Tag: Gratitude

Lightly Child, Lightly.

Live & Learn22 Comments

The summer morning, its gentleness, the sense of great work being done through the grass where I stood scarcely trembled.

— Mary Oliver, from “The Perfect Day” in “Long Life: Essays & Other Writings“

Notes:

  • DK Photo from this morning @ 5:10 am. 69° F. Cove Island Park, Stamford, CT. More photos from this morning here.
  • Quote Source: petaltexturedskies
  • Post Title & Inspiration: Aldous Huxley: “It’s dark because you are trying too hard. Lightly child, lightly. Learn to do everything lightly. Yes, feel lightly even though you’re feeling deeply. Just lightly let things happen and lightly cope with them.

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

Monday Morning Wake-Up Call

Live & Learn20 Comments


At certain moments I find myself enjoying life in a certain way. I may be alone, or with friends, or with my family, or even among strangers. Beautiful weather always helps; the more trees, the better. Early morning or evening is the best time. Maybe someone says something funny. And while everyone laughs, there is a sort of feeling that surges up under the laughter, like a wave rocking a rowboat, that tells you that this is the way life should be.

Moments like that don’t come every day, aren’t predictable, and can’t very well be charted. But the main response they inspire is something like gratitude: after all, one can’t exactly deserve them. One can only be prepared for them. But they do come.

— Joseph Sobran, from “Pensees: Notes for the reactionary of tomorrow (National Review, December 31, 1985)

Quote: Thank you Kurt @ Cultural Offering)

Morning Walk. With Chat GBT.

Live & Learn59 Comments

I asked Chat GBT this question after my morning walk this morning: “Write a story in David Kanigan’s voice on his morning walks.”  Here’s what A.I. produced:

David Kanigan, a man of unwavering routine and gentle presence, embarked on his morning walks like clockwork. Every day, before the sun even rose, he ventured out into the world with a sense of purpose that only the dawn could bring.

His footsteps were a rhythm, a cadence that connected him to the world around him. As he strolled through the quiet streets, he noticed the subtle changes that only the early morning bestowed upon the world – the dew-kissed grass, the soft whispers of the wind, and the occasional song of a waking bird.

Each step was deliberate, as if he were savoring every moment of the new day. With every breath, he inhaled the crisp, invigorating air, feeling it infuse him with life and energy. The city was still asleep, wrapped in the comforting embrace of slumber, but David found solace in this tranquil oasis. Continue reading “Morning Walk. With Chat GBT.” →

Lightly Child, Lightly.

Live & Learn42 Comments

Recently, I read a book about hard decisions at the late stages of life that moved me: Don DeLillo’s Zero K. In one passage that has stayed with me, a character reflects on the small, beautiful elements that make up a life. She describes a shower to her stepson: “I think about drops of water,” she says. “I think about drops of water. How I used to stand in the shower and watch a drop of water edge down the inside of the sheer curtain. How I concentrated on the drop, the droplet, the orblet, and waited for it to assume new shapes as it passed along the ridges and folds, with water pounding against the side of my head.

— Lora Kelley, P.S., The Atlantic Daily Newsletter (July 20, 2023)

Notes:

  • Special Note. Friends, my apologies for the blog malfunctions in the past week, 99% were self inflicted wounds that I’m still working to resolve. I have lost my posts for the past week and a half along with all of your wonderful comments. My apologies. Thank you for your patience. (And given my state of mind in this repair progress, all maddening because it could have all been avoided, I thought this post was particularly timely for me. A big shout out to the WordPress staff for their patience, guidance and support.
  • Post Title & Inspiration: Aldous Huxley: “It’s dark because you are trying too hard. Lightly child, lightly. Learn to do everything lightly. Yes, feel lightly even though you’re feeling deeply. Just lightly let things happen and lightly cope with them.

Walking. Touched by a Terrapin.

Live & Learn37 Comments

Here we go. 1,153 consecutive (almost) days on this daybreak walk at Cove Island Park. Like in a row.

I’m off.

71° F. Humidity? One billion % and climbing.

Mimi, in her FB comment: A brooding kind of beauty —  and even the birds are holding court in silence.”

And they were silent. A Great Blue Heron. A pair of egrets. A Yellow-Crowned Night Heron.  Gulls, and their wings.

Just another morning at Cove Island Park.

I walk.

But, the Mind isn’t here this morning. Yes, it’s certainly here at Cove Island Park, but meaning not Here, and Now.

It drifts back 10 days or so. I’m at the end of my walk and there under the bench sits a Diamondback Terrapin turtle. No, I didn’t have a clue it was a Diamond Terrapin Turtle, Google Lens did though: “The Northern diamondback terrapin is the only species of turtle in North America, including Connecticut, that spends its life in brackish water…and they are most abundant in tidal estuaries west of the Connecticut River.”

Like who knew? Most abundant in tidal estuaries in Connecticut. Brackish water. This sticks.

I’m staring at this creature, at the intricate designs of its shell, and wonder what he’s doing so far away from brackish water.  “Injured? Lost? Resting? Kid dragged you from the water, and had a little fun with you.” Not sure why that last disturbing thought crossed my mind, no, please, not that. Continue reading “Walking. Touched by a Terrapin.” →