Wide Open - Missoula, Montana

“When the soul throws its windows wide open, letting in the sunshine, and presenting to all who see it the evidence of its gladness, it is not only happy, but it has an unspeakable power of doing good.“

-Orison Swett Marden (1850-1924)

Fleeting Still - Missoula, Montana

“It's a moment that I'm after, a fleeting moment, but not a frozen moment.”

-Andrew Wyeth (1917-2009)

Shadow Kin - Missoula, Montana

"Hard is hard - there is no measuring stick - 
and sadness too often comes right in as
the shadow kin of joy."
-From The Forbidden Garden by Ellen Herrick, page 78

On Breathing Dust - Roadside in Missoula, Montana

"He knew he was in the presence of two Eldila.... "Look on him , beloved, and love him", said the first. 
"He is indeed but breathing dust and a careless touch would unmake him." "

-from Perelandra, by C. S. Lewis, transition into Ch 16

 Crouched at the edge of the road (&, yes, paying attention so as not to get run over!), I think, "How much more fragile are we, with all our complex internal systems grounded in original dust, than this tiny, intricate winged creature come to rest on the edge of a mud puddle?".

Fragile Overcoming - Missoula, Montana

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it."

-Helen Keller (1880-1968)

Journey Onward - Missoula, Montana

"It is good we cannot see

How far or fair life’s path will be

For then we would not see the sun

Or chase that daydream silver-spun ..." 
- from "Living In The Moment" by Janet Martin

Stop by Another Porch... A Poetry Blog to take in the perpetual loveliness of Janet's writing.

Winged Window Watcher - East Missoula, Montana

A rare view of the reticent moth, serendipitously seen on a trek upstairs to the church balcony. The daylight through the window detailed its delicate colours and patterns - who knew such perfect fringes edge each wing of these common insects?!

While it's odd for a moth to rest in broad daylight on fully exposed glass, I like to think (fancifully) that our window watcher heard the buzz about goings-on at River of Life and stopped to see it in real time.

Twilight Explorer, Missoula, Montana

“We shall not cease from exploration,
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”
- T.S. Eliot, as quoted in “Walking From East to West” by Ravi Zacharias