Celebrating Imperfections

Not all moments in life are Hallmark ones although I must admit that thought is appealing. While preparing for the holidays, visions of a sugar plum "perfect" Christmas as often seen on the Hallmark channel kept popping in my head. Creating the ambience for a warm holiday home certainly helped set the mood but did not assist in navigating through life's issues. 

Looking back, I once again realize that all that the glitter is not what makes a Christmas special. The reason for the season is not about perfection but about celebrating the imperfections, the snags, the realities of daily living. Today, I celebrate the imperfections of holiday hustle and bustle that broke the flow. Reality poked holes in preparation time when the electronic panel on my stove broke down. The water once again leaked under the utility sink and the connectivity issues in the house loomed while I was designing Autumn's Palette Gallery. Beyond these glitches, I found a message. Hope brings each new day joy if you believe in possibilities, recognize the importance of family connections and the power of faith that binds.

"Life is not always perfect. Like a road, it has many bends, ups and downs, but that's its beauty." 

~Amit Ray, World Peace: The Voice of a Mountain Bird

I thank Ruth Ayres at Celebrate This Week for her thoughtful post, Messy Christmas. It let me step back to ponder on this week's Holy Family Sunday homily about a teenage mom who bore a son in a barn filled with animals while her husband faithfully stood by her. Although this scene is not your "perfect" delivery picture it is powerful in its simplicity and message. Despite the angst and discord of the world there is hope and belief in possibilities. Faith allows the imperfections of life to become reflective vehicles as we transverse the roads of each day's journey.

Today is Slice of Life Tuesday so please visit Two Writing Teachers to read other bloggers' slices. 

Ho Ho Ho

Now that Christmas is officially drawing to a close, there is time for reflection. The man in the red suit must have been quite warm last night as he busied himself for all his runs. 

While we have no children in the house now, Santa still makes his debut in the neighborhood the Sunday before Christmas flanked by many fire engines. On Christmas Eve, he is seen brining good cheer. 

Happy Holidays from my house to yours!

You can see many presents under my Christmas tree but one is missing. Since I had some computer problems this week, the Autumn's Palette Gallery that was scheduled to be unveiled tonight is delayed. It will be launched this weekend with good cheer as a gift of the season.

At Live Your Poem, Irene Latham is hosting Poetry Friday and recapping her 12 Days of Kindness. Please visit Irene's site to hear her deliver a Christmas Eve poem. 

Lingering Autumn

Autumn does not want to leave Long Island but I hear the same from colleagues from here to Iowa. For today's poetry challenge, I am in the midst of designing my newest gallery of artistic expressions: Autumn's Palette. I am requesting an audience of listeners and doers to showcase the fall season.

Artists paint the world in color. 

Writers splash words across the page.

Dreamers spread dandelion wishes throughout nature.

Take up your pen and create alongside me as I welcome autumn into my collection of galleries of artistic expressions. If interested, artists, writers, poets, and dreamers send in your finest strokes to accompany the welcome sign below that will adorn the walls of Autumn's Palette. 

Requirements: A burst of color, hearts full of golden dreams, passion for life

If interested, please send sketches, drawings, photographs, poems, digital inspirations, poetry, or quotes today to cvarsalona at gmail dot com. 

While playing with words, take a stroll over to Mary Lee Hahn's Poetrepository to read the haikus that are being created.

Last year's Finding Fall Gallery can be accessed here.

Autumn Moving On

As I was traveling the highway this week, the last leaves of autumn were being swept across the road by a swirling wind. At the same time, a flock of birds moved in formation southward. All was quiet. Autumn knew it was time to move on. To signal the transition, one solitary runner flew horizontally past my window-not a lone bird but a single leaf marking autumn's passage.

With the passage of time, Autumn's palette dusts the world with a blank slate.

In the stillness of autumn's final good by, I begin the transfer of digital inspirations offered by those who found fall to Autumn's Palette Gallery of artistic expressions. The launching of the gallery will follow.

Please visit Buffy Silverman's site where she is hosting Poetry Friday. She is showcasing her service learning trip to Guatemala through photos and poetry. 

Thankful

The autumn season showcases earth in a full array of brilliant color.

My heart is full of thankfulness. 

Indian Summer days celebrate the bounty of fall. I am thankful.

Autumn's gold is waiting to be plucked and tucked into my heart.

Please see the invitation to Autumn's Palette Gallery here

and add your finding fall digital inspiration.

Now stroll over to the Poetry Friday Round-up to see the bounty of posts offered at Bridget Magee's wee words for wee ones. 

Autumn's Gold

Autumn carries more gold in its pocket than all the other seasons. 

~Jim Bishop, Author

As Autumn's glory peaks, I walk reflecting on the majesty of the world

and 

invite all who are interested to uncover the hidden treasures of Autumn's bounty with me. 

You can access the invitation to my newest showcase of the seasons, Autumn's Palette, here. Capture autumn in photographs or drawings and pen poetic words to create your own digital offering for the gallery.

Deadline: 

I will continue to gather digital inspirations from across the globe until Thanksgiving 2015. 

Poetry Friday opens its doors each Friday for the Poetry Friday Round-up. Today, Katja Czaja is our hostess at Write.Sketch.Repeat. It is my hope that Poetry Friday friends and others will be intrigued by my #findingfall creative challenge that will provide a thankful tribute to a season that reigns in glorious colors. Offerings can be sent to cvarsalona at gmail.

Halloween Fun!

Beastie Ready for Lunch-

Invited to feast at Today's Little Ditty.

Hunger unleashed!

Toothless grin.

Chomp!

CVarsalona © 2015

*****

Autumn's Bounty

Digital Collage for Nic Hahn's Artist Trading Cards' Challenge

#k12artchallenge

I continue to find fall wherever I go.

Please join me! 

Invitation to the creative challenge here.

Please visit Jama Rattigan's delightful site, Jama's Alphabet Soup, for the Poetry Friday Round-up. She is featuring a poem by Penny Parker Klostermann and a delicious looking batch of cookies. 

Poetically Speaking

There is wonder in words as they combine into thoughts. I call this merging, word weaving. One word intertwines with another until a finely crafted tapestry is created. When I happened upon two events in the world of poetry this week, Random Acts of Poetry Day (October 7th) and National Poetry Day (October 8th), I stopped, wondered, and began to weave words into poems. Twitter hashtags, such as #NationalPoetryDay, #poetrydayuk, #poetrydayuk, and #thinkofapoem, were venues open to poetically speak so I decided to fully immerse myself in the fall season and create.

In hopes of finding the beauty of the season to write about, I walked local paths observing natural objects. From what I collected, I crafted autumn decorations, adorning the inside and outside of my house with seasonal visuals. In between the DIY projects, I wove words to celebrate my love for poetry. Then, I digitalized expressions of the natural beauty and sent them out via Twitter as part of Random Acts of Poetry Day with hopes of brightening others' lives. Beside those acts, I virtually celebrated poetry with young students in Texas who showcased their work at a Poetry Cafe. I even went so far as to design an invitation with a poem for the finding fall gathering at my house this weekend. 

While becoming one with words, I joined hundreds of tweachers and tweeps who celebrated poetic language this week. This led me to one tweet showcasing Mary Oliver reading her poetry. One video led to another. A NPR interview caught my interest and provided me with a fountain of thoughts to satisfy my thirst for beautifully crafted words.

As Oliver talked about her fondness of the natural world and how she finds new words, I felt as though she was reaching out to me. 

I pay close attention to things, see new details...I love the choreography of the poem on the page. To find a new word you have to be alert.

Mary Oliver's advice will continue to inspire me to find fall this season as I design Autumn's Palette Gallery. I do hope you will write alongside me for a global gallery of artistic expressions. One digital expression to provide a perspective on the majesty of autumn's colors is all it takes to bring the natural world to the page. 

Please visit the Poetry Friday Round-up here. It is being hosted by Laura Purdie Salas, an inspired colleague. Laura is showcasing one of her two poems that have been included  in an inspired book of poetry, the Book of Nature Poetry, edited by J.Patrick Lewis with National Geographic.