Goodbye 2010 ... Welcome 2011 ...

A stunning winter sunrise from the kitchen window.

Happy New Year One and All....

I love New Years Eve..., because I can stand on the cusp of the old year, getting ready to leave it behind and at the same time, I can look out towards a brand new, clean slate,  potential filled, new year ahead...

  

This New Year's I reflected back on the joy that writing this blog has brought me, the people that I have met through it, and the discoveries I've made...  In a way, I've experienced a form of training -  to look for symbols, acts, reflections of love each and every day,  it has been a wonderful practice that I have truly loved to share with family and friends old and new.

Obviously I have struggled to write each and every day, and I have had to come to terms with disappointment (sometimes in myself or sometimes in situations that affect being able to get the blog done.)

But all things considered, I am very grateful for this creative outlet and am already thinking of what I would like to continue to blog about once the Year Of Finding Love is complete...  

I am very thankful to everyone who has passed through or has stuck around to hear my regular musings, and very much appreciate your comments and words of encouragement... and hope to hear from you in this new year.

As I let go of all that the old year was, I embrace the new year ahead and plant a seed, a wish, a hope, a dream... for all...

For a Happy, Healthy, Peaceful, and more LOVE filled New Year...

Love,

Neinah

  

A New Poet...

A Christmas package arrived in the mail yesterday... from my friend Gioia... Which is ALWAYS a thrill, because she KNOWS what I love...

A new book of poetry

The Voluptuary is a collection of exquisite poems by Oregon's Poet Laureate Paulann Petersen.

She writes of abundance and bees, stars and poppies, the moon and birdsong so many subjects that speak to my soul... (AND did you notice the gorgeous cover of the book... and oil painting of pomegranates by artist  Miri Lavee... its oooh so luscious!!!)  

Such richness I feel right now...

Here is one of my new favorite poems ~ enjoy.

WHAT'S LEFT FROM THAT FIRST GODDESS

Bits of her, finer than pollen,

still eddy the world with their dust.

Each speck of her makes

a seed for one of us.

Whole, where she lived in the sky,

her body contained all people, impatient,

straining toward birth.

She knew her huge self --

bone, brain, toenail and hair--

needed to crumble.

We are her, disassembled,

then grown into many.

We're the ones come from this First One

entirely broken apart, taken down

except for her mismatched eyes.

The right is a yellow

too bright to behold.  The left,

a cool silver smudged

by cataracts of gray.

Our sun, our moon--

these, she saved.

Well, Its Not Exactly Tomorrow...

I plan to write everyday, then I get too overwhelmed with all the other stuff life throws at me... and then I just get too tired...  I'm generally not a flakey person, but I have to admit I'm having a tough time keeping up with my "daily practice and commitment.." of writing each day... Ah me..., at times like this, I just have to take a little time out to reflect on what I HAVE achieved (200 +  posts since I started this blog!) as opposed to what I'm NOT getting done...

So..., as a continuation of my story from Willows...

...I'd taken myself up this dirt road, I don't really know why, except it just seemed to call to me..., perhaps I was hoping to spot birds, or get a breathtaking view, either way, I'm so glad I did...
Turning the car around I slowly crawled along watching nearby birds on the barbed wire, listening
to their beautiful songs and taking photo's.., as I gazed out the window in front of me, I noticed a smallish, older looking woman facing me, straddling the road and just staring at me, not in an threatening way, more of a curious..." who are you and what might you be up to kind of a stare"... I continued to take photo's from my drivers seat and finally rolled to a stop in front of her.  I noticed she was wearing a pair of binoculars around her neck so instantly felt we had common ground.  I told her that I was a visitor  and here for the race, but escaped to go birdwatching... she then proceeded to tell me about all the places to visit where I might find huge numbers of birds, and a special place to visit Sandhill Cranes... just as I was about to thank her for her time and drive off..., she mentioned that she lived just across the road on her 15 acre farm growing her own food, and selling her own produce..., including "pomegranates".... when I heard "POMEGRANATES" I felt my self gasp in awe, and heard myself say "really..., you grow your own pomegranate trees?  Can I come and see them?"  And before I knew it, I'd parked the car, grabbed my camera and trotted up the driveway to see them...

For anyone who has read my blog for a while knows that I LOVE pomegranates.  They are my favorite fruit... They are such beautiful icons, I love to photograph them, in fact I'm painting pomegranates in my oil painting class this week...  I guess I was showing so much enthusiasm for the fruits that the woman turned to me and held up a hand and said "wait there, I'll be right back.."  So I waited and photographed her farm garden which felt like a little piece of Eden... not only did she grow my favorite fruit, but it seemed like every other fruit you could imagine,,, Lemons, oranges, mandarins, persimmons....

And when she returned she handed me a glass of ruby red, freshly squeezed pomegranate juice....

...I didn't know what to say..., I was so touched.. she had literally ran into her house and squeezed my some of the best juice I've EVER tasted...  She told me it was because she used both sweet and tart pomegranates, one being pink, the other red.

I was so deeply touched...  we finally exchanged names...  her name was "Annana - rhymes with banana she grinned..."  I told her mine, and we chatted and shared some more... Two strangers but with birds and gardening, nature and life in common... I felt I could tell her pretty much anything..., she told me she was vegetarian, I told her I was gluten intolerant and had a hard time finding restaurants that served healthy food... then she asked me to follow her to the house... where she proceeded to fill up a large mason jar of cooked bean casserole, handing it to me she opened her refrigerator and handed me a container of home made coleslaw salad saying ..."here, take this for your lunch, its just pure and simple ingredients..., I made it all myself.."... I really didn't know what to say..." Thank you" seemed such a very small thing to say for what I felt was a huge offering of kindness and heart.. just five minutes before we had been total strangers, now she was feeding me home made food and well... I could have cried...

I asked if I could give her a hug (which I did,) and then asked if I could take her photo... (which she agreed to...)

My new friend Juananna with a basket of her Pink Pomegranates...

As I drove away that day,  I knew I'd met an angel.  I felt so very blessed and fortunate and knew that I'd been given a wonderful gift...

Have you ever met an angel who seemed to just like you for who you are right from the get go???

A Tale From Willows...

Sun dried weeds, rattle and hiss in the wind

Hi folks, I'm back to my blog, back to my friends, back to my writing... Although I miss all of it when I'm "away,"  I've realized that if I'm not really feeling the inspiration, I can't force myself to write about "Finding Love"... everyday...  Even though  most day's I feel gratitude in many ways, I sometimes don't have the creative umphhh to always share it! - such is life...

So, with that being said, this past week found CG and I attending the 25 hour enduro race at Thunderhill race track in Willows, California.  As we began our 13 hour drive there, I began to muse about what we would find there, and then suddenly realized that "Willows"  is THE "Willows" that Cory Amano  of Tongue in Cheek blog writes about often from her home in the South of France... I recommend you view her blog as it is one of the most beautiful I've seen, and most real I've read... Click on the link below if you'd like and check it out...

http://willows95988.typepad.com/tongue_cheek/

Willows is out in the country, almost 100 miles from Sacramento.  Its a place of great almond orchards, rice fields, cotton, pumpkins, citrus fruit...  It has a huge bird and wildlife population.  I found myself driving for miles along the backroads, every field seemed to have its own Kite or Buzzard, hovering and diving into the grasses for their lunch.  (I have never visited a place that had so many birds of prey.)

In the flooded rice fields I saw flocks of Trumpeter Swans..

Traveling along one quiet lane, I spied many Western Meadowlarks..

Along this same very quiet lane I came upon an angel wearing binoculars...

I'll fill you in tomorrow...

Hugs,

Neinah

Thankful...

Taz sits at the french window, watching the first few flakes of snow...

Its been a rough few days on our little island, starting with the snow and ice blasting down from the Arctic on Monday, making for treacherous driving conditions.  The day after the storm, we ventured out to buy groceries and found the roads littered with abandoned vehicles, some had slid and collided into one another, or people had simply stopped where they could rather than risking going any further and must have walked the rest of their way home.

The news reported record breaking, freezing winter temperatures (and its only November!)

The winds picked up the following day and temperatures continued to drop, the power went out in many homes and businesses including ours and was slow to come back on.  The night before Thanksgiving our power returned (such a relief..., I was due to have 4 families come for dinner.)  However later that evening,  we discovered the pipes had frozen in our laundry room and had flooded the floor.  We had to turn the water off, we had a visit from the local fire department who assured us that our burst pipes/damage was nothing compared to what they had seen over the past 24 hours...(thank goodness for small mercies...)

 Thanksgiving was a bit of a challenge, as no running water meant no dishwashers, toilets flushing, etc. etc..., (things that I've so completely taken for granted for most of my life.)  And sadly, several guests were not able to make the dinner due to their own set of difficulties caused by the winter storm...

However, despite the setbacks,  I felt very thankful... I had both my children at home (which always puts me in a joyful, contented mood), the power/heat was back on, we had shelter protecting us from the elements.  

A great fire roared in the hearth (I always feel a sense of well being when we have a good fire blazing.)

And we had an abundance of tasty, healthy, delicious food and... each other...:)))))

How was your thanksgiving???

It Would Seem That Winter Has Arrived...

Standing outside yesterday and looking up into the leadened sky, I noticed occasional, tiny white specks of something strange and unexpected floating lazily down to settle onto leaves and branches... I thought at first I was seeing ash from the chimney - perhaps from the burning inferno we had going in the fireplace...

But on closer examination, I saw the specks disappear... It was trying to snow...  I didn't think it was time yet, or cold enough...) 

Well, today it persevered and has settled in places, and has caused much anguish for drivers on the road...

I came home early with the pups, to make sure we didn't get stuck. After gathering wood for the inferno... I took a few minutes to photo the white wonder that used to be the garden...

Frosting on the Calicarpa berries...

Down the driveway towards the road where cars slip and slide down the hill.

Snow-topped pumpkins on the front steps.

Perhaps this year we'll have a White Thanksgiving???


Here's a beautiful Mary Oliver poem to celebrate the first snow...

First Snow 
by Mary Oliver


The snow
began here
this morning and all day
continued, its white
rhetoric everywhere
calling us back to why, how,
whence such beauty and what
the meaning; such
an oracular fever! flowing
past windows, an energy it seemed
would never ebb, never settle
less than lovely! and only now,
deep into night,
it has finally ended.
The silence
is immense,
and the heavens still hold
a million candles, nowhere
the familiar things:
stars, the moon,
the darkness we expect
and nightly turn from.  Trees
glitter like castles
of ribbons, the broad fields
smolder with light, a passing
creekbed lies
heaped with shining hills;
and though the questions
that have assailed us all day
remain - not a single
answer has been found - 
walking out now
into the silence and the light
under the trees,
and through the fields,
feels like one.


o ~ O ~ o

Chinese Lanterns...

Here's a few photo's of one of my favorite flowers of the season...

Chinese Lanterns ~ Physalis alkekengi

Flowering in late summer then developing these fruits in October, turning from green to brilliant orange... they truly are stunning to look at.

Physalis is actually a herb, related to potatoes, and tomatoes..., its also known as "Winter Cherry," its fruit is harvested for its high vitamin C content, but can be toxic if not fully ripe, its  known for its inflamation-reducing and , cough suppressing qualities and has been used to treat many other varied symptoms... (such as bedwetting!!!)  I love learning about the herbal lore of plants grown right under our noses, don't you? 

However, I'm not in any hurry to chomp these fruit, but they are so very photogenic..., don't you think?

Look what happens to the outer papery skin as it ripens...

All that is left is skeleton like outer shell, cage like holding the little orange like fruit in the center.

Do you have a favorite Fall flower?