The Songs of Cheerful Birds

It was a fine, fine day for me today.

We are all in various stages of growth. Let us love and nurture one another.

 

 

 

 

I took this photo (the original is better) a few days ago in a park, and it inspired me to write this quote.

 

 

Such Beauty in the World

It's easy to get down, while watching the news or dealing with daily problems.  We forget to see the good people, the beautiful things, that are all around. 

This weekend, when it was hot and cloudy and we were not in the prettiest of neighborhoods, suddenly in the median strip of the road, I spotted a whole lot of these gorgeous stargazer lilies.  My husband agreed to stop and wait while I took many photos.  I'm just glad to have them to look at any time I wish.

We also encountered many lovely people, who were all out sweltering in the summer heat, too.  Beauty was everywhere, in the faces of the friendly, smiling people and in these flowers.

Try to be a Rainbow in Someone's Cloud - Maya Angelou

Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud - Maya Angelou

That's what I was trying to be to some people yesterday.  Everyone in the grocery store was suffering from the day's heat, and I was trying to be friendly and make people feel better.  I was feeling sick myself from the heat, and really wanted to be done shopping and get home, but I did try to be cheerful and listen to people and smile.  Mostly we complained about the heat, but one woman was talking with me about health and kale and blueberries and the smoothies she makes.  A very nice lady.

I'm not patting myself on the back or anything.  I just feel that if we can make someone's day even a little bit better, that's a very good thing.  It also makes you feel better yourself, too.

Keep Calm and Carry On

 

A photo my mom took.  I like how most of the leaves look like hearts. 

 

I know that some people are sick of this meme, yet some of us still love it.  I like the serious versions, like the original ones, and also the fun ones like "Keep calm and sparkle on" or the Yoda one - "Calm you shall keep and carry on you must."

 

For me, the meme is meaningful because I think about the origin of it.  I mean, imagine being in London during World War II and bombs can be dropped at any time, some of your loved ones are dead - the holes in your heart (the leaves in my mom's photo), others you know are off fighting the war, or are missing, and you have to find the strength to keep going, keep fighting to stay alive and just get through each day.

 

For most of us, those of us who aren't in any serious peril, this slogan can show us that our current problems are small compared to what those people went through at that time, so we should try to be grateful that things aren't worse and appreciate the good things every day.