South of the Gnat Line

1800 Tweets!

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Thu, 09 Oct 2014 17:38:00 +0000

Social media has become a standard in our post-modern life of cyber-communicating. Social bug that I am, I plunged headfirst and have reveled in reconnecting with friends and love having the easy ability to correspond with family and friends. Likewise, social media provides writers an excellent "here I am!" platform opportunity.

Enter: Twitter-bug.

It is not Facebook.

Twitter has its own heartbeat and rhythm, and, I confess - it has taken me some time and attention to *get it*. And while I'm still on the Twitter learning curve - just wanted to share my 1800th tweet!

Check out my October #dirtroadramblins at #SGL on Facebook: https://t.co/rEk254EL1G pic.twitter.com/4nbIrUVOON
— HarrietteKeenJacobs (@SouthofGnatLine) October 9, 2014

If you are on Twitter - please follow me!

For Facebook users, you can *Like* and follow South of the Gnat Line here as well:

https://www.facebook.com/southofthegnatline

And then...there's Pinterest, too!
http://www.pinterest.com/harriettejacobs/

International CowPea Festival

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Fri, 12 Sep 2014 16:42:00 +0000

South of the Gnat Line is excited to attend this year's International Cowpea Festival!! Can't wait to share the experience!

A Tribute to my Southern Sisters!

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 02:15:00 +0000

Savannah, Georgia's very own South Magazine is celebrating their 50th issue with, this, their June/July 2014 issue.

It's theme: All things "50".

Some weeks backs, the Magazine posted a request on their Facebook page seeking submissions for Fabulous Southern Women Over 50.

And I thought to myself, "Hmmmm, I know some of those."

So.

To pay tribute to, recognize and honor their unconditional love and seemingly endless years of friendship, I shared my fabulous circle of girlfriends with the Magazine.

You can well imagine my surprise when they decided to include us in a little shout-out as the lead caption to their feature for Southern women over fifty.

As an only child, these women have filled the sisterhood void in my life in many ways and for many years. These are women of strength, courage and truth. They pick me up (and all my pieces) and refuse to let. me. fall.

No matter the time or distance, we pick up where we left off last and are forever bound by a southern sisterhood that remains undeniably close-knit, full of life and wide open. Simply put, we have a sacred bond that remains timeless.

I share them with you as a tribute not only to their physical attributes, but more so for their inner beauty that radiates in all areas of their lives and, clearly, everywhere we go.

Of the original nine girls, we have remained seven-strong since graduating high school.

Life happens.

We were all born in 1961 and are all Georgia gals. Four of us have been friends since kindergarten; the seven of us have been close friends since we were all 13 in the eighth grade.

In high school, all of us worked at the same restaurant owned by the parents of one of us. Two of us shared a hospital room, dated brothers twice and married brothers once. Four of us married our high school sweethearts. Four of us became sisters-in-law and two of us remain sisters-in-law today. Two of us are cousins-in-law while two of us have the same last name but are not related.

Combined, we have 12 marriages for more than 150 years of marriage. In fact, two were even Vegas weddings.

We’ve all experienced childbirth and, collectively, have 13 siblings, 19 children and 4 grandchildren, to date.

Among us are business owners, professionals, leaders and serve in our communities in a multitude of ways. On any given day we are seven different versions of high strung and feminine southern sass as well. (...and that's just the stuff we'll tell ~ [wink]...)

We lived across the street from one another, behind one another, around the corner from one another; we’ve been roommates in college as well as during our 20’s.

Our parents have parented all of us at one time or another; we learned to drive together while driving each other crazy as well.

We’ve been in each other’s weddings, celebrated our children, fallen together, supported one another as we’ve lost parents, picked each other up, and toasted the milestones of our lives together.

While the love is unconditional, we are, nevertheless, bold and honest with one another. Undeniable, fierce loyalty and commitment are naturally woven within the bonds of our circle. After all, these are the time-honored virtues of traditional Southern women.

Three of us remain in Rome, while the remaining four of us: one resides in N. Georgia, another in Gainesville, another in Atlanta and last but not least, the seventh one of us resides in rural, East Central Georgia.

Despite our geographic challenges, we continue to be in one another’s lives today with lots of help from technology, girlfriend get-a-ways and, of course, showing up at one another’s house or business!

I pay tribute to and applaud these beautiful and fabulous women now over fifty who I am blessed to call my lifelong girlfriends - my Southern Sisters - who I love beyond measure.

Big Brain Moments

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Tue, 20 May 2014 17:02:00 +0000

"Anxiety is the hand maiden of creativity."
~ T.S. Eliot

"The chief enemy of creativity is 'good' sense."
~ Pablo Picasso

"For me, insanity is super sanity. The normal is psychotic. Normal means lack of imagination, lack of creativity."
~ Jean Dubuffet

"Creativity is what helps me escape a lot of my inner demons."
~ Demi Lovato

"When we are angry or depressed in our creativity, we have misplaced our power. We have allowed someone else to determine our worth, and then we are angry at being undervalued."
~ Julia Margaret Cameron

"Artistic temperament sometimes seems a battleground, a dark angel of destruction and a bright angel of creativity wrestling."
~ Madeleine L'Engle

A writer must accept that there is a certain amount of creative madness that accompanies this work of the written word. Without the open threshold that separates the sane and logical from blissful madness, much would remain untapped from a realm that most often remains an undiscovered mystery.

It is the unexplainable push to plunge and explore - navigating deeper the foreign maze of neural folds into that pristine source of the undiscovered allowing the vulnerability of the creative mind and its ideas to be unleashed on the page - as if emancipating declarations of thought before the reading sphere. It is a sensory pilgrimage that often chances the risk of emotional peril revealing words that express, provoke, convey, relay, sell, hide, embellish, lift, conceal, reveal, convince, unveil, build up or tear down, expose or possibly pierce the soul.....

Most often it is the soul of the writer laid upon the public guillotine.

Will it be read? Should it be read?

Ever.

In the end, there is only fear. How a writer harnesses that fear is the magic - unless the gift of eccentricities are woven within the gene pool.

The eccentric have no fear.

And all the writer can do is close the eyes, allow the internal music to stream and grant passage for the words to flow.

"It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else."

~ Erma Bombeck

Recognize the risk involved for a dream to be shared. Realize the sacred trust invested in the writer's confidant.

Guard the dreams; protect the dreamer.

"...it's hard to stay mad when there's so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I'm seeing it all at once and it's too much. My heart fills up like a balloon that's about to burst. And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold on to it. And then it flows through me like rain and I can't feel anything but gratitude......You have no idea what I'm talking about I'm sure......"

~ Lester Burnham, *American Beauty*

Thank a Farmer Today!

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Tue, 25 Mar 2014 14:23:00 +0000

Today is National Agriculture Day...thank a farmer! @GaFarmBureau @GeorgiaDeptofAg #farm pic.twitter.com/GZtywSVlZh
— Georgia Agribusiness (@GAagribusiness) March 25, 2014

PG or not PG - That is the Question

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 00:38:00 +0000

When I was a little girl, I was often scolded for pointing - especially when I observed a woman who was preggers. My mother would just about die a thousand deaths, grab my index finger and lecture me with, "Young ladies do *NOT* point!"

Since I am an only child (and a curious one), you can well imagine my fascination with other families who had children and their Momma was expecting [again]. My mother told me many times that when she was growing up, Nana called it being "PG" (almost in a whisper). That when any woman was "PG" she did not go out of the house after she was showing. Wide-eyed, I imagined the word pregnant - and it's condition - was something that existed in the realm of scandalous.

Fast forward to Chapter 50+ and my now life with sheep.

Last March, we acquired our first official flock of sheep (ewes). This does not include Buttermilk; Buttermilk is my bottle baby who came home with me in November of 2012 just hours after he was born and found abandoned in the barn of his birth. He's just my pet sheep - er, third born. (Shhhh. Please don't tell him - not only does he believe I'm his Momma, he believes he is an Ovine stud.)

Where was I?

The ewes. Right.

We borrowed a ram and hoped to successfully breed our ewes for what we have planned to be our first lambing season this Spring. This was to be our first ever attempt at animal husbandry.

The ram arrived at the end of October. The ram had an extended stay with the girls. The ram departed the Dirt Road Farm in January.

It is now March.

I readily admit, I am an anxious sheep owner. Since no one bore witness to the actual "husbandry act", not only am I pondering in my head, "Did the visiting ram do his job..." I managed to reinstate my childhood bad habit: the one of pointing. I've also been reduced to bribing them with treats so I can rub and feel their tummies - thumping them like a watermelon. I stand and stare looking for any change in their milk stations; I even squat and crawl on all fours to try and see up underneath them for any evidence of "PG".

I've read the "What to Expect When You're Expecting" book for all things Sheep and oddly enough, there are no hints or real time information on how to know if a ewe is preggers until the lamb is basically falling out of her backside.

There's a tell-tale sign.

Since I prefer a little more heads up and "the sheep book" was of zero help, I moved on to Google where all modern-day farmer wannabes get their most up-to-date and reliable information. I must have typed forty different search versions of "How do I know if my sheep are pregnant?" Apparently, Al Gore's internet doesn't have much pregnant sheep experience or at least no one is sharing the scandalous details online. I considered searching: "How do I know that the man-ram did his job?" But I gave up instead.

As we eagerly await the first day of Spring - having survived Snowpocalypse, the ice storm that followed taking our power for some days along with it, the Valentine's Day earthquake and the on-again, off-again cold/warm days of early March, I find myself in the pasture continuing to point my index finger, now having added squatting and staring to the mix. While I have only their best interests at heart, the girls are not real big on my efforts. They all glare at me and look as if they would love to collectively scold me as my Mother often had to.

Patience, while a virtue, is not my strongest personality trait. (sigh) However, I have no choice but to wait for Spring's official arrival and see in the weeks ahead if, in fact, the man-ram performed his gallant duty and the girls will be gifting us with our first lambing season.

HKJ

South of the Gnat Line

Daffodils: First Sign of Spring

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Mon, 24 Feb 2014 23:42:00 +0000

Daffodils: First Sign of Spring, a set on Flickr.

While less than a month away, March 20th seems only visible in the distant view of a collapsing telescope in the grimy hands of a pirate. But nothing shouts, "Spring is almost here!!!" like daffodils blooming.

Given our recent winter weather and ice storm - they are such an uplifting sight to see!

Some years back on a neighboring dirt road not too far from our own, I discovered daffodils left behind from a family farm long forgotten. The old home place no longer remains - but the annual blooming of the faithful daffodils appear year after year as if to remind us of Spring's annual return and for us to always keep hope that life cycles around to all things beautiful.

No matter how many times I make my way back to this secret spot, it never fails to surprise me. Dirt road riding is well worth the breath-taking view of thousands and thousands of daffodils.

Upcoming Backroads Events!

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Fri, 21 Feb 2014 23:18:00 +0000

If you want to experience the Real South, you'll want to make plans to attend one or all of these small town festivals and events. Spring is almost here, the weather has been calling us out to play, and the greater Augusta, Georgia region has a vast amount of geography to explore (known locally as the CSRA).

The local organizers will greatly appreciate your attendance and support as proceeds from these events largely support the hosting communities.

Be sure to follow South of the Gnat Line on Facebook, Twitter and find more backroads discoveries with SGL's little spot on the Augusta Chronicle blogs as well.

Experience Real Life in the Real South!

Map Skills Required

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Tue, 04 Feb 2014 20:29:00 +0000

Stay away from this detour!

Can't help but love the Ziglar!

Snowpocalypse 2014

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Thu, 30 Jan 2014 22:48:00 +0000

Snowpocalypse 2014, a set on Flickr.

Despite my having to serve Crow Casserole over my disbelief of a "snow-slam" - I enjoyed the 24 plus hours of scenery and wanted to share this year's snow that arrived here at the Dirt Road Farm.

Meteors Are Falling From the Sky

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Mon, 27 Jan 2014 23:57:00 +0000

February 13, 2010 - Dixie, Granny Rox & Mildred during the last snow

here at the Dirt Road Farm!

They may as well be.

Fewer things strike fear and stupidity into the hearts and neurotransmitters of Southerners than that dreaded winter forecast that screams out the "S-word."

Do I need to spell it out for you?

S-N-O-W.

There. I said it.

It's a weather expletive in my giant book of all words bad.

All Southern children love it because the very moment the word develops into a minuscule whisper, the schools will send the kids home early and just up and close for the remainder of the week.

And as if we need one more thing for the balance of our countrymen to poke fun of us over, this time seems to be no exception.

By 4 o'clock this afternoon, all the local schools in the 6 county area had announced school closures for the next 3 days. (Parents, I shall commence praying….)

My Facebook and Twitter feeds are shrieking the "S-word" - one after another.

Dare I imagine the milk and bread isles at our little IGA?

Photo By L. A. Jenkins
This photo was taken at the Wal-Mart in Grovetown, Georgia at 7 p.m.
I. Kid. You. Not.

And if it really does snow followed by the usual community shut-down, we could easily experience a population explosion by October! (can you spell 'scandalous' ?)

Stranger things: it was 65 degrees on the front porch this morning while I drank my coffee, rocked in my rocking chair and blinked my eyes open while the sun warmed my face.

So in the next 24 hour window of time, I'm fully expected to believe that up to 4 inches of snow will arrive here at the Dirt Road Farm to greet me first thing in the morning…

That ain't even funny.

At. all.

Y'all know I don't do mornings.

And now I just broke my "ain't rule"…what's this coming to?

Sounds like I need to be more cautious when citing the Dirt Road Snow Globe for matters of geography.

While I shudder at the thought of snowfall, it's not that I am anti-snow fun. I watch the Winter X-Games and plan to watch the Winter Olympics. I'm a fan of Carrot Top, er wait, Shaun White! If I want to see and experience snow, I am fully capable of traveling to the snow regions UP in the NORTH - the Northern territory that is.

But this is the ever-loving Deep South, People. We simply don't. do. snow!

And besides, snow was not in Gone With the Wind.

Therefore, snow is a myth.

A diva named Scarlett said so.

HKJ

South of the Gnat Line

21st Century Dirt Road Math

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Wed, 04 Dec 2013 06:00:00 +0000

21st CENTURY DIRT ROAD MATH

365 days x 1 year ago today = 0 Door Mats

Day-Planning

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Fri, 29 Nov 2013 20:58:00 +0000

"Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning."

- Gloria Steinem

"Dreaming is a form of planning." That'll work for me!

Thanksgiving Thanks

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Thu, 28 Nov 2013 19:27:00 +0000

It's hard to believe that I just flipped the calendar June-ago and now it's Thanksgiving day. How did that happen?

No matter what - so much to be thankful for!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Whiskey, patiently waiting for me to leave the kitchen!

Whiskey!

....hoping he's not spotted!

My personal assistant volunteering to be taste-tester!

Wishing safe travels and many blessings this Thanksgiving holiday and always!

hkj

Don't Stand Still

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Sat, 16 Nov 2013 20:14:00 +0000

From the Dirt Road News Desk

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Thu, 31 Oct 2013 03:02:00 +0000

With October winding down and the arrival of November at our doorstep, I thought it time to give a few updates from the Dirt Road snow globe.

What say you?

A week or so ago, I discovered we had new neighbors in the north pasture. I have eagerly awaited the opportunity to seize a Kodak moment.

Here they are:

The white donkey is a male ("Jack") and the traditional brown donkey is a female ("Jenny"). Until I can make time to call Mr. Stanley to inquire about their official names, "Jack" & "Jenny" it will be.

They are rooming with the 30+ Black Angus cows & calves in the north pasture(s) and I couldn't be happier about it. Fingers crossed they give the coyotes (roaming four-legged pestilence of the Dirt Road mammal world) a full blown run for their money....or rather existence!

It is a Southern tradition when new neighbors move in, we rush to greet them with accolades of welcomes and shower them with foodies. So I am working very hard to welcome them and ultimately, gain their trust by spoiling them with alfalfa cubes whenever I see them. I think it may be working since today when they heard me talking with the sheep and eventually *saw* me, they began hee-honking with what seemed to be excitement ("....hey lady, you brought us some treats again, right?"). {insert winking}

In other news, a new ram has arrived at the Dirt Road Farm to be a suitor for the girls. He's just visiting for a couple of months in order to help the farm set up lamb-housekeeping in 5-6 months. He wasn't exactly thrilled when corralled for pick up and transport to the Dirt Road. In fact, the little ram made it very clear that he did NOT like the likes of me by stomping his front foot.

Repeatedly.

And refusing to exit the vehicle.

I finally had to wrestle him out of the Goat Tote and physically place him in the pasture with his temporary harem of ewes. It took him all of three seconds to realize he'd died and gone to ewes-gone-wild Heaven with nine new babes to romance. I hope he enjoys his stay - quickly; he has until mid-December to get his romance on and then he will return to his home in Monticello.

Meanwhile, Buttermilk is somewhat confused and seemed to be suffering from hurt feelings earlier today - as all his gal pals have been all. about. the visiting ram. So I took measures this afternoon to console and treat him to some - sheep treats (not sold at your local PetsMart - but there are such things that exist).

I'm already beginning to wonder (or is it worry?) about how to convince the visiting ram to voluntarily load onto the truck for his journey back home.

Somehow, I am not foreseeing voluntary in his vocabulary. It should likely prove to be interesting....

And finally....

The cotton fields are being harvested.

The fields I've watched grow all summer and mature into Fall - walked through and marveled over - will soon be sparse and barren - waiting for Winter's arrival. Such is the ebb and flow of the seasons that surround the Dirt Road.

All Saints Day is upon us and shortly thereafter will be Thanksgiving, the rush of shopping, gift giving and celebrating Christmas. In 62 days, a new year will begin to unfold.

In closing this all too newsworthy update...

It's been a year.

HKJ

South of the Gnat Line

Life's Ecstasy...

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Sun, 27 Oct 2013 00:25:00 +0000

"Find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough."

- Emily Dickinson

October Cotton Fields

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Tue, 22 Oct 2013 01:54:00 +0000

There is nothing quite like walking knee deep through a magnificent cotton field.....this year's crop is almost shoulder high in some places (shoulder high for me anyway). This is a field full of tee shirts and then some.

Words can not adequately explain the majesty of the silence while standing in the midst of acres and acres of cotton awaiting its harvest. These fields that surround me here along the Dirt Road have decades and perhaps a century or more's history of cotton that has been grown - much picked and harvested by hand in the years behind us. To recognize and reflect upon the human hands that have hand-turned the soil here is a must; it is also a must that we never forget.

HKJ

South of the Gnat Line

Cabin with a View

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Thu, 17 Oct 2013 19:45:00 +0000

“The fireflies start at the ground and merge to the stars up above. It’s really like you’re sleeping under the stars.” - Nick Olsen

Photo by Jordan Wayne Long

This is a must see, must read article about a couple who built a cabin in the woods with an incredible view through a wall of windows.

Be sure to watch the video produced by Half Cut Tea. Exceptionally touching and inspiring.

As We Number Our Days...

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Sun, 13 Oct 2013 20:51:00 +0000

"Life is a gifted opportunity to leave the world better than when we arrived.

Let's get busy." - HKJ

Please Keep the Light On

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Fri, 04 Oct 2013 17:09:00 +0000

"The world always seems brighter when you've just made something that wasn't there before."

- Neil Gaiman

What'd You Say?

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Mon, 16 Sep 2013 22:39:00 +0000

"It's a rare person who wants to hear what he doesn't want to hear."

- Dick Cavett

NW Georgia Living Magazine - "Embracing the Change of Seasons"

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Tue, 10 Sep 2013 17:15:00 +0000

Sending a huge "Thank you" and shout-out to Laura Wood, Publisher/Editor of NW Georgia Living Magazine for inviting me to write a reflection for the Fall 2013 issue. I hope you will enjoy the read and be sure to pick up a copy of the magazine for yourself. NW Georgia Living has all the calendar of events for the NW Georgia region and a variety of articles to read.

"Embracing the Change of Seasons"

Read the entire current issue here.

Feedback is always welcome! Email SouthoftheGnatLine@gmail.com

Ultimate Pursuit: Your Passion

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Mon, 05 Aug 2013 14:00:00 +0000

“You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead pursue the things you love doing and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off of you.” ― Maya Angelou

Surprise, Surprise

noreply@blogger.com (Harriette Jacobs) — Tue, 30 Jul 2013 00:49:00 +0000

Merriam Webster defines the word "surprise" as:

"....to attack unexpectedly; .....to take unawares; .....to strike with wonder or amazement especially because unexpected..."

It is the latter definition that has captivated my thoughts:

"....to strike with wonder or amazement especially because unexpected."

We hear "surprise" everyday. "Surprise! Happy Birthday!" "Why am I surprised.....?" "What a surprise it was...." "She was surprised to learn......" "We wanted to surprise you....." "Can't we ever surprise you?" "Nothing would surprise me...." "It caught me by surprise...." "Well, surprise, surprise...."

But do such surprising statements represent the essence of what a surprising moment should be? This leads me to ponder:

When is the last time you were genuinely surprised and what do you consider surprise-worthy circumstances?

Winning the lottery?

Flowers from a loved one or a secret admirer?

Handwritten notes?

Dare I ask this: a surprise party?

An unannounced pay increase?

A marriage proposal?

Winning a contest?

Getting to work on time?

No cars on I-285 in Atlanta; ....At All..?

Getting a check from the power company instead of a bill?

The depths of media reporting on crime?

The depths of crime itself? (...shock & disgust, yes, surprise - NO.)

How about manners?

What about first time childbirth? There's a potential candidate for "surprise" - especially when involuntary natural childbirth is invoked because your [first] baby tried to enter the world in the car. ....at six weeks early - it was most certainly "unexpected".

Walking up on a snake in the woods?

How about an alligator at your backdoor?

Ever experience the kindness of a stranger? Would that surprise you?

Not having to repeat yourself?

Your children [voluntarily] cleaning the toilets?

How about the IRS announcing there will be no more income tax?

Here are a few quotes that, while contemplating the concept of this notion, I found circle the neighborhood of how I define "surprise":

"Surprise is the greatest gift which life can grant us."

- Boris Pasternak

"Continue to surprise those who would put you in a neat demographic. Be insistently curious."

- Gordon Gee

"A sudden bold and unexpected question doth many times surprise a man and lay him open."

- Francis Bacon

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

- Julia Cameron

"Do not know yourself. I want to continue to surprise me."

- Arielle Dombasle

"Every day is a surprise. There are confirmations of an interconnectivity and synchronicity which inspire, titillate and confirm the inherent comedy of the universe."

- Billy Zane

"Wonder is from surprise, and surprise stops with experience."

- Bishop Robert South

"Society is always taken by surprise at any new example of common sense."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

"What a lovely surprise to finally discover how unlonely being alone can be."

- Ellen Burstyn

"Expect nothing. Live frugally on surprise."

- Alice Walker

"The only thing that should surprise us is that there are still some things that can surprise us."

- Francois de la Rochefoucauld

I especially like the quote by Arielle Dombasle: "....I want to continue to surprise me."

These are all great thoughts and yet only gently approach what I deem true surprise. And while the gift of clean toilets lifted up as gift-worthy on any given Mothers Day (in my world) would really be a surprise to me - or at least bring a smile to my lips and cause my eyebrows to raise in wonder (wondering what someone is trying to hide from me....), it does not qualify to belong in the realm of my surprise desires.

Just recently, someone asked me what I do for fun; without hesitation I answered, "Every day is fun." After I said those words, it led me to think more and more about that.

I'm known to often say, "Happiness is a choice," therefore, regardless of the things that I can not control [around me] and [in the world], I will choose happiness every chance I get.

I choose to seek out that every day there is something worth celebrating, some simple, small joy worth smiling over: the sheep running to me when I walk into the pasture; Bebe, my barn cat always happy to see me when I feed the chickens and geese; the change of season here along the Dirt Road; discovering where the Passion Flower vines will bloom this year; the Blue Heron allowing me to stand close-by and watch him fish the creek; the roll-call of the Barred Owls at night; loving the fact that my boys, all big now and often stinky and sweaty, will kiss their Momma in front of their friends - all moments to be savored and cherished.

Then there is fun out in the world of people with people. Everyone was once 4 and 5 years old - little innocent and wide-eyed children. Much can be said about what's wrong in the world today - but shouldn't we be looking for what is good? Is good that hard to see anymore?

Is it the *good* that surprises you? Not me; it's there - it's always been there. It may be dusty or surrounded by clutter or even muddied like an unattended child whose face reveals precious freckles when wiped clean.... Good is there....we have to be more diligent in looking for it and sharing it.

Meanwhile, surprise is waiting; I believe it's smiling slyly all the while knowing its unpredictability. Real surprise is a beautiful thing. I can not expect it or look for it - that would undermine its worth and ultimate purpose. So here are my defining thoughts on 'surprise':

Surprise is that moment resulting from someone's words or gestures or a moment suspended in time, so rare and unexpected, it intimately takes your breath away and is For.Ever. etched upon your Heart.

[HKJ]