Finding beauty this time of year in Minnesota can be challenging, particularly this year with the strangely mild and snow-free winter that we had. Still I found beauty in small things on my
Lake Walk
last week.
We live very close to Medicine Lake. And while the lake is in the middle of the suburbs now, at one time it was surrounded by small cabins that were summer getaways. Very few of those tiny cabins remain. Instead there are a lot of large homes overlooking the lake with signs that proclaim “Private Property” beside any docks or lake-front access. Sometimes I wish I could time travel back to the time before immigrants moved to Minnesota to see what it looked like then.
The small shed above reminded me of a summer get-away cabin with it’s nautical decor and row of old wooden chairs, though it too had a sign proclaiming “Keep Out!”
A Different Story
Have you ever wondered what the world would be like if we all saw ourselves as caretakers, creators, and befrienders, instead of owners, bosses, and consumers? What would our stories be in a world like that—certainly not about the one who has the most wins!
Fortunately there are three parks that front on the lake, East Medicine Lake Park, West Medicine Lake Park, and French Regional Park. These parks allow anyone access to the lake and they are some of my favorite nearby walking spaces.There is also a public path that runs beside the lake that I often walk. Today’s photos were made on a walk I took on that path.
The weather has turned cold again. Birds are gathering at the feeders outside my office window. A skim of ice covered part of the pond behind our house this morning. Weather forecasters are predicting snow beginning Thursday night and again on Sunday. It could be the biggest snowfall of this year’s snow season. Hopefully spring will soon arrive to stay and the world will once again put on her fancy summer greens and bright colors.
I leave you today with one of my favorite Mary Oliver poems…
If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy,
don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty
of lives and whole towns destroyed or about
to be. We are not wise, and not very often
kind. And much can never be redeemed.
Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this
is its way of fighting back, that sometimes
something happens better than all the riches
or power in the world. It could be anything,
but very likely you notice it in the instant
when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the
case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid
of its plenty. Joy is not made to be a crumb.— Mary Oliver
Wishing you a joy-filled week. Remember we don’t just find joy, we choose joy.
May you walk in beauty.
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