Agave Maria!

She did it!!! She’s bloomed!

The lovely Agave plant which has captured our attention with her determination has outwitted latitude and climate (and frost) to reach a height of about 20 feet and bloomed!

As you know from previous posts, agaves only bloom once before they die. And as you can see here, her energy is definitely waning in comparison with her sister plants.

It’s been such an interesting process to watch. I have found myself drawn to visit and check on her. And I’m not alone. Whenever I pop by, she is always busy entertaining company.

Well, good for her. She’s done her job. And along the way, has given us all a little lesson in botany as well as in the power of hope.

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Just Dropping In …

This lovely lady rested beside me for a moment or two.

Dragonflies carry with them a weight of myth and folklore.

In Feng Shui, dragonflies mean change, new beginnings and bring all kinds of nice things.

Some people think a visit from a dragonfly is a visit from someone from heaven.

Another take suggests that they represent self-awareness and living in the moment. This might come from the fact that dragonflies spend most of their lives as nymphs, living as adults for only usually a few months.

All of this adds to the beautiful mystic of the dragonfly. These elegant and versatile fliers are equally at home in the air, on land and on the water. And they eat mosquitoes!! Or, so I’m told. A positive characteristic in any visitor.

One thing I know for sure, when this particular dragonfly alighted beside me, the world stood still for a few breaths as I marvelled in this small gift.

WPC – temporary

A New Year’s Gift

“Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come, whispering ‘It will be happier'” – Alfred Lord Tennyson

As the sky brightened on this New Years Day, we were presented with this fleeting vision. I’m choosing to take this as hint of things to come.

Wishing us all a year of good health, love and compassion.  Here’s to 2017!

Academic Reflection

“There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it” – Edith Wharton

One of the beautiful buildings surrounding Harvard Yard is reflected in a window of the Harvard Memorial Church.  The church stands at one end of the Yard, opposite the Widener Library – to dramatic effect.

Photos were taken in 2014 as I wandered the grounds. I felt smarter just standing there!  And looking at these photos makes me feel it’s time for another visit.

WPC – Mirror

Joy!

Forsythia is pure joy. There is not an ounce, not a glimmer of sadness or even knowledge in forsythia. Pure, undiluted, untouched joy.

Anne Lindbergh (1906 – 2001)

A few forsythia branches brought inside to bloom….. because I fear it will be a very long time before they have the chance to bloom outside this year.  They lift me up!

“Pure, undiluted, untouched joy.”

A photo for Macro Monday…

Carried Away

This makes me so happy, I just have to share it with you…. 

Bleeding Hearts – Rule of Thirds

And don’t think the garden loses its ecstasy in winter.

It’s quiet, but the roots are down there riotous. – Rumi

This bleeding heart plant in my garden is presently and quietly buried under about three or four feet of snow.  It is reassuring to think that “the roots down there (are) riotous” 🙂

The photo was taken last June…. Oh, how I look forward to re-uniting!!

Weekly Photo Challenge – Rule of Thirds

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/rule-of-thirds/

Shadowed II

With the sun so low in the sky, there are so many lovely shadows this time of year.  Weekly Photo Challenge: Shadowed

Adding “Versatile” to the resume……

Stars in my eyes!! Such an unexpected gift!! Thanks so much to Lifestyles with Lia for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award.   You are very kind.  I’ll do my best to life up to it.  🙂

Here are the guidelines for “The Versatile Blogger Award”:

Show the award on your blog.
Thank the person who nominated you.
Share seven facts about yourself.
Nominate 15 blogs.
Link your nominee’s blogs & let them know.

So…. 7 things about me:

1.  I’m an aspiring minimalist…..but I can’t seem to let go of too much stuff at once.  So, slowly…ever so slowly, I’m working my way through years of accumulation and settling for being a “medium-ist” for the moment.

2. I love music!  But I’m not at all muscial.  I never, ever sing…unless I’m complely, utterly alone. And even then, I’m a little nervous.

3.  I love spending time by myself. (….of course, I also love time with family & friends….) It’s all about balance.

4.  I also love meeting new people.  I get a bit of a thrill out of making a new friend.

5.  When I’m alone, I have a habit of taking on tasks that should probably wait.  For instance, just back from a trip to the Osteopath to pop a rib back in its proper place, I’m inspired to move a queen sized mattress two flights upstairs.  Today.  By myself!  Even though I know it is illogical…..I move ahead with the project. (the mattress in question is presently wedged mid-way up the second staircase…and the day isn’t over, yet!)

6.  I really, really don’t like being cold.  And yet, I love living in this place, which is a cold place. (-20C today…..oh! so cooooold!!) But then…it is January …. and this is Canada.

7.  Although I’m looking mid-life square in the eye and have 2 university degrees, I don’t feel like I’m completely finished with formal education. I enjoy searching university calendars for interesting courses of study, but haven’t actually signed up for one in over (OMG) 25 years. But hey!  You never know!

 Now its my turn to make some nominations.  Just as Lia did, I will nominate 2 bloggers:

A Sawyer’s Daughter and Vero in Boston

Drop by and visit these sites…..you’ll be glad you did! 🙂

A Light in the Window

Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness – Chinese Proverb

It’s a dark, wet, gloomy night….after a dark, wet, windy, gloomy day.  We are presently under the influence of a “stalled nor’easter”, just the kind of weather that makes you want to stay in bed.

Lucky for me, though, I was scheduled to spend the day with 20 five-year olds as their substitute teacher. No outside play today, due to the weather. But we got along cheerfully anyway, with songs and stories, with crafts and hugs.  Lots of hugs.

Its a brand new school, designed to be “green”, and very energy efficient.  The large windows usually allow us to get by, happily, without (or with a minimum use of) the overhead lights.

But, today it was so dark.

I was compelled to keep the lights on.  And when I did flick the switch off as we left the room to go to the library, the darkness was punctuated by the glow of the the fairy lights on the class christmas tree.  That made for a very cosy place to return to with our fresh library books.

Even though it was only mid-afternoon, it was still raining when I drove home. As I dogged puddles and potholes (no way of knowing just how deep those bad boys are!), and with an eye on the overflowing ditches, I caught sight of a house in which a single candle was lit in the kitchen window.  No other lights were on. A signal of hope, I thought.  A sign of welcome.

What a warm sight, that little light, on a dark day.