feeling drained

4:05AM…A phone conversation intended as a gesture to connect while apart last evening left me drained. This morning I find myself awake and already exhausted hours before the sun is to rise.  I started looking at some of my photographs, took myself back to a moment several weeks ago when in the near distance, I saw…

I actually speed walked home, got my camera and drove back to the rose garden in front of the Smithsonian Castle to capture the beauty of these blossoms, they were just that stunningly gorgeous! Looking at them right now is restorative, has brightened my morning, though it’s still dark outside my windows.

Right now, it may be difficult to determine if a person’s emotional reactions are attributed to the stressful times we are living through or just who they are. Be as patient as you possibly can with folks. More importantly, take care of you and simply…

keep your peepers open!

#sunday #sacredsunday #blogpost #blogging #blogger #wearewomenwriting #IWWG #photographer #photo #photograph #photography#outdoorphotography #inthegarden #roses #houseandgardenmagazine #ablossomaday #ablossomaday2020 #mentalhealth

honoring fathers

Applause and gratitude for our fathers and father figures who live nearby, faraway, or in our hearts & memories; lift them up today and everyday. 

Stay safe, be well, stand for justice and…

keep your peepers open!

#sunday #sacredsunday #blogpost #blogging #blogger #wearewomenwriting #IWWG #photographer #photo #photograph #photography#outdoorphotography #inthegarden #aparttogether #socialdistancing #togetherathome #fathersday #BLM #houseandgardenmagazine #justice

a moment to breathe

take a moment to breathe and appreciate that breath…it is precious.

stay safe to stay well, support #BLM and…

keep your peepers open!

#sunday #sacredsunday #blogpost #blogging #blogger #wearewomenwriting #blackwomenwriting #photographer #photo #photograph #photography #gardens #magnolia #blossoms #outdoorphotograph #enoughisenough #justice #breathe #breath #breathwork #mindfulness

i can't breathe

This past week, I found myself thinking about COVID19 and the death of George Floyd, the fact that overnight we went from pandemic to protests, virus to violence, quarantine to curfews. I was just growing comfortable with the numbness to my daily wake up call being the report of local and national new corona cases and deaths. Suddenly, news coverage completely shifted to images of the demonstrations here in DC and across the country. Though it may seem like these are separate events, I believe that many of us understand that there are connecting links between the two. Perhaps the most subtle of these is breath.

“I can’t breathe,” is an action that is all too familiar to me. In January 2019, I woke from a nap unable to catch my breath. My struggle was far from what happens to the detained when an unfazed serve and protect lowers his full body weight into his knee, places it on the neck of a Black man, and deliberately holds it there for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. My moment cannot be compared to those in hospital beds around the world who may not even know how many days they’ve been on a respirator, may never go home. What I do know is what it’s like to lose what is a natural function for most.

The act of breathing is essential to life, is something too many of us take for granted. Breath work has played a major role in my work life; it is the opening and closing of every workshop I facilitate. Unfortunately, the murder that unfolded before all of our eyes has made us aware of just how precious breathing is. When I'm able to begin facilitating again, I know my approach will now take on a deeper meaning. Each time I speak the words, “take a deep breath as you inhale,” I will do so in memory of George Floyd and all the Black, Brown and Yellow people, named and unknown, whose breath was taken by a knee, a gun, or a noose.

I can’t breathe. As long as you can do so, remember and…

keep your peepers open!

#sunday #sacredsunday #blogpost #blogging #blogger #wearewomenwriting #blackwomenwriting #photographer #photo #photograph #photography#outdoorphotograph #GeorgeFloyd #icantbreathe #BLM #enoughisenough #justice #pandemic #COVID19 #coronavirus

enough is enough

Protesters shut down a major highway in SW Washington, DC late Saturday as #justiceforGeorgeFloyd demonstrations took place around the country.

As afternoon turned to evening, peaceful protests took a turn reminiscent of the ’68 riots as looting, fire setting and property destruction erupted in cities from coast to coast. While the demand for justice is valid, frustrations and anger real, violence is not the answer even when a violent act is what sparked this unrest. 

Enough is enough, which is why we’re seeing this uprising that is far from over; let’s pray that things can go back to being peaceful in honor of George Floyd. 

Stay safe and…

keep your peepers open!

#sunday #sacredsunday #blogpost #blogging #blogger #wearewomenwriting #photographer #photo #photograph #photography#outdoorphotography#prayer #GeorgeFloyd #icantbreathe #blacklivesmatter #enoughisenough

adjustments

My morning walk has helped keep routine in my life and kept my body moving as we readjusted to adjust to a different way of living. This past Thursday, I felt a bit sluggish after just 20 minutes. I pushed on. Twice along the way, I felt like I was going to break down sobbing as I thought about the many changes forced upon us by the virus. Emotionally tired of the restrictions, hearing uncertain news daily, the politics that continues to play with people’s lives, being alone, my body  was having a physical reaction. My knees and right shoulder ached; I wanted to get home as fast as possible. Hopping the bus, hailing a cab or calling a service are no longer options when public break downs are in progress, so I kept walking. I told myself I’d cut it short and take the fastest route home, yet somehow I kept going. 

There's a lovely garden path that I frequent and as I approached, I asked the angels to help me. When I emerged from that magical stretch, my body was invigorated. I ended up walking almost 12,000 steps and just under 5 miles that morning, grateful for the spirits who answered my prayer, giving my body the boost and adjustment it needed so I could get back home.

As we continue to adapt, stay safe, be well, take good care and…

keep your peepers open!

#sunday #sacredsunday #blogpost #blogging #blogger #wearewomenwriting #IWWG #photographer #photo #photograph #photography#outdoorphotography #inthegarden #aparttogether #socialdistancing #togetherathome #houseandgardenmagazine #girltrek #adjustments #angels #prayer

dropping blossoms

happiness held is the seed; 

happiness shared is the flower 

 - unknown

Follow @ablossomaday2020 on Instagram where I’ll continue to drop gorgeous blossom photographs along with some petals of thought daily as we manage our lives during and beyond the pandemic.

Stay safe, be well, take good care and…

keep your peepers open!

#sunday #sacredsunday #blogpost #blogging #blogger #wearewomenwriting #IWWG #photographer #photo #photograph #photography#outdoorphotography #inthegarden #aparttogether #socialdistancing #togetherathome #houseandgardenmagazine #ablossomaday #ablossomaday2020