Yours truly contemplating the waves on the beach in Kapa’a Kauai. A cool hazy morning. We returned several times to this beach over the years. Each time it remained the same as if this tiny speck of peaceful bliss were a moment that stepped outside of time.
~Travel as often as you can ~JP
12/5/22 – today’s prompt from the Jar of Inspiration: The weather outside is…
Clearing the Path
Autumn’s tempestuous lover
the North Wind
begins his yearly cleanse
sending birds and leaves alike
scattering before his might
temperatures drop like needles
from the pine trees
he struggles to clear the land
for his mistress Lady Winter
as he sweeps away the final
vestiges of Summer’s warmth
Til next time ~Breathe in and look around ~JP
Lately I’m struggling a bit with inspiration. Could be the weather, could be the new meds. So I’m grabbing some December Prompts from my prompt jar just to see what happens.
Today’s Prompt: What Joy Means to Me
“Joy is what happens when we allow ourselves to recognize how good things really are” ~Marianne Williamson
Winter Joy
Winter mornings with cerulean skies
reflected on the snow and ice
creates a blue tinged aurora
while acres of diamonds
glint in the sunshine
my breath creates little puffs
of fog in the frigid air
and my face tingles
with snowflake kisses
Inside hot tea, biscuits and
a fire in the hearth lie waiting
to warm the cockles of my heart
I find a blissful joy in Winter
the sparkling beauty of nature
the coziness of home and hearth
Winter and Joy walk hand in hand
as Mother Nature sleeps
I slow down and recognize
how joyful life can be when
we stop and look around
Til next time ~Stop, look around, and be amazed ~JP
Linda’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt this week:
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “morning.” Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!
Morning
I sit in the early morning light
of a cloudless sky just before
the sun begins to rise
watching the peculiar gray
give way to lighter blue
I am struck with awe
nearly brought to my knees
by the overwhelming sense
of gratitude
and I whisper my prayer
to the morning light
“Thank you”
BIKFOK (butt in chair fingers on keyboard) – 17 min
Til next time ~Peace ~JP
Orange hibiscus from Lihue, Hawaii. Extreme sun left lots of shadow even when shot through my polarizers. Yep, my sunglasses. Held them in front of the lens rofl, the things I’ll do for a flower shot. 🙂
This post inspired by Cee’s Flower Of The Day challenge
Til next time ~May your blessings be more ~JP
For Linda’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday where our prompt is:
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “starts with or contains ‘cel.’” Find a word that begins with or contains “cel” and use it in your post any way you’d like. Have fun!
Hmmm cel – cephalopod no … cell phone … too, well, too. Ahhhh here we go Cellophane!
Cellophane Dreams
Dreams wrapped in plastic untouchable
through their cellophane wrappings
beautiful but unattainable, unreachable
and so become unnoticed
Tissue paper memories worn with age
and thinned by constant touch
we tint them rose and make a child’s
window hanging to color our world
Dreams of what we had and what we lost
dreams never seem to count the cost
so I’ll watch the sunrise color my world
through rose-tinted tissue paper memories
And remember, always, fragile flowers, life
and… you
BIKFOK (Butt in Chair Fingers on Keyboard) to publish – 22 minutes
Til next time ~May your memories be sweet ~JP
Welcome to Flashback Friday, where Fandango invites us to take a look back at some of our older posts. This one goes way back to the dark recesses of pre WordPress days.
Travel Journal – Kapaa Hawaii. Departure day – today we bid Aloha to our Kauai paradise and head back to the mainland, back to real life. Insert big sigh here. I don’t cry every time I leave Kauai … oh wait yeah I do. But life goes on, I have work to do and heaven knows my back misses my mattress!
This post inspired by Fandango’s Friday Flashback and originally posted November 11, 2015.
A hui hou kākou (Until we meet again) ~JP
Our Sunday Stills prompt this week is “path.” Ahhh there’s a prompt I can really sink my toes into. I’ve traveled many, many, many paths. City streets to muddy back country trails and all have been marvelous.
A rainy day at market in Osaka, Japan. The golden statue is “Billiken” the god of Things as They Ought to Be.
Back country wilderness trail at Kolob Canyon, Utah
“There are many trails in this life, but the one that matters most, few men are able to walk … even Comanche men. It is the trail of a true human being. I think you are on this trail. It is a good thing for me to see. It is good for my heart.”
― Michael Blake – Dances with Wolves
Path to the main temple at Honen-in Kyoto, Japan
“All that is gold does not glitter.
Not all who wander are lost.
The eld that strong does not wither,
deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.”
– J.R.R. Tolkein
This wandering walkabout was inspired by Terri’s Sunday Stills Challenge.
Til next time ~Take the back roads ~JP
Autumn isn’t really about letting go, it’s about remembering to jump in the leaves. Here the grass is nearly covered with fallen leaves, almost ready for a bit leaf pile jump!
This post inspired by Cee’s Flower of the Day Challenge
Til next time ~Take time to listen to the leaves crunch ~JP
tiny yellow violas in an old weathered hand (yep it’s mine)
For Writer’s Quote Wednesday #42, my favorite quote about the sense of touch:
“There’s power in the touch of another person’s hand. We acknowledge it in little ways, all the time. There’s a reason human beings shake hands, hold hands, slap hands, bump hands.
“It comes from our very earliest memories, when we all come into the world blinded by light and color, deafened by riotous sound, flailing in a suddenly cavernous space without any way of orienting ourselves, shuddering with cold, emptied with hunger, and justifiably frightened and confused. And what changes that first horror, that original state of terror?
“The touch of another person’s hands.
“Hands that wrap us in warmth, that hold us close. Hands that guide us to shelter, to comfort, to food. Hands that hold and touch and reassure us through our very first crisis, and guide us into our very first shelter from pain. The first thing we ever learn is that the touch of someone else’s hand can ease pain and make things better.
“That’s power. That’s power so fundamental that most people never even realize it exists.”
Jim Butcher – Skin Game
Til next time ~Stay calm and read urban fantasy ~JP
Wide Eyed Wonderings 