Pause ~ Take Rest

I'm taking a new 52-week class with Kim Klassen, "Be Still."  While it incorporates photography, it also is about cultivating a lifestyle of stillness.  We were encouraged to do a still photo that gave plenty of room to breathe, instead of filling the entire image.

Breathe [breeth]: to pause; to take rest. giving room to breathe.

But this is more than about photography...it's about life.

Do you give yourself room to breathe?  Time to be still?  Time to be present with life at the moment?

Ed and I are once again in West Virginia...taking time to pause...to decorate my grandparents' and great-grandparents' graves.  A grave not decorated on Memorial Day is just too sad...  This has been a tradition since my parents were living and unable to do so.

My mother modeled this ritual with my Mamaw.  She would gather peonies, irises, and branches from her mock orange tree blossoms, wrap them up in wet newspaper, and annually take my Mamaw to go to her son's grave in Morgantown, West Virginia (my mother's only brother) who died at the age of 23.

West Virginia lends itself to pausing, resting, breathing.  Life seems so much slower here.  How to bottle it up?  How to make room to breathe in the dailyness of life?

Any suggestions?  My greatest encouragement to do this is found in the Psalms ~ "Be still and know that I am God."

Simple Texture Tuesday

Just getting back into town after our trip...but wanted to link up quickly with Kim's Texture Tuesday...

I made this still with the eggs the farm owners gave us from their free-range chickens as a complimentary gift.  How special was this?  But it is good to be home.  Texture used is Kim's texture petra.

Rainy Day at the Horse Camp

A rainy day on the farm...

...only one horse out...

and how Arthur pleaded with Ed to go outside.  So we made the best of it inside.

Good day to get feet ready for flip flops...

Enjoyed some coffee...some reading...some journaling (notice Arthur's ball that also could not go outside).

And I worked on some stills...these flowers were here when we arrived.

Now...before you start to feel sorry for Arthur being housebound...

We took him out cruisin'...him in the driver's seat, no less.

But at the end of the day...the storms gave way to a beautiful evening.

Horse Campin'

Spring in West Virginia...and yes...it is late here, too!  But it is still Spring!

Edster, me and the four-footed boys are staying at a Horse Camp near Harman...

A two bedroom apartment with two porches (one outside french doors from the Master bedroom) with a hot tub...

overlooking the countryside...

 ...and it's attached to the horse barn.

And in the fridge...fresh farm eggs...two dozen!!!

Now Arthur is sooooooooooooo home here...made for the farm...herding the guinea hens.

And they don't like it...then he found the horses!

"Let me at 'em...let me at 'em!"

"Ruh-roh...now what?"

Sorry, Arthur...these two couldn't care less...

Actually they are very sweet...and the fun begins!

Confessions of a Drive-By Clicker - Texture Tuesday

Another Texture Tuesday with Kim...

I have a confession.  I'm Denise F. and I'm a drive-by clicker.  It drives Edster crazy.  We will be cruising and I'll see something, quickly framing it in my mind, then saying, "Stop!" as we have almost always already driven by...and my shutter finger is quivering in excitement.

Cruising through the backroads of West Virginia last week...I saw this house...framed it in my head...and after passing it...STOP!  Edster goes in reverse (hoping no cars are coming behind us).

How could I pass this old house up?  It so reminds me of the house in the movie, The Notebook. You know...the house Noah purchases and restores to forget that Allie is no longer available.  But that's not the end of the story...

If you haven't seen it...you should!  No spoilers here!

I did some edits and added Kim's texture, appreciate, for this photo.

Are you a drive by clicker???

A Stroll Through Thomas - Part 1

Writing from my favorite chair...  Who would have thought one would need to recover from vacation?  I'm not sure what I've done to myself, but I've been dealing with sacroiliac joint dysfunction for over four days now...living on Alleve and sitting on a heating pad. So...let me reflect on part of our day in Thomas...

Thomas is a tiny town, population: 567, nestled in the area of Blackwater Falls State Park and the gateway into the Canaan Valley.

Oh my...a quaint coffee shop called Tip Top...which their website says is an adjective that means of the very best quality.

And I could hardly pass it up after seeing this temptress...

So we stopped in.  A man was walking out with one to go cup saying, "You better have your checkbook."  Dude...I'm not looking for a cup of coffee I pour myself from a gas station convenient store...

The aroma...the ambiance...seeing Kimberly hand washing dishes...  Kimberly is a transplant from Portland and could not have been nicer.

I'll have a Latte, please...

A cup of joy individually made and served by Kimberly...mmm, heaven!  Edster had an Americano.

The place is filled with coffee and artisan chocolates for purchase to take home.

And mugs with this nostalgic, vintage feel with their logo...

And although I did not partake...tons of goodies and pastries were ever so tempting.

The whole experience is true to their name...of the very best quality!

So, if you are ever nearby...stop in.  And of course, you can always find them on Facebook!

Meet Mattie - A Friday Find

What is SO not to love about this wonderful creature.  I'm linking up with Kim Klassen today with her weekly Friday Finds.  And check out what we found in Thomas, West Virginia!

Mattie is an AKC purebred bloodhound...a gentle giant of four years of age.  Mattie loves to run and follow scents...in fact, bloodhounds have been known to follow and track something with so much tenacity that they forget to meet their physical needs of rest, food, and water...sometimes running themselves to death.

Mattie has four girlfriends...quite the playboy!  They are all purebred bloodhounds as well who have given him many children.  But Mattie has his morals.  No shacking up for him.

He lives with his caretaker, Barry,...a local, salt of the earth mountain man who has a long history in the mines of West Virginia.

Barry chatted with us quite a long time while we ooh-ed and ahhh-ed over his fine furry fellow.

And he told us about a backroad, off-the-beaten path way along an old rail bed to find this little gem.

Locals are ALWAYS the best.