List 42 - Surprises from Nicaragua . . .

This week's list will be a few more memories - surprises - from my trip.  I'll finish up (well, maybe or maybe just for now) my reflections on this awesome week in Nicaragua.  I guess we're never really 'finished' with learning from a dive into a new world.  I believe little pieces, memories, faces, stories, moments stay with us forever - changing us into new people, tiny bits at a time.  That's good stuff.

Nicaragua was definitely 'good stuff.'  I spend a lot of time reminiscing about those I met and what I saw and learned.  I find myself searching for ways that I can assimilate what I learned with the life I'm part of here where I am.  

For now, though, here are a few of the moments that surprised me most:

1.  I was surprised when I arrived at the Youth Ranch in Padre Ramos, Nicaragua, and I took in the beauty.

2.  I was surprised when we spent the day in the dump of Chinandega and I watched the young, living in the depths of poverty,  share what they had with others.  I watched them reach for an orange and then turn and give it to another.  I saw them treat each other with a kindness towards each other that I couldn't believe.

3.  I was surprised by the colors of Nicaragua.  I loved the brightly colored buildings, the spectacular hues of the natural surroundings and the brightness that I saw with every turn.

4.  I was surprised by a night on the beach that I'll never forget, with folks I had only known for a couple of days.  One night, tired from the day, a few of us wandered down to the beach.   We wanted to spend some time looking up at the stars in a place where the lights of progress don't interfere with the darkness.  The sky was spectacular - stars sliding across the arc above us, as we listened to the splashing of the waves.  Our necks tired and we finally decided that we'd just 'get yucky' and lie right down on the sand below.  I'm so glad we did.  The warm sand immediately comforted us and all got very quiet.  After a few minutes, my friends, Terri and Mona, began to sing.  They sang mostly hymns and old time church songs.  It was a moment.  It was a feast for the senses.  After a while, noticing that I wasn't singing, one of them asked me if I knew the songs.  Of course I knew the songs, but I was busy enjoying the gift of the moment.  Their music and all that was happening around me was one of those good surprises that don't come around very often - or maybe they do, but we don't always notice them.  I'm thankful for the surprise of that night, those stars, that warm sand and two friends who sweetly sang.

5.  I was surprised by the feeling I got the many moments that I felt another beside me and looked down to find that a precious little one, who I already knew well or I had not yet met, had moved beside me and quietly reached up to grab my hand as we walked along.  I can often be a fan of personal space; but on this special trip, I was thankful for the many ways that the fine people of Nicaragua are free to hold on whenever they want.

6.  I was surprised at the times that animals - farm animals - roamed casually through a house during a conversation and no one but me thought anything of it!

7.  And, I was surprised when the 'zip line guy' turned me upside down before the second zip.  Whooooooooooooo!!

Good-bye to Spring with a Stroll Through Miss Loy's Garden

I have been meaning to get these photos on the blog for some time.  I realize that today is the first day of summer, so I guess it is time!  They are special.  As much as I love what I do, it is sometimes nice to photograph with a different intent - these photos are just that.

Miss Loy is a living legend in my town.  She is a beautiful southern woman, smart and witty, and she is a gardener unlike any I've known.  A stroll in her garden is a gift.  Every time I get to visit the garden, which she so graciously shares with us all, I am reminded that it's important to slow down and notice - really look at what surrounds us.  Miss Loy's garden is the perfect place to look with careful eyes.

Many times I have photographed precious children in this garden, and each time the child or children tiptoe through the garden, knowing they are amongst magic and love.  They see the beauty, without being reminded to take a closer look.  I love to watch them, as we round a corner and they peer carefully to see if there is a surprise.  There always is . . . there is always something more beautiful with each new look.  The only thing I don't like about photographing in Miss Loy's garden is that it leaves me no time to take long, selfish looks - to watch carefully enough to remember some of the beauty until the next time I'm there.

A few weeks ago on a Friday afternoon, I found myself with a few free hours.  Yes, I could have cleaned my house or edited photos or gone grocery shopping, but I thought of something better.  The kids had just finished a long week of school and were content to hang out at home, so I loaded up my bag and headed over to Miss Loy's.  I relished in the quiet, in the beauty, and I wandered along slowly.  I only took a break for a wonderful conversation with the gardener herself, as she told me stories of some of the trees and plants, her ideas and what this amazing area had once looked like.

I did not have to hurry.  I was not chasing happy children.  I was just alone with my camera, a few well-designed foot-stone paths and the birds.  I decided as I strolled and looked that I would experiment a bit and look for opportunities for photographs I had not taken before; that I'd take images that represented the garden in a different way.  It is not possible to completely capture the beauty of something this special, but I enjoyed trying.

I hope the photos, coupled with this beautiful hymn sung by Beth Neilsen Chapman, will remind you to slow down when you can.  I hope this slideshow will remind you and me, and all of those who hurry , that beauty awaits us - if we'd only look.

Miss Loy, thank you for your vision, your perseverance over these years of gardening and for showing us what is possible.


Thank you, too, for sharing your special gift with us all.

I hope you all can take a few minutes and enjoy the movie.  Click on the link below:

Strolling Through Miss Loy's Garden

Laughing out loud . . .

A few days ago I ran across a quote by one of my favorite authors.  The quote was at the bottom of a good friend's email, and I almost missed it.  I sure am glad I didn't.  Barbara Kingsolver is the author, and if you have not read her books, I urge you to have a look.  She has written much, with varied subjects and themes, short stories, non-fiction, a bit of everything.  Her book, The Poisonwood Bible, is definitely one of my favorites.

Oh, but the quote . . .

It's completely usual for me to get up in the morning, take a look around, and laugh out loud.


You cannot know how much I love that.  I laughed out loud when I read it and a zillion memories came rushing back.  As a parent, one never knows what one will wake up to - especially after the children begin waking up before you on the weekends.  It's never a dull moment; I can assure you that.

This past Sunday morning, I woke up last (no surprise) and was more than delighted to see that the children were almost completely ready for church (surprise).  It was a miracle in itself.  And then they all began to explain that they had even finished breakfast.  The laughing out loud came when Harry (age 8) proudly stated, "I just finished the best BBQ sandwich ever."  I laughed, then I thought about crying, then I hoped no one else would find out, then I decided:

1. He was showing his responsibility by foraging and preparing his own breakfast.
2. He was happy.
3. His meal contained one serving from the wheat group and one serving from the protein group.
4. I am mother of the year once again.

Just a few days before I found the Kingsolver quote, I found this on my dresser when I awoke.  I cannot explain it.  I don't really think it means anything.  I believe it was just one of those things that one might find sitting around in a house with three imaginative children.  Again, I laughed, and then I did what I always do when I discover a new oddity - I wondered what in the world was on the funny little mind of the person who arranged this peculiar table decor.  

Was it to signify:

• Mama, I decided I do want to go to swim practice tonight?
• I'd like to learn a bit more about Amelia Earhart?
• Has anyone seen a body to go with this head?

I'm just not sure.  Who knows.

I say, keep it coming.  Bring it on.  Keep me thinking.  Keep me laughing.

And now, we must announce the winner for yesterday's WHAT IS IT contest!

Good work, you guys!  I thought I had you fooled, but I didn't trick too many of you.  

This was the photo:

(Just for the record, all of you Smarty Pants, I never saw the bug until you pointed it out!)

Here is what it was:

Nicely done, folks.  Thanks for playing!  The winner of this week's free photo session is Heather K.!

We'll go again next Monday!