Travel theme: Sunset

Posted on August 18, 2012 by Joy

I love this week’s travel theme. A sunset for me means closure. The end of a day. Bad or good, it’s coming to a close. The possibility for rest and rejuvenation.

It is my reassurance, when the sky explodes in color and beauty just before nightfall, that there are better days ahead.

“Dusk is just an illusion because the sun is either above the horizon or below it.
And that means that day and night are linked in a way that few things are.
There cannot be one without the other yet they cannot exist at the same time.”
~ Nicholas Sparks ~

“Clouds come floating into my life,
no longer to carry rain or usher storm,
but to add color to my sunset sky.”
~ Rabindranath Tagore ~

Five Minute Friday: Stretch

Posted on August 17, 2012 by Joy

It’s #FiveMinuteFriday!
Where a beautiful crowd spends five minutes all writing on the same topic and then sharing ‘em over here.

Are you ready?

When reading this week’s prompt, I immediately thought of a set of pictures I had taken recently. This one of licorice is at the top of my current favorites. In fact, it’s my screen saver.

It acts as a reminder that being “stretched” doesn’t have to be stressful or negative. It can be quite beautiful, appearing as bright colors and meaning different things to those affected by my disposition.

I have prayed that God would shape me into what He created me to be so that I would not miss a single blessing or opportunity relating to my overall purpose in His plan.

He is showing me more and more how to stretch myself in a good way, revealing His handiwork in my current circumstances. Proving that, though there was a time when stretching myself would have been represented by black licorice, today, it is beautiful, vivid and intertwined with His grace.

STOP

Wanna play? Here’s how:
1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. And then absolutely, no ifs, ands or buts about it, you need to visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Growth

Posted on August 4, 2012 by Joy

Growth is something I’m going through now, only I don’t have a picture of my insides to show you. (Thankfully, right?!) I do have a few examples that involve tangible objects.

“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside,
somewhere where they can be quite alone with the heavens, nature and God.
Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be
and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature.
As long as this exists, and it certainly always will,
I know that there will always be comfort for every sorrow,
whatever the circumstances may be.
And I firmly believe that nature brings solace in all troubles.”
~ Anne Frank ~

Want to see more incredible interpretations of this week’s challenge, click here

Five Minute Friday: Here

Posted on August 4, 2012 by Joy

This post began as a Five Minute Friday post, but continued long after the timer sounded. Something in me could not stop writing and I think that’s okay. There is much stress in life, right now, today. And so my mind drifts…to a place far less stressful…a haven…here.

Here there is no shortage of beauty
The wildflowers grow just beyond the moss sprinkled fence and
roots intertwine to make an adventurous pathway
Here, where the trees touch the heavens
and the mushrooms look like artwork
Here, where the spider spins his masterpiece
while the river cascades over rocks and branches
down a path not yet discovered
Here, where the only thing heard is the sound of
the earth beneath our feet as we walk to the
waterfalls that willing flow down the granite to the body below.
Here, where little boys are transformed into giants,
ninja’s, pirates and superhero’s
Here, where the fire is warm when the sky opens up
to water the earth
Here, where the mountains ascend from green grass
and reflect their magnificence onto the water below
While cotton like clouds sit suspended against the blue sky

Here, where nap time is not only encouraged, it’s required
Here, where I long to residebreathing in deeply while the
sun warms my face and the breeze cools my neck under my long hair.

Here, where heaven is everywhere and God makes Himself known without saying a word.
Where is your here when the noise of life becomes intrusive?

Five Minute Friday: Beyond

Posted on July 27, 2012 by Joy

The subject for today’s 5-Minute Friday post is so fitting for me right now. I started writing about Elliot this morning and was interrupted. When I came back and read the topic I knew there was a reason why I had started writing about my friend. Though some of this was written earlier today, I compiled the post within the 5 minute time limit. This one is for my Elliot.

Thoughts of Elliot consume me. Why now? Why here? No one can plan grief. When it hits…when it leaves…only to return again. It is the uninvited stranger who breaks down the door.
This week Elliot and Chris’ daughter turned 4…without her mother. This picture was taken around this same time last year. I do not have words to describe the kind of sadness I feel when I see her precious face in pictures posted on Elliot’s facebook page.

Heaviness sits on my heart when I think of the family members gathered around singing “Happy Birthday to Bradford…” yet one voice is clearly missing from the group.

It has been just over 8 weeks since Elliot’s passing. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of her. Time goes on. And it will continue to.

There is life beyond the raw reality of death. The ache of never seeing her smile or hearing her voice. The solitude of pain is intense. I am ready to be beyond it.The children visit her grave to leave flowers and kisses. Not yet old enough to understand fully that what the ground holds is a cancer ridden shell that their mother is now free from and has shed for heaven.

Beyond the grave. Beyond the sting of death. Beyond the noise of doubt. Beyond the temporary trappings of this world. My friend sits, waiting for the rest of us. I find solace knowing that she is complete…perfectly healed…and more alive than she has ever been.

“The one thing we owe absolutely to God is never to be afraid of anything…even death, which, after all, is but that final breakthrough into the open, waiting, outstretched arms of Abba.” ~Charles de Foucauld

STOP

Weekly Photo Challenge: Inside

Posted on July 20, 2012 by Joy

“Oh what a tangled web we weave
When first we practice to deceive.“
Sir Walter Scott (Marmion, 1808)

Other interpretations of this week’s challenge can be found here

Five Minute Friday: Enough

Posted on July 20, 2012 by Joy

It’s #FiveMinuteFriday free write time! Where a flash mob of folks spend five minutes all writing on the same topic and then share ‘em over here.

GO:

When I saw the prompt for this week I couldn’t help but smile. This is something I have been thinking of daily for the last several weeks. So much so that when certain thoughts creep into my mind I ask myself, “What exactly is enough?” “When will it ever be…enough?”

I have always been challenged when it comes to balance. I am excessive. If I like it, I want more. There are times when this way of thinking has me defeated before ever beginning. And it is a daily struggle.

When I walk into my closet and see the rows of shoes, each in their separate clear container, My immediate thought is, “excess.” Ew. That isn’t a positive word. Many things in my life associated with that word aren’t good. Excess weight, excess waste, excess worry…and many more. How do I combat that?

My goal over the next 7 days is to train my mind to say, “It’s enough.” “I am enough.”

I wrote a post several months ago claiming my word for the year. Enough. However, a year is too big for me. It’s excessive. I give up before starting. I must live in ~~this 24 hours given~~ this moment given. This moment is enough.

So enough excuses. Starting now, it’s time to re-train my brain, in small doses of course…as things arise. To do more than that at one time deems me useless.

“It is not enough to be busy. So are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?”
Henry David Thoreau

STOP