Beauty In The World

BEAUTY IN THE WORLD

 It is a little long - read - look at as much or as little as you want. 

 One of my favorite place on the web, is Creative Nachos, created by the very talented and supportive Natasha.  Each week she gives us a theme to create something based on that theme.    In some ways, this weeks theme Beauty In The World was the easiest and the hardest for me.  Easy because I knew immediately what I wanted to do, but it just kept expanding, and trying to pare it down was just not an option!

First and foremost, My Family with all it's imperfections, also gave me a lot of love, strength and an appreciation of many things in life.   There are a few people not included in this collage, only because I do not have a picture of them.

 

From top left: My paternal grandmother & her sister as young women.  My grandmother gave me a lot - a lot of love and many many lessons - she was a school teacher before you had to have a degree to teach school. She raised her 3 children, through the great depression years with some help of her parents after she & her husband divorced when my dad was about 8 years old.  She traveled to Colorado from Michigan with her dad in a wagon & then back to Michigan to get the rest of the family.

My maternal grandparents -  I believe this is their wedding photo.  All 3 of my grandparents were born in the late 1800's .  My grandfather was a farmer, he had a farm until the day he died.  I can remember many times that he would go out & get a watermelon and cut it up outside and we would gleefully sit and eat watermelon with it's delicious juices running down our chins.  My grandmother made the best blackberry pies from the blackberries in the yard that we would gladly pick!  I learned a lot about being  charitable from these special people.

3,4,5,6 My parents - just after WWII.   They met just before my dad went overseas, wrote a lot of letters and were married shortly after he returned. #4&5 were taken at his mother's house.

#7- My maternal grandmother approx 60 years old, getting her BA in education so she could keep teaching! with my sister before I was born.

#8 Me & my children about 12 years ago, with my beautiful intelligent daughter, and my nutty then 13 yr old son being himself.

3rd row, my wonderful grandson Kai @ 10 mos', 5 years, my daughter & her son @ 5 years, her daughter, Evie born Jan 2010 at about 4 days old - we laughed at this picture she looked sort of like a smurffette.  Miss Evie @ almost a year, sitting the same way her mom did.

Last row, Kai,  Evie & Spike.  My son's wife, Steph,  holding their just born daughter,  My son Alex holding his 4 day old daughter Namine' born March 27 2011,  & 4 day old Namine' w/her eyes finally open.  She had been asleep  the whole 2 hours we were together, opened her eyes about 5 minutes before we were leaving.  She has beautiful lavender blue eyes - hope they stay that color!

Jaz, my constant companion, now 11 1/2 years old. It amazes me what he can fit his  body into!

Beauty to me  is the simple things,  everyday things, an appreciation for this earth that was given to me by my mother.

After going to the dentist, a 20 minute walk, I spent almost an hour walking home with my camera in hand to take pictures for this project.  This is where it started really getting hard to pare it down!

Top row - Spanish Broom, a great bush in this desert climate,  a blooming Yucca by a turquoise wagon wheel, flowers growing where they weren't intended to grow - next to a fire hydrant

2nd row, flower buds,  A mulberry tree - reminded me of blackberries, Roses - my mother had at least 6 rose plants in the yard.

3rd row, another plant growing were it probably was not intended, a bridge, I envision a very different yard surrounding this bridge than the one that is there,  click on the picture to see the wonderful patterns in the leaves of this awesome succulent.

bright balloons dancing in the wind, steps surrounded by huge pine trees,

4th row, a leaning young evergreen,  a rock perfectly balanced on the bottom of a gate & the shadows of the gate,  wonderful sweet little yellow flowers.

My Flowers

The red rose bush isn't really mine - it's in front of my apartment, so I figure I get to take care of it.

The Christmas cactus was my father's "Christmas tree" while in the hospital shortly before he passed away.

The Easter Cactus belonged to my father in law, it was one of his joys & I felt very privileged to be able to have it after he passed away.

The Peace Rose is from my peace rose bush at my former apt - I could say a lot here - but I will leave it at this, my mother did instill in me a great appreciation of the earth.  Which I am sure came from her parents, as the earth provided for their family of 8 children.

If you have made it this far, Thank You!   I would also like to draw  your attention to something I just found out about - this is truly beautiful. There is a camp for children with chronic disease or health problems that they can attend for free, even their transportation is provided for.  Even if you can't go volunteer, there are ways we can help them out!  Victory Junction was founded in honor of Adam Petty, yes of the racing car  family!  Looks like a really cool place.

A few more additions

Morning Glories - they always remind me of my maternal grandmother, they always grew in a planter in front of her porch.

all birds, but especially hummingbirds

My  Uncle Conway (next to the sign, 1 of my mother's brothers.) taken during WWII, he always treated me like I was a very special person, he passed away when I was about 10, and  he was way too young,  

An interesting tidbit, my father was from Colorado, my mom was from North Carolina, they met in Washington DC just before he went overseas.  He did basic training and stayed at Fort Carson, Co for a while, then another base, then to FT. Bragg, NC.   After my parents were married, they lived in Denver until my dad finished his master's degree, my sister & brother were born in Denver. Then they  moved to Berwick, Pa.  where I was born & about 3 months later moved to Albuquerque New Mexico.
My mother went from NC, to Denver, Pa then Alb.
My daughter was born in Alb. after she got married, she moved to Ft. Bragg, NC, and then to Fort Carson, Co. She now lives in Colorado Springs. .

The Sandia Mountains, east side of Alb.  as a child I would often sit next to the sliding glass door and just gaze at these beautiful mountains.  There were a lot fewer trees and buildings in the way then.

My mother was the youngest in her family, my dad had a younger brother who died at the age of 2, so he basically was the youngest child, and I am the youngest child.

Have a beautiful day.  Remember to "stop & smell the roses"!