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Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #108: Sanctuary

Posted on August 4, 2020 by Miriam Hurdle 74 comments

Xenia at Tranature is the guest host for Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge this week. She invited us to look at the theme of Sanctuary.

We have been in lock down because of Covid-19 since March 11. The initial projection was to close schools and stores for several weeks. Five months have gone by, we see new surge of cases in many countries. This is an unsettling time of the history.

Xenia’s theme is timely for us to think about and find sanctuary among the chaos.

Sanctuary is the tranquility where the mind and soul find serenity and peace. It could be in the ocean, a park, or your garden.

It seems to be miles away but Laguna Lake is in the midst of the residential homes.

My garden

Sanctuary is the harmony where the chaos, strife, and discords dissipate. It could be somewhere in the forest or the perception through our filtered lenses.

Trees find their way toward the sun at Laguna Lake.

Sanctuary is the quietness where the demands, interruption, and disturbance fade away. It could be a bench under a tree or in the depth of your heart.

Benches like this one are facing the water around Laguna Lake.

Sanctuary is a resting place where the struggles, conflicts, and confusion subside. A nap can be a pleasant luxury, a mini-vacation. It can provide an easy way to get some relaxation and rejuvenation.

Tucking the head under the wings is a perfect way of napping for the ducks.

Sanctuary is a hobby you emerge yourself in for leisure and pleasure. You may find it in reading, hiking, or fishing. I find mine in singing and painting.

This family enjoyed fishing at Laguna Lake

My watercolor painting

Sanctuary is a haven where one finds security, love, and care for the young.

A content mama duck with eight fuzzy ducklings

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #108: Sanctuary

I love to hear where you find your sanctuary. Please share with us in the comment. Thank you!

Sunday Stills: Home is the Happiest Place

Posted on June 14, 2020 by Miriam Hurdle 74 comments

The theme for Sunday Stills this week from Terri is: Home.

As much as we enjoy traveling, I always looked forward to coming home before the trip was over. Perhaps the tours I booked were too vigorous, and I got tired by getting up early or sitting on the bus too much from city to city.

I’m comfortable at home. This morning I spotted a Swallowtail butterfly staying on one flower for twenty minutes. I thought she came to lay eggs. I checked after she was gone. No, she didn’t, but I found a tiny grasshopper only 1/3 inch long.

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About a dozen mourning doves, many house finches, and sparrows perching on the telephone wires around 4:00 p.m. every day, waiting for me to feed them. A pair of mourning doves came to fix up the old nest on Friday, June 5, and the female dove came back last Sunday to lay eggs. Now she is patiently incubating her young.

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My home is shared by a family of four hummingbirds.

My home is the happiest place to me!

I’m even happier when I’m at my second home, my daughter’s home. Nothing gives me more joy than being with my granddaughters. So far, I only spent time with my two-and-a-half years old granddaughter, Autumn. I love playing with her and reading to her. I haven’t seen my second granddaughter Nora in person yet because of the coronavirus. I look forward to seeing Autumn and Nora when it’s safe to travel.

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My daughter’s home is the utmost happiest place to me!

I love to hear what make you happiest. It could be something, some place, some people, or something you do.

Sunday Stills: Home is the Happiest Place

SoCS 2019.09.28 – Shades of White

Posted on September 29, 2019 by Miriam Hurdle 33 comments

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “ent” “ten” “net.” Use one, use two or use all three (bonus points for using two, double-bonus points for using all three). As Linda would say, use ’em any way you’d like. Enjoy! – Dan Antion

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Shades of White

Several years ago, we saw an advertisement for purchasing ten doors and get one free. It was attractive to me because some doors in our house were painted once in twenty-some years. The walls were painted twice. I wanted to have coordinated colors throughout the house. We took on this offer to replace eleven doors, purchase ten with one bonus. But then when I counted the doors, I realized we had sixteen doors. What? Sixteen doors? I couldn’t believe it.

Well, we picked eleven visible doors in the major flow of traffic in the house to have them replaced. We had to choose the style and color of the doorknobs, the pattern of the door trims and the style of corner pieces of the door trim. We also had to choose the color of the doors and trims. They would paint the doors and trims before installing them.

I wanted the white color. When the salesperson brought in the color chart for white, I didn’t realize there were so many shades of white. We picked one shade of white and kept the can with a little left-over paint. We marked it on the label. Two years ago, when we had another area in the house needed painting, we bought the same shade of white to match with the doors.

Now the house looks better with the same shade of white on all the doors.

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