a few things ...
time to paint
& my time in the woods  :-D
Not surprisingly, the two go hand in hand for me as most of my ideas come to me as I walk quietly and mindfully  with my sweet lab Archer. Both taking in the serenity of the woods and Archer enjoying off leash time where he can walk and wander {though he never strays too far from my side}.
Time with the trees, the birds {such sweet bird song being the only sounds heard}, a gentle breeze on my cheeks, crisp ground under my feet, and when I am really lucky, the occasional rabbit and deer
~ bliss xo
As I walked the woods the other day, I could picture in my mind this painting ...
I was walking the painting ...
and feeling the words ...

She needs this quiet time. Bringing her thoughts & worries to the woods ๐ŸŒฒthe wind * the wild ๐Ÿƒ๐ŸŒฟ. With each gust of wind & drift of snow ❄️she feels the cobwebs ๐Ÿ•ธloosen & clear from her mind. Her eyes watering from the cold, she closes them, each blink bringing clarity ๐Ÿ™๐Ÿป. The trees stand strong. The birds sing. The animals rest. She feels at peace. Surrounded by love and her connection to the woods, the wind & the wild. x ~ my love for the woods, wind & wild in a painting
peace & love,
deb


Sunday, December 17, 2017

Sunday Serenity

"Upon occasion
all wild women
should take their own 'medicine walk'
to an inspirational place in Nature.
To be inspired, 
focused,
to heal.
To realign self and spirituality
and to gently place our feet
on the path 
we were meant to travel"
~Shikoba~

Thursday, December 7, 2017

thankful {things I love} thursday ...

"I love getting older.
My understanding deepens.
I can see what connects.
I can weave stories of experience and apply them.
I can integrate the lessons.
Things simply become more and more fascinating.
Beauty reveals itself in thousands of forms"
~Victoria Erickson~
Sparrow Studio Altar
~thankful {things I love} Thursday ~ 
music 
a gentle smudge of sparrow studio
candles lit
... tons of ideas & projects floating around in my head

my little studio altar
grounds me the moment I walk into my little sparrow studio
I light candles
put on music
and spend a few moment to settle in 
before I begin
I make a few changes seasonally
but some things remain the same, like my gratitude jar
... a small slip of paper is added daily of one thing I am thankful for that day x
painted leaves, bark and feathers
anyone who knows me 
knows how much I adore quotes.
I had the idea for a while to paint a little quote keeper box.
smudge sticks created from my own garden
have dried beautifully
treasures to watch over me

Monday, December 4, 2017

December Super Moon Love ...

Full Cold Super Moon Love
{December 3, 2017}
as seen from my backyard 
& some of my favourite moon quotes x
"My heart is a wolf
ruled by two moons;
one 
which beckons me back into the night,
the other
is calling me home"
~Maza-Dohta~

"We danced too wild,
and we sang too long,
and we kissed too sweet,
and howled just as loud as we wanted to howl,
because by now
we were all old enough to know
that what looks like crazy
on an ordinary day
looks a lot like love
if you catch it in the moonlight"
~Pearl Cleage~
"There are nights
when the wolves are silent
and only the moon
howls"
~George Carlin~
She was devoted to the moon.
In its darkness
she found comfort.
In its light
she found hope
"Some days
I am more wolf 
than woman
and I am still learning
how to stop apologizing 
for my wild"
~Nikita Gill~
In my defense,
the moon was full
and I was left
unsupervised

Friday, December 1, 2017

stepping stones ...

The weather has been so unseasonably mild & I have been taking advantage of warm mornings and afternoons with meditative walks along the lake gathering stones as I walk.
Some have lovely shapes and often I can imagine an image fitting in just perfectly.
Like resting deer ...
or a bird loving woodland girl ...
"One of the secrets of life
is to make stepping stones
out of 
stumbling blocks"
~Jack Penn~

~Happy December~
x d

Saturday, November 18, 2017

a walk on the wild side ...

"Routine is not a prison, 
but the way into freedom from time.
The apparently measured time 
has immeasurable space within it,
and in this
it resembles music"
~May Sarton~

brisk lake walks {picking up pieces of beach glass along the way } ...
all my favourite colours in one spot ...
gratitude with each step ...
chickadees that land on my hand for some seed and a chat ...
the blessings of nature ...
find me where the wild things are
*always*
"She didn't just walk on the wild side,
she lived there
dancing in the streets
and setting fire
to its sky"
~j.iron word~

Sunday, October 29, 2017

dancing in an autumn sun ...

the trees are wearing their autumn coats
such beauty
trees & tracks xo
"I see the turning of a leaf
dancing in an autumn sun
and brilliant shades
of crimson glowing
when a day
is done"
~Hazelmarie Mattie Elliott~
 a lovely pumpkin face ... someone's winking with a sly grin :-D
"The tints of autumn...
a mighty flower garden
blossoming under the spell
of the enchanter, frost"
~John Greenleaf Whittier~
~hope you are having a wonderful autumn Sunday~
x d

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

for the secret of the sea ...

"Till my soul is full of longing
for the secret of the sea.
And the heart of the great Ocean
sends a thrilling pulse
through me"
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow~
***
I think my heart skips a beat when I find heart shaped sea glass ... it is like stumbling upon a love note washed up and waiting for you to find xo
Walking along the lake this past weekend, gathering sea glass as I walked and thought, this came to me ... Each piece of sea glass makes me think ... 
What man has discarded, nature heals and returns. It may take years and many ebbs and flows,  but when it returns, it is more beautiful than ever!
Reading Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindberg again.
One of my favourite books.
"Patience, patience, patience
is what the sea teaches.
Patience and faith.
One should lie
empty, open, choiceless as a beach -
waiting for a gift from the sea"
~Anne Morrow Lindbergh~
"Because there's nothing more beautiful
than the way the ocean
refuses to stop kissing the shoreline,
no matter how many times
it's sent away"
~Sarah Kay~
*the black blotch in the photos is my lovely lab Archer's head ... my Velcro dog & beach walking partner  ... I could have edited the photos, but I think he adds to the lovely~ness * xo
~hope you are having a wonderful Tuesday~

Tuesday, October 3, 2017

and just like that ...

and just like that...
the leaves changed colour
"Listen to the trees
as they sway
in the wind.
Their leaves
are telling
secrets"
~Vera Nazarian~

"I would rather be amongst forest animals
and the sounds of nature,
than amongst city traffic
and the noise of man"
~Anthony Douglas Williams~
autumn
~my favourite season~