Love, fun, colour!

Winter can seem like an endless tunnel of gray if you don't throw some fun into your day. Lily and I came across these love notes in the pavement...

Here's something you don't see every day...

We found more fun at the neighbourhood school...

The fence actually looks friendly, don't you think?

I am always on the lookout for colour as Lily and I are travelling.  It's not always easy to find these days, but it's there, waiting quietly.

Here is my favourite colour surprise so far:

Yes, that's right! Corcuses! Now that's a happy burst of lavender in a gray, white world!

Have a fun day!

Love,

Lily and I

 Mornings are a little brighter these days.  The snow keeps piling up, which makes Lily very happy.

I used to hate winter. The cold was almost too much to bear and I stayed inside as much as possible.The cold doesn't bother me when I am out with Lily. I look forward to finding something lovely out there.

On the quietest, most bitterly cold mornings, there are still  lots of things happening. If you pay attention, you might see them.

I never much cared for crows before either. Their cries irritated me, and their large size struck me as ugly. Now I find them beautiful. 

 They withstand cold winter nights and gather together each morning to celebrate their survival.

We walk past these maple keys almost every day and I wonder, how are they still hanging on? They look like faded dragonflies weathering a storm.

Because I am paying more attention to what I see, even though we walk to a lot of the same places each morning, I actually feel like I'm walking out into a new world each day.

I hope you find beauty in your day today.

Let's go, Lily!

Light

Over the past few weeks Lily and I have gone on many walks together.  Some at night...

and some in the morning, when it is so dark that the streetlights are still on.

The lack of light makes taking photographs challenging, and I am still learning how much is enough to capture an image.  Looking for light each day is a new challenge in photography, and in life.  In photography, I just accept that I am learning and that I will take a LOT of not good photos.  Once in a while I will take one that I'm proud of. 

Finding the light in each day in life is a different kind of challenge.  Sometimes all I can do is make lists of all the dark things that take my focus.  I am working hard to make little light things the heart of my day. 

I have learned that sometimes when you really need some light in your day, someone completetely unexpected will bring it to you. 

Today I wish you a day filled with light.  Be ready to capture the good things around you!

Left behind

     Lately when Lily and I have gone out exploring, I have been noticing a lot of different things that have been left behind.  Some things left behind are unavoidable, like these tracks in the snow...

and in the sidewalk...

Some things left behind will be missed...



While other things have been left behind with a degree of carelessness that I find hard to understand.

 I tidied this up after I took the picture.

  

On the other hand, dogs are always leaving their scent for other dogs to find.  Dogs are also more than happy to find what someone else has lost!

This year I am going to try to be more mindful of what I leave behind.  Every word, every gesture leaves its mark.  I will be more mindful of how I connect with others, knowing that the mark I leave will have its own history.  Each day I will look forward to finding something new and surprising.

What surprise will you find today?..

     Lily and I went for a longer walk a couple of days ago.  The snow was fresh and soft.  It was cold but we didn't mind.  We made our way to the waterfront.  Lily was suddenly very interested in something that I hadn't noticed.

 Just a few seconds later I saw this..

It was a peaceful, happy moment.

I hope you enjoy a peaceful moment during your day today!

Grandfather

Do you see the bird in this picture?  I didn't notice it when I took the picture.  It made me happy when I discovered it later on my computer screen.  I don't take many pictures of the same thing when Lily and I are out.  There's no time for that - Lily is patient, but she is always at the end of the leash waiting to move on to more fun. The bird is in the perfect place in the picture.  It hovers quietly in the sky, waiting for me to notice.

Here are some other things Lily and I came across this week...

This little leaf is fighting hard to stay in place...Like me.

One windy morning, Lily met someone new...

She was very uneasy about him at first, and barked several times.  Lily never barks at anyone!  Once she smelled him, she turned away and moved on to more interesting things. 

She was very happy when we found this yellow ball...

...and I was happy to find these rich brown leaves resting on the beach.

Lily loves new places, but she is pretty much happy wherever we are.

You might remember this bird from September...

It was a wonderful surprise when I uploaded the day's photos and saw it for the first time, hovering on the left side of the picture.

 Now back to this week.  Are you ready? 

I took this picture a few days ago.  See the bird?  Once again I didn't notice it at the time.  Once again, it is perfectly placed in the picture.  These moments seem so random but at the same time, so right. The bird sends me hope and comfort, and calmly whispers that things will be okay.

Thank you, Grampa.

Lost and Found

It's been 23 days since my last post.  I could say that I was too busy, or that so much has happened in 23 days that I just couldn't get around to it, but the truth is that I lost my way for a little while.

Sometimes I brought the camera along on our walks, but I didn't feel like taking any pictures.  Other times I tried taking pictures but I was so distracted by pain that the pictures ended up being blurry and dull. 

Once in a while Lily and I found some little surprises.  Here is a frosty leaf that looked to me like a sugar dusted cookie.

Lily was very curious about this little guy but respectfully did not touch it.  There's no such thing as Finders Keepers, you know!

We noticed this bike at 7am one morning....

...and it was still there the next day at 10am.

I found this bike very perplexing.  I kept wondering who it belonged to...who stole it...where it came from...why and when it was left in the park...

Lily didn't let these mysteries get to her.  She just got on with her day.

She's very good at letting things go!

My dad once told me our support sytem is made up of concentric circles.  We are at the centre.  Our close family is the next circle.  Then come friends, then work colleagues, the local community, and so on.  Sometimes you need to look around yourself and lean on the people who surround you.  They can help you to see again.

...and once you can see again, you will notice the happy surprises all around you.

So today, ask for help, give thanks and have fun!