{his & hers} orchids

I bought him & me each an iris...his purple & mine pink.

Oh so lovely!

{the blue hour}

{play ball}

A night of watching him play softball

& a beautiful sky at the game.

{morning fog & sun}

{saying goodbye}

I lost a dear friend last week.  She was riding her motorcycle with her boyfriend and another couple in the middle of the day -- as she so loved to do!  A car crossed the median as the driver was paying more attention to his phone than the road.  Her boyfriend held her as she took her last breath.  A mother was lost to a senseless tragedy!  She was a truly remarkable person and I was blessed to have called her my friend.  

I didn't see or talk to Angi often enough -- we all know how life is -- and any one who's my friend knows I'm terrible at it. But true friends who you connect with - the ones who touch your soul - can always pick up where they left off like no time has passed. One of the things I loved about Angi, I believe, was her gift to all who met her...her keen awareness to see people for who they are inside & make them feel special, which is why we found her so special in return. I don't know how to say goodbye to such a beautiful person who touched so many lives...so I won't. Your smile & positive energy will live on. 

Instead of asking WHY...I'm trying to look at how Angi lived a "do what you love" life as inspiration & ask instead how I can bring more of that into my life!  

A quote by Jackson Kiddard:

If today was it, would you die knowing you did your best?

If tomorrow never came, would you be proud of the last thing you said to each person you love?

If “someday” was only “now”, would you do everything you've always put off?

If you knew you had a choice about what kind of life you could be living, would you choose different?

If you knew failure is impossible, what would you do?

If it were true that everyone you meet is you in another body, how would you treat them?

If love was the true currency of the universe and the more you gave away the more you received, how would you spend it?

If fear were the biggest illusion and the greatest lie of all time, how would you choose to live your life?

If the universe always supported a life lived towards achieving dreams, how big would you dream?

At the service, pink ribbons were passed out to tie on since pink was her favorite color. The microphone was passed around to all of the 400+ people in attendance to say one word about her. ..all beautiful! At the end of the service, the doors in the room were opened to the outdoors. As what could be described as a biker's "21 gun salute" -- all the bikes started & engines roaring. The sound of the bikes filled the room... then silence. That my friends was AMAZING & tugged at my heart (aka...couldn't stop crying). 

Later that day, there were double rainbows twice that evening!  I like to think of them as her letting us know she is still watching over us.  Until we meet again my dear friend. xoxo

{quuen anne's lace} at sunset

{clouds at sunset}

Room with a View

In the mornings I have come to appreciate my bathroom window facing east. As I'm in front of the mirror getting ready for work, I can see the beautiful colors of the morning sky.

Here's a view out my window this morning...

I have noticed this year that the coldest mornings seem to bring the most spectacular sunrises. There are so many vibrant colors in the sky, it's just a great way to start off the day. I love that you can see the icicles hanging from the roof.

A couple more pictures of the view from my backyard...

Morning Winter Sky

The weather may be very cold here in Michigan, but this cold creates some of the most beautiful morning skies...