I love sunset, especially sunset on the coast. The wet sand reflects the rocks in the sea, as well as the sky overhead. The horizon is layered with purple, rust, gold, cream, and the last of day's light glows outside of the encroaching shadows. It is quiet, peaceful, calm, reflective.
Summer on the beach: it's a time to walk and think and dream, to dabble in the surf, stroll barefoot in the sand, and then stop and look out, out, out into the vast expanse of the ocean's majesty. There are no walls or limitations. Is this what freedom looks like?
When you can't outrun the storm, you have to deal with being in the middle of it. And the more practice you have with difficult situations, the better off you'll be.
On the bay, they were far enough away from the city to escape the noise and bustle, but close enough to watch its endless activity. It was a good perspective, one that allowed them to observe without being distracted.
I enjoy cloudy, overcast days -- there is a sense of drama and intrigue in the play of light and shadow. As the sun pierces through the clouds, it casts its glow across the landscape, but not the entire landscape. Just parts, here and there, almost as if it were teasing.
When I am below in the valley, I look up, and I see the landscape around me in a certain way. But when I stand at the heights and look down, I see the same landscape in a different way. Perspective matters.
It feels good to get out and away, distancing ourselves from not only the noise of the "news," but the false reality of the digital world. Out in the real world, we feel the breeze on our face, the sunlight on our shoulders, and we hear the sound of our friend as we talk and laugh and solve the problems of the world.
Deep in the secluded forest there is silence and calm -- so much silence and calm that the ducks feel safe. This, this is what the term "green" means. It's not a political movement, it's nature's favorite color.
Tea, the ocean, and flowers -- all three are calming, reflective of nature's offerings, an invitation to slow down our incessant, efficient pace and simply . . . be for awhile.
Chronic fear and debilitating panic turn good people into bad ones. We cannot treat others as we wish to be treated ourselves when we insist that they believe and act exactly as we do.
It's not a yellow brick road, and it doesn't lead to the Emerald City: it's better than that. It's a quiet, winding path through country fields, leading to and through a place of peace where you can stop and think awhile.
In autumn, the trees are joyous over their fall-themed wardrobe. Along a country road, it is as if they are waving at you, greeting your arrival, and inviting you to enjoy the journey along their road.
She runs through her day in the simple joy of being a child -- pretending, playing, imagining -- all the things that children do so well, and should be allowed to do with freedom. Let your inner wild child run free this week and go ahead, think a thought that defies convention!
Light and shadow form a dappled pattern on a narrow dirt path, cutting its way through a forest of trees. It's not a smooth path, but at least it's relatively level, and for now, easy to follow. Around the bend, things may be different. Life's paths aren't freeways; they are most definitely paths.