I Am Thinking. . . I have never been this content in any home, at least not the day before Thanksgiving. You see, the other house had flowers. Lots of flowers. Oh how I have mourned not having any perennials or roses at this house. Something was blooming almost year round. But usually nothing on Thanksgiving Day. Why? Because we most often had a frost w/in the Thanksgiving week & the beautiful gardens turned to mush. They usually looked just horrible.
But that's not a problem here because there are very blessed few flowers! Just a scraggly lantana & ruellia. I'm not certain if the azaleas & hydrangeas we planted survived the summer. They sure don't look like they have! NOTE TO SELF: Never do any landscaping until you've been in a place for at least one year!
The point being is that there is no fear of the flowers being ruined at Thanksgiving.
There is something better at this house than autumn flowers. Oh yes - I've bought some mums & pansies - but the real stars of the show are the trees! Sweet gums, winged oak, sassafras & I don't know all what else!
I may miss the flowers again next summer . . . . but not at all this autumn. The trees are enough. They are more than enough. They are beautiful.
I Am Grateful. . . that I took the time to go on a short walk this morning. I had my clippers with me just in case the Yaupon Holly was still holding on to its bright red berries as I wanted to bring some more into the house to use in a table arrangement along w/some branches of colorful leaves.
As I said earlier the air was crisp & cool & breezy. The side road next to our house is covered w/colorful leaves. Covered! Instead of a wintry day blanket of snow it's a blanket of leaves! An old red pickup truck came by, kicking up the leaves behind it just like you see in a car commercial!
I was so enjoying the falling leaves & the breeze & the birds singing when spied the holly & yes!, the red berries are still covering it! I impulsively threw my arms out into the air & spun around! Yes! Like a child I spun around w/glee!
And then it hit me . . . I haven't felt that sort of freedom since I was a little girl. I ran to the holly w/my arms outstretched like a kid pretending to be an airplane! Like seeing an old friend!
And I was overwhelmed with such contentment. And joy.
Now don't get me wrong. . . . I am most often very contented: sleeping on my husband's chest; spending time w/my children & grandchildren; having God reveal something to me through His word. Contentment is a regular part of my life. But there are lots of ways to experience contentment.
At the old house I experienced it outdoors with my flowers & today I experienced it outdoors w/the trees & berries & leaves! And the birds chirping! It was like Disney movie, except so much better! It was real!
Ah - I've been glowing ever since! It's a very nice day.
From The Kitchen . . . pumpkin seeds roasting; & all the ingredients to make pecan tarts & broccoli/rice casserole. Oh! And 4 loaves of Maxine's fabulous sourdough bread!
I Am Creating. . . .an abundant life. An abundant life filled with love.
I Am Going. . . . .to get off the computer & more progress on my to-do list.
I Am Reading . . . my to-do list! ;)
I Am Hoping . . . . to hold on to this sublime feeling.
I Am Hearing . . . the wind through the trees. A car passing by. And those acorns hitting the roof!
Around The House . . .Busy-ness. The busy-ness of getting ready for a holiday. Since Thanksgiving is my all-time favorite holiday I don't mind it at all!
I Am Wearing. . . Capris, lightweight denim shirt & walking shoes.
I Am Thinking . . .if I make it through my list I must go out & take picture this evening. Before I know it all the leaves will be off the trees!
I Am Wondering . . . about nothing. Not really. All of life is wonder-ful. So either I'm wondering about nothing. Or else about everything!
One Of My Favorite Things. . .Sublime contentment!
Something You May Not Know About Me. . . My given middle name is Mae.
About Today's Photo. . .Isn't this a crazy way to make a to-do list? Does yours look so "mappy"?
I am happy to say that a great many of the jobs have been checked off the list!
I'm awake for a few moments - glad to know you haven't been wondering about me ;)
ReplyDeleteLOVE this post -my favorite all time.
My lists are lists...your "brainmapping" way would drive me crazy - but I do see the order in it: room by room. Good idea for you!
Love you.
I have no idea how much information you want out on the internet . . . . but glad to know I don't have to *wonder* how my daughter is doing!
ReplyDeleteThe brain map was just a random scribble/scrabble. It just ended up this way. . . . as you can probably guess. . . . not a lot of thought went into it.
I'm going to call you. . . . I need to hear your voice!