Week Thirty-One

 

   This is a tale about a girl whose name was Envy. She cherished what others had, and not her own. She envied everything about anyone that came into her life. Whether they were young or old, she despised them for what they had. She had no brothers and no sisters, and her parents were always away. 

   One day when she was tired of being alone, she decided to take a walk through the woods. She came across a beautiful green tree with magnificent ivy and vines intricately wrapped around its trunk. She stopped to look at this tree, for she had never seen it before. She was in awe of its beauty, and was drawn to it. So, she decided to sit down and lean against the big tree. Soon she began to tell the tree of her sorrows and misfortune and of everything that was lacking in her life.  The tree was a great listener and heard every word she said. One day when Envy was telling the tree of how she wished she could be as pretty or talented as others, the tree proposed a plan. It gave her an emerald necklace, ring and pair of earrings, saying that if she wore them, all those who she envied, would soon envy her. For a little while, it worked. Envy’s peers were in fact jealous of her beautiful jewels, and it made Envy disgustingly happy. But all too soon, it faded away. It faded away like everything else in this world, something bigger and better came along and the envious eyes took themselves elsewhere. 

   Envy was distraught. She wasn’t the person that every girl wanted to be, and she wasn’t what everyone was talking about anymore. It bothered her. Far more then she would admit. She felt a darkness growing inside of her heart, but she hushed it away, telling herself that there was no fault in having a little confidence. But that was where Envy was wrong. True, she was right about nothing being wrong with having confidence. But it was where she was putting her confidence in that was the problem. She had such a desire to be the next best thing, and was always chasing after what new and wondrous item everyone else had that she forgot that sometimes the best things in life aren’t even things at all. Envy was choosing to put her self worth into material items, but nothing in this life truly lasts. Unknowingly, she was slowly becoming a prisoner of her jealousy, and in more ways then she knew. 

    So in a desperate rage, she ran to the tree and told it of everything that had happened. She told it that she wanted something even more magnificent then the jewels, something to have that nobody would ever stop talking about till the day she died. She wanted to be better than everyone else, and she wasn’t going to stop until she was. The tree thought for a moment, pondering the words that Envy had spoken. It asked her if she truly, deeply and wholeheartedly wanted to be something that nobody else was, someone that would be talked of forever and ever. She said yes, desperately so. She was tired of being just her. She wanted more.

Well, in so many words, Envy got what she wanted. She was somebody, and there was no way anyone was quite like her. But she realized it wasn't what she wanted. She liked herself just the way she had been. She promised over and over again that she wouldn't be jealous anymore, if she could just have everything back to normal again. But it was too late now.

For she was a tree now.

And people talked about her forevermore, the girl who was utterly green with envy.

Week Thirty

My brother and I had the opportunity to spend some time in New York City this summer. :] We were on a road trip driving my Grandfather's car back home from New Hampshire, so we stopped along the way! I didn't have time to take a well-thought out photo, so I had to pull a typical selfie. It's pretty grainy, but oh well.

 

Yes, I realize these are all of Grand Central Station, but it's such a beautiful place. :] Every time I walk into it, my breath is taken away. It's just so... well, GRAND. The beauty of it is so majestic, and the ceiling just so happens to be my favorite color. Maybe I am a little biased, but we don't need to focus on that. ;) I think anyone would find it so lovely there. It's officially one of my places to be. <3

Week Twenty-Nine

Well, I've been a little busy as of late! I've gotten somewhat behind in my photos, so bear with me. :) I'll be posting the one's that I haven't had time to post as quickly as I can. The last blog post was about my trip to California, and it just so happened that a week later I went out of town again! But, without further ado, I must first share that I have acquired a new lens. Well, a new optic. A fisheye optic to be exact! It's for my composer Lensbaby. :D
And man, are those things fun to shoot with. It's like an addiction.

 there's something about fisheye lenses that automatically evokes the ridiculousness out of people.

but, in my opinion that's a good thing.
life's too short not to be. :]

Week Twenty-Eight

“Yosemite Valley, to me, is always a sunrise, a glitter of green and golden wonder in a vast edifice of stone and space.” ― Ansel Adams

Here are a few of the photos I took while we were camping in Yosemite Valley. It was an incredibly neat experience to hike and stay there. The splendor of the scenery was almost overwhelming at times. While we were hiking, I would have to stop every so often and just take a giant deep breath and try to look around at all that was surrounding me. I couldn't help feeling so small. It was a tinge of perspective for me though. Experiences like that always make me think about how tiny we are compared to everything in the world. And then I think about how God made every detail, every piece of dust, the glitter of the sunlight, the height of the mountains, the greenness of the grass. The same God who created all of those mountains and fields wants to know who we are. It never fails to blow my mind. It's so simple yet so crazy all at the same time. And why do I always forget it? It's amazing to me. Why would a God who has the power to create a whole world, want to know about tiny details in our life? Because he also loves. That's why. We care about people because we love them. We want to know if a friend had a good day because we love them. We want to know about friends' interests, likes, dislikes, dreams, aspirations, struggles, goals and passions because we love them. It's only natural. And where do we get that from? God. He's the same way. I truly believe that He cares about even the most silliest of details in our lives. Even though we think it's insignificant, He takes interest in it. Life is only made up of the small things after all. :] Whether you are happy that you found the right shoe size in a store when you thought they didn't have it, or that you got accepted into college, He cares. And He wants us to tell him about it. 

Because he cares. 

Because, well, he loves us. 

You.

 Me.

Them.

Us.

All.

So, try this for fun -  Next time your favorite candy becomes an ice cream flavor, tell Him about it. :] Next time you get the job, tell Him about it. Next time you find a nickel in the parking lot, tell Him about it. And then, thank Him for it. :] It's so easy to forget to do, as it too often slips my mind, but I'm realizing that it's even easier to actually do it.


happy conversing [:

Week Twenty-Seven

I left my heart in San Francisco. <3

I know I'm horribly late in posting, so my apologies. :) My mother, brother and I are visiting relatives and friends in California and I've been so busy I haven't had time to write about it all.

We've been on go-time ever since we landed and finally are enjoying some downtime. When I was little, we never really "saw the sights" so to speak, so this trip we squeezed in quite a bit of traveling. Among some of the places we visited were Point Lobos, Carmel, Santa Cruz, and then we spent four days in Yosemite. But this post is going to be focusing on where we went in between all of those stops... the lovely city of San Francisco. :)

This was a special day for me. It was meaningful, and I'll tell you exactly why. Back in the early 50's my Grandmother and her close friend packed their belongings up and took a bus to San Francisco to get involved in acting. They lived in an apartment and were there for five or more years until my Grandmother met and fell in love with my Grandfather. It was so surreal to be in the same city she had been in, and walking some of the same streets that she had walked so many times, so long ago.

My Grandmother passed away four years ago, but she's still so dear in my heart. A year or two ago my mom and I were back visiting my Grandfather in New Hampshire and I was nostalgically looking through my Grandmother's drawers and came across her scarf box. I found this old red, white and blue scarf that had the words "I left my heart in San Francisco" on it. I asked my mom about it and she told me about my Grandmother's life in San Francisco and that she probably bought the scarf when she was there. I brought it back home with me thinking that if I were to ever go to San Francisco that I would bring it with me in her memory. She was such an amazing woman and she inspires me so much. She went for her dream and took that step that many of us are afraid to take. She had such style, ambition, and poise. She had a sense of humor, a heart filled to the brim with love, and was the best cook I ever knew. But above all, she was strong, and didn't let anything bring her down. Someday I hope to become like her and to pursue my dreams just like she did.

I brought that scarf with me to San Francisco and had it tied to my bag the whole time. I know she was smiling down on us as we journeyed through that exciting city she once called home. <3

Here's to you, Grandma...your life has become a story that will be told and retold for as long as I live.

 

 

Week Twenty-Six

 So, one thing that has been on my bucket list to do, was to buy a Ukulele, and learn how to play it. :] I finally went out and bought one and I absolutely love it! It makes me all happy inside when I hear the cute sounds it makes. It's such a beautiful instrument. I hope I put it to good use. :]

Sometimes I get a mind block where I think along the lines of; I won't ever get to that, and certainly I couldn't do something like that, or that's too silly of a thing to do, what would people think? But then I realize that's all a bunch of rubbish. It's all mind games, really. Nothing is stopping you from doing new things, little things, or big things, except well, you. Take a deep breath. Now think of that one thing you've always wanted to do. Obviously nothing is as easy as it sounds, but that doesn't automatically make something impossible. It's good to keep in mind that anything worthwhile in life is hard work. That's one universal truth about life that I sometimes misplace in my head. But, if you can set your mind to it, and work up to something, I believe that there's nothing stopping you from reaching it. <3 

In the words of a great philosopher...

"If you never did, you should. These things are fun and fun is good"- Dr. Seuss

A smile. Because I'm really not a melancholy person, despite some of my weekly posts. :)

Happy Summer!

 I hope yours is a lovely one filled with sunshine and happy moments.

xx

Week Twenty-Five

She ate her words.