emmanuel

God is with us!

His Light has come!

birth day

my niece taylor turned one on sunday

my friend lesley turns thirty tomorrow

i think that we remember to celebrate the big things, but we often forget the the small things need to be celebrated too.

i celebrate the growing love that surrounds me

decoration

there's something about you now
i can't quite figure out
everything she does is beautiful
everything she does is right

you and me

flirt

this is what my fridge looks like...

there is an important picture missing...

day dream

my morning cup is essential....

the perfect cup is hot tea with a spoon of honey and milk

...if someone can make me the perfect cup

i'll keep them around for awhile

2 days

a little piece of my heart is left behind

the hills are alive...

Perhaps I had a wicked childhood

Perhaps I had a miserable youth

But somwhere in my wicked, miserable past

There must have been a moment of truth

For here you are, standing there, loving me

Whether or not you should

So somewhere in my youth or childhood

I must have done something good

~maria

scrabble

hold me up

never let me go

love me when i am broken

and speak to me

~j. knapp

sigh

knowingly she thanked God for him too...

amazing

...i am learning to trust

i had a day off today...

i started my day slowly having a prayerful conversation

then i had breakfast with a wise friend and wandered downtown to find a couple of friends shopping for shoes at another friends store. i wandered from there to my supervisor's office and we read through my 125 page thesis... it is nearing the end. i spend the afternoon eating pea soup, raking, cleaning, receiving my new stove, and going for a run.

now i am waiting for someone to call.

the hip

i have a confession to make....

i love going for walks when twilight is nearing and the evening is settling in.

because that is when the house lights go on and the curtains remain open for a brief time.

allowing me to take a peek inside and see the warmth from the street.

on my run today this is what i saw.

a husky laying on the porch.

the front door was open inviting me to take a peek.

and the tile floor in the foyer was covered with luggage.

beyond that was the kitchen and a member of a famous band was sitting at the kitchen counter talking on the phone.

... all while i passed by on my evening run.

first snow

there was a small amount of snow, but it was perfect for making a snowman.

her first steps in the snow were taking with caution, but when she was encouraged to kick the snow... how it eased her fear of the white stuff.

unfortunately... by mid afternoon, there was a lot less of our creation, but it was really about the time spend making him.

over time

this field holds a story

a beginning

letter

it was written on lined paper in blue ink

the pages were ripped out of a notebook

the words were perfect

they took away my fears

be reassured

hand to hold

And I am lost for words
You’re more than I deserve
And when I cannot stand
You are where I land

~jj heller

buzz

hold tenderly that which you cherish

marked

each face tells a story

there is pride

there is joy

there is an embrace

there is awe

this child has been welcomed in love

joel hendrik

... and the great of these is love

heal

it is easy to panic.

it is easy to let one's fear take over.

it is easy to let your mind take over and smother your heart.

...so trust.

31

i have been challenged, loved, embraced, known, broken, mended, surprised, humoured, tipsy, lead on, filled up, lost and found in my 30th year

may i keep my hands and heart open this coming year...

ready to receive the gift of what it holds

voice

happiness is meant to be shared

~written on the wall of the bathroom at the goat

closer

stuffy nose, bert's bees, kleenex, hot toddy, warm hug

lol

there is something personal and freeing when you have the opportunity to open a door

spam

i am thankful for ...

early mornings

loving this much (arms stretched out as far as you can)

sister hugs

warmth

holding hands

nieces

phone calls from home

comfy chairs

mugs of warm beverages

promise of love everlasting

songs uplifted

kindred spirits

cookies

charcoal

the wonder of it all.

i had a conversation with someone who is just coming to understand who God is and what faith is. she told me that her study of the intricacies of the human body has made her come to the realization that there must be a creator.

the Truth is proven in the details.

latte

there are moments when i feel that my faith is so new

that the journey is beginning

that i have so much deeper to go

step

it was the best story he heard all day.

trickle

a calming presence was needed

the weight of a hand on a shoulder

an ear to listen to

a hand to hold

marbled chocolate

i love this time of year.

as i ran across the parking lot, a gust of wind carried leaves in its gentle movement.

i heard the chattering of the leaves.

then i heard the rain on my window as i sat at my dining room table.

reason to stay

when nothings satisfies you....

hold my hand

mornings

something new is happening

i see the humour

i feel the joy

i wonder..... and i trust

joy

she got a flask...

the side of it read,

"medicated and motivated"

whisper

we have grown over the years.

grown in family.

grown in love.

something new

it feels like home to me

it feels like i'm all the way back to where i come from

it feels like home to me

it feels like i'm all the way back where i belong

good friend and a glass of wine

in His time

not mine

there is perfection

celebrate

my beautiful nieces...

one cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach.

one can collect only a few,

and they are more beautiful if they are few.

~anne morrow lindbergh

envison

there are times when you want to capture an image or a moment just so you can look back.

what happens if you can't capture it?

will it remain?

will the beauty of it last?

i do know that each moment or image is beautiful in it's own way.

although you missed one sunset, there is another one tomorrow that will be just as spectacular

... in it's own way.

i am looking forward to seeing beauty in the next moment.

brother tom

Without roots we can neither discover where we belong, nor can we grow.

Without stability we cannot confront the basic questions of life.

Without stability we cannot know our true selves.

It is only as we put down roots into the earth that we begin to see the fruits.

To be earthed is to come alive in a new sense of mission.

A new capacity to give life is born, not by myself but in the body of community.

deeper

One life

With each other

Sisters

Brothers

One life

But we're not the same

We get to

Carry each other

Carry each other

image

let me put my arms around you

market

I've learned that people will forget what you said,

people will forget what you did,

but people will never forget how you made them feel.

~maya angelou

can you see?

For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face.

Now I know only in part; then I will know fully,

even as I have been fully known.

unsent letter

i stood on the ocean floor up to my ankles in mud and this is what i saw...

a promise

clay pots

i hear the ancient footsteps like the motion of the sea

sometimes I turn, there's someone there, other times it's only me.

i am hanging in the balance of a perfect finished plan

like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand

~emmy lou harris

enfolded

i have carved you in the palms of my hands and hidden you in the shadow of my embrace.

i look at you with infinite tenderness and care for you with care more intimate then that of a mother for her child.

i have counted every hair on your head and guided every step.

you are my beloved.

known

The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.

~hemingway

what if...

moving into joy

it hopes all things... love that is