Walking Through - Quail Tracks, Corvallis, Montana

"[Miss Green] says that being an artist is more than a job or a skill; it's a way of walking through the world." - Filomena, p. 38, The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant

Wishing you continued (or newly begun) striding along, comfortable in your own skin and whatever personal version of artistry it contains.

Memory Stirs - Missoula, Montana

"I remember a hundred lovely lakes, and recall the fragrant breath of pine and fir and cedar and poplar trees. The trail has strung upon it, as upon a thread of silk, opalescent dawns and saffron sunsets. It has given me blessed release from care and worry and the troubled thinking of our modern day. It has been a return to the primitive and the peaceful. Whenever the pressure of our complex city life thins my blood and benumbs my brain, I seek relief in the trail; and when I hear the coyote wailing to the yellow dawn, my cares fall from me - I am happy."- Hamlin Garland (1860-1940), McClure's, February, 1899

Evening Nigh - Corvallis, Montana

"I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape - the loneliness of it... Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn't show." - Andrew Wyeth  (1917-2009)

Historical Depot Christmas Beacon - Missoula, Montana

"A mother's happiness is like a beacon, lighting up the future but reflected also on the past in the guise of fond memories." -  Honore de Balzac (1799-1850)

And wasn't part of first Christmas's true beauty and hope that of a mother's heart? It amazes me to think on Mary's (and Joseph's, too, but that doesn't tie in to my quote) trust and obedience amidst a situation that must have garnered an avalanche of questions. Possibles: What?! Why? Who?! How?!!! When? Where?!  And despite - or perhaps because of? - these, they continued on as directed. May we be inspired in this season to shine our best light, whether it be toward someone's hopeful future or with thankful reflections from our own history. 

Walkin' In A Winter Wonderland- Missoula, Montana

A morning of steady snowfall inspired much stomping of boots in the office vestibule and whistled snatches of "...weather outside is frightful...let it snow, let it snow....in a winter wonderland...".

Leftover Gold - Missoula, Montana

Autumn's golden leavings 

stand rustling

amidst winter's stark wind 

and marbled shore,

like so many muddled strands of 
Rumplestiltskin's discards.

-ch

Childhood Remainder In Sight - Largent's Bend, Vaughn, Montana

"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up." - Pablo Picasso (1881-1973)

Berries For The Birds? - Missoula, Montana

"White and yellow, kill a fellow.
Purple and blue, good for you.
Red... could be good, could be dead..."
- berry mnemonic from former Green Beret Myke Hawke, discussing outdoor survival tips on Good Morning America