Whispering to the Crocus

Posted by karynhenleyauthor

…Winter still is in the air,

And the earth troubled, and the branches bare,

Yet down the fields to-day I saw her pass –

The spring – her feet went shining through the grass…

she has whispered to the crocus leaves…

She would not stay, her season is not yet,

But she has reawakened, and has set

The sap of all the world astir…

– John Drinkwater, “The Miracle” –

Listen for spring’s whisper, and breathe deeply of the quiet hope of a world astir.

Nurture peace. Cultivate kindness. Carry the calm.

Nature of the week:

Shadow of the Week:

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They Will Come Again

Posted by karynhenleyauthor

“They will come again, the leaf and the flower . . .

Nothing is certain, only the certain spring.”

– Laurence Binyon –

“The Burning of the Leaves”

Take courage. Nurture peace. Cultivate kindness. And carry the calm.

Nature of the week – a rose in a street flower market in Hanoi:

Shadow of the Week:

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A Glass of Hope

Posted by karynhenleyauthor

A special breakfast for you today:

A plate of love,

A bowl of peace,

A spoon of kindness,

A fork of caring,

A glass of hope.

– based on a Vietnamese blessing –

Nurture peace. Cultivate kindness. Carry the calm.

Nature of the week – a lotus from my visit to Vietnam/Cambodia:

Shadow of the Week (stretching it to a silhouette) – sunrise at Angkor Wat:

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The Threshold of the Year

Posted by karynhenleyauthor

“Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come.”

– Alfred, Lord Tennyson –

Hold on to hope. Nurture peace. Cultivate kindness. Carry the calm.

Nature of the week – blooming in this warm-weather week of December:

Shadow of the Week:

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To Be Human

Posted by karynhenleyauthor

“To be human is to be able to grasp hope,

to hold it tightly to the chest,

to let its nectar seep into our hearts

and give us peace.”

– Kaitlin B. Curtice –

Nurture peace by grasping hope, holding it tightly, and letting it seep into your heart.

Cultivate kindness and carry the calm.

Nature of the week:

Shadow of the Week:

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For my posts on the wonder of life, link here.

The Pulse of Hope and Peace

Posted by karynhenleyauthor

“We shall find peace,

We shall hear angels,

We shall see the sky

Sparkling with diamonds.”

– Anton Chekhov –

I think it’s possible to carry within us a sense of calm so strong that the world knows hope and peace simply because of our presence and so powerful that every physical space we step into pulses with hope and peace simply because we’re there. So find peace, hear angels, see the sky sparkling with diamonds . . . nurture peace, cultivate kindness, and carry the calm. We are the pulse of hope and peace.

Nature of the week – I meant to photograph the interior of a blossom – and my new close-up lens focused on an ant:

Shadow of the Week:

If you want me to send these thoughts to your email each Sunday, simply sign up on the right.

For my posts on the wonder of life, link here.

Before the Robins Sing

Posted by karynhenleyauthor

“We must live through the dreary winter

If we would value the spring;

And the woods must be cold and silent

Before the robins sing.

The flowers must be buried in darkness

Before they can bud and bloom,

And the sweetest, warmest sunshine

Comes after the storm and gloom.”

– unknown author, from Poems That Live Forever –

The seasons of our lives seem to follow that same pattern – storm, gloom, and then sweet warmth. “I have been bent and broken,” said Charles Dickens, “but – I hope – into a better shape.”

May your heart bloom in the warm sunshine of hope.

Nurture peace, cultivate loving kindness, and carry the calm.

Nature of the week: