Summertime!

Heirloom Charlie on his tractor
It’s that time again: Fresh Farms, fresh foods, fresh air, and all the goodness that a summer breeze can bring.

It’s that time-FRESH FOOD TIME! Farmers Markets are plentiful, and they have so many bonuses. Fresh, local, informative, chemical free if you so desire (I do), variety, and TASTY!

The image is of Heirloom Charlie. He is Botanical Beautie, a local organic farmer. He is a Sustainable Farmer, a farmer that is in featured in some of my books, and an overall good guy 👨‍🌾. He started with Heirloom tomatoes and has grown (blossomed)(Couldn’t resist the pun!) over the years.

Charlie was my First Vegetable Beauty. Since Charlie is a sustainable farmer, no GMOs and organic are his “methods.” He pays homage to ALL farmers who honor Heirlooms (seeds, product and produce) and to The Fabulous Beekman Boys. Their concept of Heirloom Living is to be admired. Their “pay it forward” action displayed with their  “Mortgage Lifter Heirloom Tomato Pasta Sauce” is such a great idea that I was inspired to create Heirloom Charlie. Sustainable farming, food, hard work, and team efforts equal a life long result! This dovetails into the Botanical Beauties & Beasties mantra of Kindness, because it is always the bottom line.

I hope you enjoy Heirloom Charlie-his beet tattoo and his dill hair are two of my favorite details! 

Time and adventures

“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.”
——Oprah Winfrey

Another month – another year – another season.
I think about the “adventures” of my life and those lives I am part of. What is the journey, what is the path, what matters in the long run, the happiness, the bitterness, the sweet and the sorrow?

Here in my area (East Coast-Maryland) spring has popped out all over and it is indeed beautiful. My favorite season. Somehow this gets me to thinking about time and what do each of us add to the giant galaxy of both physical and metaphysical space/time and the lives we share with others. The spring, the sun, the beauty helps put many of us in better moods-that’s a bonus for sure! Smiles and good spirits help positivity, and I am a big fan of that. So, maybe my point is as simple as: Try to live your life with as much positive as possible and as close to your dreams as you can. Some things are indeed way out of our control, but many are not. Our attitude is one thing we can at least try to have some equilibrium over..

There is a quote I like that is from Joseph Cambell that says “We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy.” Another one I like is “Life is the art of drawing without an eraser.” – John W. Gardner (Perhaps best known as the founder of Common Cause.) Both these quotes are speaking to me these days. As I recently started another year of my own life, as the seasons change, as I watch, look, observe family, friends and the world, I try to remember: We ALL count, we All make a difference, all the pieces, and all the specks, add to up to big circles of continuous cycles. We may need to take a small step, or maybe a giant step, from our comfort circle to try to follow some of our dreams but really when you think about…Why not?

One more moment

Well, we passed the mark, whew, and Thank Goodness! We (at least we here in the Northern Hemisphere) are back to ADDING daylight and the days are slowly getting LONGER. Seems like a good metaphor for the upcoming year. Let’s ADD a moment, a smile, a break, a deep breath. It’s been a tough year for many, including myself. I try not to be sad about a particular year that is behind me, for no matter what, those 365 days I never get back. Naturally, there were pluses and minuses, but it’s essential to remember there certainly was plenty of good. As another year closes, it’s a logical time to think about life’s lessons and what I’ve learned this past year. What I do with those “lessons” and how I use my new found (hopefully) wisdom remains to be seen. I suppose its all part of the journey.

There is a quietness about the colder winter months. A time of reflection-there the ‘life lessons’ to ponder but also what was good, bad, indifferent, and what ought we change?  Here’s the kicker-What if we had just one more chance, one more lucky strike:

One more moment to talk.
One more moment to say hello.
One more moment for one another.
One more moment for a “random act of kindness.
One more moment to smile at a stranger.
One more moment to reach out a hand to a friend that needs a squeeze.
One more monet to take better care of ourselves
One more moment to say ‘I love you’ to someone,
or maybe…
One more moment to talk to a loved one, even if it to say goodbye and give them a kiss…
What will you do with you’re one more moment? Each day we have one, at least until the summer solstice, so use it wisely, embrace it and be aware.
It is indeed so much more than – “Just One More Moment.”

 


31 Days of December 2018

31 Creative Days of December

We have made it into the final twilights of 2018. December is filled with short days and the blur of holiday festivities. To mark the month, I have decided to create a 31 Creative Days of December drawing series,and so, I will be creating 31 creatures with holiday themes. The holidays I will address are:

In order of their calendar dates:

  • Hanukkah (Chanukah if you prefer)… Starts the eve of 12/2 goes thru 12/10: It’s known as The Festival of Lights and is honoring the Maccabees’ victory over King Antiochus, who forbade Jews to practice their religion.
  • WINTER SOLSTICE..12/21 at 5:23 EST: The shortest day of the year.
  • CHRISTMAS…12/25: The birth of Jesus Christ. Did you know the word “Christmas” is a shortened form of “Christ’s mass.”-makes sence!
  • KWANZAA…12/26 through 1/1: Commemorates African heritage. Kwanzaa has seven core principles, ranging from Unity to Creativity for the community.
  • NEW YEAR’S DAY…January 1: The first day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. (Yes I realize this is actually January and 2019, but it seemed appropriate to end this series with the bang of a new year.)

Starting December 1st, you can see/follow these drawing on Instagram (find/follow me at botanicalbb), which also populates FaceBook (find/follow me at Botanical Beauties & Beasties) and Twitter (find/follow me at @BotanicalB_B). If you don’t follow any social Media and you would like to see the seasons creatures, just let me know, and I will send you the full series after January 1st. It will be a combo piece, so don’t worry it won’t be 31 emails! In the meantime-Here’s to creativity, imagination, digital art, the closing of the 2018 door and the opening of a new 2019 door. Hope the holidays bring you all some joy, love, and peace.