Life As A Canvas

The sheerness of the curtains makes their fluttering in the wind even more beautiful, the ivory color filling with the morning sun,shadows and contrast. It leaves me in awe...simple thing.

The sky this morning is the color of my grandfathers eyes. His eyes were a shade of blue that grabbed peoples attention and has given me a memory of decades. Looking at the sky gives me a bit of a feeling that ones life does live on in our hearts and really is not gone.

The leaves are turning, golden bits dancing in the rising sunshine. I feel bad for those who don't have or don't take the time to experience the show of nature each day. It calms the soul on a very deep level, and is a time when prayer seems so natural. Some folks are too busy counting their coins to notice and others are too busy creating empty castles that look wonderful on the outside but inside they are lonely. Others have never stopped long enough to be captivated with the beauty of the natural world, they are like the rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. Lives filled with no time, a list of "gutta do's" and some how, many just skim the surface of life, a stone cast over the water, touching life two or three times . Too busy and missing it all. Much like living in an art museum, surrounded by the most beautiful works but shielding their eyes to never see it. I believe nature is the art work of God, not to be hurried past on my way through the day. It is as though simplicity is all around us, but we fail to notice . What takes up your time ? Is it relationships ? Is it decorating your house ? Perhaps its food, are you always planning meals, shopping for food, thinking about the next meal ? Spending hours and hours on a meal that passes through your body in less time than what it took to plan, shop for and cook. You can be 120 lbs and still held hostage by food.

Maybe even a craft has you captivated, (notice the root word captive) so much so that it takes time away from your family, your friends, from exploring the masterpieces in nature. You loose track of time, forget to take care of your health, forget to be filled with gratitude.

Life is about balance, about being refreshed each day so that balance can be sought after and realized.

Last night before I went to bed I had a thought....what would my heart, or my thoughts look like if I painted them, expressed them on canvas with color and texture. The real heart feelings, what our love looks like, honestly... not so that it would "sell" or portray what looks good to others. My thoughts too, what would they look like ? What colors would I use, would there be any darkness ? Would what my heart feels be abstract or would I want to portray it symbolically, maybe a basket full to overflowing with colors, but a basket is a container and I just don't feel any sides or bottom in my heart.

Maybe today as you go through your day, imagine what your thoughts and feelings would look like if they were put on canvas ? For me, the natural world, in all its glory is what God paints each day, showing His love, and His feelings for us to see and know Him by.

a note on my desk chair this morning, love is wonderful !