Columbine

Last year I planted columbine.  A year later she bloomed and very beautifully too I might add.  But, the first year was a disappointment.  I wondered if it was even worth the time and energy it took to dig the hole and plant.  So much of gardening is a waiting game.  Each year my perennials get bigger and better.  They've adjusted to their new home and thrive.  The garden teaches you patience.  I really need to apply that patience to myself and others around me.  Give it time, you will probably be MORE than pleasantly surprised.

Where are you looking today?

Sorrow looks back

Worry looks around

Faith looks up.

Feed Your Heart

I never feel as if I'm "caught up".  I'm not even sure what that means.  But I do know there are plenty of nights I lay in bed wishing I would have chosen to paint instead of folding yet another load of laundry.  I seem to always put the household chores and demands of inanimate objects like dishes, clothing, lawns and floors before my own needs.   And, if I do that for too many days in a row I become a very unpleasant person and I hear my dear southern husband say, "You need to sweeten your tone."

Why is it that I feel the need to get everything completed, tied up, or even perfect before I take care of me, be it exercise, art, or even healthy cooking.  I don't know where the "me last" mentality came from.  But I think it's very common if not a natural state for many people.  

I've come to realize that doing something for myself makes me a better human being.  Sure I would love for the house to be in perfect order before I took the time to work on a watercolor painting, but the reality is that if I wait for order I would never paint.  One of the best parts about being a human is our ability to create. I'm getting better at walking away from the chore at hand to make sure I take time to feed my heart/my soul/ my creative spirit.  And when I return to the chaos, I seem to handle life and it's demands much better.

I encourage you to feed yourheart today in spite of the clutter that may surround you --
Play that instrument. Dip that paint brush. Write that poem..