AUGUST ALREADY! ALMOST GONE!

 It seems quite incredible to me that today is August 10, 2010! I began this Blog September 20, 2009, not knowing really how it would go, or what I was doing – maybe still don’t! I viewed it as the beginning of the journey toward my 70th year. My goal to gain some writing discipline that would help me document October 2010-2011. I like to write and never seem to have time, but I know the only way to have time is to make time, so that was my objective. I looked forward to sharing and maybe even exchanging some thoughts with people through the Blog and that has happened both by email and personal conversation. My outreach is small and that is fine, although I am open to more contact with those who share my interests. I have gained boldness and confidence in putting my thoughts out where others can view them at will, something that was always difficult for me. It has never been clear how I can be comfortable speaking in public and yet panic about seeing words on a page. Any other bloggers have that problem? I know there are people who write beautifully and panic at public speaking, so maybe it is a natural phenomenon.

 

I continue to explore Haiku, it feels good, is easier to complete than a sonnet or some other poetic form, and expresses my enjoyment and relationship to the natural world. This summer has provided a number of amazing experiences in the tamed wild. I think it maybe that my awareness is heightened through meditation and that the opportunities were always there. I have been left breathless by the beauty of the skies with the strange weather patterns that have been passing through the Midwest. A pair of Cardinals has charmed me with their daily bathing in the small waterfall that is below our balcony. At times I feel like an intruder as they splash and preen with each other. I visit my favorite Heron spot and have been privileged to witness the arrival of a Trumpeter Swan for a brief stay – these are just a few of the many gifts that the universe has opened to me in these warm summer days. Below is a picture of the Black-Eyed Susan that bloom in profusion in the gardens surrounding our community, their bright colors and nodding heads inspired me.

                         Garden of Sunshine 
                         Black-Eyed Susan nod their heads
                         Summer soon will end.

 

                                                                      - August 8, 2010 CAT