Human Temptation

"The biggest human temptation 

is to settle for too little."

~ Thomas Merton

Fountain of Gladness

"A kind heart is a fountain of gladness, 

making everything in its vicinity freshen into smiles."

~ Washington Irving

Every morning, I am snapping photos as I wait for the sunrise. I just can't help but observe my world this way. My camera and I have a special relationship with the morning sky. My awareness grows with the emerging light.  I believe we all share this light.

I don't always have time to post my photos, my archive is large. But I think when I do finally share, sometimes even wordlessly, my intimate narrative shines through.

Sending smiles of love to the world...

God in Everything

"A state of mind that sees God in everything

 is evidence of growth in grace and a thankful heart."

~ Charles G. Finney

Coherent Understanding

Fall is a coherent understanding
of life

glorious.

This morning, looking into the cove, just as the sun crests, I feel the sounds of peace. It wraps me in a blanket of calm. I look, hear, smell, touch the sunlight, the chilly mixed with warmth and fire. The colors vibrate.

Longing of the Soul

"Prayer is not asking. 

It is a longing of the soul. 

It is daily admission of one's weakness. 

It is better in prayer to have a heart without words 

than words without a heart."

~ Mahatma Gandhi

The sunrise photograph this morning was taken with my iPad2. I am giving my device some attention since I will soon be replacing this three year old friend when the new iPad Air2 is released on October 26.

In charming response to my attention, my iPad2 captured two hearts in the clouds. I gladly transformed the photo into a watercolor, using my Waterlogue application. 

Thanks to the heart clouds, I found the Mahatma Gandhi quote about prayer and things flowed and fit.

Prayer is a longing of the heart. And the wordless prayers say the most.

Promise of Happiness

7:39 AM

"Beauty is the promise of happiness."
~ Marie Henri Beyle

Playing Out Your Dreams

"Writing a story is like playing out your dreams 

while you are awake."

~ Haruki Murakami 

An Individual Creation

"A joyful life is an individual creation

 that cannot be copied from a recipe."

~ Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Just As You Are

7:23 AM. Bird is singing sweetly. Rooster responds in the cove. Another bird. More colors. 

"You are more powerful than you know; 

you are beautiful just as you are."

~ Melissa Etheridge

How wonderful, the sky, this moment. These thoughts.

My sunrise companion

Source of Light

"The sky is the source of light in Nature 
and it governs everything."
~ John Constable

7:15 AM

For the Light to Shine

It is beautiful here right now.

"For the light to shine so brightly, 

the darkness must be present." 

~ Francis Bacon

The rain cleared the sky. Gold and tender fog kiss the mountains.

Wonder

"I don't think there is any better worship than wonder." 

~ Donald Miller

5:55 AM: Looking up, the sky is a gift of heart clouds. And dreams...

Unchanging Principles

"Adjust to changing times, 

but cling to unchanging principles."

~ Jimmy Carter