LOOK AT THE STARS. LOOK HOW THEY SHINE FOR YOU.

http://www.agweb.com/multimedia/high-plains-success-story/

I have typed and erased a million things that could potentially screw up the awesomeness of this video. Nothing needs to be said except I am honored to know this family. I am honored to have known Adam and I am honored to be Becca's best friend. They are all the most wonderful stars I have ever encountered.

LIFE'S A GARDEN. DIG IT.

I have had the overwhelming urge to write lately. I feel moonbeams shooting out of my fingertips. I think, for the most part, the rough waters of project transition have subsided and it is time to embark on a new journey or maybe it is time to conquer being still. I feel something wonderful waiting around the corner or perhaps I am already living it and just beginning to recognize its presence. Perhaps, I have found peace or it has somehow found me.

Many days, I close my eyes and envision myself in a sun dress walking through my herb garden, Betty following closely behind picking flowers. I let her smell the rosemary on my hands and we sit under the big oak. We plant. We grow. We feel warm sunshine on our necks. We wash. We cook. We read. We sleep. Betty and me. I know it sounds dreamy and perhaps too simplistic but these thoughts have been drifting around in my head for months now. They are kites waiting for a string. I feel my dreams becoming a reality. I feel myself taking these tiny seeds of thought and planting them firmly in the ground of our life. I feel a new beginning in store.

It’s as if one day I finally woke from a deep slumber and said to myself, “Self, you can BE more than you ever thought possible. You have endured and there is a fantastic life before you. BE a haven for Betty. Self, it is time to begin again.”

Betty has a house with a Koi pond and a garden; a house with a pink room and a princess bed. She is a very happy, well-adjusted 3 year old and I am constantly amazed by her resilience and contagious spirit. She laughs and pretends and loves and dances and holds my hand.

I have a wood burning pizza oven and a new kitchen window. I have a turquoise front door which will soon be yellow. I am the owner of a strong spirit and repaired core. I feel so incredibly blessed and happy to live my life. I feel that each and every day is a gift.

So on this cold winter day, I remind you to wonder what waits around you soul’s corner. What winds will fill the sails of new voyage? I urge you to enjoy the new buds of spring and invite you to plant a seed and help it grow.

To my tiny seedling, I love you more than you will ever know.

FELIZ CUMPLEANOS CARLOS!

On this day 27 years ago, a wrinkle faced baby boy was thrust into this earth and didn’t seem to be one bit happy about it.

I will never forget holding him for the first time. I will never forget how much he resembled a little old man, his brow crinkled and face puckered post-lemon style.

Since that day my brother has become my very best friend. Each and every day, I am inspired by him and in awe of his compassion and generosity. He touches those around him in such a profound way. He gives and gives and gives a little more. He is kind and caring and listens with an open heart.

It is a rare occurence in this world to find a person of the heart; a person in tune with his sensitive side and unscathed by ego or selfishness. He has taught my sister and me a deeper meaning of love and how to be proud of each other. I can only hope that someday Betty finds someone so good, so protective of other’s feelings, and so incredibly endearing.

I chose this picture because it is here he is the happiest. He has always been at ease and good with the world on a beach or in a tree. He adores a dip in the ocean or flying through clouds in the sky. He has a deep appreciation for nature and all that she has to offer and loves nothing more than to have his toes in the sand.

Happy Birthday to my baby brother! You are one helluva guy.

HONEY

THIS WONDERFUL LIFE

"It is good for us, I think, to keep as much joy in life as we can.

We busy ourselves with so many things that are not of the heart and spirit. We worry about money, we agonize over the terrible state of the world, we fret at household duties or business minutiae, we work, we argue, we squander our strength in a million ways.

And all the time the wonder of life is around us, the ecstasy of breathing air ravished by apple blossoms, of walking on fern-cooled driftways, of listening to young leaves moving in the moonlight, and seeing the twilight stars in the violet bowl of the sky.

There is enough joy in one spring day to furnish forth the world, if we but knew it."

-Gladys Tabor

FLORENCE + THE INCREDIBLE LEGS

TO ROME

My Dear Roma,

So your food, wine, and scenery were no less than BAD TO THE ASSK. I have never felt more alive than tossing my heart’s desire into the Trevi Fountain.
But we all know I am a people person. I love people in all shapes, forms and fashions. I love meeting people and learning about people and watching people. I love shaking a new hand as much as I love Rughetta pizza. So Dear Rome, my most favorite part about you? Your peeps of course. What I brought home from Italy that I love the most is: Julia, Ewan, Marco, Chiara, Tiziana, Andre, and all the rest of you whose names I cannot spell.

So it goes a little something like this:

Me: Do not go out alone after dark.

Me: I am somehow missing the Italian merriment I dreamt of. Where’s all the yelling and obnoxious laughter?

Me: Do not go out alone after dark.

Me: Is there a little pub close that would be safe for me to go to alone after dark?
Hotel Bartender: Yes, just down the street. Tree Folk’s.

Me: Just walk by. If you feel safe, stop in for a beer.

And the rest is history. I spent New Year’s Eve in front of Tree Folk’s with all of the people listed above and watched fireworks over the Coloseum. I kissed a lot of cheeks and WHOOPED it up Italian style. And I made, what I believe will be, lifelong friends. Be afraid, Spearman. Be very afraid. I anticipate a gang of Italians stomping on your ground before summer’s end.