Suit Up - We're Burnin' Daylight

Flowers don't worry about where they're planted, and birds don't care if the seed that sustains them is cased in a stained glass feeder or thrown on a ledge... They "bloom where they're planted," as the saying goes.

They don't 'qualify' their blooming, either... "I'll only unfurl half my blossoms today because the flower beside me looks better than I do," or "Maybe I'll save my best blooms for when I'm living at that choice piece of real estate I've had my eye on." And they don't judge: "Look at how that dandelion is blooming... what does he think he is - an heirloom rosebud?!?"

Welcome to my sky-high garden :-)

Peek-A-Boo... I See You!

Gorgeous, yes? Cleverly aligned with a like-colored flower... So still, I'd miss seeing it for the blossoms if I didn't know to look for it with my heart instead of relying on vision alone.

I noticed this behavior for the first time at this year's show, how these little gems are drawn to petals that both hide and highlight their beauty simultaneously, echoing each other, playing off each other... Not unlike my favorite Hidden Object puzzles where the item I'm searching for is usually right before my very eyes. It then becomes my task to look beyond the distractions to see what was there all along.

Hiding in plain sight - an idea as old as Time, but with each re-learning of this principle, my Spiritual eyesight improves.

They Don't Bite

She looks worried, doesn't she? Concerned... Not real sure what all this is about, even as a Monarch is perched on a petal at her right shoulder, and her mother is standing close behind her.

And so it is with me sometimes... Too often, actually. Like this little girl, I can sit in the middle of the proverbial meadow of Life, butterflies in all colors, shapes and sizes performing aerial feats with complete abandon all around me, and worry, "Do they bite?"

They don't.

Sometimes It's All A Blur

This effect was inadvertently achieved by shooting through a fogged-up lens, courtesy of the steamy greenhouse conditions in the Krohn. I like it, though... fits my mood this splendidly gray morning where I can see my life all around me, but it hasn't yet come into focus.

So here I sit on my proverbial leaf, waiting to see what revels itself first. Not that I don't have a To-Do list, because I have, and it grows longer by the day. Only I don't always know what needs to be done first, beyond the usual stuff that clamors for Now! Now! Now!

But I don't want to think about any of that just yet... I'm going to enjoy the soft focus of this day for as long as I can.

LET ME OUT!!!

This is how I feel this morning - like a butterfly in a cage. I return to work, my "cage," on Monday, and it feels like returning to prison after a week away for 'good behavior.'

Anyway, this little gem, taken at the current Butterfly Show, is so lovely - and so trapped. For her own protection, I guess. But it's the picture that jumped out at me as the one to nudge me back into this blog after a two-year hiatus. And not a boring two years, by any means. In fact, I could do with a little less excitement... More beauty, Less drama, please.

The day calls... time to spread my wings and fly.

Umbrella Art

Another fun picture from the Flower Show yesterday. Some thoughts... The theme for this year's show was "Play In The Dirt," yet there were references to Alice In Wonderland, a theme in itself. I'd love to see a show with "Alice" as the entire theme!

Flower Power!

Funny how the mind works... This year's Flower Show prodded me to finally set up my own blog where I can share some of my favorite pictures in a different venue than usual (for me).

Only Time will tell what direction(s) this blog will take - if any - but, for now, I can share some personal favorites out of the 85 pictures I finally chose to keep.

The worst thing that can happen? I'll create a boring blog. The best thing that can happen? I'll meet friends I never knew I had :-)