The “CAN” Polish is Free

“Getting older is inevitable: Aging is optional” – Christine Northrup

I know, I know. It’s hard sometimes to get motivated to eat right and exercise, not only our bodies, but our minds. But since I’m about to scroll down another line to hit the year I was born (lucky cursor), I thought I’d find some inspiration.

Aging is a relative term. Some might feel their life is almost over when they hit the big 30. Others, like me, understand that we knew very little at that time.

As actress Helen Mirren said, “Your 40s are good.  Your 50s are great.  Your 60s are fab.  And 70 is f*@king awesome!”

Want to keep your get-up-and-go getting up and going? Ponder these:

— “For the unlearned, old age is winter; for the learned, it is the season of the harvest.”   ~Hasidic saying

— “I believe the second half of one’s life is meant to be better than the first half. The first half is finding out how you do it. And the second half is enjoying it.”  ~Frances Lear

— “None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm.”  ~Henry David Thoreau

— “I am appalled that the term we use to talk about aging is ‘anti.’ Aging is as natural as a baby’s softness and scent. Aging is human evolution in its pure form.”~ Jamie Lee Curtis

— “The great thing about getting older is that you become more mellow. Things aren’t as black and white, and you become much more tolerant. You can see the good in things much more easily rather than getting enraged as you used to do when you were young.”    ~Maeve Binchy

— “We don’t grow older, we grow riper.” ~Pablo Picasso

— “You’re either marvelous or you’re boring, regardless of your age.” – Morrisse

— “Laughter is timeless. Imagination has no age. And Dreams are forever.” – Walt Disney

— “Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be.” ~Robert Browning

 

Accept and be loyal to yourself.

And remember, that WON’T and CAN’T are two entirely different kettles.

The CAN polish is free.

still-life-old-classic-kettle-art-44733996

 

c7abd782d9a242b5f4cfc47885425bd6--kettle-claude

 

 

photo 1: Royal Free Stock Photos

Painting 2: by Claude Joseph Bail (1862-1921)

Daily Word Prompt: Loyal

Quelling Dispair

Unknown

 

 

Life by Charlotte Bronte

LIFE, believe, is not a dream

So dark as sages say;

Oft a little morning rain

Foretells a pleasant day.

Sometimes there are clouds of gloom,

But these are transient all;

If the shower will make the roses bloom,

O why lament its fall ?

Rapidly, merrily,

Life’s sunny hours flit by,

Gratefully, cheerily,

Enjoy them as they fly !

What though Death at times steps in

And calls our Best away ?

What though sorrow seems to win,

O’er hope, a heavy sway ?

Yet hope again elastic springs,

Unconquered, though she fell;

Still buoyant are her golden wings,

Still strong to bear us well.

Manfully, fearlessly,

The day of trial bear,

For gloriously, victoriously,

Can courage quell despair !

 

 

Art

Daily word prompt: Elastic

Empty Lies a Crowded Room

5981761296_85bdfccb1f_b-1

 

Twas’ too soon for me to go

an empty vessel still in tow

the darkness loomed, but glowed, that room

the crowd all dapper-dressed.

The iron box of elevation

took us to that destination

the couple smiles, no hesitation

“Congrats on baby quest.”

“Guess it’s not to be,” repeated

words I’d learn, still felt defeated

empty arms I had conceded

A promised heart betrayed of grants

Glasses clinking, lighting winking

champagne fountains made for drinking

my soul betrayed continued sinking

yet how the people danced.

Oh, how those people danced.

 

 

photo credit

 

Breaking routines to find treasures

Funny how, when a friend comes to town, you experience your home city with new eyes. So, when my friend Derick came to town, I broke my routine and did something I hadn’t done in a long while.

We hiked up Mount Bonnell, and viewed the Austin skyline.

IMG_2377.jpg

Then off to Contemporary Austin Laguna Gloria to visit nature and sculptures. And nature through sculptures.

IMG_2402.jpg

We followed the paths …

IMG_2406.jpgIMG_2395.jpg

And discovered a beautiful mermaid …

IMG_2392.jpg

IMG_2393.jpg

solitude,

Image 9-4-17 at 10.07 PM (1).jpg

and a renewed passion for nature.

Image 9-4-17 at 10.07 PM (2).jpg

Oh, and as a friend once told me in Florence, NEVER FORGET TO LOOK UP!

IMG_2379.jpg

 

Interwoven

 

My life has been a tapestry of rich and royal hue
An everlasting vision of the ever-changing view
A wondrous, woven magic in bits of blue and gold
A tapestry to feel and see, impossible to hold.
              “Tapestry” by Carol King (excerpt)

No, not impossible. Together we are interwoven threads of beauty. Leaving out unique textures and threads would be an injustice.

Feeling cold? Embrace the warmth of human kind’s tapestry.

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: texture