Take the Opportunities

"I take the opportunities each day offers:
 if it is snowing, I work with snow, 
at leaf fall it will be with leaves; 
a blown over tree becomes 
a source of twigs and branches."
~ Andy Goldsworthy

This morning, a cold seat on the deck to watch my sunrise.

Change

"When we are no longer able
to change a situation...
We are challenged to change ourselves."
~ Victor Frankl

Sunday morning, white and cold...New day, bright possibilities...

Sky Sparkling

"We shall find peace.
We shall hear the angels,
we shall see the sky sparkling
with diamonds."
~ Anton Chekhov

The morning sky is a film of lavendar, pink, and gold. Smeared clouds with flecks of gold nuggets where the sun will soon be...Can there be that many shades of purple?

That's the 5th plane that's left Asheville airport to fly over me...Now the sky is gray with faint ribbons of gold... Where or where is sun? Alas, no sunrise. .. The sun has been swallowed up in gray. Still spectacular sky.

Need Each Other

"We all need each other."
~ Leo Buscaglia

Beautiful cold morning here in the mountains. Exhilarating crisp...Waiting on sun...Clouds, fire red glowing, hover along ridge. Anger, Passion, Creativity? Just enough room for the sun to rise...Red clouds transformed to golden wash: Brilliant light...

(Oh it is one of those sunrises where each photo is lovely. How do I choose?)

In the Clouds

"Life is in the clouds:
Great life, broad life, deep life, elevated life."
~ Hawaiian Proverb

No sunrise this morning. Just great, reckoning light... and deep clouds, crossed with dozens of jet vapor trails. A pensive gift of movement and promise?

Follow the Grain

"Follow the grain in your own wood."
~ Howard Thurman

Stillness. Waiting on the sun... Bare, cloudless ridge. Soft yellow light glows, anticipating main event. Mountain powerful pulse of golden glory. All systems go!

Bright sun and memories of Daddy's wood crafts. Beautiful woodwork discovered here: http://www.fableporchfurniture.com/ "All of our pieces are built one piece at a time start to finish. This gives each piece its own sense of uniqueness."

Because It Is Good

"Work for something because it is good,
not just because it stands a chance
to succeed."
~ Vaclav Havel

Thick cloud coverage, weighing heavy on the ridge this morning. Another day without a sunrise? ...Then, miraculously, as the rain began to fall, the sun broke through, with magnificent rays of love.

Passion and Hard Work

"Passion and hard work
makes a great player,
but the Courage to get up
every time you fall
is what makes a champion."
~ Jeanette Lee

Oh my, the clouds are red along the ridge and they quickly transform from red to orange to gold... Seconds matter when the sun decides to rise.

Everything Successful

"Integrity is the essence
of everything successful."
~ R. Buckminster Fuller

On Surprise

"Expect nothing; live frugally on surprise."
~ Alice Walker

Clouds clothe ridge with light gray.

Mist settles in valley, branches, at my feet.

No sun, no drama, just rain, peace, and beauty...

Then, ridge reveals

Blue sky above,

gray clouds ahead,

rain, and moving mist.

Change so fast, you scream, "aha!"

With the crows cawing

At unexpected surprise...

Love Can Do That

"Hate cannot drive out hate.
Only love can do that."
~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

Breathe wide open sky.

Touch light with face, hands, heart.

The clouds, a heartbeat: eternal love.

Overcome Adversity

"One who gains strength
by overcoming obstacles
possesses the only strength which can
overcome adversity."
~ Albert Schweitzer

The clouds this morning are like smeared pastels against the soft sky...Dawn's sweet Light makes the snow glow whiter than white...Thousands of trees, bare and strong, salute the light. A celebration of all that is good & holy & true...The sun is coming...

Something Good

"Leave something good in every day."
~ Dolly Parton

Face a Challenge

"Face a challenge and find joy
in the capacity to meet it."
~ Ayn Rand

The sky colors come and go so quickly. Each second, a breath-catch and revelation.

Time In a Bottle

"If I could save Time in a bottle,
The first thing that I'd like to do.
Is to save every day,
Till Eternity passes away,
Just to spend them with you."
~ Jim Croce

This morning, there's a beam of light connecting the sun to heaven... and snowflakes. Lots of snowflakes.

Habit

"Habit has a kind of poetry."
~ Simone de Beauvoir

Pre-dawn Asheville sky is indigo and cloudless...9˚ F in Enka, -5 with windchill... Sun's fire along the ridge and snow flurries tickling my tongue... Ahhhhhh...

Glowing New Metaphor

"The coldest Word
was once a glowing new metaphor."

~ Thomas Carlyle

Private Door

"God enters by a private door
into every individual."
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Cloud action this morning on ridge. Looks promising for nice sunrise...Sitting, waiting, praying... Predawn orange and light that take your breath away.

Each Moment

"Take care of each moment
and you will take care of all Time."
~ The Buddha

All I know: It's freezing, but the sky is remarkable...Wild light rays. Watercolor clouds and golden beacon...

All There Is

Happy Birthday, Susi...

"That love is all there is is all we know of love."
~ Emily Dickinson

This morning the ridge (and my spirit) glows orange, anticipating the cresting sun. My camera can't quite capture the colors correctly... The moon & I wait for the sun to rise: http://twitpic.com/wmvx9

Best in Winter

"Grace growest best in winter."
~Samuel Rytherfond

Constant Observation

"Art demands constant observation."
~ Vincent Van Gogh

Okay. I am waiting for the sun and looked the other way... A spectacular pre-sunrise moon through the branches.

Thunder and Lightning

"If I accept the sunshine and Warmth,
then I must also accept the thunder and lightning."
~ Kahlil Gibran

OK. Update: According to weather.com, in Asheville, North Carolina, "it's 17 degrees...feels like 2." Two! Two! Two is an age, not a temperature...

Blazing sun and gentle snow flakes....