Smart Beautiful Women

The cool crisp air that exhilarates my lungs as Maddy and I walk to the barn to feed the cats. It puts my nerves on edge because it feels like snow (knock on wood).

The orange carpet of crunching leaves that her and I skip on as I teach her the line… “we’re off to see the Wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz”… she tries to follow me and click her heels together but her pink rubber boots are too heavy for her to even get her feet off the ground.

The joy I get from watching her grow much too quickly, how she adores her brother, and loves to sing!

♫ ♫ “We’re off to see the Wizard” ♫

Gratitude for the music that fills my life. Driving on a back road, blasting the music and loving the way a good song lifts my spirit and puts my in a great mood.

I love how particular songs remind me of days gone by, great friends and the times we’ve had, and how I miss old friends I haven’t seen in ages, rodeos and cabarets were we can dance the night away.

Beautiful fall day with the sun beating down on my face and a soft fall breeze blowing behind me.

Surrounded by other creative and easygoing souls who are grateful for the opportunity of coming together. Inspiration from the people around me…. Their diversity, words of encouragement and sincerity are refreshing. The passion that pours off their tongue and through their words is infectious because I want to write and write and write some more.

Coming home later than expected and taking our friends in the barn our offering of friendship to find them waiting for us and, one more black kitten slowly realizing that we’re really not that scary.

Basking in the glow from a job well done and a day that has gone so smoothly. Much gratitude for the amazing people I met today and who have inspired me.

A calm fall day where at times, the only sound is the crunch of leaves as they leave the home they’ve known since spring and make their way through an entanglement of dead branches, finally resting on the orange carpet below.

A peacefulness in the air, aside from the crunching leaves, that stills the soul and makes you aware of how lucky you are to be living in a place where you truly feel as though you are one with your surroundings.

A joyful two year old who gets giddy as soon as her lungs hit the fresh air and her feet hit the tree lined drive. Her excitement in this moment makes you want to skip along behind her as she takes in the wonderment of this place.

The whinnying of the horses as they gently remind us that they’re still in the corral and not in the pasture. “Don’t forget we’re here”.

And last but not least, gratitude for the idea of showing more gratitude while sitting on the front steps, taking in the peacefulness that is around me, and being so thankful to live in a place as beautiful as this.