A flicker of light~
Twinkling and twirling around...
Fireflies at night.
While in Minnesota, our Ukrainian friends saw fireflies for the first time. They were excited. We were with them one evening, and the fireflies were dancing all around us. We all enjoyed seeing the fireflies, as well as our friend’s excitement.
A hedgehog I saw in the wild in Ukraine, 2008.
I told them the one and only time I saw a hedgehog was in Ukraine, and it was exciting to see it. We walked to a village after class one day, to an interpreter’s home, and we saw a cute, little hedgehog tucked away on the side of the path.
God is creative!
“God made the animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the crates that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:24
A sun dog filled the sky one morning last week. A fun sight to see, especially in its fullness which I didn’t capture on camera.
Twenty Twenty-Two:
One more trip around the sun -
Ponder lessons learned.
Cheers to the new year!
Welcome Twenty Twenty-Three.
Adventures await!
Valerie
I like this quote:
Tomorrow {Today} is the first blank page of a 365-page-book. Write a good one.
Brad Paisley
So sweet and so small…the red feather next to sunflower seeds for perspective. I’m assuming it’s from a cardinal. I spotted the feather in one of our window bird feeders.
Tiny red feather
Stood out among the birdseed...
A love gift for me?
A happy sight.
I’m going with the idea it was left behind as a love token for me. 😉
I was the benefactor of an unexpected gift recently. I can’t remember the last time I received an unanticipated gift. A gift, intended only for me…for no reason…no special occasion. A friend just thought of me when she saw the gift, bought it and wrapped in up in a “brown paper package tied up with string”.
A beautiful surprise: a brown paper package tied up with string…
Wonder, why, love…were the thoughts and questions I asked myself as I read the sticker on the paper with the string forming a frame around the words, “Thanks for being you.” I was deeply touched.
I carefully untied the string and removed the brown paper. It was a small, vintage book titled, One year of haiku. What a thoughtful gift. I like books, especially old ones. I write haikus, and like to read haikus written by others. The gift inspires me…not only to write haikus, but to pay it forward.
Thank you, friend.
And so, I wrote a haiku:
Given from the heart
Unexpected gift tag read
Thanks for being you.
Time for spring cleaning
It is a lot of hard work,
But satisfying.
When it’s done, I’m glad.
But, there is always more to do.
For now, it’s enough.
As spring emerges~
It’s time for new adventures.
Wonder what they’ll be?
A clown with many faces.
As we were spring cleaning last week, I brought down a clown that sits on a high shelf, to dust it off. As I was dusting it, I was transported down memory lane.
This clown was from my mom’s collection. She had quite a fun collection. I wish I had taken a photo of all the different clowns she had at one time. Whenever I see a clown figurine, I think of her. She died in 2009.
I kept one of her clowns. It’s a wonderful clown, with masks that can be put on and off its face. Not only is the clown a nice remembrance of my mother, but also, it evokes fond memories from when we would go visit her when my boys were little. They would always ask grandma if they could change out the masks on that clown. She would say “yes”, and they boys would carefully put on a new mask.
After cleaning up the clown, we put it back up on the shelf, where it stands tall (ready to perform for us I think) until the next time.
There is a lot of public art in Lanesboro, Minnesota, starting as soon as you enter town, in the parking lot close to the downtown area.
One of several haikus posted in the general parking lot in Lanesboro.
On each lamp post in the parking lot is a plaque with haikus posted for people to enjoy. The haikus are responses to the Lanesboro Arts Poetry Series. What a fun way to welcome people to town.
The plaque reads: 1893 Chicago Bridge Co.
We walked away from the parking lot toward town on a path that led us over the Root River on an historic bridge, now a pedestrian bridge, built in 1893. The bridge leads you to a side street in town. And there, on the side of a brick building, is a wonderful public art display of four mosaic panels.
1 of 4 mosaic panels.
The bike trail and rolling hills and farm fields near Lanesboro.
Mosaics have always intrigued me. I’m fascinated to see images and pictures created from small, colorful tiles, or stones and other such elements (in this case some pieces of mirrors).
2 of 4 mosaic panels. An eagle over land and river, a big-wheel trike in the foreground, and flowers.
These panels were the results of an Artist in Residence project in 2017. The artist, Bailey Aaland, involved the community in making these panels which, I think, adds a special touch.
The plaque explaining the mosaic public art pieces.
According to the artists plaque, she offered mosaic making sessions to community members, mirrors were donated by local residents to be used in the mural, and participants, working off Bailey’s outline, “helped shape the design throughout the creation process.”
3 of 4 mosaic panels. Tractors and bicycles on land, near river.
The results were four very creative, beautiful depictions of the surrounding areas of Lanesboro…the bike trail, the farm fields, the bluffs, the river.
4 of 4 mosaic panels. A bridge, fish, land and river.
It’s a wonderful display, showing off the area, and the collaborative work of the community, for the enjoyment of all people.
A mural in an empty space on Lanesboro’s main street.
Another public art piece in Lanesboro is on the main street, in an empty green space between buildings. It is a colorful, painted mural of the town’s name, providing a photo op for many people. There are picnic tables in this area too, offering space for people to gather together to gather to visit, eat or rest. During our overnight stay there was a community event held in this outdoor space.
Little Lending Art Cupboard:
on wheels…rolled out onto main street for folks to borrow art supplies.
To encourage art, instead of a “Little Free Library” there was a “Little Lending Art Cupboard” in this same community space. The cupboard is full of art supplies, and was on wheels so it could be set out during the day and taken in at night, or kept out of the rain, and moved around town to different locations I suppose. It encouraged people to “Take what you need, leave what you can. Because everyone needs a little art in their life!” The Art Cupboard was created by Girl Scout Troop 47985. What a great idea. I haven’t seen that before.
It was delightful to take in the variety of public art displays created with the intention of sharing them with the Lanesboro community and its many visitors.
