And... Here Comes That Kindness Thing Again

After spending some really delightful time in Minneapolis recently and encountering so many nice people I was reminded of the importance of taking just an extra minute to be kind. Sometimes it shocks people ~ they don't quite know what to think. (That's when it is the most fun.) But more often than not, the kindness is returned. Maybe not in that exact moment but it will come back to you. I like to call that karma. 

Yesterday I visited my new dentist - a sweetheart of a girl. Isn't it strange how overnight my doctors, my PAs, my acupuncturists, my dentists, my hair dresser ~ are all delightful young women. Wow. I'm officially old because they could quite literally be my daughters...  

In their chosen professions each one of them is intelligent and confident and professional. I am in awe of their accomplishments at such young ages. How happy it makes me that young women are entering these occupations and excelling! I came of age in the era of Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan and admire them still. So to see these young women doing what they do with such zeal and vigor makes me very happy.

And every single one of them is kinder and more compassionate than the next. It's reassuring to see that still exists in what sometimes seems like a terribly selfish and self-centered world.

So yesterday I was happy that maybe I was able to add a bit to the kindness factor in a small way.

I was in Bed, Bath and Beyond just bidding my time, perusing all the fun stuff, you know ~ as you do.  

I have a pillow obsession.

So la, la, la ~ and suddenly over the store's speaker system I hear, "Will the owner of a silver Jeep Grand Cherokee please come to Customer Service."

Heart sinks. The Mister and I have odd attachments to our vehicles and the Jeep has been mine for the last 7 years...

The manager explained to me that a little elderly woman had scratched the side of my Jeep with her side mirror on her gigantic black car. She was waiting by the Jeep.

I walked out and saw that she could have been my Mom about 5 years ago. Bless her heart. She was standing there with her USAA insurance portfolio in her arms. 

I said, "Hi. What happened?"

"I was backing out and when I did I noticed I scratched your beautiful car." She ran her finger across the "scratch." And I noticed when she did that the "scratch" seemed to disappear.  I ran my finger over the "scratch" and it totally disappeared. I still don't know what it was - dust? Whatever, it was gone.

I looked at her and said, "No problem - it's not scratched."  

She audibly sighed, put her hand on my shoulder and said, "Oh are you sure?"  

"Yes - see? No scratch! Thank you for being so honest, though!"

She smiled. I hugged her and said again, "Thank you for being honest. You have a good day now!"

I joke with my friends that I'm Pollyanna. Don't get me wrong ~ I'm not all kumba-ya all the time. But I find I do feel better when I throw some of that into the mix more often than not.

That karma thing? Trust me; it's real.

Oh Deer...

When I take a second to plan for my walk (i.e., choosing the correct camera and lens) the results sometimes pay off.  I still can't find my spare battery for my Canon or my iPod, but that's another story.

Stormy skies (or the aftermath of stormy skies) - 10-20mm wide angle.

Feeling funky and fun ~ Lensbaby Scout and Fisheye op

But on most - since I try and hit the trail quite early - the 70-300mm w/a double image stabilizer - a lens I never would have bought for myself (the Mister can be quite generous) is usually a good choice. Because that's when the wildlife is about and in full wake up and grab some breakfast mode.  The timing (and the lens choice) did not fail me this morning.

I found this little girl

And then she found me and said, "I'm outta' here!"

But the best find was this trio ~ Mama and her twin Bambis.

She was a good Mama.  It didn't take her long to spot me.

The she was like, "We're outta' here, kids!"

"Come on!"

Exit Stage Left!

I said Left!

Sigh... Rebels - they were kicking up their little Bambi heels like gazelles!

I assure you ~ it was worth getting sand in my Keens. :)

And on a closing note... I've been inspired to start carrying "The Duck o' the Day" with me on my hikes again. (Rather than every shot being at dinner with a glass of wine. They enjoy nature, too.) It's a little challenge I like to give myself to find the most interesting backdrops/bokey. I've had a few printed on canvas wraps and oh my... I've created a monster (myself).  I see a whole new market opening up ~ baby nurseries, toddler's rooms/baths, people who won't grow up and have big houses... *wink*

So Water Baby and I did a little trial run on the trail this morning.

Oh hang on to your qwackers.. there will be more to come over the days and weeks!  

It feels good to back where I belong.  In nature.

Some Sunday Solitude For Your Soul.

Sunday should be all about relaxing.  

So take a stroll with me (and my 10-20mm) and hear what I heard earlier this morning.

I have never found a companion who was so companionable

as solitude.

*Henry David Thoreau*

Solitude matters.

And for some people it is the air that they breathe.

*Susan Cain*

If you are lonely when you are alone,

you are in bad company.

*Jean-Paul Sartre*

In every walk with nature

one receives far more than one seeks.

*John Muir*

To sit in solitude, to think in solitude

with only the music of the stream and cedar

to break the flow of silence

there lies the value of the wilderness.

*John Muir*

To make the right choices in life,

you have to get in touch with your soul.

To do this, you need to experience solitude.

Most people are afraid of that because 

in the silence

you hear truth and know the solutions.

*Deepak Chopra*

Happiness is...

Last night I watched a documentary called "Happiness is" ~ well, ok, half of a documentary called "Happiness is."  It started out interestingly enough talking with everyone from college professors who analyze happiness to homeless (but talented) artists who create their own happiness despite the odds to children who just are happiness.  The filmmaker lost me, though, when he focused on immigration and featured an on-air pissing contest between Bill O'Reilly and Geraldo Rivera.  Granted it was kind of funny to see the two of them going at it, but the film didn't seem quite so happy anymore.

But it did get me thinking about happiness ~ which can be so elusive or so simple and means so many different things to so many people.  Happiness is a big deal to me but sometimes it seems the more I chase it, the more I analyze it ~ the more it slips away.  

So I took some time and returned to the one thing that can always bring some modicum of happiness - a walk in nature. This morning I took my Canon and my trusty Lensbaby 2.0 and the telephoto adapter and hit the trail. I didn't clear my head as much as I would have liked, but damn it felt good to be back on the path. And did get me thinking...

I noticed that despite our wet spring the lake is low.

And then - not to sound too dramatic - I thought

well, at least I have a lake.

At least I have water.

And then I thought about this ~

Stop analyzing. Stop searching for what is right in your own backyard. Stop creating problems where they may be none. Stop worrying. Stop being dramatic.

Just be happy. Do things that make you happy. For fuck sake.