My most seductive tree photo

An arbutus tree trunk

Lilac dreams realized

It was wonderful when the Lilacs finally arrived!

plant and lane

The gently- arching branch with side branches reaching      for the sky and the irregularly weathered top of the fence provided a pleasing contrast with the brick chimney and the horizontal lines of the siding.

I especially like the blue beyond the end of the lane. It was either the lower slopes of the North Shore mountains, or rain clouds over North Vancouver.  I took several shots, waiting and hoping for pedestrian activity, and I was rewarded for my patience.

good advertising

I saw this business card pinned
to a bulletin board while waiting
for a ferry
on Thetis Island.
I would hire him
based on the card
alone!

clothesline

 An early-morning walk yielded this study in contrasts       -mine for the noticing.

are the dandelions winning?

 

It seems that the dandelions grow faster than anything else - faster than I can pull or mow them. This humble plant has such beauty in its seed head.  A close examination gives a treat of delicate beauty, balance, form and function.

A Warm Rainy Day

Had a walk in Sapperton, New Westminster, where my Scottish grandparents settled.  This afternoon felt like Scotland weather.  I guess my roots among the heather are still intact, for I loved awalking in the misty rain, with everything so fresh and green.

I love looking on the Fraser River and remembering that it is one of the compelling reasons that communities sprouted and thrived here.  All that water useful for transportation and fishing, and essential for life - in such abundant supply.

Thanks D & ETS

Friends staying left a gift of beauty

Fettered to a Frown

Fettered to a Frown

What is it like

To live with abandon

Finding joy in moments

Pain as a matter of course

Draining each day to the dregs?

Careful, we plan and weigh

Ineffectively

Meting out each morsel

Never having enough

Seldom falling short

Going nowhere.

Each day dawns

With the same outlook

Yet hopeful, curious.

What is it that will connect

Longing possibilities

With daily motions

Routine coupling and uncoupling

Of desire and duty

Standard protocols of living

Or perhaps of disconnect.

What will it take

To learn to live?

JM

August 2009

Backlit Chestnut leaves

 

On part of my cycle to work, 

I pass through a tunnel of 

over arching chestnut trees.  

Through the seasons, 

they provide me with much beauty.  

Monday, riding home, 

the sun back lit the new chestnut leaves, 

giving a perfect spring green light

A walk on the beach with a friend

The changing light,
as sheets of rain,
light and shadow,
drifted across the ocean,
beach, downtown and mountains,
left a mark of beauty in our minds.

Saturday morning in the rain

Raindrops on sidewalks

and blossoms on pathways

pennies on benches

and people on Fraser

blossoms

One of the great gifts I get from cycling to work is, well just cycling to work. Another is the beauty I see if I lift up my head and look around.  This morning, these blossoms made getting out of bed worth while.

dandelion

Perhaps the sunniest flower around, AND the bane of gardeners and lawnkeepers, is the lowly dandelion.  Dandelions seem to wait patiently for a sunny day, and then spring forth with joy.  Let's lay aside the fact that they are "weeds", get down to toddler level, and just marvel.