A Walk on the Wild Side

An animal's eyes have the power

to speak a great language.

~ Martin Buber

Look who came to visit my yard today! It's Peter Cottontale, or perhaps his cousin. Whoever he is, he's darn cute, isn't he (or she)? It's a good thing all my flowers and veggies are in pots, though. I wouldn't think he was so cute if he ate my plants.

I'm a little crazy about seeing animals in the wild. I've posted before about my passion for birds, but it goes beyond that. I love seeing creatures in their natural habitat (or in my yard - whichever happens first!) We live on the edge of some undeveloped areas and will occasionally see a coyote wandering the streets at dusk. We hear them howling almost every night. Our cats are indoor cats, and our dog Jenna is bigger than any of them, so I don’t worry. It's kinda cool to know they're out there.


My ex used to tease that I have a Snow White complex -- that I'd love nothing more than to sit in the forest and sing, gathering all the wild animals to me. I hate to admit it, but I think he was right! Can you imagine all of them snuggling up to you, with their cute little faces, not frightened or defensive, but drawn by your singing and your gentle nature?

Ok, I'll stop that train of thought before you all think I'm totally crazy (or is it too late?)

I mentioned in my last post that I'd touched a whale. To be more specific, I've touched the inside of a whale's mouth, actually stroked her baleen. It didn’t happen in an aquarium: it was in San Ignacio Bay, in the Pacific Ocean. The photo above isn’t me (obviously) but this is what the experience was like. I was escorting a group of museum members from Utah on an educational whale-watching trip to Baja, California. We were in boats that were a third the size of the gray whales that inhabited the bay. But the amazing thing is that the whales came to us, seeking our stroking and petting. They were/are incredibly gentle, playfully pushing the boats and as curious about us as we were of them. It truly was a life-altering experience.

I wasn’t singing, but it was likely as close to my Snow White fantasy as I’ll ever come!

All our plans are in place for our trip to Alaska this September, and we've chosen the various activities based on our odds of seeing wildlife. Puffins are number one on my list: I've never seen one, in captivity or in the wild. I'd love to see a bear or two, as well. I've seen bears in Yellowstone and even a few along the roadside in the forests of Wisconsin. But in the wilds of Alaska - that would be an experience! I don’t think we're going far enough north to see caribou, so I'll settle for deer and perhaps elk. Throw in a moose or two or three, some bald eagles, a few wild salmon, and I'll be a happy camper.

Go ahead and make me jealous: what wild animals have you seen (zoos don’t count)? And while you’re at it, tell me this:

Were you singing? :-)

Until next time…

Attitude of Gratitude

We often take for granted the very things

that most deserve our gratitude. ~Cynthia Ozick

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, it was a real challenge this past week to make note of three things I was grateful for every day. Not because I’m not grateful, but because it’s hard to remember to do it! But it was a good lesson on staying conscious of all the positives things around me.

Here are a few things I was grateful for last week:

* How good a hot shower feels.
* That I have a patient quilting teacher who believes nothing is a mistake, only a learning experience.
* That my husband made it safely home from his business trip to France.
* How fabulous fresh blackberries taste.
* For the United States Attorneys who present cases to us every Friday, for defending what is right.
* The love of my husband.
* For the high-school-aged bagger at the grocery store who told me that he tutors other students in math (there is hope for the next generation!)
* My friends in AAUW, and in the Master Gardener program.
* For a cat who adores me (our dog adores my husband.)
* A warm bed on a chilly night.

These are just a few of positive things I noted (sorry, some are just too private to share!) Even now, typing them out here makes me feel incredibly lucky to be living the life I live. I am blessed!

How about you? Do you think it might help your outlook on life if you started to focus on what’s right in your life instead of what’s wrong? It’s easy to come up with a long list of everything that makes us unhappy, including our own behavior: I know I’m really good at making a mental note of the mistakes I make. But how about the things we do well?

Why not start now? If you leave a comment, make note of at least one thing you’re grateful for today. Let’s develop an attitude of gratitude in Blogland!

Until next time…

Musings...

Let us not look back in anger, nor forward in fear,
but around in awareness. ~ James Thurber

Diana at Scale Junkie tagged me today, to write a Six Word Memoir. Holy smokes - only six words?? I could go on and on and on.

But perhaps that's the point. Boiling down the essence of our lives into six words really makes you focus on what's important, what you're all about. So I sat down with a cup of coffee, and came up with my Six Word Memoir:

Life keeps bringing me amazing lessons!

Want to play along? Here are the rules, from Diana:

· Write your own six word memoir
· Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you want
· Link to the person that tagged you in your post, and to the original post if possible so we can track it as it travels across the blogosphere
· Tag at least five more blogs with links; and
· Leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play

I'm officially tagging Grumpy Chair, Lora, Steph, Rebecca , and Janet (check out her gorgeous quilts!)

Even if you don't play, or you don't blog, think about it. What would be your Six Word Memoir?

Until next time...

Word Play

The kind of humor I like is the thing that makes me

laugh for five seconds and

think for ten minutes. ~ William Davis

I love to read. So my husband sent me the following in email, and I thought I'd share it. It's just too funny!

My favorite is the one about the smog in Los Angeles. Which one is yours?

HUMOR FOR LEXOPHILES (LOVERS OF WORDS):

I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me.

Police were called to a day care where a 3-yr-old was

resisting a rest.

Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off?

He's all right now.

The butcher backed up into the meat grinder and got a little

behind in his work.

To write with a broken pencil is pointless.

When fish are in schools, they sometimes take debate.

The short fortuneteller who escaped from prison was a

small medium at large.

A thief fell and broke his leg in wet cement. He became a

hardened criminal.

When the smog lifts in Los Angeles, U.C.L.A.

The dead batteries were given out free of charge.

A dentist and a manicurist fought tooth and nail.

A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two tired.

A will is a dead giveaway.

A backward poet writes inverse.

In a democracy it's your vote that counts; in feudalism,

it's your Count that votes.

A chicken crossing the road: poultry in motion.

If you don't pay your exorcist you can get repossessed.

The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine was

fully recovered.

You are stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.

A lot of money is tainted: 'Taint yours, and 'taint mine.

When she saw her first strands of gray hair,

she thought she'd dye.

Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead to know basis.

Santa's helpers are subordinate clauses.

:-) Until next time...

Because Kindness Matters

Wherever there is a human being,

there is an opportunity for a kindness. ~ Seneca

A few days ago, Mary over at Confessions of a Craft Addict posted a challenge that I'm taking on. Will you join me? She wants us to "Share the Love” this month.

Here are the rules:

1. Do a little something sweet for someone who would not expect it, by March 1.

That's it! Tough, eh? NOT!

Think of the little things you can do that will make someone's day, then do it. Tell a woman you pass on the street that she looks great in the color she's wearing... offer to take someone's cart back inside for them at the grocery store... leave a note under someone's windshield, telling them to have a great day. The list could go on and on, and not one of them will cost us a dime. But the payback will feel terrific!

So waddya say? During this week of candy hearts and flowers, will you Share the Love with someone who doesn't expect it? Let's let Mary know that we're up to her challenge!

*****

P.S. To those of you who wrote, complementing me on the photo of my log cabin quilt block in my last post... I must confess: it's not mine. I "borrowed" it from the Internet, to show you an example of what I was working on when the analogy of getting healthy struck. But I promise that when my log cabin block is done, I'll post it here. Stay tuned...


Until next time...

Taking Time for Joy

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future. Concentrate the mind on the present moment. ~ Buddha

I just read a great article in the latest issue of Prevention Magazine (pick up a copy, if you get the chance.) It's about making joy last.

They quote a social psychologist, Fred B. Bryant, as follows:

"Finding joy means opening yourself up to it. The value of taking time to appreciate positive experiences seem obvious - trite, even. Yet it's s skill that few people have mastered. The reason is simple: we're busy, and we have a lot on our minds."

Does that sound familiar?

There are many days that all I do is run from event to event: classes, appointments, lunch dates. These are all things that I love to do. Yet I allow myself to become so busy with things I should be enjoying that I get spread far too thin, and lose the joy that each event should bring.

Granted, there are other days when I'm bored silly!

So how do we go about finding a balance, and appreciating the joy in life?

I can't help thinking that the answer to both is about learning to live in the moment. To stop worrying about what's on tomorrow's agenda, or about what we did (or didn't do) yesterday. What's happening at this moment - and how can I more fully participate in it?

A few years ago, one of my stepdaughters asked if I could help her mend a hole in something. We opened up my mom's old sewing machine, and I went to work. She was bending over me, watching as I stitched. I began to tell her stories about my mom teaching me to sew when I was a little girl (and how I never listened!) My emotions got caught in those memories of the past, and I found myself feeling sad because I didn't have a child of my own to pass these stories to.

Then a lightbulb went on inside me and I thought, "Wake up, Pattie! Look what's going on right under your nose!" I was passing along these stories to the next generation. My stepdaughter may not be a child of my body, but she learned a little more that day about my history. It also helped us to bond just a little bit more.

Let's vow to take the time to acknowledge and appreciate the positive experiences that come our way. I know this is an area where I need a lot of work. I want to stay in the moment and open myself up to finding joy.

I will if you will. :-)

Until next time...