WholeHearted Spiritual Journey

It's a warm, breezy September day and at this moment, I am enjoying the quiet. I feel nature's slowdown pause, a signal to breathe in and out. My thoughts are inspired by a single word, wholehearted, which is this month's Spiritual Journey topic. Ruth Ayres, writer, author, and researcher is our host and offers various questions for us to ponder before writing. Since I am recuperating from the medical trauma of surgeries and infections, I want to learn more about wholehearted living. 

Ruth asked, What does it mean to live wholeheartedly?  Since I didn't understand what that entails, I did research. Noted author, researcher, and professor, Brene Brown, speaks on the issue of Wholehearted Living and offers 10 signposts. "Wholehearted Living is about engaging in our lives from a place of worthiness. It means cultivating the Courage, Compassion, and Connection to wake up in the morning and think, no matter what gets done and home is left undone, I am enough." I admit I have oodles of paperwork stacked in my office so I often feel I cannot finish what I set out to do each day. This bothers me and leads to frustration and anxiety.  

One of Brene Brown's signposts attracted me. "Cultivating calm and stillness and letting go of anxiety as a lifestyle". When I calmly stay in the moment of stillness, I feel refreshed but during the next part of the day, other feelings may interrupt and lead to anxiety. Therefore, I need to cultivate calm, pause, and stay in a moment. 

My garden is a restful place but during the summer the season offered heat waves and turbulent rainstorms. I did not spend much time in this tranquil place. I patiently waited months to see my ornamental grass sporting beautiful wheat and purple hues alongside butterfly bushes and two specimen magnolia trees. When the end of August and early September brought different temperatures and soft breezes, I spent more time admiring the outside patio. The sight of my gardens and a song, Wholehearted, energized me to write a Golden Shovel poem. The line from the song that I used is "I need grace. You give it wholehearted."  Grace would help me see life in a better framework.  

"Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly ..." - Colossians 3:23-24

My goal for September is to be enthusiastic and mindful, to open my heart to positivity, and not let worry overwhelm me. I will start now because I just returned from the doctor's office. Instead of telling me I have an allergy or upper respiratory issue like my husband, I heard the word COVID. I was surprised with the outcome but knew I had to wholeheartedly accept the new detour on my spiritual journey. I am thankful that it appears to be a mild form of the new COVID virus. Maybe, now, I will have more quiet time to understand the cycle of life and wholehearted living with my one word, pause. 

My Commitment: 

I choose to fully engage in life during the next season and walk the spiritual pathway with faith knowing that my heart must be open and giving.

"Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."  Corinthians 9: 6-8

Thank you, Ruth Ayres, for bringing your one word, wholehearted, to our attention. I look forward to reading what other members of the Spiritual Journey community write from their cheerful hearts. You can link in to read other posts here.

Wintering Time

It is the silence of the past

scattered in fragments

that lull wintry minds

to just be.

It is the hush of evening light

chased by chilled winds

that alter quiet paths

into sanctuaries of thought.

It is the magic of a fire

rising in reverent ways

that settles senses to rest

in winter's embrace.

Shall we find quiet in stilled shadows

where winter trees stand alone

or perhaps search for winter warmth

wrapped in time's blanket? 

©CV, 2022

❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅

After Thought

Drippings from My Winter Mind

I cannot steal time

to discover my desires,

only listen to my quiescent mind

to achieve tranquility at rest.

©CV, 2022

I wrote the above poem during Laura Shovan's Annual February Poetry Project. I liked certain stanzas but upon review, I felt revisions were needed. After a night of being awakened several times by the howling wind, I felt inspired to continue to find the words to express what I felt about the topic of quiet. My revised poem addresses stanzas that needed massaging. 

❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅

When Ruth Ayres sent an open invitation (no. 75: quiet) to share our stories, I took the opportunity to dive into the magic of winter's hush. Centering myself, I mulled over the Rumi quote sent by Ruth and vowed to listen to nature's pulsebeat. I am glad that I carved time this morning to listen to the howling wind to find beauty in its call.

"The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear." - Rumi

❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅

Below is my poetry postcard for the February Poetry Postcard exchange organized and scheduled by Jone Rush MacCulloch. I sent this card out to the ten members in my poetry postcard exchange I would like to offer this digital card to all who read my blog post today. 

Thank you for joining me in this experience of wrapping my heart in quiet.

May you find the blessings of quietude as winter transitions.

❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅❅ 

Thank you Ruth Ayres for the invitation

to SOS: Sharing Our Stories Magic in a Blog.

and

Thank you Laura Purdie Salas

for hosting Poetry Friday this week and inviting everyone to your Online Book Launch Party for your new book, We Belong.

Celebrating Autumn Colors

In early autumn, Mother Nature swept away the sands of a Long Island summer and started mixing colors of sunset orange, terracotta, mahogany brown, apple, russet, butter rum, and maroon. Her studio, the great outdoors, overflowed with visual images of luscious landscapes. Slowly, autumn colors emerged outside. 

I observed the dance of leaves swooning as nature dipped and stroked her canvas with a fresh coat of paint each morning. Autumn moved gently from one shade to the other until the winds tipped the palette. Mother Nature, enjoying the shifts of weather, whimsically skipped with the autumn leaves and smelled the fragrance of cinnamon and pumpkin spice. I continued to observe, write, and send out invitations to capture the colors of autumn for an upcoming fall gallery, #AbundantAutumn. 

My short video can be viewed here.

Halloween chose dark shades of indigo and licorice with a touch of neon carrot to color its sky night, providing me with inspiration to create a Happy Halloween Ditty. Through Google Hangout, I had the opportunity to read the story poem to my grandbaby on Halloween Eve.

As November arrived, I gathered in gratitude with the Spiritual Journey 1st Thursday community, remembering what transpired. "… the trees were dropping golden, amber, and scarlet leaves, while under the pale yellow ones which rustled beneath the chestnut-trees, there were brown, glossy nuts…." 

-Frances Hodgson Burnett, In Connection with the DeWilloughby Claim, 1889 

I come to this day, knowing that a rush-rush pace does not benefit living life and that "Everyone must take the time to sit and watch the leaves turn." 

-Elizabeth Lawrence

I'm off to celebrate autumn colors on Day 4 of #30daysofgratitude. 

Today, I'm grateful for Mother Nature's artistic talent that inspires me to create digital inspirations.

I celebrate with Ruth Ayres and the Celebrate This Week community. 

Celebrate Summer Collapsing Into Fall

Time has passed since summer officially closed its seasonal celebration of a sunkissed life. I have held onto this season in my heart, recalling sand-swept beaches of Long Island with their heated breath seeping through gentle winds. The salty spray of the Atlantic Ocean taste is still on my lips. With this picture in my mind, I nostalgically longed for lazy, sun-chasing days and nights that were full of light and energy in the late evening UNTIL I recently passed over the Mario Cuomo Bridge. 

As I crossed the newly girded steel structure leading me to upstate New York, I noticed a hint of color here and there; leaves were different from the green ones of a Long Island summer. Moving further north, the preponderance of multi-colored sightings were evident. Mother Nature, the glorious artist, must have spent all weekend painting the land in warm hues. A newly-awakened landscape emerged before my eyes. 

It was in that moment of awareness that I knew summer collapsed into fall, ushering in a new season to savor. I was in awe of nature's breathtaking change in scenery. The colors emerging from each town's tree-lined highway appeared to be woven into a vast patchwork collage.

The sight was awe-inspiring, much more than the first scattered gathering of leaves upon my deck.

Other colleagues understood the magnitude of the changing of seasons
and so the collecting of autumn photos began.

From Maine came Molly Hogan's first sighting.

Brian Rosinzky sent the following from South Dakota.

Mark Weston captured an early fall scene while hiking in the Rocky Mountains.

Have you ever wondered about the why behind the color change?

Check out Wonderopolis' Wonder of the Day #1325 for information and 

enjoy watching the 30-second time lapse of summer turning into fall.

ln case you are still wondering about seasonal color change, please take a quick peek at last year's global gallery of artistic expressions while I continue to explore autumn. 

🍁🍂

Thank you Two Writing Teachers for your Tuesday Slice of Life space.

Also, thank you, Ruth Ayres, for encouraging all writers to Celebrate This Week. 

Celebrating Communication with a Global Friend

I like to connect via Twitter with my global friends about teaching and learning either through chats or blogging. It is amazing to be virtual friends with so many like-minded people who are student-centered and creative. This weekend, Terje Akke, one of my educator friends from Estonia, created her celebration post about an idea that has been marinating for years. Excitedly, I read her post to see what photos Terje would include. She is a wonderful photographer and writer who has been giving her students the gift of writing in the great outdoors but her real desire for years has been to have her students experience how writers go to unexpected places for ideas. Recently, her dream was realized.

In Terje's blog, she described the unusual place she took the children to write. It was the Estonian Art Doll House.  I found Terje's photos of the doll museum to be quite engaging. I could picture the young writers milling about the house being greeted by an assortment of dolls. I especially liked the photo Terje included of a Victorian Queen of Hearts type doll. I started playing around with rhyme and decided to draft a short poem for the students to remember their experience. Who knows, maybe they will create their own person poems for each of the dolls they saw.

I am grateful for the connection I have made with Terje. You can see her photographic work in my recent gallery of artistic expressions.  Terje has given me a gift. She hasprovided me with insight into the teaching methods and lifestyle of Estonians and continues communication to share ideas. There are many other photographers and educators from across the world that I have met through Twitter. Being able to connect virtually with others across regions makes the world seem more accessible to me.

I celebrate with Terje this week to continue the commitment to celebrating life that Ruth Ayres started. 

Celebrate a Summer State of Mind

The day opened with a sky filled with bright sunshine. An intense warmth enveloped every living object so when my husband suggested, "Let's go to the beach," we quickly readied ourselves for the short jaunt. While the calendar read Labor Day, the official day the beaches close, we were not ready to say goodbye to summer. Off we went!

Others were not letting go of summer either as evidenced by the packed parking lot. Children were chatting away under the coolness of the outdoor showers and families were unloading their cars with beach paraphernalia. Rows of lifeguard chairs were stacked in the area in front of the dunes.

I paused for a moment to photograph the lifeguard chairs in need of an end-of-summer overhaul, thinking here in the sand lay the hope that summer continues on.

Like a group of pioneers crossing the desert with heavy possessions, beachgoers trudged through the expanse of sand leading to the shoreline. The sun's rays were heating the sand to the point that sandals were needed every inch of the way. I stopped to rest a bit before continuing the heated walk. As my feet sank into the sand, I remembered what a beach medic told me a few summers ago. "Be careful when walking in the sand on a hot day. You can easily get feet burns from the heated sand." 

Once happily situated near the shore, I edged my toes in the sand, enjoyed the breeze whipping past me, and continued to read my beach book, The Memory of Things by Gae Polisner. 

Ah! What can be better than a summer state of mind?

I hope you enjoyed a summer state of mind as I did but like Charlie Brown, 

I say, "Sigh...there goes another summer, Snoopy!"

😎

Slice of Life at Two Writing Teachers

Celebrate This Week with Ruth Ayres

Celebrating The Art of Summering

Do you remember when you were little and the annual back-to-school question was "What did you do on summer vacation?" On #nt2t yesterday morning, Jeremy Bond, my Twitter friend, posed this as one of the questions for the global audience. In addition, he posted, "Would you have students answer the question? Why or why? Would you ask a different question?  

My reply to Question 5 was: 

😎

Today, I am celebrating the art of summering in an authentic way, collecting and designing a gallery of artistic expressions. I am thrilled with the response I am receiving from colleagues around the globe. Here is a sampling of digital inspirations received this weekend. 

Maine

There are many more that will grace the walls of my summer gallery. Interested in depicting your concept of summering? My invitation to The Art of Summering Gallery can be found here. The repository for the digitals is on Twitter at the hashtag, #TheArtofSummering. 

Come celebrate summer 2018 with me by letting your creativity shine. In return, I will celebrate your creative spirit and send the voices of those who create digitals around the globe. 

Many thanks to Ruth Ayres for creating #celebratelu to reflect and celebrate the positives of each week. 

Unwind-Relax-Reset!

The beginning of August always seems to have a sense of busyness. School ads are everywhere and educators start thinking ahead to the opening of school. Routines become important but the heat from dog day afternoons reminds me to linger in the ease of summertime just a while longer.

"Taking time out each day to relax and renew is essential to living well."
-Judith Hanson Lasater

Finding this quote on such a hot day inspired me to bring friends together for a small dinner party. Afterall, what is summer without a barbecue? Spontaneous planning is a sure way to enjoy time together so my husband and I fired up the grill at the same time the heat was rising. Grilled vegetables took their turn alongside chicken wings. Thankfully, the air conditioner was working at optimum efficiency so quick runs into the kitchen became a way to beat the heat, even for a few minutes.

As dinnertime approached, the citronella candles were lit to shoo the mosquitoes away but just in case the candles were not enough, a can of Off was placed nearby. All was ready for the guests to arrive and this time even I was ready to greet my friends.  The appetizer table was filled with fresh guacamole, cheese, crackers, and charcuterie meats with beautiful bottles of rose wine.  

As my guests gathered together over a pitcher of sangria freshly prepared by Barbara, we reminisced about the years we spent watching our children grow into adults. The chicken wings that went through several preps and finally remixed with hot sauce came out next. Several statements were made about the heat index of the wings, their wonderful taste, and I commented on how my lips tingled after eating several wings. A surprise was added to the menu, grilled sausage, peppers, and onions over pasta. This was accompanied by a green salad with slivered almonds and mandarin oranges prepared by Judy. The meal culminated in a blueberry crisp from a famous pie bakery on the northeastern shore of Long Island brought by Jo Ann. We all waited eagerly for that dessert topped with French vanilla ice cream. Sparklers were lit as nighttime approached and glasses continued to tinkle until the end of the summer evening.

Taking time to relax and renew the summer barbecue tradition is an essential element of my sweet summer life. I am glad that I was able to share this experience with my family and friends. 

The above digital inspiration will be posted at #TheArtofSummering.  

Entertaining on summer evenings is one way that I celebrate summer.

What is your way to celebrate the art of summering?

**********

I'm sharing my Slice of Life

at Two Writing Teachers.

I'm also sharing my post

with Ruth Ayres and the Celebrate This Week community.

Celebrate Zen Moments

Did it really take a car accident, to slow me down, encourage me to keep an even keel, and remind me to celebrate life living moments in a zen-like way? 

In trying to release the negative tension, I found a poem to ponder.

My Legacy
by Ryokan, Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf

My legacy —

What will it be?

Flowers in spring,

The cuckoo in summer,

And the crimson maples

Of autumn...

With hope as my one word to guide my year, I opened my mind, heart, and being to be filled with zen moments of inner peace, happiness, joy, gratitude, awareness for living in the present. 

Some of my zen moments this week:

~ using a bit of humor in writing a blog post, It's Hot!

~ a leisurely drive with my husband to the Long Island Sound in Connecticut to attend a Scholastic Book Summit and while on the overnight trip, photographing a still moment 

~ observing nature 

~ virtually enjoying my grandbaby's first steps via a video

These simple life living moments allowed me to slow down to enjoy the present.
Happiness and peace were the rewards for savoring life's precious moments.

My legacy -

capturing nature-driven,

life living moments

to savor, write on the wind,

and let soar

so voice can rise

and fill life spaces with peace.

©CVarsalona, 2018

With this hopeful, reimagined life plan, I celebrate this week with Ruth Ayres and the #celebratelu writing community. 

Please share your concept of the art of summering with me at #TheArtofSummering

for a summer gallery of artistic expressions. 

Below are recent nature photographs sent to me.

These delightful life living moment stills invite you express yourself poetically.

Are you interested in penning a poem to accompany one of these photos?