Colour me Blue

blue sky

hydrangeas

The skies are blue with cloud about, some flowers are blue – and I feel blue and cloudy inside. I am beating myself up for this blue feeling when I have so much on the material level. I want to give it all away and have nothing. Start off over again with a blue slate. I want the world to start all over again. There is too much bloody red.

I am pondering my white privilege. There is still too much poverty in this country. Too many unemployed and rising in spite of 21 years of democracy. So much blame and hatred and stuck-ness. Too much crime, some petty many gruesome. Too many daily deaths on the road from bad driving.

blue

Another suicide – this time on Friday night in the complex where I live. Someone saw him on Friday during the day and he was jolly and cheerful. My husband, our younger son up from Cape Town for a few music gigs and I went out for dinner on Friday night and we had a gay and fun time. I walked into it on Saturday morning when back from a delightful 2 hour hike, when his wife had just discovered him. She had been away; just back. Here today, gone tomorrow.

I am trying to locate inner peace. I meditate most mornings when I wake up and sometimes go for an early morning walk when all is quiet and still. The news on the radio assaults me while we have our morning tea. My stomach turns. I think about the day ahead and how to use my time fruitfully. We had our last meeting yesterday at the school where I volunteer twice a week for poor readers. Many of those young ones come from dysfunctional families. Much looks bleak on the educational front given the government’s poor track record on delivery of basic amenities to schools. Children come to school already tired from leaving home at 5.00 a.m. 

The polarised views and opinions all over social media are alarming. It’s them against us and ne’er the twain shall meet. Fear abounds in dark threatening shadowy colours, choking and cloaking over love and peace.

My salary check was in my bank account this morning. I can buy whatever takes my fancy. I can donate money to a worthy cause. I can clear my cupboards and take clothes and tinned foodstuffs to a depot for those whose shacks were devastated by a fire or their tin roofs blown off by hailstorms and are left with nothing. I can hand out bananas and water to the beggars on the road as I drive here and there. I can drop off a small thank you gift and card for the woman who helped me find my keys in a shopping centre last week. I can do this and more, yet I still feel empty, powerless, bereft …

I water my indoor plants and am pleased to see the yellow ones spruce up and look angelic.yellow

I look at the first sky and cloud photo I took this morning and imagine I can see a child praying. 

I’ll look out at the almost full moon tonight and say a silent prayer for peace to prevail upon our precious planet, and may we all find the love in our hearts to extend goodwill to all. Peace is the path …

Thank you for listening –

78 Comments on Colour me Blue

  1. Hi Susan,

    On a separate note entirely I cannot access your latest post dated 5th December 2015 as it says ‘password’ protected. Apologies if I have missed an email alert but as I enjoy reading your blog I wondered if I might be able to continue reading unless this post was especially marked for family and loved ones only.

    Please feel free to delete this comment once read as I couldn’t find a ‘contact’ page on your blog.

    Warm winter wishes,

    Deborah

    • Thanks Deborah, and warm summer wishes to you! I messed up with trying to re-post a blog from 2 years back but now my son has fixed it, although somehow two posts got put up 🙁 … the old one as well, with all its’ comments. Never mind – worse things could happen 🙂

  2. I’m holding all this in my heart Susan – you’re always thoughtful posts; the awareness of the so much duality and pain in this world; and the beautiful community you have here to share it with and garner connection. Just holding it…

    • Thank you Deborah for coming by and being part of this lovely community. It’s very early morning here in South Africa and it was lovely to have a cup of tea and check mails etc before flying down this morning to the sea for a week. Have a lovely Sunday 🙂

  3. Hi! Late getting over to your blog again. Your sobering reflections on poverty really hit home. I too feel exceedingly blessed, materially and spiritually, but I have not always felt materially well off. My husband and I spent many years just trying to keep up with the day to day expenses. But during that time (even now), I felt obligated to ‘take care of’ all I was blessed with, whether it was family, a friend, a used car or whatever. I am bothered by those who abuse this. I see people and things trashed daily. I believe the scriptures somewhere admonish us to be good caretakers of our blessings, and in so doing, we will be blessed with more beyond measure. Sorry….my paraphrase, but I do believe this. My mother lives on a very limited income. She laughed one day, when she learned that she was considered poor. She could write the book on frugal living. She said she has never felt poor, and I believe it. I’ve seen her remodel a home on her own, restore a garden, and somehow buy gifts for all her grand and great-grand children (I think it’s 14 now). Anyway, some ramblings to add to the list.
    Very sorry too about the suicide. It’s never easy to accept this, never any rhyme or reason to explain this person’s choice. I hope you find peace in time, and this man’s wife and family do too. Was poverty the cause or something else? You may never know. Sad.

    • Sharon, I do not know how I missed your comment, so a belated thank you and also for sharing about your mother! When we were growing up we always lived frugally and we still do. I’ve passed that on into my married life and as mother to our two grown sons who know the value of their own hard earned money. I abhor waste of any kind … it verges on the criminal! I love that, taking care of our blessings and not trashing them in any way.

      Yes, both friends will be grieving for a long time I am sure … thank you for your sympathy Sharon.

  4. I am greatly enriched by GardenofEdenBlog. Always exciting to visit. This blog, I learned anew that between the lines of Wendell’s comment. I could feel Psalm 23 here. Is that what you felt, also, Susan?

    • Yes Wendell Berry’s poem is beautiful. Thanks to Pam Faro for putting it up … and to you for the reminder of Psalm 23. It makes me think of A Bridge over Troubled Waters … Simon & Garfunkel ..

  5. Sorry to hear about your blueness ma. We learned in meditation that all sensation has the same characteristic of arising and passing away, arising and passing away … whether a good or a bad sensation. And the idea is that there’s little point in growing attached to something that comes and goes, comes and goes (no sensation is eternal), and learning to observe and not react, to come out of misery.

    Anyways. Sorry to hear about incident in complex. One of the stories this teacher Mr. Goenka told was a lady was distraught at the loss of her daughter and kept the dead body with her all the time. She was inconsolable. By some good past kharma she met with Buddah and even he couldn’t teach her Dhama. So he said to her to go to the city and fetch 5 grains from a family that hadn’t had a death in the family. The lady was pleased that Buddah was going to perform some rite or ritual to bring her daughter back to life. She went to the city and many families said she could take a whole bag of grains if she wanted, but when asked if they had ever had a death in the family, each would say yes, grand-father, or son, or daughter, or mother, or father, etc… by that afternoon she had understood that death affects everyone and she was able to learn to come out of her misery after learning dhama.

    Nice story.

  8. From Psalm 23, …”…he makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me besides still waters; he restores my soul. …” …I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.”

    Reading Psalm 23 is a comforting way to feel detached.

  9. “The polarised views and opinions all over social media are alarming. It’s them against us and ne’er the twain shall meet. Fear abounds in dark threatening shadowy colours, choking and cloaking over love and peace”…
    I couldn’t agree more with that statement dear Susan…
    I won´t exclusively blame the media… But I honestly believe that sometimes it acts as the spark which starts the fire, so as to speak…
    As to the Color shades… I also feel blue most times… the world has become a jungle, which first principle is to struggle for survival..
    What has happened in Paris, and the refugee crisis is sad indeed.
    Despite those red events… I am glad that you could find solace in your yellow flowers… We all shall find our little secret garden, away from the madding crow…
    Let´s pray and send good vibes for a better global tomorrow…
    Sending love. Aquileana ⭐

    • Thank you Aquileana for coming by. Sparks all over the place, the media, the individual, the collective – making fire – perhaps we have to go through the fire – so to speak…

      Yes to each of us finding our own little secret garden and from that place we can send out good vibes for a better global tomorrow – thank you for saying so!

      Love to you, Susan 🙂

  10. Amen, Susan, amen. Thank you for putting this out there…

    With a more selfish (self-caretaking?…maybe…) response, this was my post on Facebook today:

    Sometimes, when one is so weary of violence, and hypocrisy, and stupidity, and bloodshed, and racism, and white privilege, and xenophobia, and greed, and hatred, and oh the wearisome-horrible list goes on…(and so now today’s “latest” is the white guy shooting and killing people in my beautiful Colorado; and as a friend of mine wrote, good thing he wasn’t doing something serious like selling loose cigarettes or walking away with a little knife in his hand, or he might be dead now instead of in custody)…one is grateful for being able to spend a little time watching the birds. God knows we need respites for our hearts and brains…I’m grateful to be able to have my heart lifted a bit by watching the finches and jays and flickers and doves, happy at my neighbor’s feeders, winging off into the Wild Kingdom.
    The Peace of Wild Things
    By Wendell Berry
    When despair for the world grows in me
    and I wake in the night at the least sound
    in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
    I go and lie down where the wood drake
    rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
    I come into the peace of wild things
    who do not tax their lives with forethought
    of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
    And I feel above me the day-blind stars
    waiting with their light. For a time
    I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

    Hugs, Pam

    • I would have felt uplifted by reading your FB post Pam, so I am pleased you brought it to here. I love that Wendell Berry poem where we go down to where the wild things are and all is still and the starts shine their ancient light – and we can rest and feel free … Thank you so so much.

      Hope you’re having a lovely Sunday and are taking time out, and in, to regain an inner balance amid all the chaos ..

      All best,

      Susan

  11. Dear Susan, You have presented a beautifully esthetic blog as a canvass upon which you painted the hugely depressing concerns that have weighed you down. I deeply sympathize! You have also been exhausted by the pace of recurring blogs and the hardships writing your book to the exacting standards you are known for.

    I hope you can DETACH yourself from all concerns, and get deeply immersed in painting for pure beauty with symbols of things that bring pleasure to mankind: Nature, Friendship, Slumber, Fond Thoughts of Relatives, and More. PEACE AND FREEDOM TO YOU! Shalom, Joe.

    • Ah, thank you Joseph! I’ll take your advice always so kindly meant about detaching. I do in a way when I go walking in nature, sleeping, thinking of friends, thinking of relatives – all those lovely things you mention!

      May you and Anita have a lovely day this Thanksgiving Day …

      Peace and freedom to you! Shalom!

      Susan

  12. Wow, what a beautiful, profound post, Susan. If it helps at all, you’re not alone. I think many of us are feeling this way right now – saddened and helpless at all the violence and despair in the world. Which, in turn, causes more despair.

    November is an especially tough month for suicides. I’ve lost two people I love from depression in November. But people like you are a bright light. Please don’t give up. You never know when those small gestures you mentioned (which I actually think are HUGE gestures, since so many would never take the time to make them) will make the difference in someone else’s life.

    Perhaps that woman you want to give a card to is thinking she doesn’t matter to anyone – you never know. <3

    Sending you love and all my good thoughts.

    • Thank you J.H. I’m so sorry about those two people you love/d taking their lives … it is so sad. We can never know their depths of despair – or the hopelessness we feel when we are powerless to prevent it.

      May your day be blessed this Thanksgiving day. Love to you and good thoughts as well …

  13. Thank you, Susan, for daring to be blue. How can we not feel this way? I don’t resonate with the fear and rage. And I don’t listen to news on the radio or TV. My hearing loss saves me from feeling I should do this. Instead, I read the news–and not too much of it. I don’t understand human interest in making others suffer. I’ve always felt Nature and Life provide enough of that, but many humans want more blood. Yes to the hope of yellow. Neither depressive or aggressive.

    Your post is a peace prayer. I’m grateful.

    • Thank you Elaine. Is the instinct in mankind to kill present? Though we haven’t learned how to use that instinct in a restrained and creative manner and it’s become perverted ever since the psyche was split in two when nature and the feminine became a thing to be dominated and subdued. And the laws of the land, leaders et al were to be obeyed even if it went against a natural truly religious feeling …
      A blessed Thanksgiving to you and family. May we give thanks for our ability to give ..

  14. I do so identify,Susan! A meaningful way to spend time and resources is getting harder to identify. It seems many South Africans are fleeing, which is tragic,yet understandable. The world seems to be ‘closing in’ wherever you are.in that sense we are all refugees. Perhaps it is the prelude to a different kind of existence.

    • Now that’s an idea – I’ve sometimes thought that everything needs to be destroyed before new creation begins. Many are fleeing SA … and many come here to flee their place of origin. Where else does one get free education, healthcare, social grants for the youth and elderly (half the population). A real conundrum.. One day we’ll all be in the diaspora ..

      Thanks for coming by Philippa .. meanwhile I’m listening to Leonard Cohen singing Hallelujah and looking out onto my pretty garden…the sky is blue …

  15. There was a news clip I saw with an interview with some professor (I forget his field), who basically said that, despite all the horrors reported in the media, the world is actually doing well in terms of education, healthcare, etc., and that these things are the highest they’ve ever been, even in developing countries. But no one wants to read about the good in the world, they only want to read about the horrors. I’m not sure that’s true, but as long as the media folks think it’s true, then it’s what they’ll report. Not saying they shouldn’t, but it would be nice to have balanced stories to give an overall perspective. It was an interesting interview, but it was in Swedish so it’s probably useless tracking it down and finding the link.

    I’m sorry for your blues, Susan. I can definitely relate. So much cruelty and pain in the world, it’s hard to not have it affect you. Why do I have so much and others so little? It seems unfair, and I also sometimes feel an urge to give up everything. You are a lovely soul, I hope you will again find peace.

    • Thanks Sara for coming by. It’s true the media feed us all the lousy stuff straight into our ill-defined murky fears. There is so much that is constructive and useful and good that doesn’t get the airspace it deserves. And we are healthier on many levels and 3 and 4th world countries do enjoy a better standard of living. Still the minority world wide I would think. Sometimes I’m inclined to be an ostrich and stick my head in the sand – and keep it there 🙂 All is a bit better today thank you Sara … hope all well with you in Sweden.

  16. I was feeling blue Susan while reading your post, I found your heart speaking loud and clear showing the sensitive and dissatisfied part of you; in relation to everything that is happening around, which you and I have less control – today morning news paper revealed that there are 25, 000 road accidents in my city; and every day there is at least 2-3 suicides and then a lot more stories of robbery, murder and corporal punishments.. I just did not feel like continuing to read the newspaper, I left half and came back to work, only to find that our counseling centre was closed, I did not want to go back after riding a long distance, so I stopped by to check emails and I found your post. Thank you for sharing, and I want you to know that you are not alone feeling blue a lot many of us are with you and I appreciate your courage to write about your inner most feeling and loved the way you ended the post: the yellow plant is beautiful and all the pics you posted also speaks, you are a great writer. Nice to be connected.

    • Thank you Genevive for coming by. You always manage to find gratitude in your life which I find to be a breath of fresh air every time I read your life-affirming posts. I know that I have much to be grateful for and I give thanks for that too. I think it’s a powerful way of lighting the darkness – that candle with its flame, casting shadows, yet bringing light is a powerful image. Thank you again.

  17. I hear you Sues, loud and clear. Thank you for bravely sharing and expressing what I know is so often in my heart daily. xx

  18. I know I have been reading a great writer when I feel the emotions, with tears in my eyes. Still! It’s okay to feel blue with those experiences. You’re expressing yourself. And I am feeling it. Thank you. No matter how blue it may be, you and I both see how blessed we are and what we are not going through.

    • Thank you dear Marsha … we are blessed indeed not to have to go through the disasters so many face these days, eg. the diaspora that so many are in. We have our own pains and challenges in our lives but what is happening on a broader scale is incomprehensible ..
      A blessed Thanksgiving to you.

  19. Dear Susan,
    You’re a good person with a huge heart, and so that’s why you feel blue when looking at the world, the discourse, the us-vs-them mentalities. You care. In this day and age, that’s becoming rare. The ability to see the world with a judicial mind — both parts have good and bad — is also rare. Only those who care can make a difference, however small. Take this post for example. Many will read it, as such it will hopefully touch many. It touched me. Thank you for sharing a little of yourself, your feelings and views. Let’s hope our world — particularly its leaders — can find some common ground.
    Hugs.

    • Thank you Silvia. You too have a caring heart and thankfully many of us do. We can’t fail to be jolted out of our comfort zones, knowing that if not for the Grace of G.d there go you or I …
      I hope those road closures in S Ca have been repaired .. which makes me think of : There’s a crack, a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in. Leonard Cohen.. I think I’ll put my DVD in my other computer and have a listen ..
      And, a blessed Thanksgiving to you and family and friends … 🙂

  20. Your heartache comes through loud and clear, Susan… and my heart reaches across the distance, wishing I had something—anything—to offer as comfort. You see, the simple fact that you feel the tragedy of this our humanity’s failings so deeply is a source of immense hope for me. The only way we can make any meaningful chance is by spreading awareness, and this awareness starts with people like you—people who feel, and feel intensely, and—above all—aren’t willing to turn the proverbial blind eye on it anymore. The people who demand change, and will not settle for less. It is these people—people like you—who make the world a better place. I just wish, for your sake, it didn’t have to hurt.

    A long, long hug to you, my friend.

    • Thank you Guilie for your heartfelt comments – and from them I get comfort thank you again. I think we all hurt on some level, at the injustices in the world and to mother nature. We’re in this together; and together we can do much. Hope all is well with you in Curaçao.

  21. Between the blues and lavender you began with you must have put on rose-colored glass because you ended with happy, yellow blooms. Ha! I love the images of a child praying and silent prayers for peace. I join you in this!

    • Thank heavens for rose coloured glasses sometimes. This morning as I look out of my study the sky is clear blue, the green trees are waving, I’ve had my walk, my tea and coffee, my gardener is here and for the moment all is well .. Thanks for coming by Marian and a blessed Thanksgiving to you and family.

  22. Beautiful cloud photo, Susan. The child praying, yes, but see the angel over the child’s shoulder. I believe world peace starts with inner piece. I don’t mean to sound cold by any means, but there is such a thing as karma, I believe — they’re working out what they need to, as are you. You have worked through much, as an evolved soul/consciousness, so be at peace with what you have and thereby the resources and wisdom you have to help others. Would that we all could start fresh and realize inner peace and peace in our connections with each other. It seems so simple, yet it is not easy.

    Thanks for writing this, Susan. These thoughts and feelings are much on my mind, too.

    • Thank you Samantha. Our connections mean so much to me and help keep me afloat and grounded at the same time. Inner peace does start with each of us – on the micro and individual level this would radiate out to the collective macro level. As Andrea said as the first commentator, that heart muscle needs exercising. Exercise may sound easy; it’s the first step that counts and it’s usually the most difficult one. We can but try.

      • p.s. I wondered about the other cloud over the child’s shoulder … nice to know that you see an angel. I’ll look again tomorrow. I see the yellow flowers photo with angel wings.

  23. Oh Susan–this post is so sad and beautiful. With the photos of the sky and flowers, I thought your post was going to be happy. I love the color blue, and I don’t think of it as sad (although I understand of course, “the blues” and feeling blue.) It does seem as if the world has suddenly gone mad–and yet, there is that beautiful blue sky, the flowers, your family. I don’t have any answers. It seems that you are doing what you can and what you need to do. Sometimes you just need to take time to grieve. Wishing you all best–and hugs, too, if you’re a fan.

    • Thank you Merril. And yet – there is nature, and blue skies, flowers and family. Joy and sadness seem to go hand in hand like light and dark I guess. Never one without the other. Thank you for your good wishes, and yes I like hugs thank you! They say hugs release endorphins into the blood stream .. sending you one over the skies. 🙂

  25. Oh Susan, this is so achingly beautiful. I’ve been experiencing similar feelings lately. Although on the surface my life has exceeding my wildest dreams, inside I feel deeply unhappy. At least in the past, I used to think ‘when I do/have/be blah-blah, then… [I’ll be happy]’. I know better than that today. I do/have/am whatever, but there is an undercurrent of unhappiness that paints everything blue. Nothing is quite right. So, I’m facing this feeling, because there is no other way out but through. Thank you for your sharing. It resonated at the soul level.

    • Thank you Gulara, it’s good to know that sharing helps on the soul level in your instance. You know what travelling from distant lands, Azerbaijan, to a new country means and even though where you are is far far better, that does not mean that all is suddenly well. That undercurrent remains and the only way out is through – thank you.

  26. Poverty is blue and deprivation is blue and they are also linked somewhere to our hopes for a better world where people can enjoy the blue of the sky. And looking they will see not war planes but the blue of the sky…

    • I feel uplifted by your comment Susan thank you. Even looking up at the dark sky tonight illuminated by an almost full moon, fills me with a little hope for tomorrow. I’ll look up at our blue skies tomorrow with a fresher sense of what can be …

  27. Dear Susan,

    I can relate so much. The Paris shootings have been such an attack on my family’s sense of safety. My youngest son was in tears bacuse he realized there could be a war originating from this (if it has not already happend).
    I love the way you are spreading your love in this often cold world. People can hide so much: what pain that guy must have felt inside while outside he was cheerful. So much confusion and nobody there to read it…
    To end on a cheerful note: i am glad that you do the things you do. Writing, helping, being your warm and cheerful self. It can make all the difference in a life.

    • Susanne, thank you for commenting. Your poor dear tender younger son in tears. They will be lovingly wiped away I know … may the smile soon return to his young sweet face.

      We often hide our pain, even to ourselves, presenting a facade to the world. We can recognise pain – we all bear it in some way or the other. We have to develop the strength I guess to bear witness to it, and not look away from all the tragedy. And reach out in some way or the other…and somehow put fear on the back foot.

      Keep safe and family too Susanne.

  28. Hi Susan – I usually sink into abject oblivion for a very short time – but long enough to have an effect on me… when we experience things that are going on in the world at the moment. When I looked at your Colour Me Blue – I thought how lovely .. and then I started reading … not so good.

    Suicide is sad and desperate for those left behind … there is always a way through – but that chink of light isn’t necessarily there for those in such mental misery. Poor family …

    The homeless, the exhausted by the daily toil, the desperately poor, the hungry and all in similarly desperate situations … it can make us tired taking it all in – it’s so awful that South Africa wasn’t able to progress the way it certainly could and should have done. Too much selfishness … not enough thought by those in leadership roles, not enough consideration of others …

    We need all the help we can get to envelop the world, and help us get better … we need us who think, who can help, who do keep the world going round … certainly we must reach out … with thoughts – Hilary

    • Thank you Hilary. Maybe it’s time to not have people in political leadership roles any longer. Somehow, power corrupts along the way. Unless we have a Mr. Mandela. Maybe it really is up to each individual to be in service to himself and thereby to others as well … perhaps the wheel would grind less slowly.

      Envelop the world .. such a tender word. And reaching out .. beautiful contrasts which belong together. It makes me think of breathing in peace, breathing out love.

      Thank you again, Susan

  29. A beautiful and timely post Susan. The French film ‘Three Colours Trilogy’ directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski immediately came to mind as I read your post. Each motion picture, “Red,” “White” and “Blue” can be seen as a fragment on its own yet when the colours, films, and French flag are brought together they represent liberty, equality and fraternity. Each colour narrating a different story, each film revealing a different approach in understanding human weakness, solitude, aspirations and all those challenging, demanding ways of life.

    I cannot help but notice that there have been two devastating Friday nights in a row for you now – one far away, one close by. One in which others are murdered, the other in which a life is taken by choice. Had I not read your previous comment this month Susan and been divinely inspired by it, I would not have understood that you are bringing to consciousness how to further hold the tension of the opposites: Life/Death, Near/Far, Justice/Injustice, Red/White/Blue … a few, of which there are many you are no doubt considering today.

    It may be helpful to paint your blue, create your white, colour your red … if you don’t paint why not go on a detective hunt around your house and garden and externalise these colours … maybe you’ll find them in your wardrobe. Perhaps you’ll find them on teacups, cushions, or clothes. When found, why not consider bringing all three colours together or possibly keep them separate in order to dialogue with each … give them that external voice through Active Imagination … go back to the beginning and bear witness to the miracle of growth … so easily overlooked when feeling blue. Blessings, Deborah

    • Detective Deborah, thank you so much. I hadn’t thought in terms of red white and blue. And I’ll certainly see about externalising them – painting them or something. I’ve been fashioning a turtle out of clay (from a dream a few weeks back) and maybe I’ll bring those colours into it in some way. When finished, I’ll post a photo of it. Yes, there’ll be a bit of growth there among the grim. Thank you again, Susan.

  30. As you say it, I can see the child ☼ Around full moon is a good time to reach out and pray. Nature is calm and listens.

    • Thank you Ashen, and I’m pleased you saw it too … It was only later as I was trying to get photo from Ipad to post that it struck me. Tomorrow is full moon and I’ll make libations .. Nature is calm and listens: beautiful words thank you.

  31. Yes, Susan, there is sadness, anger, and poverty around the world. The world does not seem like it is getting better. But we must realize that there will always be sadness in the world. It is important to be aware of the issues, but at the same time treasure your blue sky and flowers. Our season is opposite of yours. We have had a devastating windstorm and I had to check to see that my daughter and family are OK. People in her area still are without power and it is 17 degrees there… VERY COLD.

    Yet, despite the tragedy in the world we need to be aware of the people who are working to help the homeless, the people without heat, the kids who are abused, etc. Despite the bleak that we see, there IS goodness in the world. We have to look for it. There are two sides to blue…the sadness and depression OR the love and joy. Acknowledge your feelings, do what you can to contribute to the happiness in the world, and acknowledge that there is still joy and goodness out there. We have to look for it. Know that you are a valuable person and smile!

    • Thank you dear Gwynn for coming by. As someone said remember the helpers when all about looks hopeless. Much is done here in our country for the upliftment of all and most of us are united in our wish for our country to reach its true glorious potential. Just been having a very blue day for a while.

      • Yes, I do “blue” days too. I hope the sun will come out and shine on you. You are too wonderful a person to have a “blue’ day. I’ll send BIG HUGS your way!

  32. I appreciate the stretching you are doing in your heart. Such a muscle, the heart is… one moment able to reach out in ecstasy to the beauty of the world, the next to break open with grief at some atrocity. Your small, but significant acts of prayer and mindfulness are inspiring. A very beautiful blog. Thank you… as the first snow dusts my garden here in Ontario. My pictures would look very different!

    • Thank you Andrea, I appreciate your comment. That’s exactly it – the agony and the ecstasy. Enjoy your snow dust sprinkled garden knowing that all is germinating until spring arrives.

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