Of Long Runs and Wildflowers

Lately, I have found myself in this phase of trying to juggle work and life. It's a balancing act, really. Sometimes things get thrown off kilter and need to be readjusted or even rearranged. I've been taking more runs and walks. I absolutely love this warm beautiful weather, where flowers are in bloom, birds are chirping, and kids are laughing in the park. Spring is a hopeful season.

Being at the ocean reminds me of that hope, too. It's a place where I am again reminded of just how small I am. Not a "smallness" in terms of insignificance, but a "smallness" that lets me know just how bigger the world truly is. I love seeing the waves crash against the shore, forming jagged edges alongside of the rocks. It's nature's way of saying, "you are not alone."

Both the ocean and flowers are equally majestic. Majesty can be found in life's simple pleasures; a leaf catching the sunlight in the middle of a road, a fish swimming in a pond, or even an elderly couple sitting on a park bench holding hands. Beauty is found everywhere. Sometimes though, it is more challenging to find it in the places of our lives where we often hurt the most. It's in those dirt-filled places, that I've noticed myself asking: "where's the beauty here?"

The truth is, dirt is a sign of life. It's a sign that something new is springing up from the ground. There is life in a space that causes hurt, eventually transforming (like a butterfly) into a beautiful creation. Yet with anything, transformations require time. And, that is not something that we can expect to see results from over night. Depending on the amount of hurt, and how it has clouded our vision, the progress can appear blurry. Progress is happening, nonetheless. It may not be in the way that we had wanted or hoped for, but it is/will be in the way that is most needed at this particular point in our lives.

So remember to always hope. And to document your hopes. I leave you with a list of my hopes (dreams). May you be encouraged to develop your own "Hope List."

Cheers!

My Hope List

• A place (apartment or house) to call my own.
• A full-time teaching job
• To have my photos published someday.
• To publish a book of my own poetry.
• Give a poetry reading. 
• Get my Masters Degree
• Take creative writing courses
• Travel 
• Adopt a child
• Plant a flower garden
• Write for an educational and/or literary magazine
• Get married by the ocean
• Open up my own dance studio and/or teach a group of children how to dance
• Sail
• Visit Mt. Rushmore, the Lincoln Memorial, New York City and other famous places in the U.S.
• Sing in front of a group of people
• Draw (again)
• Make my own pottery
• Sleep in a tent 
• Crochet/knit a blanket
• Work at an orphanage
• Go on a safari
• Make hand blown glass
• Fall in love