Nothing but blue skies

at home

laundry on the line - white linen coverlet (designed by LeAnn - circa 1997)

beautiful September day, California Pepper Tree - l&l at home

 laundry day - l&l at home 

wire laundry basket in afternoon sun - l&l at home

                     

we recommend:

..{pure linen bedding}

..{ collapsible wire laundry basket }

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 previous posts:

{ Thinking Outside the Box } 

..

{ There is nothing so lovely...}

{ Life.  Is beautiful. }

"Blue skies

Smiling at me

Nothing but blue skies

Do I see

Bluebirds

Singing a song

Nothing but bluebirds

All day long

Never saw the sun shining so bright

Never saw things going so right..."

~Irving Berlin, 1926 

Wishing you a beauty-filled day —no matter the weather.  ;)

see our new site:
www.linenlavenderlife.com

"Live the full life..."

Live the full life 

of the mind, 

    exhilarated by new ideas, 
intoxicated by the romance of the unusual. 
 -Ernest Hemingway

for photo credits, see our pinterest board: { l&l collection no. 10 }

You might also like: 

{ Appennino by Giambologna }

{ Ancient Symbols }

{ For whatever reason... }

{ Infinite Possibilities }

see our new site:
www.linenlavenderlife.com

Today, try shifting your perspective to shift your perspective...

Today, try this exercise:  TRY SHIFTING YOUR PERSPECTIVE IN ORDER TO SHIFT YOUR PERSPECTIVE. - By this, I mean physically change your “normal” viewing position and see what you discover.  Find something in nature if you can –a flower, a tree, a blade of grass– and focus on it from this new viewing position. Take a few quiet moments and let flow whatever memories or associations come up...don’t edit, just let them flow and observe.

Often, not only will this practice shift the way you perceive that particular object, you will notice it extending to other areas of your life, as well.

I took a few moments to lie down on the stone path in my garden – (Yes…actually flat on my stomach.) and was delighted to discover a whole other world there —a world I did not know existed, right there at my feet. 

Each of these intricate little beauties measures just 1" across and some even less.

To think — I had passed by them hundreds of times before without seeing all they had to offer!

visit our new site: 

www.linenlavenderlife.com

BIO question: Your biggest challenge?

You must live in the present,

launch yourself on every wave,
find your eternity in each moment.
~Henry David Thoreau

Living in the present moment.  It's such a beautiful place to reside, yet how often are we there...not regretting the past, not worried about the future?  It's an ongoing challenge of a lifetime – some 2.5 billion or so seconds we have on this earth to practice – each moment another opportunity.

Animals and children naturally dwell there and I find when I'm faltering, I only need to look to them to show me the way. 

(They make it look so easy, don't they?)

linen & lavender

Today, begin to adopt the following habits:

Talk to the universe.

Listen for its reply.

Be on intimate terms with Nature.

See the life in everything.

Carry yourself like a child of the universe.

                                                                                    ~Deepak Choprah

visit our new site: 

www.linenlavenderlife.com

Life. Is Beautiful.

Today, I looked around at the aftermath of the week's activities and sighed at the mountain of housework at hand. Then, for whatever reason (Divine Intervention?), my perspective shifted and I was inspired to snap some shots of the everyday vignettes you see here.  Flowers past their prime... 

...dirty dishcloths hung out to dry

...and cobwebs and dust awaiting my attention.  (Oh, trust me, they're there.)

From my new perspective I could see...right alongside my long "to-do" list was also the beauty of life.   — So glad I didn't miss it.

images by LeAnn

linen & lavender


visit our new site:

www.linenlavenderlife.com

P.S.  I wrote this post yesterday and today, watched Super Soul Sunday.  I was happy to see it was an interview with Rainn Wilson, talking with Oprah about his production company and life's passion to bring spirituality to the world in a fun, playful way: SoulPancake.  

I've mentioned before how much Alex and I both look forward to Super Soul Sunday {see my post "Soulful"} and we always enjoy the quirky, humorous and touching SoulPancake features.  

Today, interspersed throughout and after the interview, they showed several SoulPancake videos.  I particularly found the "Air Orchestra" heartwarming:

  

There was another SoulPancake video shown right after the interview that sent me marching out to my studio to publish this post I had written yesterday. –Watch it and you'll see why.  :) 

Wishing you a beauty-filled day!~L

SoulPancake

Super Soul Sunday 

Window of Opportunity

As I came into the house after a frustrating day, I found a fly persistently trying to get out through a fixed window in our dining room. As usual (that is to say, as I have seen many a fly do), he was repeatedly bumping in to the glass, emitting a litany of frustrated curses each time:   Buzz!... Buzzzz!… Buzzzzzz! 

He was growing more and more agitated at each attempt.

I tried to help. There was an open window just inches away from where he was and I tried to guide him that way; waving my hand, then fluttering the curtain at him to shoo him in the right direction. This only succeeded in irritating him further.      BUZZZZZZZZ!   as he hit the glass again. 

“I’m just trying to help you!” I said. “Why are you being so stubborn?! Can’t you see it’s wide open right next to you, you silly fly!”

That’s when I laughed. I suddenly got it. The entire way home I had been asking the Universe why something wasn’t turning out the way I had planned. Something I had worked at and had been pushing so hard to make happen, wasn’t working out. 

Thanks to my stubborn little friend, I was suddenly aware that I had been banging my head against the proverbial wall. And like my single-minded friend, I too hadn’t thought to look at other options. 

It was so easy to see, really. I just needed to shift my perspective ever so slightly and there it was, clear as day; a much better path to where I ultimately wanted to go. Why had I been so closed-minded? Why had I so doggedly pursued the one option when I knew it wasn’t working?

Here’s my reminder to myself and my advice to you, dear reader: When something isn’t going your way, take a moment to sit in meditation:  Be still. Be open.  Allow creativity to flow through you.  What’s best for you might not look exactly like you expected it to, so be open to another way.  Limitless resources exist, so quiet the chattering mind with all of its “do’s” and “don’ts” and its “can’ts,” “shouldn’ts” and “won’ts."

Believe if you knock that it will indeed be opened unto you.  —Just don’t get lost rapping on doors and miss the windows that have been open to you all along.

All my best,

photograph by LeAnn, Italy 2007

visit our new site:

www.linenlavenderlife.com

Dream Day

My dream day?  Well, it comes in many forms but what immediately comes to mind is travel.  I love to travel and see the world  – to explore another place, another culture, another way of doing things.   I always return with a fresh perspective and charged with creativity energy.

Today, the time I spent capturing the light in my garden sent me into a peaceful, meditative state  -a bit of inside travel, you might say.  A gentle breeze perfumed the air and with these intricate beauties beckoning me, I was on my way—

 

images by LeAnn, "Rose Splendor"

linenandlavender.blogspot.com

visit our new site:

www.linenlavenderlife.com