Summer Was Here

Catch the sun in a photo, lock it in

 Press the summer rain into your skin 

Wear every flower in your hair

 Never forget summer was here.

Spilling Ink: The beautiful beast

Eyes like diamonds

Teeth like pearls

Skin like satin

Hair that curls

Make him gentle, make him fine, if he be all this…make him mine

And from the spell made by the young queen’s brew came a boy with thin limbs and features off skew. The queen gasped as she saw the hideous sight, trying hard not to deplore him. Trying, with all her might. She put him in room, dark colored with little light and kept the boy hidden for 20 years, out of sight.

Only the queen knew of the beast behind the door. She would hold him and bring him gifts from her kingdom’s store. The boy grew in that room never seeing his own face. He grew to be playful, wise and full of grace.

The boy, now a man, asked why he need stay behind the walls. The queen said he was so beautiful the world would be appalled. They would look at him and see their own ugliness within. They would hate themselves by hating him and see their own sins. The man asked why he had never seen his own reflection. The queen said this was for his own protection.

The man said why, what harm could it do. The queen said the man would become like others, vain and untrue. You will love yourself only with your eyes, and that is wrong said the queen, tis better to love with your heart which feels rather than sees beauty. The man was content with the answer and said he would stay in the unlit room for his own safety.

He told the queen she must be very beautiful indeed. The queen smiled but felt ashamed and full of greed. She had made the man to suit her own ideals and when he turned out to be different she locked him away. On her thrown of gold she sat high with pride, while her subjects suffered night and day.

The queen cried in her room, why am I like this? She cried on her bed and with her whole heart made a wish. Make me more like the man, humble and pure. If there be a way from these evils, let me find the cure.

The day after that the queen went to the man and said, “to you there is something I must tell.” I made you from a brew; I made you from a spell and when the spell went wrong I banished you to hell. The man seemed puzzled for he lived joyfully. How can this be hell, when you have done so much for me?

“I would have loved you more, if the spell went as it should. I would have given you all of me, and more if I could.”

The man asked do you love me now with your heart? The queen said yes, for you are kind, gentle, loving and smart. The man asked the queen to give the man some light. So he may for once, gaze upon the queen’s sight. The queen lit a candle and stepped into the glow. Upon seeing her beauty the man bowed his head low. My queen, he said, to me your heart has been fair. You have shown me love, mercy and that you care.

The queen realized that there had been a change in her. And from this feeling something began to stir. The queen took the man outside and proclaimed:

“I am in love and things will no longer be the same.”

She was kinder to subjects; her people were amazed. All across the lands, the people gave her praise. For she was different, her heart was now true. Now longer drenched in vanity, away her problems flew.

On the day the man and she wed, she was happy, of this you can be sure. For she loved him and he loved her.

A terrifying and beautiful thought

One of the most terrifying things about life is that you can become almost anything you set your mind and heart to. I use the word terrifying not as a negative, but it demonstrates the feeling of having boundless possibilities before you.

 If you were to look back 3 years ago, you may have imagined yourself at the very spot you are in now or the complete opposite has happened and life is very different from what you've imagined. Regardless, this shows that as we progress we become whatever our wills push us to become and nothing else.

 And if you think about the next 3 years of your life, you are greeted with a galaxy wide span of options. Anything can happen. The thought of life becomes more than simply goals, doing, and breathing. It's like standing on a high plateau looking at the great sky in front of you trying to take in all that in ahead of you, marveling at the vastness and beauty of it all.

With each day,  you are met with a countless number of possibilities. Your life at any given moment can go in any direction. You may start the day feeling so very single, and by the end of it you have a date. You could be bored at your desk and within the hour you get a call that a loved one has been in an accident. If you consider how many curves, twists, and opportunities life can toss at you you begin to see that the creation of who you become is something of a wonder.

This is why you should never think of your life as unchangeable. Things are altering around you without your permission, but when you become an active participant in your own life what you can make of it is astounding. With the help of God all things are possible, but you must be fully engaged in your own life. You may be working towards something you've always wanted, or maybe you don't know where you're going, perhaps things are finally looking up--as long as you always keep faith and give your own life a chance, you'll find life will give you something worth waking up for.

We move lightly

Life occurs in little steps. Though there may be great leaps you must take from time to time, the majority of what your life becomes happens as a result of little, unnoticed, almost insignificant moments. But they're not insignificant are they? They are you.

They are your breakfasts, the movie you chose to see last weekend, the shoes you wore out from your morning runs, the posters on your bedroom wall, the crush you never revealed, the seat you pick on the bus, the first text you ever sent, the spill on the rug you could never get out, the scent of your first love on your clothes, the dance you decided to sit out, the alarm you sleep through, the first day of school, the last day of work before your dream vacation, the swing set your father would push you on, the first curfew you broke, the side of the bed you always sleep on, that perfect dream you had a month ago, the dog that always barks you down when you pass by, the chill of the wind as you realize summer is ending, the jeans that no longer fit, your favorite meal at your favorite restaurant, the clock ticking in the background as you try to finish a mountain of work, the scratchy feeling in your throat when you feel a cold coming on, the greeting of your furry friend, the anticipated dawn on Christmas, the compliment on your new haircut, the deep feeling of missing someone in the same room as you, the fear of telling someone how you really feel, the sigh after a hard day as you wind down, the yawn that comes when you're bored, that birthday where you felt rushed to put your life together, that quick text to say you're on your way, days spent indoors wondering what everyone else is doing, the disappointed feeling of working so hard and getting nothing in return, the first real fight with your first real friend, the feeling that brushes your heart when someone you care about smiles...because of you.

 And day by day these little moments that no one notices but us shapes us into these beings we call humans. We are little things, doing little things, that one day becomes a big deal. It's all life.

We Move Lightly by Dustin O'Halloran

Goldroom Fifteen

A late August sunset is partly clouded over. The winds rustle the dulling green leaves. The atmosphere is hazy, like looking through a foggy glass. It feels like you're struggling to remember the summer. Your mind is as cloudy as the sky above. Then, in the background of the evening stars, plays a song that brings it all back.

Fifteen by Goldroom Featuring Chela

Keep walking

Keep walking.

 No one's going to carry you. 

Keep walking, even if you hate each step you have take. Keep walking. 

One day you'll see, you've arrived.

Tuesday Treasures

What a charming summer it's been--picnics, beautiful rainstorms, sweets and the sweetness of friends. I will miss it.

I wanted to share a few delights I recently received from near and far this summer.

Letter from my pen pal

Whenever I see something in the mail, handwritten and well thought out, I grin--inside and out. My pen pal from Algeria sent me not only a lovely letter, but a seashell and treasures from her life as well. This is just one of the reason why I love having a penpal. It's like having someone travel to you with their heart. She used a calender as an envelope and I think this is a very clever and stylish idea, one that I will be borrowing. Thank you again for the wonderful letter.

Cutest little cupcakes

 Yesterday, while I was out Downtown, I stumbled upon a cupcake shoppe called Buttercream cupcakes that has some deliciously cute cupcakes. The flavors here are french vanilla (purple frosting), strawberry shortcake (pink frosting) and red velvet (white frosting). They are rich, and full of flavor. Though I will admit they are pricey. This batch was over $9.00

Accessories and deals

BCBG had a promotion where if you tried on a pair of jeans you got $10 off your purchase of anything in the store. That's how this cute rabbit ring end up coming home with me. Say hello to Mr. Hello. His expression is bit bewildered but I think he's very cute. He's also quite large. I have long finger and Mr.hello takes a fair bit of room on them and he has some weight to him. He's not heavy, but you do notice him there the way you would with a cocktail ring.