Celebration of Peace through Connection

Celebration of Peace through Connection

Dear Friend in Peace,

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are times when Ernie and I celebrate by spending as much time as possible in Mother Nature. This year, we spent New Year's Eve at Myakka River State Park.  We love spending time in Mother Nature because she is our home, our nurture, our inspiration, and a place of profound peace for us.  Connected to nature, life is simple and sacred.

The first peaceful shift I notice is a relaxing of my shoulders. Once rambling along a path, deep breathing happens naturally. Silently, connection is felt and a spider’s web becomes part of my me and I part of the web.  Mesmerized by nature’s beauty, diversity, and splendor, we laugh.

At some point, words drop away, allowing connection to one another and Mother Earth to be felt deeper and for peace to prevail within us.  May we each choose ways to experience the blessings of connection and peace today and every day. Your path to peace may be through Mother Nature, meditation, reading, walking, or something else. Whatever path brings you peace, please follow it. It will serve you well and bring joy and peace to all you meet. Thank you!

May these photos and words bring you connection, joy, and peace.

Yours in peace and love,

Donna

Pure enchantment created by dew on a spiderweb stopped me in my tracks and offered a time out for feeling my connection to the spider, her masterpiece and the glorious setting in which they are a vital part of the web of life.
Where do the clouds of Father Sky end and the prairies of Mother Earth begin? This magnificent scene caused me to breathe deeper and inhale the pure peace of Mother Earth while taking this photo to share the joy and peace of connection with Mother Nature with you.
Lower Myakka Lake offered us a variety of views. I choose this one because it causes me to breathe deeply, to inhale the blessing of beauty and connection of ourselves to the natural world and to all beings.
The sight of dew fills my heart with great joy; it carries the blessing of seeing the often unseen and unnoticed. Pure enchantment!
Dead trees or "Snags" have a special place in my heart as they often seem to strike the most dramatic of poses. This one caught my fancy because of its looks, but snags are also a vital part of the ecosystem because they serve as shelter, viewing platform, growing surface for plants, insects, fungi, and bacteria. I love them because they are so regal and often appear to be dancing in the sky.