It’s been a strange sort of week.
‘Found time,’ here at home,
time we thought we’d be traveling –
but we’re not.
So we got to extend our days with our
youngest granddaughter by a couple of weeks,
and that was sweet.
Next Wednesday, she begins pre-school.
We took time to plan vacations for next year,
always a fun thing to do.
But communication with the agent got a little dicey
and we weren’t sure why.
Everything worked out in the end;
it generally does.
Yesterday, we went to see “The Odd Life of Timothy Green,”
and found it quirky and sweet.
And then the projector blew up about 2/3 of the way through.
Say what?
We got a couple of free theater tickets out of it,
but still . . .
So we had an early dinner at a nearby
cheap-o place that turned out to be pretty good,
and we shopped at Costco, to prepare
for the thundering herd (in the nicest possible way!)
that will descend on us for the holiday weekend.
It was 7:00 p.m. and the sky was unusually pretty,
so I turned the car right instead of left as we drove out of the parking lot, and headed to Isla Vista – the crazy college community that isn’t quite crazy yet,
as UCSB hasn’t begun their fall semester.
There was a good place to park, so I grabbed it,
reached in the back seat for my camera bag,
and headed out onto the bluffs,
just as the sun was beginning its last
sinking, saturating radiance,
and the blue moon was starting its ascendency.
And I walked.
And I looked.
And I breathed.
Every once in a while,
I stopped to take a picture
to exclaim over the beauty all around,
and to say, ‘Thank you’ to the One who made it all.
Come along with me, won’t you?
(By the way, I have no idea what all those multi-colored small flags mean,
but they were pretty and whimsical in their own right, so I took their picture.
And I have to say that just scrolling through these pictures makes me say ‘Thank You’ over and over again. I cannot begin to put into words how grateful I am to live where I do.)
And these words from scripture jumped out at
me as I reflected on this experience today,
the day after all that confusion – and all that beauty.
Because someday, all that we see now as
spectacular,
glorious,
breath-taking,
and life-giving
will pale in comparison to the LIGHT
that will overwhelm and bedazzle us on the Day of the LORD.
“No longer will violence be heard in your land,
nor ruin or destruction within your borders,
but you will call your walls Salvation
and your gates Praise.
The sun will no more be your light by day,
nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,
for the LORD will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.
Your sun will never set again,
and your moon will wane no more;
the LORD will be your everlasting light,
and your days of sorrow will end.”
Isaiah 60:18-20
Joining Michelle DeRusha’s invitation to Summer, for the last time this year,
and with Sandy and Deidra for their ongoing weekend invitation to quietness and reflection.
Your photos are beautiful and I came across that passage of scripture last night after viewing the beautiful full moon. Have a wonderful weekend! (Visiting from Still Saturdays).
So very lovely, Diana. And won’t that be the day – the Day of the Lord? Have a beautiful weekend with your herd, dear friend.
So much beauty to soak in … thank you for sharing it with us.
such beautiful photos. i had the same thing happen at the movie theater once, guess it’s not all that uncommon when those things get old!
good old isla vista 🙂
Thank you, Joan, for stopping by and leaving such kind words. Somehow, this was the scripture that clicked for me today.
Thanks, Patricia. I’m looking forward to being together. Hope your holiday is both restful and fun – those are not contradictory wishes, are they??
Oh, you’re welcome, Susan. Thank YOU for stopping by and leaving kind words.
You know, Amy, we’ve lived in SB for 16 years now – and had never spent any time out at IV at all. Been to the campus several times, but the town? Never. So this was eye-opening to me. Actually a sweet, relatively quiet little neighborhood. . . when school’s not in session. :>) And that trail? Breathtaking. Literally.
Breathtaking, Diana! Thank you for sharing the beauty. We’re still visiting with family so are blessed by days of sweetness mixed with chaos and punctuated with glimpses of His glory.
Thank you, Carol – and you’re welcome! Enjoy these last days of vacay with fam – it flits away more and more quickly, I think.
What is it about photos? All of this–normal stuff we see every day (well, different stuff in different places) that we might just glance at, walk past, not even really see or pay attention to–takes on a special beauty through a focused lens. How you see makes me want to see better.
That is high praise indeed coming from you, my photography phenom friend. I find carrying a camera with me helps me see things that I might otherwise miss. Weird, huh?
Oh Diana, simply stunning! I love Texas, but there is always a longing for the ocean I love. Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful part of the world. Congratulations again on your new writing group. You will be such an asset.
Thank you, Linda. At this stage of my life, I don’t really know how long I would last if I had more than an hour to drive to find the sea. It’s in my DNA, I think!
Love it: moon, trees, sunsets, birds, waves, and on and on. Exactly the portion of this world that always touches my heart. Fills my soul with peace and joy. Needed that! Thank you.
Thank you, Joanne. Glad the words and pictures helped you today.
What peaceful poetry and picture presentation. One of my favorites is: This is what the Lord says to me. I will remain quiet and will look on from my dwelling place, like shimmering heat in the sunshine, like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest. Is.18:4 (NLT)
Thanks for coming by, Annette.
And I’m saying “thank you, thank you” over and over as I peek through too. Thank you for taking me along. (looked back over the past couple posts and am still aghast that your little sweetie almost fills up a bed. But her little legs still have some baby in them and that made me smile.) Time flies.
Thanks for you and your sweet words, Laura. And yes, there is still a little baby left in our littlest. But it’s giving way daily, it seems, to a newer, more grown-up vocab, demeanor and look. It is always wonderful to watch, but with this one – well, it’s more bittersweet than usual.
Hi Diana – I think that is what I need to do is have my camera bag with me. My hubby bought we a really great one and often times I think I wish I had a good camera around now, now I do and I too am going to capture images of God’s beauty all around. Lovely pics Diana.
God bless
Tracy
I keep my larger SLR camera in the car for just such happenings. And I carry a very small point and shoot in my purse – and use it quite a lot more than I ever thought I would – especially for things like my grandkids’ special events. Thanks for leaving a note – and blessings on your day.
Nice photos. Don’t you want to try yourself in photo-essay contest. Yesterday I posted my here, but now I’m not sure that my photo-essay is half as good as yours.
SPAM.