Sunshine on a cloudy day

Lake effect clouds streaming in

Yesterday afternoon brought a beautiful mix of clouds, sunshine, and lake effect snow.  I was so busy posting leftovers that I didn’t get around to looking at the photos from my walk.  That has turned out to be a good thing because I don’t have time to upload and sort through the photos from today’s walk.

Moss and fungus

I woke up to clear skies and cold temperatures this morning.  Ice was once again forming around the edges of the pond.  I had hoped to walk down to the woods to look at the ice near the creek, but it’s still too squishy in spots.  Maybe tomorrow.  It’s going to be in the 20’s again tonight so ice formations are likely.

The result of Dutch Elm disease

Those of you who have been around Life in the Bogs for a while might remember that each year on the Winter Solstice I pick a word or theme for the year.  Most people wait for January 1st, but the Winter Solstice feels more like the start of a new year to me.  Always has.

Long shadow

The past three years have been variations on a theme.  Simplicity.  Decluttering.  Letting Go.  It has become evident to me that I’m missing something as my life seems just as complicated, cluttered, and grasping as ever.  (That sounds harsh, doesn’t it?  I don’t mean it that way.  I’m being honest.)

Pretty light

I’m pondering what the first steps towards simplicity, decluttering, and letting go might be.  It’s not that I haven’t made some progress.  There have been small victories which add up to a bigger victory.  Still, I have a long way to go towards where I thought I’d be by now.  Slow and steady is good.  Stuck is not.

The combination of dark clouds and sunlight gave the pond a greenish hue.

I’ve come across a lot of messages lately along the lines of this one from Yogi tea:  Empty yourself and let the universe fill you.  Interesting, but I’m not sure how I feel about Empty as my new theme or word or phrase for the upcoming year.  It’s certainly worth considering, although it is likely another variation on the same theme.

Outer edge of the woods

To be alive is to totally and openly participate in the simplicity and elegance of here and now.

~ Donald Altman

Around the bend

What does come to mind is, well, Mindfulness.  Or Be Mindful.

Peering in

Mindfulness isn’t difficult, we just need to remember to do it.

~ Sharon Salzberg

Looking out over the Future Woods

Let go of your mind and then be mindful.
Close your ears and listen!

~ Rumi

One of the wonderful things I’ve noticed about a practice of mindfulness is that I not only ground myself in the moment, but I am grounded within myself and given a better feel for what it is I want or don’t want, need or don’t need, and the little bit of wisdom to know the difference between want and need.  Needs, it turns out, are simpler and fewer than wants.  Example:  I want a new camera.  I don’t need it, and am usually perfectly happy and grateful for what I do have.

The Birch

That’s enough pondering for today.  Thank you for visiting with me here in the Bogs, and joining me on another ramble around the pond.  Be good, be kind, be loving, just Be.  🙂

The sky

You are the sky.  Everything else — it’s just the weather.

~ Pema Chödrön

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