Natural Relief

Three pressure-filled days.

Mental tensions press.

Their physical manifestations settle in my neck and shoulder.

A warning.

Slow down.

Relax.

Breathe.

Take a pill?

No, a hot soak.

The ritual begins once the kids are asleep. Fill the tub.

Turn on the jets. Soothing bubbles!

Out go the lights, lit are the candles.

An hour later, relief.

A good night's sleep.

Fresh perspective this morning.

Birch Trees Three

"Trees are the best monuments that a man can erect to his own memory. They speak his praises without flattery, and they are blessings to children yet unborn." ~~Lord Orrery, 1749

"Acts of creation are ordinarily reserved for gods and poets.
To plant a pine, one need only own a shovel." ~~Aldo Leopold

"A tree uses what comes its way to nurture itself.  By sinking its roots deeply into the earth, by accepting the rain that flows towards it, by reaching out to the sun, the tree perfects its character and becomes great.  ...  Absorb, absorb, absorb. That is the secret of the tree." ~~Deng Ming-Dao ( Everyday Tao, 1996)

We planted three birch trees this weekend to replace three Thundercloud Plum trees we had to remove before building the addition. The plum trees were old and rotting and ready to enter the wood pile. Trees comfort me. Thank you, Tom, for all the work you've done to make these beautiful trees a part of our family's environment!

"They are beautiful in their peace, they are wise in their silence. They will stand after we are dust.  They teach us, and we tend them." ~~Galeain ip Altiem MacDunelmor

“He who plants a tree plants hope.” ~~Lucy Larcom

“Speak to the Earth, and it shall teach thee.” ~~Job 12.8

Robert Frost Speaks

"Oh, give us pleasure in the flowers today;
And give us not to think so far away
As the uncertain harvest; keep us here
All simply in the springing of the year.

Oh, give us pleasure in the orchard white
Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;
And make us happy in the happy bees,
The swarm dilating round the perfect trees.

And make us happy in the darting bird
That suddenly above the bees is heard,
The meteor that thrusts in with needle bill,
And off a blossom in mid air stands still.

For this is love and nothing else is love,
To which it is reserved for God above
To sanctify to what far ends He will,
But which it only needs that we fulfill."

~~Robert Frost, A Prayer in Spring

Instinctive Ways of Geese

Geese are fascinating. Moving together in a ballet of form and grace.

Calm at the water's edge, somehow they know when to take-off together...

...and off they go! Feet kicking at the water, powerful wings flapping furiously.

Then...calm once again, in formation, flying into the sunset.

Upon observing these two geese last night at the river I thought, "Like the symmetry of a man and a woman living, working, loving in sync."

Beautiful.

Havasupai Indian Waterfall Relaxation

Three minutes and nine seconds of serene music and scenery.

If you can take the time...

Leaves me relaxed all over.

Sigh...

Compost for Earth Day

For twenty years we've had a compost pile in our backyard. Kitchen produce scraps and certain yard debris are tossed on the heap. Time and weather change those scraps into rich organic matter which breathe vitality into our gardens.Tom and Joe built this new compost bin last week to replace our tired original construction. Snow, hail, rain, and sunshine pelted the men's shoulders and heads but they creatively worked on, enjoying the task immensely.

Two compartments add efficiency to the process.

Removable slats spare a person's back when it comes time to turn the pile or remove some of its treasure.

We never have to buy soil or compost. Our garbage fees are low for we generate less garbage - recycling helps here as well. Our gardens are lush and prolific, completely organic, and beautiful. As we generate more compost than we need our friends and neighbors gladly shovel up the life-giving matter for their gardens. A win/win situation!

Tom brought the notion of composting into our lives early on. It's been one of his brightest ideas. A connection with the earth and its life cycles is understood and celebrated. Our place in the God-given responsibility as stewards is honored. We respectfully give to the earth and it returns our labors with blessings from the hands of the Creator.

Friendly Reminder: April 22nd is Earth Day.

Of Painting, Music, and Writing

"I think of painting and music as subcutaneous arts. They get under your skin. They may get deeper than that eventually, but it takes a while, and they get there to some extent tinged by if not diluted by the conditions under which you saw them or heard them. Writing on the other hand strikes me as intravenous. As you sit there only a few inches from the printed page, the words you read go directly into the bloodstream and go into it at full strength. More than the painting you see or the music you hear, the words you read become in the very act of reading them part of who you are, especially if they are the words of exceptionally promising writers. If there is poison in the words, you are poisoned; if there is nourishment, you are nourished; if there is beauty, you are made a little more beautiful. In Hebrew, the word dabar means both word and also deed. A word doesn't merely say something, it does something. It brings something into being. It makes something happen." ~~Frederick Buechner