Wild Blue Lupine Morning

"It's Spring fever. That is what the name of it is.

And when you've got it, you want... oh, 

you don't quite know what it is you do want,

 but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!"

 ~Mark Twain~

I know this quote well. I understand what Samuel Clements was saying. He died in the Spring of 1910 in Redding, California. I live in the same part of the country. I know what he means. I hope that he was looking out of a window filled with Lupine when he died.
I love winter here. I love the mildness of our weather, the hope of snow and the ability to hike and walk in December and January... but, Oh spring. I feel its joy when I walk outside. The birds that choose to nest on our porch, the green hills, the wildflowers and the fragrance of this place. It's a sweet "heart ache" and it's there every year for all to see and feel.

The Prospector was weed eating the old goat run and came in to tell me that he left the blueish purple Lupine standing so I could take some pictures of it.
I walked down to the vegetable garden with my camera and went through the gate to the pasture below, sitting down in the field where the goats use to roam. For five years our goats did not leave these flowers for us to enjoy but, in exchange, they cleared the land below the house. These flowers were tasty delicacies for them. I could always find the flowers elsewhere on our road. I didn't mind that the goats enjoyed them so... if only I could see Brownie and Murph' down there again. I miss the boys.

"Our spring has come at last with the soft laughter of April suns..."

~Byron Caldwell Smith, letter to Kate Stephens~

Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems. 
~Rainer Maria Rilke~

I know the thrill of the grasses when the rain pours over them.

I know the trembling of the leaves when the winds sweep through them.

I know what the white clover felt as it held a drop of dew pressed close in its beauteousness.

I know the quivering of the fragrant petals at the touch of the pollen-legged bees.

I know what the stream said to the dipping willows, and what the moon said to the sweet lavender.

I know what the stars said when they came stealthily down and crept fondly into the tops of the trees.

~Muriel Strode, "Creation Songs"

I know. I know.

Yes, I know.

"And there is pansies, that's for thoughts."

Don't let anyone tell you that you can't buy happiness. I bought a six pack of Pansies today for $1.99 at the drug store. They were a little wilted from the sun on a rack at the entrance to the store and they caught my eye. I picked off the spent flowers and brought them home.
Now I have some color... a bit of springtime in the garden and it makes me happy.

And now you ask in your heart, 
"How shall we distinguish that which is good in pleasure from that which is not good?" 
Go to your fields and your gardens, and you shall learn that it is the pleasure of the bee to gather honey of the flower, 

But it is also the pleasure of the flower to yield its honey to the bee. 
For to the bee a flower is a fountain of life, 
And to the flower a bee is a messenger of love, 
And to both, bee and flower, the giving and the receiving of pleasure is a need and an ecstasy." 

Extract from Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet



...and as if  today wasn't wonderful enough...Today is my oldest grandson's birthday. The Bean is eight years old.

Where do the years go?

 The Bean and his Bro

 His first Halloween.

 First camping trip with Dad and Papa.

 Helping Noni plant gourds.

 First swimming lesson.

 His desk at Noni and Papa's.

 Just a boy and his goats.

 Painting Papa's truck with a feather.

 Study in black and white

 Mr. Cool.

 6th birthday party

 Last summer at the park

We love you little boy. May all your dreams come true.  Happy Birthday!
 

Well, La De Da!

I got up early this morning ( having stayed up way too late last night playing with my new toy, the Nexus tablet) and decided that I should just get up and stop trying to go back to sleep. I sat up, coughed, put my slippers on and stood up. OK, I was on my feet. It was going to be a good day.
 I heard a small whine from the corner of the bedroom and knew that Cutter, our sweet Corgi, was asking me if I was really getting up this early and could he come too. I  let him out of his crate and opened the hallway door.  Cutter ran ahead and stopped at Carl's crate so I let Carl out too.
It didn't matter that it was two hours earlier that usual. They are so locked into their routines. First the unabashed happiness of freedom..., the running around, the jumping and making little leaps of joy. It makes you feel happiness just watching them start the day as they do, with the expectation that something wonderful is happening and that life is something to get really excited about. It's contagious.
 Of course, all dogs don't have what we offer, here. Our dogs are in a five star resort hotel and they know it.
They are fed on schedule, have their own "spot" on the sofa, listen to us tell them how wonderful they are and generally think life is about them. It kind of is.
 I also gather that the dogs can read because they obviously heed my wall hung advice.

So this is a post about happiness and what I do to keep the scary fearful "what ifs" away. It's kind of an "in the moment" post that just needed to be written by me today.

After breakfast the dogs and I went outside. The air took my breath away. It was cool and overcast. The fragrance of campfires was in the air. My neighbor was burning near his house. It smelled wonderful.

The dogs disappeared behind the house and I thought about the excitement that ensues when they first go through the front door. They do it many times during the day, but there is always the same enthusiasm. How we could learn from them about the simple joy of the moment.
They aren't "into" the beauty of their surroundings, as much as I am, but they have moments when they make me notice something that I might otherwise miss in my search for beauty. Sometimes they don't find things that are exactly beautiful... but this slug,  in its own way, is a work of art in the natural world.

It's a mollusk and a big one. "It" (I need a better word than "it" because they are both male and female) didn't seem too concerned with "dog face" but then Carl didn't actually touch it. These slimy little creatures are crawling about because of all the moisture.
A long time ago, in my wild youth, I was staying with my grandmother and I walked down to the creek on her property. I sat down and leaned back on a rock to rest. My hand landed on one of these slugs and I was "slimed" for the first time in my life. I guess Carl knew better. He sniffed it and walked away.
I don't care for them but they are interesting creatures.

It actually has a beautiful pattern on its slimy little body. Still don't want to touch it.

 I walked over to the fence and looked out into the driveway. That was when I saw the "paperwhites."

To all of you who are suffering in the frigid north and back east... this is for you.
To remind you that Spring will come and Winter will not stay away forever.

Even in the deathly cold of winter, Spring will push its way through and have its day.

Nothing stays the same... all things come in their time.
 Look death in the teeth, as scary as it is, and think about our impermanent life,

 This cow scull is slowly becoming part of the plants and the earth...like everything.

Slugs only live for about four years, if they're lucky. Dogs only live for eighteen years... max.
Try to live in the moment. It's all we've really got.
 Get a camera. Take pictures of anything that makes you happy..  things that you love.
Buy a puppy. Unleash your joy or at least find what it is that makes you happy and do it. You don't have to leave town and start a new life. It's about small steps within the context of your existing life. Start small... with a smile. Life is short. Lighten up.

I do believe that this is true....

But the flip side is...

And as my favorite poet, Mary Oliver, asked...

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do

with your one wild and precious life?"