New Sparks of Grace postcard

Sharing with Photo Art Friday. Go check it out!

Like Emerson, I believe that each season has its own particular beauty. But if I had to pick my favorite, it would be autumn, and it has been for most of my life. As a very little girl living in the tropics, I didn’t know about the changing of the leaves and the cooling of the temperature, so when I moved to Canada, a whole new world opened up.

In summer, we revel in a riot of colour from flowers. In the fall, the gardens and orchards surrender up their bounty and not only can we marvel at the vibrant colours of the fresh vegetables and fruit they yield, but we can also savour their wondrous tastes and textures as we nourish ourselves.

I love to prepare fresh produce simply to let the flavours take centre stage. So in the last while, we’ve been enjoying roasted carrots, steamed beets, cabbage slaw and soup made with roasted tomatoes — all from our garden.

At the beginning of the summer, we planted an apple tree, which is espaliered* up our lattice beside our deck. It is still young, so there won’t be bushels of apples yet, so a visit to the local orchard took care of our yearnings for that tart, crunchy fruit. We also planted a crabapple that won’t be bearing for a while, so we’ll have to make jelly with fruit we buy.

The air is getting crisp and the leaves are already changing colour, so I better get out there with my camera to capture more of this season’s unique gifts. What’s your favorite thing about the fall?

*Espalier is a technique for growing a tree against a flat surface, supported by a framework of lattice.

And this week Stacie is giving away a set of my Sparks of Grace postcards (6 in a set) to two lucky winners!

I love that Stacie posts every Monday about small ways we can all make a difference in each other’s lives. She shares a few of my ideas on her blog this week.

I was delighted that Stacie liked my suggestion to brighten someone’s day by sending them a sweet postcard.  So I offered her two packs of my postcards for a giveaway.

There are four ways you can have a chance to win:

Now how easy is that?

Stacie will pick the winners using a random number generator on Sunday, September 23 and announce the names of the two winners in her next Make a Difference Monday post on September 24.

I linked up with Stacie because we are both “groupies” of Kim Klassen, whose courses have brought so many of us like-minded souls together. It has been such fun to collaborate with Stacie on this giveaway and I’d love to do some more with other bloggers in the future.

Whether you’re interested in Photoshop, Lightroom, textures, layers or blogging, Kim offers some of the best online courses going. Check them out — you’ll be glad you did!

The theme of the wonderful blogging collaboration Focusing on Life this month is “connections.” Today Stephanie let me know that my photo of this gentle connection was this week’s INFOCUS selection. I’m delighted and honoured. Thank you so much.

I captured this moment when my little granddaughter was visiting us this summer. She loves animals so we took her to a friend’s farm to visit the horses and donkey.

The connection she made with this beautiful, sensitive creature was palpable and so heartwarming. It was one of those days that I was SO glad I had my camera with me.

Why not head on over and take a look at the wonderful photos and stories on this fabulous blog?

We all wait…

Some of us for the bus…some of us for love…some of us for our real lives to begin…

Some of us for that special moment when the light and shapes line up just right…in a way that we’ve never seen before and may never see again…in a way that goes beyond words to remind us what we already know…

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To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

I’ve been busy creating new card designs using my images for my Sparks of Grace series. I am selling these affordable cards to raise funds for my community’s new hospice project.

I’d love to know what you think of my latest card. Does it appeal to you? Do you like the image and sentiment? Would you send it to a friend?

You can see the rest of the Sparks of Grace set here. Thanks so much for stopping by today.

So how do we remember?

My paternal grandmother had a dressing table something like this. She used to sit before it and brush her long, thick gray hair (which was once auburn) and then coil it up on top of her head in two fat braids, secured with tortoise shell combs.

But the picture I have in my mind is a bit fuzzy around the edges. I wish I had a photograph of this part of her daily routine. I would love to see the details again — the colours and the shapes that made up my grandmother’s world.

In the last little while I’ve been looking at old family photos in albums. My father was an excellent amateur photographer. He took black and white photos on a Rolleiflex twin lens reflex camera that my mother gave him before I was born. His images captured the details of people living life with love and artistry.

My mother, circa 1958, in Singapore. That’s me in the basket.

Later on, he progressed to even fancier cameras and colour film, but I think that his early black and white work was some of his very best. Through these photos, the past is not lost to me and my family.

Like many others, I take photos of special occasions and also everyday moments — the grandchildren picking carrots from our garden and wrestling with Grandpa, our travels on the sailboat in the winter, our family outings — as a way to help us all remember down the road…the details of our days, the richness of our lives.

So how do you remember?

Today is about simplicity. Today is about balance. Today is about juiciness.

French butter pears

The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes.

Frank Lloyd Wright

If this is your first visit here, thanks so much for coming! I invite you to look at my Sparks of Grace postcard series before you go.

I was in Prince Edward County for the last few days exploring this magnificent region of Ontario and sampling its food and wine.

At one of the stunningly picturesque wineries we visited, there they were — a golden girl playing joyfully with a golden dog. It felt like a scene out of a wonderful dream of times past.

I used a layer Kim Klassen’s Dream-it texture on this and I’m joining in the parties at Texture Tuesdays and Sweet Shot Tuesdays.

Mystery is at the heart of creativity. That, and surprise.

–Julia Cameron