Wednesday, February 20, 2008

A Pledge

I wonder if somehow this thin ice formed while a leaf was still there -- underneath it -- but I don't think so. How did the ice form itself, though, in such a leafy shaped way? I don't know. I do wish that "leaf" or "ice" began with the letter "D," since that's my next letter in the ABC-Along but if I keep my eyes open and my curiosity active then something will catch my eye....

I promise, though, that I won't go cheap and use "dog" for the photo -- in fact, I make a solemn pledge not to let this turn into the all-puppy blog. It won't be so easy; life has changed entirely as I knew it would, but my goal here is to fight to keep my creative life alive even in the face of new (though welcomed) demands. I'll simply say for now that I honestly did allow myself to take a deep breath and appreciate -- drink in -- the beauty of being outside at 3:20 a.m. in 18f. weather. It's not that I wanted to be there. I wanted to be in bed. Sleeping. But the puppy needed to be out and so I was out but instead of being upset about it I listened to the nearby owl and had the perfect view of the newly full moon to make me appreciate the moment. Part of being up for getting the dog and being willing to be the one primarily responsible for house-breaking him was the knowledge that it would force me to be outside a lot and I wanted to get something out of that. Even at 3:20 a.m.

Jess asked me if I'd needle felted any doggies yet. I haven't, but may put some birthday gift $ toward the supplies. Go check out her Easter swap; I don't think I can resist this one!

Thank you for all the kind birthday wishes! I almost wasn't going to mention my birthday here just because it's the type of thing I'm usually fairly private about, but I wanted to share my enthusiasm for birthdays generally and wanted to encourage everyone to think that birthdays are good things and never something to be glum about nor to ignore. I encourage you to celebrate your birthday this year -- every year -- in a way that feels exactly right, but to celebrate. Dean even managed to do the thing I never seem able to do: get the photo exactly as the candles (a representative 3 rather than the actual 46 of Dean's card!) are being blown out....

5 comments:

Natalie, the Chickenblogger said...

I love your birthday message and I must thank you for sharing it: Thank you. I am still learning.
Biscuit is so very adorable, and you are wise to open your heart to the subtle pleasures of being up and out at 0-dark-hundred... again thank you. Your posts are reminding me that so much of life can be improved when we apply the right perspective.

Donna said...

well, if you're going to be outside in the middle of the night with the dog, maybe your picture should be the dark.... :-) sans puppy of course...

Anonymous said...

happy belated birthday!! so sorry I missed it. I love your philosphy about birthdays! a wonderful way to look at it. It is so nice to see a photo of you too. I have enjoyed catching up on your last few posts. I am LOVING the vintage photos and Biscuit, well what can I say - adorable! Re Ayres Rock which we now call by it's Aboriginal name Uluru, I wonder how old that doc. was as I am sure, and for a few years now they have banned the climbing of it! Which is a good thing. Sorry I am a bit slack at dropping by, I am really struggling at the moment and really hope it passes soon and I can feel well, take care xx

Felicia said...

Three beautiful candles for your special day. :)

Sam I Am said...

ohhh shoot!! happy BELATED birthday!!!!!!
got any extra brownies to share????? :) :) :)
love the pic :)
xoxo
sam

p.s. im heading to hawaii :)