A Day of Reflecting Beauty

This has become my resting place, my napping time, my place of quiet and solitude, my place of prayer - during the spring, summer and fall.  This is the first year that these plants are maturing. I can't wait to see what they will look like in about a month.

I have always wanted a backyard with lots of flowers and plants. The one thing that I wanted most was a waterfall. My loving husband built this for me. It took so much hard work because we have 3 HUGE maple trees  and the root system is relentless. Every spring, I go to Martin's Pet and Garden and get a dozen goldfish for $1 and I get to watch them grow and swim and muck up the filter. Steve always without (much) complaining cleans out the filter numerous times during the warm seasons. Once it gets cold and we get ready to close up the pond. I pull out those fish and take them down to the river. Every year - I tell him how much I love this spot in our backyard.  This is THE ONE spot that I will miss most of all when we move.  Over the years I kept trying different plants to grow back here but because of the enormous root system - most of them would get choked out and I'd have to start over. Now, I am not a green thumb and I really don't like messing too much with plants. But it has become somewhat therapeutic for me as I've been able to learn and try new things and dig things up and replant. Everything I grow in my landscaping are perennials because I don't want to fuss too much with planting every year.

My daffodils are suddenly becoming larger and spreading. My tulips, I thought I had lost. But they are coming up nice and strong this year. I had planted them maybe 4 years ago. I thought a mole had gotten to the bulbs but this spring they're popping up in places where I thought I had lost them. I do have other colors than yellow. It just seems that the yellow flowers are really vibrant this spring. And yellow brings a smile to my face.  

A number of years ago, I felt the Lord speaking to me about finding something every day that puts a  smile on my face. Whether it's a cup of coffee, or the sound of rain, or the sound of the waterfall in my backyard or the beauty of the flowers and sit in that surrounding for about 10 min. It sure does refresh the soul.

This afternoon Steve and I were bored and it's such a beautiful, sunny, warm spring day - I couldn't bear with just staying inside. He usually doesn't go on walks with me unless we're camping but today he went with me to the Riverwalk. We walked all the way down to the waterfall  and I think we rested there for a good half hour. Just "drinking" in the sound of the crashing waves at the bottom, the way the sunlight danced on the water as it sang it's way over the fall. Then we spotted a heron on the side and watched as it dipped down to catch fish. We remarked how it reminded us of those water bobbing birds that used to be in about every household at one point as we were growing up. We even had one during the first several years of our marriage. It was red and hard plastic and had a little water cup. We had to keep the cup filled with water and the bird would eventually bob down and reach the water. Anyway.....on the way back to our car - we ran across one of the guys who comes to my kitchen at work. I was shocked to see him there because the last I knew he was working and living in Middlebury and was doing really well. Now he's once again homeless, without work and without a way to get to a job.  We had a brief conversation with him. Hopefully gave him some encouragement. I gave him a hug and we moved on. Beauty is not always in the nature around us but is within the souls of people. My heart was breaking as we walked away. So much beauty in him even in the homelessness - he was not giving up. 

Today these were the beauty spots. Today I was able to soak up, reflect on, admire and submerge myself in the beauty.  I even sat out in my lawn chair and took a nap under the trees, listening to the water and the birds singing. Totally a beauty therapeutic day.