Akin to Ava: New Friends

Wow. These photos are kinda old actually. They are from a jaunt to Blue Hills back at the tail end of December. It was a warmer and more humid day for the Winter month and the recent snow and ice was melting in its warmth. I loved the juxtaposition of the melting ice and the autumn like foliage.

 This is Millie. She reminds me of a baby Ava. I am just so into lichen. When I went off trail I stumbled onto this little tree and probably spent five million years taking pictures.

I love when I stumble on little holes in trees. They makes me think of little hidden treasure havens. Sometimes, for some little critter they just might be.

This was the 'treasure' I found. Ok, so it is essentially some ice, wet leaves, and other assorted bramble. But in my mind at the time it was a lot more magical for sure.

Old time friend of The Story Girl. This is Joseph for his fallen roots are of many colors.

 Ughh....I like this picture, but it doesn't even begin to capture the hazy wonderful feeling I felt when I walked into this little off trail clearing.

 Magic!

"If your eyes are opened, you'll see the things worth seeing"

-Rumi 

Paved Enchantment: Sylvie and the Snow

A few times a week I walk a friend's dog. She is a black lab and just about the best little dog pal a person can have. Sylvette LOVES snow. She loves sniffing it. She loves walking in it. She loves it so much that she has a happy dance when she plays in it. It looks a lot like when Snoopy dances. It is one of the most precious things I have ever seen. I am truly considering developing my own signature happy dance due to her influence.

I walk Syvlie in Brookline and right by the dog park we visit there is a sanctuary called Hall's Pond. Hall's Pond is one of two natural ponds in Brookline. The sanctuary contains the pond, wetlands, a garden, and a small trail. Tons of birds and little critters inhabit this plot of land. Sylvie and I have never been inside the gates of this sanctuary due to Sylvie being a dog and thus not being invited (critter protection you see). We walk around it a lot though and I think it is so amazing that nestled in the city is this little gem. There are a lot of little pieces of land like this scattered around Boston actually. Sadly not a lot of people know that our urban jungle has some of nature's wonderful secrets.

A secret to no Bostonian at the moment though is that we are currently experiencing a consistent bout of predicted snow. On Monday there was a bit of snowfall as the prelude of bigger things to come. Knowing how much Sylvie loves the snow, I was super stoked to take her out. As we walked around the dog park I stopped near the pond and took the photos below. One of these days I will venture inside the gates, but for now the view from just outside and with such sweet company will do.

I should note that like Sylvie I also am loving the snow. As a Southerner I am not super thrilled with the cold part of it; however the snow creates this misty texture to the sky and lighting. Every shot taken with Sparrow makes me think of a watercolor painting. Being outside is like living in an enchanted picture full of promise and hope. My hope is for daffodils and Spring. I only enjoy the snow so much after all.

While I wait for the cheerful yellow orbs that trumpet the coming of Spring though, I will work on my own happy dance. Maybe you could work on yours too. Enjoy living with abandon. Hope for things while enjoying the present. Hope is after all one of the most beautiful things we can possess. Stay warm!

Sunshine Fables: Thank God for Elvis

I have always wanted to be a dancer. I suppose a lot of people could say that. I never wanted to be a professional ballerina or anything like that though. I just wanted to always be dancing. Some people, when you really watch them you see, are ALWAYS dancing. When they step onto the subway- they are dancing. When they reach for their favorite coffee mug on that just a little too high shelf- they are dancing. When they are in repose, sitting, laying on the sofa- they are dancing. I don't know that I have words to explain it much better than that. Perhaps you are smiling as you read this and know exactly what I mean. My clumsy attempt to explain it is essentially the opposite of dancing. So perhaps what I mean when I say they're are always dancing, is that they are at ease. They are comfy in their own body, within their own skin, and have a sense of freedom. And that freedom gives them a joy and to me that joy is like dancing. Every movement is a marker of freedom, every movement unintentionally graceful.

I want to be a dancer. Sometimes, every once in a while, I am a dancer. I used to go to this thing called Uhuru Afrika and there I was a dancer. The music, the community, the setting inspired me and I was free. I was free and at ease and I danced. I danced for hours. I danced alone. I danced with others and I was happy. But that was only once a month and now it is even less.

This year I decided is going to be my year to be a dancer all through life. My goal is to take at least three dance classes a month. I don't think my definition of being a dancer requires that I become a formal dancer of one specific genre; however here is the thing- I don't like doing things I am not especially great at. I hated math in school and found every feasible way to avoid it (which really isn't feasible in a grownup world, but I thought for sure after college I could finally escape it. There is NO escape from math I have found). I am terrible at origami. Some friends and I were building this paper bird for a friend and I had to be emotionally dragged through the process because the paper wouldn't fold the way I needed it to and I got so gosh darn mad. It makes me mad now even thinking about it- I mean look at that run on sentence. That is a rage run on sentence! Ughh. So I am not a good dance class student either and I have done many a one off class and then never returned. My brain slows down in dance class and it's like math and paper folding all in one and I get awkward like I used to whenever Dan the Banana Man (true name. Reference Lavender) came near me. I tense up and something goes wonky with my vision and it is a mess. I went to a dance class with a friend once and at the end of the class she just kinda looked at me confused. My whole being changed in class. I wasn't assured. I wasn't confident. I was a mess and it was like I was a whole new person to her.

I think a lot of us fall apart a bit when we are challenged to do things that don't come easily. A relationship isn't easy? How often do we just walk away? A job gets too challenging? How often do we just cut our losses? For me, dancing isn't just that it is hard for me to follow the steps- it is hard for me to relax. I went to a class Monday. I tried so hard. I thought at least at the stretching parts my yoga training would be beneficial, but I was quickly informed I was not relaxing my neck enough. That came into play again as I tried a transition move. I thought I was achieving grace, but when I looked in the mirror I looked mildly constipated. My one good moment was when the teacher asked who was singing the song we were dancing too. Ever the student, I dutifully replied Elvis. Thank God for Elvis. My teacher smiled at me for the first time and the ease I felt in academic situations momentarily kicked in. At the end of class she asked to see me. "It is charming," she said. "You think you are so relaxed, but you are not relaxed at all." Very similar to something my chiropractor said to me a few months ago...

So I am going to keep dancing and going to classes. I am going to keep putting myself in uncomfortable positions because I think that it is through those uncomfortable moments that I will find my freedom, my joy. Sometimes you have to allow yourself to do things you are not good at and allow your best attempt to be ok. You have to allow yourself to not be perfect and just relax. You let your body and mind be at ease and you just let your soul dance. To me that is inner beauty (and hopefully maybe even a beautiful dance routine at some point :) ).

Akin to Ava- Glitter on the Highway

It is bitterly cold. As I walked home with my hat sadly perched atop my head as it was heavy with wetness and my boots soaked through to my equally wet socks, I couldn't help but to stop and admire the falling snow in the street lamps. The snow has an almost glittery quality. For some reason it seems more pure than any other snow I have ever seen. There is something about fresh snow on a fresh new year. It seems transformative and oddly hopeful. It bathes everything in a sense of newness.

As beautiful as it is, I was so pleased to walk into my home and watch it drift from the comfort of my window. I often feel as if the best view is from my own window. There is a comfy old pine, playful cats, and so many different colored birds. It is utterly charming and every morning when I open my blind and stare out I feel moved. How fortunate am I to have such a nice view?

I have found another who feels similarly to myself and I thought I would share this video. The maker of this video took photos from his window for 15 months and then took these photos and made a time lapse video that captures the changes in the seasons. Utterly fabulous...

 http://www.treehugger.com/natural-sciences/15-months-forests-life-shown-3-minute-time-lapse.html

I hope each of you is having a wonderful start to your New Year. Keep warm and cozy!

Happy New Year!!! I am so excited for 2014. Frankly, the last year for me has been one of transition and in 2014 I hope to transition my blog into what I really hope it to be. I fear that I may be outgrowing this format as I have some ideas for things that I am not certain how to do via blogger, but for now here we are.

As this year proceeds posts will be broken into a few 'chapters'. 'Akin to Ava' will reflect on my time spent on hikes or other rambles through nature. 'Sunshine Fables' will be stories from my own life that have touched me. And finally 'Paved Enchantment' will focus on neighborhoods throughout the city and the people who inhabit them. My sincerest hope is that this chapter especially will challenge people to reconsider parts of the city that are typically thought of with fear, apprehension, or are flatly ignored.

When Ava met Sparrow

And I am back!!! I apologize for the brief absence of the Story Girl; however it took me a beat to figure out how to remove my last name from the blog. As a social worker I have to be very careful as to who has access to my online information, but with a quick 'name change' I have returned to blogger. I have had many entries that I have saved whether in my mind, journal, or in my camera so in the next few days as time allows I will try to play catchup. It was my sincerest goal this year to focus on finding the beauty in EVERY day and fear not the absence of posts is in now way indicative of an absence of focus. 

What a wonderful day to return to my blog too! On this rainy day I took my pug friend, Mack, on a little walk through Blue Hills. While I have had my beloved camera (Sparrow) for a little while now, Sparrow until today had not yet met Ava (My BTF- Best Tree Forever). So with Mack in tow I took Sparrow out and we happened upon Ava. Ava has been featured on this blog many a time. It is perhaps strange that I am so friendly with a tree, but I love this tree very very much. Today I found that she was a little slanted and I fear that perhaps she is going to fall soon. I was glad to see that despite a distinct lean Ava still looks austere and proud. It's just a little gangsta lean perhaps. 

Rain fell most of the day. I looked out the window many times hoping it would cease, yet in truth the rain did nothing but heighten the beauty of the Autumn trees. From my view everything's edges seemed a bit blurry and it felt like living in a painting. Today the world was art and the window a meager frame to the great masterpiece of mother nature.