Often I find myself sitting on the rocking dock at the base of the wharf as the morning moves through the quiet wake of the day. First sounds are from a variety of bird, song and waterfowl. There is the constant sound of water gently moving against the dock, a kind of lullaby. Sometimes the otter will swim past or occasionally join me on the platform. In a few weeks there will be boaters and the lake will gradually invite swimming but for now it is an enveloping calm and that is a gift.

I have been enjoying the close proximity of loons the past few years but have yet to meet the wee babies and each early summer that is high on my wish list as I sit on the waters edge with a sweater wrapped around my shoulders and a thermos of hot coffee to combat the damp feeling of the shoreline. Sometimes while my eyes are set on one thing, something else literally flies by and the shift in focus, the startling of a challenge to perception is jarring. Last week I swear this goose was playing chicken with me!

Like most experiences, small moments mirror larger opportunities. If you are focused on one specific detail, the big picture becomes blurred and you may miss an important detour. The way we see and process data is increasingly altered by technology. I listened to Robert Bateman talk about the importance of green spaces and children being exposed to nature and I fell a little bit in love with the 82 year old weathered painter in a worn sports jacket, with a body of work that staggers painters and businessmen in entirely different ways.  What makes us rich, what is our legacy,  may have little or nothing to do with our accomplishments but how we fit into the bigger picture and one step further, how we hold open the door to that experience for those who walk behind us.

Green spaces are important to all of us, from the entry with mouse eyes and all around the circle to back again. From the cool calm quiet of the morning, until the brilliance of sunset and the soft velvet darkness that closes the day, I hope you have a moment, that takes your breath away.  Easter weekend is a marker for renewal and rebirth, and as such a small reminder to simply take time – breathe. ❤