Early Days

 

I love color swatches. I love paint samples. I love palette play. Up until now, I've only looked, but never tried it. I decided to start small, using my set of 12 Inktense colored pencils, in the order I keep them in the tin. I colored light-medium-dark as best I could and then added one more block with water added (on the far right). I added their company designated names to complete the record. I've really enjoyed this kind of play in videos I've seen...on Deb's dreaming bee blog. I once saw a video where the shades of mixing was related to coffee. How much milk was added, making it very light - to - 'black' pure color. I wish I had saved that to view it again. Anyway, perhaps I will play with this some more.

The 'man things' - things that belonged to my birth-father, my dad or J. (and my mom too!) - how I study them when cleaning and consider the stories they must hold. The man's valet is on it's 4th "owner", with plans to pass it down once again when that time comes. The knife was 'lost' for a long time, well over a year...and spontaneously turned up again this week. Now, where had it run off to and what was it doing?

In looking at Grace's mug of utensils last night, I notice one that looks similar to one I have. I got curious. It turns out that it is a "fruit, cranberry or tomatoes" serving spoon, made by Leonard, silverplate, pattern: "Acorn". This one belonged to someone in my mom's family. I have no idea who, as it was not familiar to me when I laid eyes on it. But, I thought it was pretty and unique, so I hung onto it. I have to say, as someone who lives around a lot of acorns...these don't entirely represent them to me. My research shows one can be had for about $5.00-$25.00 online shopping.

I am reading a new book. Finally. I'm enjoying it and will post more soon. I'm so happy to have gotten hooked into a book again.

#11 Catching Rain Or Not

I tried to catch some rain water from our last storm. However the patio is deeply covered and I did not want the mug to get blown off, so I tucked it on the the table out there. The wind was not as fierce as the first storm, keeping it in a pretty dry spot...so my cup does not runneth over! This had me considering the old thoughts of how much is enough? To one stranded in the desert, this may seem an abundance.

It's been between the 50°-60°'s, mostly gray cloud covered skies. Today, some blue has busted through. Yay!

What sparks your curiosity? 

 

May you find enough to do

May you appreciate 'enough' when you bump into it

May you have enough of what you need

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2026

The Gift of the Present

 

5 or more Tarantula Hawks (only on this one plant), Ed Davis State Park...large and scary looking, but they weren't looking at us.

The world in shades of  yellow-brown and blue/white.

Ohio library showcases late man's massive reading list with thousands of books

LINK 2:51 minutes

Wondering what prompted him to begin and keep this list.

River water, not gone, but hidden beneath the green (more and more each visit), The Bridge. Where one day and space holds hills of monotones, another holds shades of life in abundance...with a bit of dry browns in as well. It was a day of clear skies.

Screenshots aplenty every time I'm inspired to draw. I am particularly drawn to drawing & coloring as something to do with a smaller footprint, less stuff.

I pick a screenshot and study the lines to draw my own version. As noticed, I've taken artistic freedom if don't have a color that would suit the purpose. I still stink at proportions and perspective, so it's a wonky world for sure!

NOTE: Screenshot from this video, which was inspiring for me and my drawing journey.

I finally warped the little loom and began a medicine bag, but got distracted along the way. I'm focused on the multi-colored yarn gifted to me. It is quite thin, which works out because I accidentally warped the loom with one space, instead of two. We'll see where this goes.

Medicine Bag Count: CMB - 85     ------     Gifted Medicine Bags: 81 (these 'counts' are not important, but it is fun knowing)

Anyway, that's what I'm still about these days...making, using up, giving away...but little reading and absolutely no tree climbing recently. 

Lao Tsu said that if you are depressed, you are living in the past, and if you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present.

What are you up to these days? Are you reading? Making? Walking? 

 

May you step into the present

May you stand in the present

May you live in the present

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©202

So Many Love Stories

 

Treading water between

memories of the past and

promises for the future

A funeral, a baby shower and in between

thousands of family photos to be sorted, treasured and shared or shredded

My head swims in the attached stories, both new and old

There is a season for this kind of work

I'm in that season right now

I am not drowning in it, just

treading water and embracing the many kinds of 

love stories

If you go to this LINK, you can read/listen to a beautiful poem titled:                                 "Great Granny Lucy and I"

Time is a circus, always packing up and moving away

~Ben Hecht

#9 Photo Trail

Photographs & Memories

LINK 2:08 minutes

How do you feel about your kept photographs? 

 

May you keep the memories, even if not the photos

May you celebrate each life well lived

May you celebrate the arrival of each new life

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2025

Meaningful Memories

 

Time with my sister...going through old family photos, letters etc. I love her view from her deck, the 'canyon' side of the development. Places to hang out filled with trees and plant life. No hawk this day, but usually there is at least one soaring over the canyon. I could get lost out there.

Down By The Riverside Pete Seeger 7 24 1963

LINK 8:43 minutes

Somewhere in that crowd of campers on the hill (below), is little teeny me...singing my heart out! All of this time that I craved a tangible representation for what is in my heart...all of this time my sister had this old photo in her album. It was tricky getting an image of it here and it is not a great, or even a good photo, as far as quality...but as far as heart, it has it in the billions. 

As I've mentioned before, every day at the end of our camping adventures, we gathered on 'the hill' to sing folk/protest and some camp songs. The counselors played guitars and led us in song. I can still hear the 'knock, knock' on those guitars during "Down by the Riverside". Watching this video from that era, I'm surprised by how stuffy and still so many of these folks looked during parts of it. Some men with their arms crossed across their chests do not look ready for compromise, love and peace! When little me sang, I felt surrounded in camaraderie and love. I sang with wild abandon, or that's how I felt anyway. However, I did notice that many of the video's comments are a pure love fest! (as always, watch on you tube to see comments)

My older sister and me. I believe that the hill behind us is the one that led to the hike to the "waterfall" AKA The Los Angeles Aqueduct. Anyway, I'm pretty sure that is what this is pictured here, maybe my sister can correct me if I'm wrong. And if we don't remember exactly, we will call that memory good enough. Ha.

Below is the Marge Mobile, a station wagon my mom drove to pick up other campers for the day. It broke down often, adding to her stress (I'm sure) and our memories. She even wrote a song parody about it and the busses breaking down: "Breakdown" - sung to the tune of "Downtown". She was great at creating parody songs. That's little me with these two siblings.

We walked around the perimeter of my sister's housing development...canyon views on one side and The Valley on full view on the other side. It was just warming up and way cooler than at my place, so a very nice walk. Lots of trees and flowers to appreciate.

She had an extra camera, no longer in use...so now I have a new one, which is great as my camera has been barely hanging on. I tried playing with it a bit on the walk, but there is going to be a learning curve, even if it is very similar to mine.

The Valley view. It's been a while since I got to see these views. I never tire of them.

Where do you want to visit, that you've not been to in a long time? Where would you visit if you could, a place that no longer exists?

 

May you take in the views in the moment

May you closely inspect your memories

May you travel well, however it is that you travel

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2025

Simple

 Homespun...

I'd begun this post...a post about two days of stitching. Mending. How that big flannel circle looked like a tortilla at first. We all love tortillas, don't we? How this was from my son's childhood winter flannel sheet set. How J. loves it, well we both do, as a couch cover (protecting our very much overused couch). How my big grandson slept on this sheet when he came for a visit in 2011...the time he sewed a Magic Feather for Jude's Magic Feather Project...the little blue patch now reinforced again with stitch and the 'tortilla' adding texture to our homespun days.

A simple post about mending and simple, homespun ways and how that can be enough...ended up being about how that can be even too much to hold in one's breaking heart. About how that grandson is now 'draft' age...so is my work baby of the continuing post - now in college across the country...how so many others in my world and in THE world (friends, family, classroom) are as well...or could be if this becomes another 'endless war'.

The simple circle mending I'd begun became worlds of concern for the world.

One Love (Bob Marley) feat. Manu Chao | Playing For Change | Song Around The World

LINK 5:07 minutes

What can one do?

 

May you live in peace

May you live in love

May you breathe in goodness

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2025

This Day

 This day...

I was on my own for a bridge walk, the quiet space a welcome moment...

But, the bridge had other ideas - being prepped for a local 5k, 10k, half-marathon, kids run on Saturday.

So strange to see all of this public hoopla in what often feels like my own private space. I of course, realize that this is a public, community space...even if it is so personal to me.

Plastic flags flapping in the breeze, but the river still runs the same...clear water, lush growth. I've been looking back at old river photos. Back in February (on the East side) there were so many bare spots, an egret easily spotted. Now, it looks like solid plant life.

Cairin in the water,  treasures left on a fence post...

This will likely be a busy event at the bridge, but I shall be elsewhere, waving a different kind of flag.

Today when I wished for solace, I was greeted with another day - something not usual, but just another day. So, I passed through this day - looking towards the next one.

How do you settle on the best way to move through? 

 

May you remember

May you be where you need to be

May you live with ease

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2025 

#goodenough