i’m really dedicated to making saturdays all about fun and relaxation and exploring. this is a little snapshot of my morning. lounging in the california sunshine (there are some serious perks to living here) while watching my man surf. a perfect morning of tea and books and my thoughts and the ocean sounds.
i love beaches that you hike down into. this was a view from the top before we got down. i’m always so surprised at how empty the beaches can be here. in a city where i often feel suffocated by the amount of people, the beaches that are slightly off the beaten path are a nice escape. ahhhh. today, i felt no impulse to rush. or to do. or to complete a project. or to putter. this hasn’t been easy for me to do in a long time, so it was nice to feel fully relaxed in the midst of a growing to-do list (that can wait until monday). i’m learning that i CAN have a schedule that actually creates boundaries for work and play. it feels like a tiny miracle – mainly because work feels like play, but a different kind of play. hard to explain. but it feels really good.
this little dried up leaf-heart was found in the middle of a tree-lined berkeley street this morning. i think it may be one of my favorites.
the first edited version of my book was waiting at my doorstep for me when i arrived home from the ocean. my heart welled up with anticipation and nerves. what would it look like? how had it changed from my original manuscript? i took a peek. i love it. my editor kicks ass. there is still a lot of work to do, but i feel so ready to dive back into it after many, many weeks of stepping away from it. fresh eyes. renewed energy. i’m ready.
one more thing –> i’ll announce who won the #508 post contest on monday. i can’t wait to see who wins!
I just stumbled upon your blog today. I love the pictures of found hearts. This reminds me of a story I heard once — I can’t remember the specifics now — that two groups of people were taken to the same clover patch — one group was told it was an ordinary clover patch (which it was), and the other was told that it held an exceptionally high rate of four-leaf clovers. They were then told to look for four-leaf clovers, and the group who was told this was a special clover patch found like twice the number of four-leaf clovers as the other group.
I wonder if this is the same for you — you assume there are hearts hidden everywhere in nature, so you find them everywhere… 🙂
Congrats on the book preview! What a sense of fulfillment that must be!
i love california beaches for the same reasons! and your newest heart is great 🙂
It’s difficult for me to imagine just being able to drive down to the beach each weekend. Sometimes I think it’s a cruel joke that I live in the middle of a desert.
ahhh … thank you for taking me away for a few moments in time. i’ve been rushed lately. i’ve been sick with the flu and the kids are missing the fun momma. i needed that break on the beach … even if it was just through your words and photos. it doesn’t help that it’s only 5 degrees here.
oh and that heart is so sweet!
i cannot wait for the book…i am anxiously awaiting its arrival in the bookstores…*sigh*
It’s great that you are happy with the first edit of the book! It seems like that would make it easier to do the remaining work on it, you know? Can’t wait for it to be done.
So glad you had a wonderful Saturday, full of rest and reflection and slowing down.
I agree with Marcel — no one finds hearts like you do. Just now, looking at this cute picture with your adorable shoes flanking both sides of that broken leaf, I wondered if someday it would be a great project to make a book out of all your found heart photographs. So interesting! I bet people would love it. I know I would.
So excited to hear about your edited manuscript coming back to you — ACK!! I can just imagine the nerves and the excitement at once, but I’m so glad you are pleased with the edits and ready to plunge back in. You so deserve this gift.
Bare feet. The ocean. The book, “The Glass House” (one of my favorites). Your gorgeous man on a surfboard. You do know how to live.
I can’t wait either. 🙂 Also, I’m sure that no one finds hearts throughout her day like you do. It’s one of your gifts, I think. 🙂
If I lived in a warm climate, near a beach, that would be in ideal Saturday to me — I love to listen to the sound of water, especially an ocean. *sigh* I love that I was able to do that vicariously through you!!
I’m glad you are loving how the book is looking…and after a day of “nothing” but replenishing your soul by the water, you’ll be energized to dig in and make corrections/edit and do the necessary work to bring your “baby” to life on bookshelves everywhere!!
I think we shared a Saturday – I, too, took the day off and sat on the couch under a warm quilt, while it snowed outside, and watched my two girls play. I have a zillion things to do and there is always an excuse to go out, but today – today I stayed put and found that I enjoyed every minute. So, here is to taking a bit of time off to sit and appreciate all the good things about leaving the to-do-list for another day.
P.S. If I had had to wander out I would probably have traded you our light snow for your sunshine beach!