Sometimes You Need Stillness and Calm

Some days I am so filled with the horrors of the world that I just withdraw from it.  I reflect on the things that I am so grateful for and the beauty that surrounds me.  Sometimes it's as simple as watching the bare branches clipped from our Forsythia and brought inside to open.

The Forsythia is rooting in the water.  The buds have fully blossomed.
 I will transplant it when the frost danger is over.

You can fill your yard with this lovely plant in this manner.

The quote on the plaque reads:

The South

The place where...1. Tea is sweet and the accents are sweeter   2. Summer starts in April

3.  Macaroni and cheese is a vegetable  4.  Front porches are wide and long

5.  Pecan pie is a staple  6.  Y'all is the only proper noun  7.  Chicken is fried and

biscuits come with gravy  8.  Everything is Darlin'  9.  Someone's heart is always being blessed.

The carving above the plaque is a dogwood limb.  Our State flower.  And don't try to tell us that the Dogwood is a tree.  Our State tree is the pine. The dogwood blossom is our flower.

I get a great deal of pleasure in watching our birds.  Every now and then we see birds that are common to our area but not commonly seen at our house.  Such is the Yellow-throated Warbler.  Those sightings give me peace of mind.

Yellow-throated Warbler in our tree

Then he actually hopped onto the deck.  What a treat.

Another way I find stillness and calm is with music.  I recently purchased a set of really good wireless headphones.  I've never been fond of earbuds, not even the newer ones.  With the very comfortable earphones I can move around without being tethered to my iPod.  And they are so perfectly noise-reducing, I can listen to music while my husband is watching television.

I find stillness and calm in knitting.  There is something very pleasing about seeing something start from a ball of yarn and turn into something beautiful.  Like this (poorly photographed) yellow baby blanket.  I'm not creative at all, but knitting a complex scarf or a simple blanket makes me feel as if I have created something.  (Never mind that it came from someone else's creative pattern)  I'm sure it must be a fraction of what writers, potters, and other artisans feel when they complete their works.

And I find stillness and calm with books.  They take me totally away from all the troubled times and worries about our Nation and our world.  Right now I am reading the memoir of one of my favorite writers, Lee Smith.

I am loving this book for many reasons.  Smith grew up in a small mountain town much like my own hometown.  She grew up in a time when children's activities were not scheduled all summer but they were allowed to roam freely and make their own fun.  So did I and those times are gone forever.  Her writing is always strong and she tells her story in an interesting manner.  So this book gives me stillness and calm as well.  No suspense, no intrigue, no twisting plots.  Just excellent writing.  My only criticism is that it's over far too soon, leaving me wanting more.

I hope that you can find things that give you stillness and calm.

Our thoughts go out to all those who suffered in any way from the Brussels attacks.  And to the refugees who are dying by the hundreds trying to escape terrorism.  And to all those in need no matter why or where they are.