Mindfulness

I love art as an inspiration for writing, and this artwork of wild flowers speaks to me in many ways.

I love the beautiful shades of blue because they bring me peace and calmness. The sky has a little lavendar in it which is deep and provocative drawing me in. The deep blue flowers almost look like butterflies ready to take off in the wind. The yellow flowers suggest a sense of the power of nature. The little white flowers are a symbol of purity.

We have so much beauty that is around us, but we often miss it. In the book The Zen of Seeing, Frederick Franck writes, " Feel that you are alone with it on Earth! That it contains all the riddles of life and death." That is living artfully and mindfully.
We live in a beautiful world where treasures are uncovered every day. We walk and drive past beauty every day taking it for granted for the most part.

Let us begin to breath in the air, look around, and use all of our senses. Take in the beauty even where it does not seem like there is beauty, and be present. Mindfulness is a gift and it requires work. But once we begin using it, we would never trade it in. When we begin seeing the world in all of its grace and beauty, we will not want to turn back.

Peace.