Seeing, Hearing, Feeling

Asheville, North Carolina

"Seeing, hearing, feeling, are miracles, and each part and tag of me is a miracle." ~ Walt Whitman

The Gorgeous Clouds are a ceiling of midnight and sky blue cotton balls this morning. Stunning... So peaceful... & lovely. A feeling of goodness. Happiness... Now roaring red-orange. Passion... I can't do justice to the sky. It is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen...

Change Ourselves

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

Not a cloud in the sky. Visibility! Mountains ringing Asheville glow golden.

Amy Grant, ♪♫ ♪♫ Breath of Heaven ♪♫ ♪♫

Simple Things Well

"Focus on what you know you can do.
Know what you’re capable of on any given day,
and what you can count on.
Do the simple things well,
and then use the confidence
to build up the rest of your game."
~ Mia Hamm

Rather nippy out here... Can the sun be more golden? The sky more blue? Something about the cold makes my heart shine through...

Words of Encouragement

Gentle snowflakes and another magical sunrise. Some sort of optical wonder...

Ice on back deck... Numb fingers and face. But who cares?

"Words of encouragement fan the spark of genius
into the flame of achievement.
Legend tells us that Lincoln’s dying mother
called her small son to her bedside and whispered,
‘Be somebody, Abe’."
~ Wilfred A. Peterson

Love Is a Miracle

"Miracles occur naturally as expressions of love. The real miracle is the love that inspires them. In this sense everything that comes from love is a miracle."

~ A Course In Miracles

That sunrise was miraculous...

Rosanne Cash, ♪♫ ♪♫ It Came Upon a Midnight Clear ♪♫ ♪♫

Lovely Snowflakes

Snowing! The sun and birds come out to play...

Ahh the gray clouds have moved in. It's snowing in Asheville. Above me, a patch of blue...Beautiful!

"Lovely snowflakes, they fall nowhere else!"
~ Zen Saying

Good beautiful morning! Dawn's first light reveals snow on the back deck and a sky to welcome the sun rise...Lovely quiet. Aloha in the air. Christmas tree lights and fresh coffee. Snow on the ground. Time for prayers and gratitude.

Over There

Don't know about sunrise this morning, but the cloud show is miraculous.

"I love the clouds...
the clouds that pass by... over there...
over there... those lovely clouds!"
~ Charles Baudelaire

Okay, I am dressed like an Eskimo because it is really cold on the deck this morning... But 1st light is magnificent... No stars, just gray clouds. And prayers of blessings... Shapes and glow inspire me to (finally) write that overdue letter to my childhood friend in NYC... Clouds, my heart, glow...

Wings

I was lucky enough to catch this bird, welcoming the sun with me...

"There is no flying without wings."
~ French Proverb

Golden sky. All wonder... So peaceful & life-affirming... With wings, my imagination takes flight...

Elevated and Great

"What a grand thing to be loved;
what a grander thing still to love.
The heart becomes heroic through passion.
It is no longer composed of anything
but what is pure;
it no longer rests upon anything
but what is elevated and great."
~ Victor Hugo

Practice Compassion

World AIDS Day...

"If you want others to be happy,
practice compassion.
If you want to be happy,
practice compassion."
~ Dalai Lama

So pretty here. Heavy clouds where sun will rise, but there is clear sky and radiant light over downtown Asheville... And a small patch of dawn above me...

What Life is Made Up Of

"If you love life, don't waste Time,
for time is what life is made up of."
~ Bruce Lee

One's Courage

Dawn's moon, the tree tops, and a squirrel's nest...

"Life shrinks or expands
in proportion to one’s courage."
~ Anais Nin

No clouds. But valley is engulfed in fog. Looks like fantasy land...This morning Fog, a thick blanket, like every secret we hide... Like the heart, a mystery, a celebration: Glowing Golden

Recklessness and Freedom

It's a cloud and fog show this morning. Spectacular sunrise about to crest!

"The way to find your true self is by
recklessness and freedom."
~ Brenda Ueland

Santana, India Arie, YoYo Ma, ♪♫ ♪♫ While My Guitar Gently Weeps ♪♫ ♪♫

Blessings

I spend my time celebrating the sunrise, but last night's blue moon, was pretty spectacular. From my vantage point, way more brilliant than the Asheville lights below...

"By looking up,
by raising our eyes above our limited horizon,
we are more likely to perceive the blessings
hidden in affliction."
~ David Steindl-Rast

Thanksgiving week--My heart is focused on gratitude and love. Mahalo all!

Filling Some Other Body

Moon setting in front forest...

"A Poet... has no Identity--
he is continually.. filling some other Body--
the Sun, the Moon, the Sea and Men and Women."
~ John Keats

Dawn this morning is fog and fire. Mist in the valley and orange red bursts along the ridge.

This morning's prayers, all rock & roll. Very spiritual experience. Full up. Singing and dancing with my random shuffle. Meeting the sun, heart wide open. Cresting song: Dave Matthews Band, ♪♫ ♪♫ #41 ♪♫ ♪♫ , Accident? I think not.

For the Sake of Other Men

"You do not belong to you. You belong to the universe. The significance of you will forever remain obscure to you, but you may assume that you are fulfilling your significance if you apply yourself to converting all your experience to highest advantage of others. You and all men are here for the sake of other men."
~ R. Buckminster Fuller

Oh, the sky is glowing orange gold and I can still see the stars, fading softly with the new light. So beautiful... We have this miracle dawn every morning... Light and color transforming the sky. Change per second. Dominant shadow of ridge, strong foundation. Grounding. Hope.

How You Finish

Had some company this morning watching the sun rise...




"You have to meet all of the challenges,
big and small.
Because how you start is how you finish."
~ Bernie Mac

Venus burns brightly in twilight sky. Peace, gratitude, hope... What a holy morning...Light, wonderful blessing, fills the sky as I finish my prayers. Celebrate life...

Deep Wild Rock Molten

Happy birthday, Kayla...

"Go deeper than love,
for the soul has greater depths,
love is like the grass, but the heart is deep
wild rock molten, yet dense and permanent."
~ D. H. Lawrence

Sky, some sort of orange miracle. Vibrant glowing clouds bright Creamsicle... (My photos are not photoshopped. I say this because even though today's sunrise looks like it is, it still doesn't do sky justice.)

It Is

"Beauty is not caused. It is."
~ Emily Dickinson

So..much...beauty... Takes the breath away... Sunrise.

Nora Jones: ♪♫ ♪♫ Sunrise ♪♫ ♪♫ ( h/t @JackieYunTweets )

Love and Knowledge

"Where nature is concerned,
familiarity breeds love and knowledge,
not contempt."
~ Stewart Udall

This anticipation never goes away... It sure feels good when that sun crests. Finally... Now my world is awash with bright light... Very powerful sun this morning. Full force kisses of light.

Say What You Feel

"Be who you are and say what you feel,
because those who mind don't matter
and those who matter don't mind."
~ Dr. Seuss

Another cloudless morning. The sky along the ridge glows gold against the blue sky... Venus glows in the sky, like some secret promise & fills my heart with love...The sky's colors keep changing, like a bright kaleidoscope. It is now white light against pale blue-gray, waiting for the sun.

Chill in the air, planes in the sky. Wide open sky. Big blue sky. Big enough for every dream and prayer... Totally accidental, but my favorite photo this morning has my feet in it... Ahh, look at my kingdom at my feet.

Loneliness

"Loneliness makes the loudest noise."
~ Eric Hoffer

Caught dawn’s morning star… Tumblr

Time is Eternity

"Time is too slow for those who wait,
too swift for those who fear,
too long for those who grieve,
too short for those who rejoice,
but for those who Love, time is eternity."
~ Henry van Dyke

Believed the Best

"I have believed the best of every man.
And find that to believe is enough
to make a bad man show him at his best,
or even a good man swing his lantern higher."
~ William Butler Yeats

Awe

"Awe is what moves us forward."
~ Joseph Campbell

Glorious sunrise. Cold air fills the lungs with joy. Feels so good to be alive.

Ask Your Heart

Passionate colors of morning light...

"Go to your bosom:
Knock there, and ask your heart
what it doth know."
~ William Shakespeare

Cold, but extraordinary visibility. Ridge awash with light and color... Sun is coming!

I always think the bare trees on the very top look like soldiers, saluting the sun: tumblr

Joni Mitchell: ♪♫ ♪♫ Both Sides Now ♪♫ ♪♫ ( h/t @michaelfmuller )

Sun God

Snow flurries on the deck. Red fire, swallowed up by gray clouds. Beautiful gold over Asheville. Clouds are putting on a show...No sunrise.

"Be... as a page that aches for a word
which speaks on a theme
that is timeless...

While the Sun God will make for your day..."

~Neil Diamond

Neil Diamond: ♪♫ ♪♫ Be ♪♫ ♪♫

Castles in the Air

"If you have built castles in the air,
your work need not be lost;
That is where they should be.
Now put foundations under them."
~ Henry David Thoreau

New Hope

"The word 'no' denotes a shutting of the door.
It means failure, defeat, delay.
But spell in backwards and take new hope,
for backwards it spells 'on.'"
~ Norman Vincent Peale

Heavy Gray Clouds, so no blinding light today. The sun remains a magnificent, iridescent beacon.

Sense of Obligation

"A man said to the universe:
Sir, I exist!
However, replied the universe,
The fact has not created in me
A sense of obligation."
~ Stephen Crane

Ribbons of orange clouds smear the golden sky. Oh, it is pretty today! The sky is open wide with color!

First Dawn

"Yes, I now feel that it was then on that evening of sweet dreams that the very first dawn of human love burst upon the icy night of my spirit. Since that period I have never seen nor heard your name without a shiver half of delight, half of dreams"
~Edgar Allen Poe

Absolutely love how the light gradually fills the sky with color, accenting the shadows of Pisgah National Forest. Stunning natural beauty... The cold air just makes it all more magical...Incredible visibility. What are all these flocks of tiny black birds? There are dozens soaring together across the sky...Counting planes. Six. Beginning to know the daily Asheville airport flight plans. What a great time to fly.

To Love

"I have seen the truth. It is not as though I had invented it with my mind. I have seen it, seen it, and the living image of it has filled my soul forever …In one day, one hour, everything could be arranged as one. The chief thing is to love."
~ Fyodor Dostoevsky

Mountain Ridge, my heart, glows passionately...

Victories of the Soul

"There are victories of the soul and spirit.
Sometimes, even if you lose, you win."
~ Elie Wiesel

Light clouds along ridge. Ageless shadow and silhouette. Mountain strength. Holy. Humbled by beautiful ribbons of orange blue gold...We are, at the same time insignificant... and essential...Hints of fire, passion, make the clouds glow red. The sun is coming!

Oh, My Passion!

"Oh, my passion!
That is what finally carried me through.
Let passion burn all the way,
heating up every layer of the psyche."
~ Natalie Goldberg

Feels the Light

Yipeee!! Can't believe the sky opened for me!

"Faith is the bird that feels the light
and sings when the dawn is still dark."
~ Rabindranath Tagore

Earlier HOPE (always for me) for sun to crest with all that lavender sky gone. Now it's all gray and raining. Calm & quiet. Gentle cool rain... Finishing my prayers & counting my blessings... No matter what the weather condition, it is always breath-catching beautiful along this ridge. I love Asheville... I got a glorious sunrise!

As Loving As You Can

"Don't be afraid to feel as angry or as loving as you can,
because when you feel nothing, it's just death."
~ Lena Horne

Oh man, it is gorgeous on my ridge. Fantastic clouds and light and I am just thrilled here.

Sunrise on tumblr