Return to the Mountainside

Today the song of that mountainside again beckoned me.

It sang to me of waterfalls and rushing water.

It sang to me of that yet undiscovered site that had

beckoned me for months now to come, see and hear what I had only just seen in photos

and read about.

So after another fruitless search for that quilt,

a trip to pick up special food for Epiphany tomorrow

and a trip to a little bit of Scandinavia,

we headed up...

And I stood, in the same spot as in June

and drank in the beauty of the waterfall

as I listened to its strong, exhilarating, refreshing melody.

Its melody, spoke to me of Pacific storms,

the forests of the Coast Range

and of love.

It reminded me of the music of Grieg

and

Sissel's clear soprano voice.

I stood and listened as the music of the water

surrounded me

and filled my heart with joy.

But our journey was not yet over--

for there were many voices in that area...

more waterfalls and cascades,

the song of the peaceful, strong mountain and foothills...

the song of the moss--wet in the winter afternoon.

And,

the song I had most wanted to hear...

the song of my long lost, now found historical site!

Though man made,

it had a song to sing too...

and its song brought me much joy--

for it meant the fulfilling end of one quest

but not the end of my journey of water,

forest,

mountain

and song.

Tomorrow I will hear the song of Epiphany calling me...

it will not call me back to the mountains,

nor by the rushing waters--

instead it will call me to bring gifts to the Christ as those Wise Men

from the East did so many years ago.

I will not bring Him gold, frankincense or myrrh--

for He is the King of all creation and does not need them.

I will instead bring Him my heart

and ask Him to fill it with His song

as He filled my soul today with the music of His creation.

~

Blessings on this eve of Epiphany,

Aimee

~

Photos: coast range and foothills of Oregon, including historical dam.

To see other photos of this area taken this last June, see my posts here and here.

Of Quilts, Comforters + Puppy Pawprints

Oh the joy and the pain of shopping for the house--

in this case the Master Bedroom,

better known as Dog-ville, USA.

So many things to consider...

long white fur,

long white fur,

long white fur all over everything.

And yet, I must also consider...

dirty, muddy puppy pawprints

and how that would look against a beautiful white comforter

that would hide all that lovely, long white fur.

It would not be a pretty picture, I am sure.

And black bedding that would hide all those dirty, muddy puppy pawprints,

would show all that lovely white fur--

I know that from our previous experience with a burgundy comforter.

It is days like this when I wish I knew how to make a quilt...a nice multicolor quilt.

Light enough to wash at home, multicolored to hide dirty puppy pawprints

and not show all that white fur too much.

~

I think I've seen at least 100+ bedding combos by now,

between online viewing and store browsing.

Out of those, I like a handful:(

~

Too bad it's more than 1/2 year before the quilt shows start again.

I KNOW I'd find one---or more---there;

in reviewing my photos, I've already found several.

But alas it is not to be...

and I am back to shopping.

Wish me luck -- I will need it.

Blessings,

Aimee

Photos: from the St Mary's Quilt Show, Vernonia, OR

Scenes of the Season: pt 2

The season of Christmas continues...

Thanks to a sweet visitor, I will finally get to eat roasted chestnuts--

although they will be roasted in our oven and not over an open fire.

DDD (darling daughter dog) has done her best to keep Farmer Boy warm this week;

she was very excited that her 'Papa' got almost 2 weeks off:)

Outside the cold weather has taken its effect on the gunnera;

come spring it should be fine and able to resume its 'job' as petal and leaf catcher again.

Lots of seasonal colors outside here--

red leaves on our nandina,

rose pink on our camellia sasanqua (not shown)

and

all of our pieris are adorned in their winter finery too.

~

Outside our garden, winter is evident

as we journey on the many rural, suburban and urban roads

we find, not snow, but beautiful fog on the mountainsides

(of course, the higher mountains are clothed in glistening white snow).

All of the cold, darkness, fog and rain seem to invite extra naps--

or maybe it is all the leftover Christmas candy?

Speaking of sleep...

I think it is time for me to get some.

Night, night.

Blessings,

Aimee