Mandala Monday ~ Midsummer

“Flowers are the music of the ground

from earth’s lips spoken without sound”

~ Edwin Curran

Gosh, I love the idea of that quote!

🎶🌼🎶

I created this week’s mandala on midsummer using some randoms that are flourishing in my garden right now.

Have I mentioned lately how grateful I am for my humble little outdoor space?  SO very!

🌱

Here are a few other snaps I took during the process…

And here is the full view of the shot at the top of this post, uncropped…

Of course, my feet!  😁  Toes unpainted as of yet this summer, but still so happy ~ especially in the garden!

 

May your feet lead to happy places this week! 👣

 

 

✿~Peace & Love~✿

Midsummer Morning

Stepping out into the garden on midsummer morning, a lush carpet of soft clover cushions my footsteps

Oh how I delight in feeling the earth beneath my bare feet, soothing and arousing all at once

Sweet birdsong and luscious scents fill the air

a light breeze stirs my hair tickling my cheek, I smile as I brush it aside

Breathing deeply I sigh, grateful to be alive

grateful for my five senses, and for the deeper awareness that I am connected to it all

 

© Julie Rehnelt 2020

 

 

 

✿~Peace & Love~✿

Mandala Monday ~ Welcome Summer!

Warm, bright color

round like the sun

tangy citrus

creative fun

 

Welcome summer!  🌞

 

© Julie Rehnelt 2020

There’s something about citrus that speaks summer to me. It’s so bright and sunny!

The idea for this mandala sort of just fell into my lap. In looking for something creative to do for the summer solstice, I came across an idea for making suncatchers using dried orange and lemon slices and I thought it would be a fun activity for my mom and I to do together.  As luck would have it, a neighbor had stopped by with a huge sack of oranges a couple weeks ago and we needed to use them up. I had planned on juicing them, but dehydrated them instead.

We didn’t use them all for our suncatchers, so I went out to my potting bench the next day and made a mandala with them.  Just as I finished, it began to rain, so I snapped a quick photo, gathered up my dehydrated slices (before they rehydrated 😉) and ran inside. So it’s beauty was fleeting – such is life, but I still enjoyed creating it very much!

 

Oh, and here’s the suncatcher I made…

You can’t really tell from the picture, but it’s VERY happy!

😁

 

Wishing you a happy week!

 

 

✿~Peace & Love~✿

Green Spaces

Let me escape to the green spaces 

 

Where the air is clean and fresh

and the sweet scent of the earth fills my senses

I breathe deep, filling my lungs with life-giving oxygen 

 

Where I can hear the wind rustling through the leaves of the trees

such a soothing sound

it’s almost a lullaby except for how invigorating it is

 

Where the sunlight flickers down through the canopy above 

 and a playful dance between shadow and light ensues on the forest floor

it’s hypnotic and memorizing, I join in

 

Where everything is vibrant and so alive

every organism living and working together, existing in perfect symbiosis 

I marvel at the wonder of nature, of its continual cycle of birth, death, and rebirth

 

Where nothing is wasted or taken for granted

 

Where there is no hate or division

or politics  

 

 Let me escape to the green spaces 

 

© Julie Rehnelt 2020

 

 

 

✿~Peace & Love~✿

Music Monday ~ What the World Needs Now

 

is Love sweet Love

❤

 

At the time that this was recorded, little did these three beautiful souls – or any of us realize just how much we need this message…

I love how when Howie asks what their plan for the future is Mariah says, “Honestly, we just want to use our gifts to spread love, hope and joy to the world, we think the world needs a little bit more of that.”  Me too, Mariah, me too.  Thank you for using your lovely voices to do just that.

 

Wishing all of you a week filled with all of the above ^

 

 

 

✿~Peace & Love~✿

Mandala Monday ~ Heart for the City

Some of you may know that I live in the city of Minneapolis, and you may have heard what has been going on here over the past week.  Some of it may now also be affecting your communities.

My heart has been so troubled… I can’t really even formulate the words to describe the range of emotions I’ve been experiencing, but grief, anger and fear have been at the forefront.

Grief over the death of George Floyd, grief and anger over the racism, hatred and injustice that exists in our world; and grief, anger and fear over all of the violence, chaos and devastation sweeping over my city right now.

I don’t have the answers or a solution of how to fix anything.  But I do believe that our thoughts and emotions have energy that expands outside of ourselves and affects the world around us.  So I want to take care with the type of energy and vibes I’m putting out.  I don’t want my grief, anger and fear to add any fuel to the literal flames going on around me – I want to radiate peace and love out into my community, and out into the world.

Even though I feel very small and powerless to change anything, I have to believe it makes a difference somehow.  I can shift my focus and take these actions…

“Lord make me an instrument of Your Peace

Where there is hatred, let me sow Love

Where there is injury, Pardon

Where there is doubt, Faith

Where there is despair, Hope

 Where there is darkness, Light

Where there is sadness, Joy

Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console 

Not so much to be understood, as to understand

Not so much to be loved, as to love…”

That is what I was meditating on as I made this mandala ~ making it heart-shaped as my heart went out to my city.  And making it with Bleeding Hearts felt pretty perfect…

 

My deepest sympathy to the family and friends of George Floyd.  Peace and Love to all the people of my city, and in the world, who are hurting.

 

 

✿~Peace & Love~✿