Today I noticed. Not every day that I drive my daughter to school, do I notice. Sometimes my mind is far away, focused on the to-do list for the day or trying to solve “a problem” that I have allowed to grow in my psyche and peppered it with fear and worry. But not today. Today I just noticed. I noticed people of all ages walking beautiful dogs of all varieties, so many that they could make up one of those gorgeous dog coffee table books that I can never seem to resist at Barnes and Noble. I noticed a strange dew covering an overgrown conglomerate of bushes that was actually so eye-catching, that if painted by just the right artist, or photographed by just the right photographer with just the right lens, this botanical mess would be shown to be a breathtaking masterpiece. I noticed that the brightly colored book mailbox, created by earnest Eagle Scouts, at the local church, where we stopped to drop a couple of books, was brimming with donations and I smiled to myself, knowing how many others share my love for reading. Today I noticed the kind eyes of the school police officer as he offered a reassuring smile to every child leaving their cars and I felt thankful, as I prayed for his safety, as he protects our children from dark forces that seem to swarm to the surface more these days. Today I noticed beautiful wild flowers blooming out of the wide mouth of an overworked sewer drain and I remembered that beauty can come out of the foulest of circumstances. Not every day that I drive my daughter to school, do I notice. But today . . . I noticed.
Tag: photographer
Tarzan and Jane
I’m headed out on an adventure with my husband and our two youngest children in a few minutes. We are going to do one of those “obstacle courses in the sky.” We’re going all Swiss Family Robinson. I thought it seemed like a great idea when I saw the Groupon special. It seemed like a wholesome, inexpensive way to spend some quality family time together. Plus, I didn’t have to commit to doing it right away. It was something to schedule and do for the future, but made me popular with my kids right in the moment. However, after filling out the pages and pages of waiver releases yesterday, and signing my life and the lives of my family away, I started to wonder if perhaps, I had been a bit impulsive (and a tad cheap) that day when I was perusing Groupon deals.
Yesterday, I went to the website of the place we are headed to and I took a closer look at the pictures. We have been zip-lining before, but this place appears to take zip-lining to a whole new level. Think American Ninja Warrior. Ugh. I like the idea of a “ride”, but not the idea of actually doing major physical exertion. The worst part of all of this is that the rest of my family are highly competitive. It won’t be enough to attempt the obstacles. They will be hell-bent on us “killing it.” They will want us to complete the obstacles in record time and in excellent form. What was I thinking??
It appears that we do wear helmets and harnesses as we play on the “jungle gym in the sky.” Fingerless gloves are optional, but recommended. I’m starting to think that maybe I’ll just decide to be the photographer on this excursion, even though I’m terrible at taking pictures. I’m starting to think that we may need a “historian on the ground.”
Deep breaths. Deep breaths. I’m going to end this post with a quote I found in my notebook and once again, I can’t find who wrote it or where I found the writing. Hopefully these won’t be the last words I ever type on my blog.
“The trick is knowing when to fight on and when to bail out. A good general rule: when it causes more harm than good, it’s time to leave it.”
I’ll be taking this advice to heart today.