Molten Gold · 365 Project

Molten Gold by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

There's a house a couple of blocks from school that has an amazing yard in the spring (I say spring because that what it looks and feel like to me right now, even if it is still technically winter). What is otherwise a yard full of small stone, for several weeks in February and March it is filled with flowers. First, it's just green, but now, it's all yellow and orange...giving it the look of gold almost! It's quite pretty (an understatement).

Down the street from this house is another house with the same flowers, but not as many. And down another street there are a few flowers, obviously brought there randomly by the wind. Definitely a pleasurable sight!

A Prayer in Spring by Robert Frost

OH, give us pleasure in the flowers today;
And give us not to think so far away
As the uncertain harvest; keep us here
All simply in the springing of the year.

Oh, give us pleasure in the orcahrd white,
Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;
And make us happy in the happy bees,
The swarm dilating round the perfect trees.

And make us happy in the darting bird
That suddenly above the bees is heard,
The meteor that thrusts in with needle bill,
And off a blossom in mid air stands still.

For this is love and nothing else is love,
To which it is reserved for God above
To sanctify to what far ends he will,
But which it only needs that we fulfill.

Carded · 365 Project

Carded by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

I was grading journals this morning when this card fell out of one! It was from one of my senior boys who is an avid reader. He'd been talking about a book he really wanted to read and I found it and bought it for him. He was so pleased...and responded with this nice thank you card. It's amazing how little things can make a difference to some...

Full Snow Moon · 365 Project

Full Snow Moon by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

February's Full Moon is called the "Snow Moon" or "Hunger Moon." Native American tribes from the north and east. Clearly not from the desert southwest!

I'm thinking tonight of the famous "Blizzard of '78" that occurred in Massachusetts on this date 34 years ago. I remember when it was first starting to snow that afternoon. I was skipping across campus with my boyfriend (literally) when we noticed we were in a kind of snowy fog. By the time I got home later that afternoon, we knew this was not going to be the usual snowstorm. Hours later it was still snowing. The snow piled up so high that my sisters and I jumped out our second story bedroom window the next day, just because we could without fear of injury! Our collie dog got lost in the snow when we let him out. He actually disappeared from sight!

Schools were closed for days. My college closed for the first and only time in its entire history. So did Harvard University. When it was finally clear and safe to drive again, we found ourselves driving along streets piled so high with snow that you could not see over the walls of snow. Snow mobile owners were kept busy delivering doctors and other essential personnel to hospitals all over the Boston area. It was crazy. Exciting. Fun. Memorable. A once-in-a-lifetime snowstorm I'm thinking...

Not to Be · 365 Project

Not to Be by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

I was hoping to post a victory picture or two, but it was not to be.

Giants 21, Patriots 17.
Disappointing.

Desert Sunset · 365 Project

Desert Sunset by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

Tonight I took a drive up to Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West to watch the sun set. It was amazingly beautiful and I got some good shots except for the power lines streaking through most of them. I was reminded of what I heard on the tour a year ago...how upset he was about the power lines as he was building his home overlooking the valley...so upset that he actually turned his house plans around so that he would have a view of the mountains instead of the power lines. I get it now =) Still, it was a beautiful sunset...

Through all the Sky · 365 Project

Through all the Sky by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

Day is dying in the west;

Heav'n is touching earth with rest;

Wait and worship while the night

Sets the evening lamps alight

Through all the sky.

Chorus:

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts!

Heav'n and earth are full of Thee,

Heav'n and earth are praising Thee,

O Lord most high!

Lord of life, beneath the dome

Of the universe, Thy home,

Gather us who seek Thy face

To the fold of Thy embrace,

For Thou art nigh.

While the deepening shadows fall,

Heart of love enfolding all,

Through the glory and the grace

Of the stars that veil Thy face,

Our hearts ascend.

When forever from our sight

Pass the stars, the day, the night.

Lord of angels, on our eyes

Let eternal morning rise

And shadows end.

At Last! · 365 Project

At Last! by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

My paper whites have finally bloomed. I think they were slowed down a bit because I had them outside. I brought them in today...to my classroom so my students could enjoy them. Quite a few commented on they. They are pretty...if only they didn't smell so funky!

Tiny grains of Earth · 365 Project

Tiny grains of Earth by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

A mountain is composed of tiny grains of earth. The ocean is made up of tiny drops of water. Even so, life is but an endless series of little details, actions, speeches, and thoughts. And the consequences whether good or bad of even the least of them are far-reaching.

~ Sivananda

Tonight's view of the mountain at dusk...

Twelve Angry Doves · 365 Project

Twelve angry doves by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

We've had a wonderfully warm weekend--80s yesterday and high 70s today. This afternoon I decided to sit outside on my patio for awhile, but upset a host of birds who were happily feeding at their feeders at the time. I planted some petunias and pansies and then sat in the sun, soaking up its warmth with great content...until I noticed a dozen doves sitting on the wall across the way from "their" patio. It was so funny the way they were lined up, watching...and waiting for me to vacate the patio so they could get back to their feeding frenzy.

The finches and sparrows were waiting, too, but not quite so obviously. I could hear them chattering to each other in the trees, no doubt commenting on the uselessness of someone just sitting there with their eyes closed ;)

Seconds after I went inside...and I do mean seconds...they were back at the feeders, indulging in my generosity contentedly...

(The last photo is that same wall at sunset)

Patio purple · 365 Project

Patio purple by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

I've been enjoying having flowers in my little gardens year-round. Gets me a little mixed up, though, about what season we're in when there is no true winter here in Arizona. My nasturtiums are growing, the paper whites are ready to bloom. And then there are these lovelies.

How the Sun Set · 365 Project

How the Sun Set by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

I'll tell you how the sun rose,--

A ribbon at a time.

The steeples swam in amethyst,

The news like squirrels ran.

The hills untied their bonnets,

The bobolinks begun.

Then I said to myself softly,

"That must have been the sun!"

But how he set I know not

There seemed a purple stile

Which little yellow boys and girls

Were climbing all the while

Til when they reached the other side,

A dominie in gray

Put gently up the evening bars

And led the flock away

~Emily Dickinson

House and Home · 365 Project

House and Home by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

My birds are eating me out of house and home! Not literally, of course, but they sure do have enormous appetites! They start coming to the feeders around sunup and gorge themselves until about 5 or so. I'm having to refill the feeders every two days or so. I should just feed them on the weekends when I can watch them, but that's hardly fair to them...

Paper Whites · 365 Project

Paper Whites by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

My mother shared a picture of the Paper Whites blooming from bulbs she received at Christmas time. I received some then, too, and planted them nicely when I got back to sunny Arizona. I thought I'd give them a chance to grow in peace by putting them outside in my protected front patio. And I had been pleased with their progress...until I saw these pictures. Mine are just a couple of inches tall...nubs, really...while hers are full-blown blossoms! I might have to bring them inside to get some warmth so they can grow faster, but they haven't frozen and are growing, so maybe I should let them grow where they are. The nasturtiums I planted at the same time from seeds are a few inches high, too. So...maybe...maybe... We'll see!

AFC Champs · 365 Project

AFC Champs by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

I've not had the opportunity to watch much of my favorite football team since I moved to Arizona. For some reason programmers think that people in the west are more interested in western teams than eastern ones. So...it was especially fun today to watch more than the highlights of the Patriots' AFC Championship win. Football is not my favorite sport, but I do enjoy the Patriots, especially since Tom Brady became quarterback in 2001...and since he's helped bring about 4 Super Bowl wins....

Photos:  Brady before the game and afterwards.  Score:  Ravens 20, Patriots 23

Dust of Snow · 365 Project

Snow! by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

My mother sent me pictures of the snow that blanketed her house and yard this morning. Made me homesick for winter! I haven't seen snow since last Christmas (there was no snow when I was there this time), and I have to admit to missing it. Not driving in it, but certainly watching it fall and pile up on the trees.

Here's one of my favorite poems about snow:

Dust of Snow

Roberto Frost (1923)

The way a crow

Shook down on me

The dust of snow

From a hemlock tree

Has given my heart

A change of mood

And saved some part

Of a day I had rued.

New Obsession · 365 Project

New Obsession by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

When I was younger, oh so much younger, I used to devour such magazines as Seventeen. If I came across a picture of something I liked, I tore it out, carefully trimmed the edges and filed it in any one of a number of manilla folders I kept in a box. When I was a teenager, we moved to a house where I had my own room, a room big enough to have a fireplace in it, a table/study area, and a wall for a large bulletin board. I was in heaven there! I remember filling that bulletin board with the pictures I had collected, changing them out periodically, but keeping my favorites up, anchored permanently by staples or a pin (push pins had not yet been invented!).

I have to admit to still doing this, well not the bulletin board part, but certainly the folders of pictures and stories ripped from a myriad of magazines and newspapers that I once subscribed to. Unfortunately, the magazines began to pile up far faster than I could read and harvest them. And one by one, I stopped subscribing to my once beloved magazines until by the time I moved from MA to AZ, I had virtually no subscriptions to transfer from East to West. I am somewhat chagrined to also admit that There were a few boxes containing magazines I couldn't part with, as I'd not yet read them. And they still sit in those boxes, waiting for me to get to them.

I have steadfastly avoided the magazine rack in grocery stores and the rows and rows of tempting magazines in book stores. But then. Along comes an invitation from a blogging friend to try Pinterest. I had heard of it a month or two earlier when my niece showed me her pages (mostly filled with wedding ideas), but hadn't really given it much thought until that invitation. I succumbed. And am hooked.

Now in the evening intstead of playing Words with Friends for 1/2 hour or so before going to bed, I find myself scrolling through pages of photos of beautiful places, clothes, food, and quotes. And I find myself once again culling ideas and organizing them into folders and boards. Never in my wildest youthful imaginings did I imagine something like this! I'm not sure which I like best. One thing for sure, Pinterest certainly is greener!

Like a Red, Red Rose · 365 Project

Like a Red, Red Rose by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

Since my school is a boarding school, we had to "have" school on Monday, Martin Luther King Day. We honored King's memory by doing various service projects throughout Scottsdale and Phoenix. Some groups went to elementary schools and cleaned up the playgrounds or worked in classrooms with teachers. Other groups cleaned up nearby streets and parks, and three groups stayed at school. My group worked in the neglected rose garden and three other flower beds on campus. It was hard but satisfying work. I rescued several of the roses we had to clip for my classroom. They are beautiful and smell heavenly!

One of my students took the photos of the roses before their trimming.  You'll notice in the one where the boy is clipping how neglected the beds really were.  They look infinitely better now!

Start of a new day · 365 Project

 Start of a new day by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

I'm going to kill two birds with one stone tonight and post a 365 Project picture about beginning of my day for my NaBloPoMo entry. I've found that one harder to keep up with than the daily photo project...but on the whole, I think I've done pretty well writing on most days so far.

Today's photos were taken on my way to work this morning. It had rained much of the night and clouds of fog were rolling around the mountain tops, which intrigued me, so I tried to capture it--yes, while driving. I was careful, though, don't worry. Of course it was much prettier in reality than I could capture through the windshield, but I like it all the same. I don't do it on purpose--it just happens coincidentally--but usually I find myself driving to work into the sunrise and driving home into the sunset. Given the stunning beauty of most sunrises and sunsets here in AZ, I consider the beginning and ending to my work days rather glorious!

Beginning Again * NaBloPoMo

One of my students gave his testimony at church today.  The theme for the morning was "Enjoy the Journey" and he talked about the beginning of a new journey he is taking with God--one that started when he got word from his surgeon that he will probably never enjoy an active life on his feet again.  He was injured twice in two successive basketball games just before Christmas and had surgery days after.  He had torn both his ACL and his meniscus; only the ACL could be repaired.

He's been active all his life, so you can imagine his disappointment when the doctor told him he'll most likely never be able to play sports again, or possibly even run with any kind of comfort again.  He admitted his disappointment and frustration and how he had cried out to God "Why?"  God's answer to him was to help him realize that even though he couldn't run, he could walk.  He could slow down enough to walk with others and share his love for Jesus and encourage them on their own spiritual journey through life.

This boy is one of my workers and we talk often throughout each day as he's going through the tasks I have for him.  He has been an inspiration to me several times, including today, as he works his way through what could be a devastating injury to him.  I'm sure he has his moments of despair, but he seems to be getting a handle on it, through his confidence in God's plan for him.  This new year, though, has definitely been a case of beginning again...

Yellow and Gray · 365 Project

Yellow and Gray by Rondi Aastrup · 365 Project

I went for a walk in the late afternoon, knowing that I would see some interesting things. I always do. This time I saw more than I could capture with my camera, but I got enough to share all the same.  This mockingbird was my first find. He was perched atop a lemon tree, standing out, the gray against the yellow.

Next, I saw a flock of Abert's Towhees, but couldn't get them to sit still long enough for a good close photo. They were very talkative, though.  I could hear them long after I had gone past them (they were flitting around the pool area of this condo complex on the golf course).

Further along, I saw the cutest winter wren hopping around atop a boulder.

On the ground, just past the wren's boulder, a ground squirrel froze long enough for me to shoot him.  He's right outside his hole and when I moved, he popped down into safety.

Across the walkway on the golf course, a large flock of doves gorged themselves on something tasty in this patch of dirt.

And finally, back home again, a mockingbird enjoyed the suet on my back patio in the shadow of the bougainvilea.  It was a good walk =)