Something Creative

"I'm always thinking about creating. 

My future starts when I wake up every morning . . . 

Every day I find something creative to do with my life."

~ Miles Davis

A little bit of snow on the ground, yes, but who has time to look down when the sky is playing a symphony of  colors above...

Applause

"There are high spots in all of our lives 

and most of them have come about 

through encouragement from someone else. 

I don't care how great, how famous 

or successful a man or woman may be, 

each hungers for applause."

 ~ George M. Adams

Faith Shines

This is what negative degrees look like. 

First light, new day.

Freezing cold outside.

But everything is 

clear and dry.

The United States is in the middle of a weather phenomenon called the Polar Vortex, responsible for one of the nation's coldest periods in two decades. We are all a-buzz with the cold today.

Western North Carolina is dealing with the coldest temperatures since 1985. Stay warm. Move smart, my friends... It is remarkably clear outside. The cold sky is absolutely beautiful.

All is gold. Inside. Outside. Along the ridge. Asheville glows.

Kolo close to me.

Kolo, huddles closer to me on the couch as I work on dailycelebrations.com. She snuggles deeply, as if to say, "please stay put." This tenacious dog makes it difficult for me to get up. However, I need to check on my sun which will rise without me.

Determination wins again.

Remembered my shoes.

I wait for the sun. Cresting the ridge, blazing, rising, throwing shadows and sparks against the ice flecked deck...

"I see heaven's glories shine
and faith shines equal."
~ Emily Brontë

Lifelong Attempt

"Your letter shows me also that 

wisdom is not a product of schooling 

but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it."

~ Albert Einstein

Letter, March 24, 1954

Snowflakes, gentle. Sun, strong. Cold air, warm hearts... Watching the sunrise reminds me. Every morning is rebirth. We can create good things w/ our gifts.

26° in Asheville this morning. The wind whips outside. Howling through dancing trees. In my haste to run outside, I forgot my shoes.

Hearty Laughter

"Hearty laughter is a good way 

to jog internally without having to go outdoors." 

~Norman Cousins

Catch the Trade Winds

"Throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. 

Catch the trade winds in your sails. 

Explore. Dream. Discover.." 

~ Mark Twain

Kolo surveys her kingdom...

Thanks, And Thanks

"My kind Antonio, I can no other answer make but thanks, And thanks."

~ William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night

Word After a Word

"A word after a word after a word is power." 

~ Margaret Atwood

This is the first year in a long time that I did not brave the midnight Black Friday crowds to find Christmas bargains. 

Instead, I was able to sleep in, cozy under comforters, then capture my sun, rising aglow over the strong, bare trees and snow-kissed mountain ridge...

Spirit and Soul

“I paint the spirit and soul of what I see.” 

― Brian Froud

Instead of a photograph, I captured this morning's sunrise in watercolor...

Our Language

"Our language has wisely sensed the two sides of being alone. 

It has created the word loneliness to express the pain of being alone. 

And it has created the word solitude 

to express the glory of being alone."

~ Paul Tillich

Joyful Heart

Happy Birthday, Kaylala

"A joyful heart is the inevitable result of a heart burning with love."

 ~ Mother Teresa

Every Single Day

“There's a sunrise and a sunset every single day, 

and they're absolutely free. Don't miss so many of them.”

~ Jo Walton

Kayla caught me in joyful motion, just chasing my morning sun...

True Strength

"In separateness lies the world's greatest misery;

in compassion lies the world's true strength."

~ Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha

When my sun crests, I know everything will be all right. Aloha takes over.

Travel

“The world is a book, 

and those who do not travel

read only a page.” 

~St. Augustine

Heading in the cold fog on Interstate 64 from Lewisburg, West Virginia, to Covington, Virginia, I was lucky enough to get this shot from the Harley.

Holy Spirit

"I myself do nothing.

The Holy Spirit accomplishes all through me."

~ William Blake

Learn, Teach

"When you learn, teach.
When you get, give."

~ Maya Angelou

Quite Vast

"So then, I expressed the word 'aloha,' very simple, 

but real meaning of aloha is quite vast. 

You need a lot of effort to implement 

the real meaning of aloha."

~ The Dalai Lama

Another view of this morning's sunrise on my Tumblr account...

Yes: I am a Dreamer

 "Yes: I am a dreamer. 

For a dreamer is one who can 

only find his way by moonlight, 

and his punishment is that he sees the dawn 

before the rest of the world." 

~ Oscar Wilde, 

The Critic as Artist

Heaven

"Heaven is under our feet

 as well as over our heads."

~ Henry David Thoreau

Be Yourself

"Be yourself;

Everyone else is taken."

~ Oscar Wilde