wednesday

two days in Dallas with three friends. as promised it provided lots of chatter. laughter. ooohhing. aaahhing. eating. drinking. girl stuff galore. combine frivolity with beautiful gardens and voila! paradise.

Tuesday. the Texas State Fair touted a garden show. and while it was a bit of a disappointment what was gleaned from the fair (besides oodles of fried goodness with a note to self: avoid the fried beer) was an amazing garden sculpture exhibit. and the Texas Discovery Gardens, a permanent display at the Fair Grounds. here you can find not only the gardens but a butterfly house that is a step into a fluttering fairyland. winged creatures of every size, shape, color, hue, brilliance. breathtaking.

today. a trip to Autumn at the Arboretum. in the pumpkin village alone were 40,000 (yes ... forty thousand) pumpkins. add to that almost every sidewalk and walkway was lined with pumpkins and exotic squash varieties. in pools and fountains. in pots and planters. up steps. down alleys. in beds snug as a bug. posed. planted. perfection. color combinations and artistic displays that rivaled the finest masterpieces. inspiration beyond imagination. imagination beyond belief.

so I am home. exhausted. ecstatic. enchanted. thankful for the beauty of nature and friendship.

'autumn makes me sing.'

monday

eagerly anticipating the next two days. a trip up north with the girls. we're hitting the road early in the morning. heading up to Dallas for my first trip to the Texas State Fair (yes I've lived in this great state for 16 years and have never met Big Tex). not to see the livestock or eat fried butter (no really) but to visit the Garden Show.

a night at a Dallas b&b and then up (maybe early) and onto Autumn at the Arboretum.

there will be lots of chatting, laughing and ooohhing and aaahhing. a bit of eating and drinking. and an astonishing amount of girl stuff.

'life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose.'

five senses friday ... episode one

abby trys again writes 'five senses friday was started years ago by my friend, Shari Altman. I use it weekly as way to sit down and reflect on what the past days have been like for me.' and she invites her readers to play along.

this intrigued me so I thought, what the heck ... I can do this! what a good way to take the week in review! so here is the first in my series. I'd love your input and comments. play along with me!

taste ... lemonade. there is nothing I like more that a cool tart glass of lemonade on a hot day (well, besides a vodka tonic).
hear ... a train horn. we have tracks near our house and sporadically we have a freight train pass by. I love the sound of the horn as it approaches. reminds me of visiting my grandparents who lived two houses down from the railroad crossing - and at night you'd hear the train horn.
feel ... the rhythm of dancing with the hubs. we are taking dance lessons again every Friday night at the local rec center. my favorite? the foxtrot.
see ... the harvest moon during the Autumnal Equinox. big, bold, hauntingly beautiful.
smell ... Pepe le Pew. we have a skunk that resides under the office (I work in a little converted bungalow, built around 1920, in the historic section of town). he has just as much right to live there as we have to work there, so I am not complaining. I just wish he would change his cologne.

'love is the poetry of the senses.'

summer's end

today is the last day of summer. and I must say the season has been a tumultous one. Mother Nature, friends, family and I have experienced quite the gammet of conditions. heat, anger, rain, tears, sunshine, joy, hurricanes, attitudes; good, fair, foul and in-between.

but all good and bad things come to an end. and I for one will not be sorry to see the summer of ought-10 leave. there are lessons to be learned from the weather. with the flooding of recent days here are ten I found we can learn from Noah.

1. do not miss the boat.
2. remember that we are all in the same boat.
3. plan ahead. It was not raining when Noah built the Ark .
4. stay fit. when you're 600 years old someone may ask you to do something really big.
5. do not listen to the world's critics. get on with what needs to be done.
6. build your future on high ground, the higher ground that God leads us to.
7. speed is not everything. snails were on board with the cheetahs.
8. when you are stressed, float awhile.
9. remember, the Ark was built by amateurs, the Titanic by professionals. never underestimate God's expertise. or what you have to give.
10. no matter what the storm, there is always a rainbow waiting.

'we all learn by experience, but some of us have to go to summer school.'

first amendment

I find myself saying 'sorry' quite a bit. this is not a recent thing. but in reflection I seem to apologize for just about everything. and not just me ... don't you hear it day in and day out. sorry. not a statement of regret most times. it's just a common phrase like please and thank you. and it got me to thinking.

I quoted Kelly Rae in my last post regarding her thoughts on gratitude. a few days ago she talked about apologies. not just the mindless 'sorry' you say in passing conversation, but true heartfelt apologies.

she writes that apologies 'made me think about all the opportunities that mistakes give us to really connect with the people in our lives.' I make my share of mistakes, missteps, the occasional mayhem. but I never really thought of taking the error of my ways and turning it into a connecting point. we learn from our mistakes. we all know that lesson pertaining to proactively not repeating the error. but to use the mistake as an opportunity to grow and become a better person. to reach out. embrace. accept. and not defend. that is the lesson.

she continues 'my heart was connecting to hers. I've learned that when I do approach a situation with an apology rather than with a prepared battle, I feel so much cleaner about it. if I just let my heart do the talking and admit I was wrong or unfair, then it gives the other person permission to let their guard down too.'

no doubt I will continue to fall back on the 'sorry'. it slips out easily in conversation. and although speech is free the words used can be either costly or priceless. I don't want to take the word for granted and render it meaningless. commonplace. worthless. this word needs to be spoken softly. absorbed. returned.

'remember, we all stumble, every one of us. that's why it's a comfort to go hand in hand.'

good friday

'to me, gratitude comes in those small spaces of breathing between all the tiny moments that happen throughout our days: when the phone rings and it’s the voice of a dear friend you were just thinking about, when a stranger opens a door for you, when an unexpected package arrives in the mail. it’s honoring all the small moments, the ones that collect and create a perimeter of goodness around your life. it’s paying attention to the way someone looks at you, to the way you feel when you’re inspired, to how those cute new shoes put a skip in your step. gratitude. it’s recognizing, even in times of struggle, that you have all you could ever need, that there are moments every single day that ask you to notice, and to celebrate. it’s in these moments, for me, especially the small ones, where gratitude lives.'

a few blogs back I posted a Gratitude List. a short list, mind you, because there are so many things I am grateful for and blessed by. the quote above is from Kelly Rae Roberts who describes herself as an 'artist. author. possibilitarian.' you've got to love that word ... possibilitarian. her blogsite invites friends and fans to 'fly with her'. she offers inspiration and thanks to big moments and little happenings in life. reading her makes me smile.

enthusiasm and happiness are contagious, just like sadness and negativity. and I know I've been on the no negativity kick for awhile now. but I cannot apologize for it. it makes me feel good. it makes me want to share 'the happy'. it puts a skip in my step and a fire in my heart. it makes me a better person. it, thankfully, makes me a possibilitarian, for with God all things are possible.

'maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.'

telling tales and talking tails

I am a huge fan of Susan Wittig Albert, a local Texas author. I was introduced to her literally and communicatively at the Master Gardener Conference a few years ago where she was a speaker. she is best known for a long series of books featuring heroine China Bayles and litany of fascinating herbs.

my adoration of this author is through her other writing venue ~ The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter. ever since we lived in England and visited Hilltop, the country home of Ms. Potter and her pal Peter Rabbit, I have been charmed, almost haunted, by the beauty of the Lake Distict. ms. Albert tells the story of Beatrix and her life with its many trials and tribulations through the eyes of the animals that live in and around the little town of New Sawrey. she writes under the premise of intrigue and mystery as there is always something afoot in the village, but simply put the books are a delightful read. the characters are charming. the scenery blissful. and with a bit of poetic license the stories follow the true life of ms. Potter, which are heartwarming and heart wrenching.

so please excuse me as I take the next several hours and venture across the pond. there I will lose myself in a world where animals talk (in a language no humans understand); townfolk are friendly, giving and more than a little inquisitive; and love abounds.

'a book is a garden, an orchard, a storehouse, a party, a company by the way, a counsellor, a multitude of counsellors.'