Rainy

The steady downpour makes the forest deeper,

the new green more tender,

the stubborn ash leaves more stalwart.

Focus

An old, snowy photo illustrates how focus changes what we see.  The background is the logical subject, but then -- would we miss the droplets for the trees?

Remembering to Look Up

With blinders on, circumstances overwhelm.
One runs into the next.
Some resolve, some persist.
Realities flip.
We question our grasp.
Outside of this, looking back,
will we remember what it was about?
Does it matter, or is the point in the struggle?
Looking up, a flash of perspective soothes,
if only for a moment.

Inspired

This scrappy dogwood was very old when we moved here seventeen years ago.  We were advised to remove it because of structural damage but I was taken by its stalwart spirit.  Transfigured by trauma, it persists and reaches, still, for the light.

Terrible Things

Some things, unforeseen, knock us off kilter.  Early on, full of hope and resilience, we glean gifts from the wreckage and move forth, stronger at the seams. 

Some things come in quick succession, before the last seam has cured. 

Some things irrevocably change us.  We become unrecognizable to ourselves, unsure of our seams.

Some things happen over and over again.  The price of changing our response is too high.  Those for whom the price is not too high begin to fall away, one by one.

Isolated, brittle from vigilance, we move forward, trying everything.  With each failure, we retreat within, in search of our innocence, where we might find a spark of hope.

Depleted, disoriented, stillness is a balm as we wait for the next . . . thing.

Resilience

Today I'm noticing the natural world sometimes behaves in unexpected ways.  This succulent I potted in warmer days has lived through at least one freeze so far.  Looking closely, a fine peachfuzz may be helping this resilient plant adapt -- at least for a while.  Efficient gardeners would have pulled these up already in favor of hardier stock, but I'd rather watch and see what happens.

Checking in on my sweet potato surprise, I see progress.  The heart-shaped shoots are like a valentine.