Life

“Attachment to a hurt arising from a past event

blocks the inflow of hope into our lives.”

~St. John of the Cross

 

I stumbled upon this quote last week in a book I was reading.  It got me thinking.   About lots of things. But namely--with Mother’s Day-- it got me thinking about how important it is that we not hang onto past hurts, but rather learn from them and grow from them.  

Celebrating Mother's Day without your mom, I imagine, will never be an easy thing.   There will always be hurt and sadness.   But what was reinforced in me this year is that there is so much hope all around me.  In the every day with Lucy.  In the small and trivial and mundane.  In the joys of life and all the wonders of creation.  We are surrounded by it.

I realize that the hurt will always be there--but the attachment to it is not.  

Even though my Mom is not here with us anymore, there is life all around us.  

And therefore..... hope. 

Hope in watching your caterpillars~that went into chrysallis~
become butterflies.

Hope in the nurturing qualities of your daughter, whereby she places one of her animals on watch over the caterpillars when we go out of town... 

and whereby she diligently talks to and feeds her butterflies when they are born.

Hope in the life they will have after they are (reluctantly) set free.

Life in all its glory.

The camera went off after the above picture, as Lucy cried and cried.  She had just released the last of her butterflies and was quite upset.  It gave us opportunity to talk about how the butterflies will now be happier that they are free.   Even five year olds have to experience loss, but also learn about hope.

Life is so abundant right under our noses.  This woodpecker has been hanging out with us a lot lately.   Not sure how good she is for the health of our trees, but she sure is pretty.

Another opportunity to teach about life and loss----but hope too.  This little guy ran into our window on our back deck.  It was immediately clear that he was hurt.

We talked to him, pet him, nurtured him a bit...

We talked about calling the SPCA to see what we could do to help him. We just felt so badly.

But after about 10 minutes, he stood....deposited a little something on Brian's hand (do you see it below?) and then flew away.    Again, tears from Lucy.  She doesn't like loss and letting go.  But we talked to her about how wonderful it was that with a little love and nurturing, he got better and was free again to fly in our woods and be happy.  Hope.

More of God's wonder in our backyard.....

And side yard.

And frontyard.

See what I mean about being surrounded?

Bad picture below, but do you see the little froggie in Lucy's cup?

He was on our back porch.  Lucy and Brian went to release him to a better home in our woods.

Life in Lucy's indoor garden.  Do you see the green beans?  She is so excited to be able to pick soon.

So, lots of lessons learned through life, and growth, and letting go, and loss.....

And also, lots of hope...

Lucy's Mother's day program at school.

The smile on my face was as big as the smile on hers.

These African violets were from my Mom's funeral.   Blooming just in time for Mother's day.  

Life.  Hope.  Ever present.

Party Girl

Lucy has been quite the party girl this spring.  As I was looking through all the photos, I kept thinking about the sense of wonder that is so evident in her face.  If you look for it, I think you will see it too....... 

If you look up "wonder" in the dictionary :  "to be filled with admiration, amazement or awe ."

I think they should put the above picture right next to the word in Websters.

The girls were so filled with wonder after seeing the surprise of the party :  Ms. Goldie, the clown.  

Face painting, balloon animals and spray art.......just a few of the wonder-ful things for the girls to enjoy. 

Next:  Lucy was beyond excited to attend a "Frozen" dance party.  Yes, it is true.  Is there really a more prefect idea for a birthday party right now? 

For anyone who has children, I would guess that you too, know every. single. word. of  the theme song "Let it Go."   

 
What did they do at this party? What else, but teach the girls Elsa's dance from the movie.

Below is the picture of the girls when "Elsa" first came into the studio.  Again:  wonder, amazement, awe, admiration... all there on their faces.  

Sophia is the birthday girl--the one in pink.  She had no idea that Elsa was coming

In case you have any doubts, these girls truly believed that this was Elsa.

They were very excited to show her her dance that they learned.

I talked to "Elsa."  She had attended prom the night before this Frozen dance party.  She also happens to take dance at this studio.  While at prom, everyone kept telling her she looked like Elsa....her dress, her hair.....When her dance instructor found out the connection, she asked if she would make a surprise "pop in" for the girls.   I told her she may have found a new way to fund her pending college career.

If you can get past the same question I had the entire time (do they clean their floors?), you may find it as rewarding as I did to watch these girls --filled with wonder-- dance their little hearts out.

 

I wonder what they are talking about...

Lucy is awe-struck....

Out last adventure:  A trip to BonnyBrook Farms for a field trip with her class.   Again--look for the wonder.

even here---when you can't see her face--you can feel it.

Children are such wonderful teachers.  After these recent events, I realize how rewarding it is to approach life with a sense of wonder.  I have a renewed motivation to be more like Lucy in this regard.