I Was Astonished, I Tell Ya!

"Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it."
~ Mary Oliver

I don't know this Mary, but when I read her words, I knew that I had to include them for you today. I think Mary must write a blog. Because, I know that whenever I'm astonished by anything, I have to jet to mine and capture the feeling so I can tell you about it.

I also know that having to constantly be on the search for things to share has made me pay very close attention to all aspects of my life now. It's interesting that writing this has pushed me toward my goal of actively living my life and staying in the moment. Always the best way to live.

That first photo is from my gardens and is now one of my favorite images. Not because of anything technical I did in the taking of it. I'm just a chick with a camera, not a photographer. A photographer is one who has the skills to enhance, change, manipulate, turn something into an artistic expression. No, I'm not a photographer.

Instead, I'm simply a woman who is watching out for things to astonish me...things like that hydrangea. How many people are so lucky to go out and find a flower heart in her garden? Well, it's as close to a heart as you're likely to find without altering the image in some fashion. I think it is stunning and it made me laugh when I saw it. So I'm telling you about it, too.

The next thing that is pretty astonishing to me at the moment is this piece of fab artwork-

This is Sema's work. And it's astonishing because she did it as a surprise for me. She was so impressed by the story of how Eileen named her new lily after me, that she used it as a prompt for her daily art project. I think it's as stunning as the actual lily because, a snippet of my life and the telling of it, inspired her.

I am very often astonished at what I see and read on other blogs. Some of us write with such clarity. Humor. Inspiration. Feeling. It evokes deep emotion and makes us stop and consider and learn. Some of us astonish with the images they capture with their lenses. Others, with their creations like jewelry, art, drawings, collages. All fascinating and worth our time. Beautiful.

And, here's the last bit of telling for you- Evan comes home today on leave! We go to pick him up at the airport in just a little while. Michael and I are so excited that he will be here and I know the time will jet by way too quickly before he leaves for Hurlburt Field in Pensacola. But, I'm not going to rush ahead. Today, I'll sit and be astonished at how fast seven months has gone by since he left for basic training. And, tell you how glad I am that he'll be home in just a few hours.

All I can do is tell you when I'm astonished. And, hope that in the telling you'll be infected by that kernel of astonishment. And, your sense of wonder will be passed along to us.

So, go pay attention to your life. I hope you find moments of astonishment over what you find there. Come back soon and tell us all about it. We'll be waiting!

Namaste' Till Next Time,
Holly aka She Who Walks In Wonder