Heart's Song

"MY HEART LEAPS UP WHEN I BEHOLD A RAINBOW IN THE SKY"! That was the first line of the first poem I ever memorized... in second grade .... with the help of my Daddy ... one of his favorite poems, which became mine.  William Wordsworth was the poet, and the poem is perfect!

Are there things in your life that make your heart leap and sing?!

My heart does so on a daily basis once again these days.  Just driving up my driveway after a day at work or a trip into town, when I catch sight of my home, with its silvery metal roof and sturdy logs, set back from the highway, and the llamas in the pastures, I catch my breath!  This is my home that I have made for myself, all by myself, and, in two years, the mortgage will be paid in full and it will truly will be all mine. Whew! and Wow! I am planning a mortgage burning party, for sure, and maybe with a "Hello Kitty" theme to it!?  (Are those groans I am hearing out there?!)  "Hello Kitty" makes my heart sing!

My home is truly where my heart is.  Now that I am single and unattached, beholden to no one but myself, I am closest to being my True Self at home and it feels so good!  It is where I am in my Element, and I can relax and enjoy and create in the many areas of my home....cooking, gardening, designing, remodeling, spinning, weaving, knitting, painting, crafting, and dreaming.  The Circles of Life and of the Seasons, along with the sights and sounds of the surrounding flora and fauna keep me company, which is so much better than the almost constant (and, too much of the time, inane) chatter and gossip that surrounds me at my workplace, chewing unmercifully on my Spirit, leaving me feeling devoured! My heart rate slows on the farm, my breathing evens out, and I am at Peace.  Ahhhh!  And my heart sings!

Now, I must point out that there is a difference between your favorite things and those that make your heart skip a beat and goosebumps happen!  I am not talking about double chocolate ice cream or a Big Mac, or watching favorite TV shows or a sporting event, or a new purse or golf clubs, all of which are very good things.  Don't get me wrong.  I love me some NCIS, Big Bang Theory, and football.  But, I am talking about the deeper, more meaningful things that actually touch our souls and our emotional Selves.

Many things bring joy to my heart and I think that it is because I truly enjoy "the little things." For example:

• the purr of a momma cat as she contentedly nurses her babies
• sitting in my porch swing on a balmy summer afternoon, with a cold glass of iced tea, watching dragon flies skip and dance across the top of the pasture grass
• walking around my pastures, touching the trees, feeling the ground, MY ground under my feet
• leaning on the fence and watching the llamas kushed in their pasture, contentedly chewing their cuds and feeling safe
• witnessing a birth, the miracle that is life
• catching sight of a hawk perched, gliding over the ground, or soaring high in the sky above
• listening to opera or Mozart while doing housework
• watching a "kettle" of turkey vultures enjoy circling on the summer air currents overhead: up, up, up, and then down, down, down, and back up again
• Synchronicities that connect people and places to one another

In the early 90's, I read The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield, which introduced me to the concept of synchronicity. This really resonated with me and, over the past two decades, I have found that paying attention to the little things, to the details, and to our gut feelings and instincts, can enrich our lives beyond measure in so very many ways.  I have truly found that the more I Notice, the more I See!

For instance, recently I was driving down the highway on my way to work and, as always, looking for my two red tail hawks, Aegis and Aurora.  I spotted one of them on top of an old wooden fence in a pasture, tail feathers and wings spread, warming in the morning sun. The rusty color of the tail feathers was just incredible, and I knew that this majestic bird was enjoying one of the little things, the warmth of the sun on its back.  Ahhhh!

Of course, this event did not change what I needed to do on my trip to town, and I still had the same bills to pay, and chores to do at home, but it did put a skip in my step and a smile on my face and made me slow down for awhile, which is always a good thing!

My list goes on and on .....

My Kia Soul makes me giggle each time I go out to find her parked and waiting for me!  Her name is Steel Magnolia aka Maggie, and she makes my heart sing because I worked and planned so hard to get her, and she has not disappointed me one bit!  Fun to drive, and lots of room for my stuff when I am on the go.

A basket full of colorful fiber and handspun yarns to touch and enjoy!  Oh, the possibilities!!!  That makes my heart sing for sure.  I really need to get back to spinning and knitting soon!

And finally, this week, some baby eggplants that certainly made my heart sing!
There are seven of them so far, and growing so fast that I should be able to
enjoy a roasted feast pretty soon and hopefully for weeks to come!

And now, meet Gloria, my beloved cypress tree!  My sons, Matt and Ben, created a bog of sorts the first summer I moved to my farm so that I could plant one of my favorite trees, a bald cypress, which needs a wet environment to really thrive. She truly makes my heart sing!

Gloria, early in the spring, with yellow-green fringes developing on her branches.

I first fell in love with cypress trees as a child, fishing with my Daddy on Lake Bistineau in North Louisiana. Lake Bistineau was heavily populated with bald cypress trees and cypress knees, as well as Spanish moss, which was draped nonchalantly over everything and created a mystical quality to the whole adventure of the fishing trip.  As I sat in the flat-bottom boat and looked around me, I imagined the trees to be some sort of fairy tale creatures frozen in Time, their feet stuck in the warm brown muddy waters of the lake, and the moss was what was left of their hair.  Indeed, it was very much like being within a fairy tale, sitting with my Daddy in the dappled sunshine, listening to the sounds of summer buzzing around me, the lazy rocking of the boat, and watching dragonflies come to rest on the end of my cane pole, their fairy-like wings sparkling in the sunlight.

Although I did not know the word for it then, the breeze smelled organic, with the scents of mud, fish, feathers, leaves and bark. And many years later, before we had our boys, my husband and I would go fishing and crawfishing in the bayous, swamps and lakes of both South and North Louisiana where the cypress and the Spanish moss were so abundant. My love for the two grew even more as they came to signify summer and good times, adventures and lazy days.  Ahhh!

Gloria in her full summer dress this year.

I planted Gloria as a small sapling the first summer I lived here on HeartSong Farm (1999).  She is now about 25 feet tall and has begun to make seed pods in the last year or two.  She reminds me of a ballerina dressed in a green fringed tutu, and my son and I anxiously await her "greening out" each Spring. There is no other shade of green quite like hers on my farm, and in the fall, she dresses herself in shades of russet.

Three summers ago we experienced a drought and high heat like nothing I had seen since moving back to Texas.  Ben and I were worried that she might not survive as we made sure to keep some moisture around her "toes" with the garden hose. The following Spring we waited anxiously for her green fringes to appear, and, when they did, we literally celebrated with grins as big as Chessy-Cats! Since then, she seems to have gained strength from that Ordeal of Mother Nature, and this year I have noticed that she has begun to grow her "knees!"

Gloria's knees!  I am so EXCITED!

Ben and I are in the process of creating a bog for her by diverting more of the rain runoff from the highway and neighboring properties that flows down my driveway and, at times, nearly comes in my back door.  It will be a good thing for us as well as for her, and eventually I hope to plant some other bog plants to keep her company.  I have always loved swamp lilies and equisetum aka "horsetail."

So ..... what makes your heart sing?  Have you thought about it?!  Do you notice and pay attention to the little things around you? How do you feel when you notice them? Why not spend part of a day just paying attention and being in the moment.  Make notes as to what you saw and how you felt, maybe in a Journal like I do.  Then, if you would like, share them in the comment section below.  I would love to hear what makes YOUR heart sing!

It has been a much cooler summer here in East Texas so far this year.  The first day of August saw temps in the low 80's! We have also had a regular dose of heavy rains, and so the lawns and pastures have remained green instead of turning dry and yellow-brown. We are all very grateful.

The fig trees are now covered with bees and butterflies enjoying the sweetness of the figs I didn't get around to picking. Ben reported that a mockingbird dive-bombed him when he went to get me a couple of handfuls to enjoy with a bit of cheese on Wednesday.  I say, "Let them eat figs!"  Besides, I have noticed that a second crop of fruit is developing on the ends of the branches, so there will be more for me in a few weeks!

I'm enjoying my life here at HeartSong Farm.