BIMBY: Beauty in My Back Yard (or something like that)

A short post, for today, with longer words on the horizon…

Coming back from a trip has almost always been a bit disappointing for me; I like the idea of being in motion and discovering things that are new. For a few years, that wasn’t the case as much; I loved my home as much as I loved my traveling, and the feeling of returning to, or with, a specific person I adored was unparalleled to anything I have experienced.

This time around, even if there is some uncertainty in this specific moment in my life, I really wanted to make sure I saw the joy in returning. I have an abundance of good things in my life, and I know that there will be more travel in my future.

So:

In the last week, I have spent time with some of the amazing people in my life who make my world so colorful. They have taken me out for dinner, made me laugh, hugged me long and hard. They have listened to me, supported me, teased me. They have driven to visit, called to check in, sent texts and emails saying how glad they are that I am back from Europe.

What an incredible thing. Really: what an incredible thing!

As I work to be aware of all of this, I realized that I haven’t been taking photographs like I was in Europe. I mean, of course I haven’t. There aren’t sculptures crowding parks and markets filled with fresh fruit and flowers overflowing from window boxes. But there are beautiful things; even if they are details I’ve seen a thousand times, I want to recognize them for the simple fact that they are wonders, too.

So today, I stopped to smell the roses.

There was a ladybug involved too; I thought I killed her and then remembered she could fly. (Btw, surely not all ladybugs are female?)

I saw four turtles sunning on a stick next to a fake duck.

Did they know the duck was fake? Did they try to talk to it?

And then I saw no fewer than 20 goslings strolling along in a field, next to a lake that a man designed, in a community planned out very intentionally, and which is a good home for many. All of that is worth seeing and worth appreciating.

A few of the Goslings! Clearly, I stayed far enough away so that the geese couldn’t bite my legs off.

It may be tricky, right now in my life, to feel great about standing still. But while I am, I am determined to see those miracles of the world that are staring me straight in the face.