Heart Days

My favorite neighborhood beach. We surfed there today for Andrew's birthday!

A heart rock... today is our two year anniversary of getting engaged.

Happy heart month. My favorite month maybe.

This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness. Dalai Lama

Thanks for reading--and for all the encouragement to start blogging again.
Life has been very full. I appreciate having this space to share it.

Married

Yup.

Tell Me

By Elizabeth Jennings

   Tell me where you go
   When you look faraway.
   I find I am too slow

   To catch your mood. I hear
   The slow and far-off sea
   And waves that beat a shore

   That could be trying to
   Call us toward our end,
   make us hurry through

   This little space of dark.
   Yet love can stretch it wide.
   Each life means so much work

   You are my wealth, my pride.
   The good side of me, see
   That you stay by my side

   Two roots of one great tree.

From Ashley

We opened our wedding gift from our late friend Ashley.
What a dear heart.

I will always treasure this vase from my fellow
flower and farmer's market loving friend.

Aloha Time

 

At the Honolulu Zoo!

 

Yee-haw!

 

Banyan Lovers

 

Family Time

Remembering Ashley

Photos from the Ashley Marie Smith Memorial Fund, by my sister Holly.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them. Chris will be asked to approve all tags before others can see them.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them. Chris will be asked to approve all tags before others can see them.

A collage my sister Lantana put together of her dear friend Ashley.  So many of these pictures make us smile.  It reminds me of the importance of taking picture and celebrating moments.

 Ashley's Hawaii ohana gathered at the beach to remember our ocean-loving friend's beautiful life.

 

 Paddling out for prayer and tossing loose flowers.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them. Chris will be asked to approve all tags before others can see them.

 You are loved and will live on in our hearts.   To learn more about Ashley and her legacy you can visit The Ashley Smith Memorial Fund page on facebook.

To Ashley: Sisterhood is Forever...

My sisters, bottom and top left. 

Their sister-friend Ashley, on the right.

And when the broken-hearted people living in the world agree,
There will be an answer, let it be.
For though they may be parted there is still a chance that
They will see,
There will be an answer. Let it be. 

-The Beatles-

Dear Ashley,

What will we do without you?  What will the earth do? It seems impossible that you are gone. You were so strong and beautiful, a Division One athlete that schooled my tomboy sisters.  Your stunning smile will be missed forever. You were a bubbly conversationalist who adapted easily to any new situation.

We are so so so proud of you Ashley.  Finishing year four of your PHD in marine bio.  You worked your butt off in the lab.  You never whined, you were always easygoing and game for an adventure.  From your homeland Chicago you made it to college in North Carolina, then grad school all on your own in Hawaii.  Lany was soooo happy when she met you that first week.  An instant homegirl!  Our term for the kind of effortless forever friend you can always be yourself around.

You adopted Holly into your circle.  And Oliver, our picky chihuahua, adored you too.  And I loved you! You were so solid and grounded. And wholesome (one of my highest compliments).  A friend to us all.  I am so glad you got to come home to Maui with us.  You fit in easily as the fourth sister. 

Your last adventure brought you to Australia...you were so motivated... saving the coral reefs. You were such a good girl.  Walking by yourself early every Sunday morning to church.  You gave easily and also forgave easily.   

Thank you for your friendship, your contributions, your positivity. You will never be forgotten. You will always be our ocean-loving Splashley!

The wedding gift you brought over is still wrapped and waiting in my sisters' living room. I will open them this summer when I get home. I wish it could be under different circumstances. 

Our hearts and heads are hungover in grief but we will make sure your legacy lives on.  Sisterhood is forever.  We love you dear Ashley!

Emily

My Flower Girl

Rian paints the Mission.

What a terrific visit! I have many wonderful days but the love and joy I felt in my heart were almost overwhelming during the afternoon pictured. I was reunited with my Oregon family.  The most wonderful people I have ever known adopted me into their extended family. I was witness to their strength and grace through the most difficult experiences imaginable.  They lost two beautiful children that are embedded in our hearts forever.  They also have three amazing children still here making our world a better place.  I'm featuring Rian Elizabeth... a spirited child, four years old, who has agreed to be my flower girl.

 

Water babies.

From the Oregon Ocean to the California Sea.

I helped care for her from her first week.
It was amazing.

 

Magic dolphin ride.

Playing tag in the cool grass.

Nonstop entertainment!

School's Out

Feeling completely adored...the last week of school was a lovefest. I am so proud of the kids and how much they've grown. I also work with some wonderfully inspiring teachers. They are so generous with their craft!

I got a book from my students filled with their illustrations and sweet sentiments they wrote out. I don't remember ever being so kind to a teacher. Pictures of me (in Hawaii getting married), pictures of me and some of my students, and pictures of Andrew and me as a couple.

The end is bittersweet!

May Play

Artichoke season is upon us. I am growing them as a substitute/replacement/barrier to the awful thistle weeds in the garden. I am hoping for a harvest before long.

Now the stone version: A hummingbird was having a blast playing in a fountain at the mall. A happy moment for us both.

Sweet pea season again. They are prolific in our school garden and I make a point to distribute them to each classroom and the office. I have my own bounty at home. I never tire of them. Can they grow in Hawaii? Could I get them to bloom this August?

My 23rd Birthday. The date is now set for marriage: 8-9-10. I am partial to this man. I am partial to the number 9. August 9th is also my grandmother's birthday. I am having a lot of fun arranging and dreaming about the fun and happy details.

Happy Love Day

I love Valentine's Day. I loved it the same amount when I was a single gal since it is an excellent excuse to celebrate sparkles and pink and best friends and just be a cornball.  There is less pressure and pageantry than Christmas and if you never got around to sending Xmas Cards you'll have a month or more to throw together some paper hearts.  It is especially joyful as a teacher. See above.

I am so glad I've found someone to share this ride with. 

A week ago, on Andrew's birthday, he proposed to me.

He told me what he really wanted for his birthday

was to marry me.

I said yes.

My heart and life is filled with love these days.

Sending love to you.

~Emily~

Love for the Grands

Picture from my grandparents' wedding album.
Elizabeth and Charles have been married for 65 years.

Clearly they still like each other an awful lot.

Grandma visits in Hawaii.  I'm grateful for the role they've had in my life. 

With Granddad Christmas 2009.   

Good times.

Stay well in that Maryland snow!

Textures of Thanks

So much to be thankful for.
The colors and textures of this holiday captured me
As I meditated alone in my kitchen.
Savoring moments with beautiful plants
Carefully grown for us to enjoy.

Colors were collected for display:

Prehistoric pink proteas,
Purifying white sage, 

Cheery citrus boughs,
 And golden pomegranate branches 

Dotted with jeweled fruit.

 

Celebrating *true* riches 

With good-hearted people.

So much to be thankful for. 

In November

 

Even after all this time
The sun never says to the earth, 

"You owe me."

Look what happens with
A love like that,
It lights the whole sky. 

~Hafiz, 14th century Persian poet

Celebrating Shiloh

Friends gathered together in celebration and remembrance

of baby angel Shiloh.

And whispered sweet nothings on seed-laced notes...

That danced toward the heavens in a clustered swirl.

Goodbye sweet angels...

you've changed our world forever.

Part of Something Beautiful

I've been really feeling this:
 
 This song is a favorite for yoga practice. Moving my body makes me more in my body and less in my head. Doesn't this song just make you want to drop into downward dog and start the flow? You won't be sorry.

I have been going to a new yoga class. My abs hurt every time I laugh, which I sort of like. The instructor shared a quote that stood out to me:

The love you withhold is the pain that you carry.

Thoughts?

Big Island Love

Some of the reasons why I love visiting the Big Island.

In Memory of Graham R. Olsen

July 16, 2002 ~ September 28, 2006

 

Where did you come from baby, dear?
Out of the everywhere and into here
Where did you get those eyes so blue?
Out of the sky as I came through

What makes the light in them sparkle and spin?
Some of the starry spikes got left in
Where did you get that little tear?
I found it waiting when I got here

What makes your forehead so smooth and so high?
A soft hand stroked it as I went by
What makes your cheek like a warm pink rose?
I saw something better than anyone knows

Whence the three-cornered smile of bliss?
The Angels as one gave me a kiss
Where did you get this pearly ear
God spoke, and it came out to hear

Where did you get those hands and arms?
Love made itself into hooks and bands
Feet whence you come from, darling things?
From the very same box as the cherub's wings

How did they all just come to be you?
God thought about me, and so I grew
But how did you come to us, baby dear?
God thought about you

So I am here

George MacDonald - 1871

I read this poem three years ago at Graham's memorial.Ｉwas his nanny (his Emmy), caregiver, and friend.  One of my favorite memories is reading to Graham while holding him and studying his exquisitely beautiful face. This poem was in an anthology I read aloud from regularly and always felt like it was written for dear Bubs. It was always clear he came from the heavens.

Love Struck: Dutch Iris Duo

Yesterday I discovered these amazing Dutch Irises blooming in my garden. I planted them in early November and had forgotten which bulbs were what. Waking up to these beauties was a lovely way to start my day.

They are almost orchid-like in their fancy, sculptural shape. I just finished Susan Orlean's The Orchid Thief which involves the passion, lust, and obsession for flowers and living things. I'm not quite at that point...yet.

While looking at this picture, I recall a feng-shui principle that says displaying things in pairs is suppose to promote a positive and harmonious relationship between a couple. It must be working!

Wildflower Drive & Rainbow Dance

Spring break has come... this is one of my favorite times of year and I am always ready to skip town, explore, and have some adventures. Instead, for several reasons, (lack of funds and a dedicated-to-labwork-scientist-future-doctorate of a bf) we've decided to stick around but try to make this week a bit more special. I love the idea of staycations. I grew up in the ultimate tourist destination and have fun memories of showing our visiting relatives around Maui. I decided we will find time this week to be tourists and take advantage of the many amazing places nearby.

High on my list was spending some time in the mountains. I am a flower girl and have been eager to check out the springtime blooms in the Santa Ynez valley. We packed a picnic and headed inland and up the coast. Not only was I greeted by the rainbow of wildflowers pictured above but a

real life California rainbow:

Can you spot the pot of gold?

We pulled of the road a ton and I spent a lot of time crawling in the bushes photographing flowers and the otherworldly beauty around me. We both ran around in the misty rain admiring those romantic golden hills.

Just before sunset we settled in this lovely spot and enjoyed a picnic of crusty bread, spicy hummus, Greek salad, and sparkling apple cider. The temperature suddenly dropped so we huddled in the car as we watched the sun dip behind the hills.

This easy and simple outing reminded me of how changing things up a bit in my everyday existence can make me appreciate the life I've been given and the beauty that surrounds me even more. It also helped me remember how much fun I have with Andrew beyond the routine joys of domesticity.

How do you add *sparkle *to your life?