A Park in Fall

I've been waiting several years to use this picture. I found it online somewhere. I don't know where it's located, but I love it. Every fall I've forgotten to post and write about it. This fall it's been on my mind and I finally remembered!

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You might ask, "What's the big deal about this picture?"

I live a desert, you see. I'm not within 200 miles of anything remotely as green as this. (The mountains of So. Utah or the rolling hills of So. California would be the closest green spots to me.) Some people dream about a new house or car, but my dreams involve naturally green grass and tall, leafy trees.

This picture first caught my eye---with its winding paths, convenient benches, and the colorful leaves on the trees in the background, because I love to run and this would be a gorgeous place to run through. It's so different from what I see every day---it's soothing to my eyes and my emotions.

I wonder if I'll ever find it. I like to imagine this is a park in England or Ireland and someday, while on vacation there, I'll stumble onto it. I'll walk along the paths, admiring the foliage, then stop and sit on one of the benches and admire the greenery around me.

Copyright 2011 Corrina L. Terry

Photo credit: Unknown

Making Peace

My friend, Ron, posted this picture on Facebook. I smiled when I saw it, knowing how true it is, and copied it for my blog.

I haven't written or even felt like writing in months. Once my sister's blog was attacked by an unknown hate blogger, I lost some of my joy in writing here. It didn't feel safe. Even when I turned my once public blog into a private one, I felt sick knowing there were people out there looking for nice blogs to destroy.

So I wrote poems and essays in my mind, cataloging them there for later. (If I remember them later, that is.)

Then I saw this picture. I admit, I made judgement calls about several people I know who are not at peace with who they are; always searching for the better car, the next house, the better spouse. They hate how they look or the life situation they were either born in or find themselves in. People who are so unhappy that they have little to no peace. Then I realized, shame on me, I needed to be judging myself.

Am I at peace with who I am? Most of the time. Am I content with what I have? Most of the time. I have my moments.

I count myself one of the luckiest people in the world. I was born to great parents and a large, fun family in a free country. I believe in a God who loves me, and am part of a religion that is truly fulfilling. I am blessed with a child I should never have been able to have, and after heartbreak I found an amazing man I love to spend the rest of my life with.

So I'll keep this picture to remind myself to be at peace; to count my blessings; to be content.

Copyright 2011 Corrina L. Terry
Picture courtesy of Ron via Facebook