just 3 lines: May 2026

2049. life on a string

all on a string

how they float and flutter

400 white doves

“Life On A String”— 43x50”— Origami

Here’s a close-up view of the Origami piece in my earlier post No. 2039 now hanging in my bedroom. I love their gentle, silent motions…how these many birds sometimes stir softly, turn, and flutter on their long strings as I pass by. They make me think of an old movie I’ve seen more than once, “Life On a String,” a Chinese fable about an old blind musician, traveling the countryside with his young apprentice as he dreams of seeing once more before he dies. I wouldn’t mind seeing the movie again….it may be streaming on Netflix.

2048. on the road

hurry, honey!

can’t wait to get to bed and

cuddle😘

Have Gun will travel… have Spacesuit will travel….have Laptop will travel….have Kids will travel….have Music will travel….have Bed will travel!

2047. ha…ha…ha.

a laugh a day

keeps the doctor away

ha…ha…ha…

Laughter is the best medicine. 😆

2046. pretty as poison

hey look!

two flies….one flew away

this one didn’t

Hey, what’s that over there in the grass? A mushroom? It was. It was pretty large, 4”or 5”around. Hey, what’s this? A fly. Looks like it took a few bites. We took a picture and looked it up—Amanita Muscaria, it’s name comes from its common use to kill flies!

2045. looking back

going back. . .

stopping in for a visit

with an old friend

Now and then I enjoy looking back at what was. Looking at the past helps make sense of what’s going on now. How will we know it’s us without our past? It’s good to remember that some things change, some never do. We are who we are.

Here’s another old selfie. This one’s inspired by a Pierre Bonnard self-portrait. He’s one of my favorite French painters.

2044. for the love of life

new life grows

as the old fades away

tenderly

It was immediately apparent to me that someone took considerable time to carefully and lovingly braid all these leaves from spent daffodil flowers into beautiful braids. How wonderful to show admiration and gratitude for the life-giving forces of the earth. Here’s a close-up view—

2043. shopping for shoes….

close to the road

black cows in green grasses

in the rain

On the way home, after shopping for shoes, I was driving through the farm and saw them there close to the road—cows, black cows. I drove on thinking to myself, that might’ve been a good picture there. I’d seen those black cows many times but never so close to the road. I kept driving. I passed by a number of goats on the left and a small flock of wooly sheep on the right far off in the middle of the pasture, and more cows. It was one of those days, rainy and chilly outside. The animals never seem to mind. Why should I? I turned around.

2042. strawberry fields

i’m tellin’ ya

them’s are strawberries

strawberries!

Thinking they might be strawberries, I took a picture of these flowers along the meadow in the woods. They are. Here’s what I read about them. Strawberries are members of the rose family. They have about 200 seeds, all on the outside. Strawberries are powerful tooth whiteners; they contain vitamin C which fights plaque. Eight strawberries have more vitamin C than an orange. The Frence traditionally serve newlyweds a soup made from strawberries at the wedding breakfast, since they are considered aphrodisiac!❣️Aren’t they pretty?

2041. does she or doesn’t she?

there she goes again

turning all yellow mellow

like a buttercup

i do, i do

i really like butter—

how about you?

I had in mind to post this picture sometime and then last night in the middle of the night the word, yellow buttercup popped into my mind. Now I as I sit sipping coffee, I am recalling the Children’s Buttercup Game: “Does she or doesn’t she?” Hold the buttercup under your chin to see if your chin turns yellow.

It’s natural to play. One would be wise to appreciate play, for therein lies possibilities for creativity and discovery. It’s true that some of our best ideas can come while tinkering or faffing, or taking a bath, or eating breakfast, sipping tea or coffee, or simply doing nothing! Reminder to play.

2040. yin and yang ☯️

such a mixed bag

a tree is a tree is a tree

….and yet

This is a closeup of the honey locust tree. Soft-sharp, light-dark, tender-tough, clear and fuzzy, so fuzzy. Life can be like this little by little or even all at once. Lao Tzu said, If you want to know about life, look to nature. Life abounds in complementary contrasts.

2039. praying for peace

under heaven

four hundred white doves flutter

like falling snow

White doves are an international symbol for peace. The world needs more peace. Peace begins with each one of us. “If we want more peace, we have to be peace. Peace is a practice, not a hope.” Thich Nhat Hanh

2038. talking to myself….

nowadays,

some days I say to myself

what’s going on?

When things get you down, as sometimes they must, get out, go out, get in the fresh air and sunshine….look up at the sky, look at the trees, the flowers, the bees….and listen to the birds who go on singing, no matter what. Get hope. Nothing can be done without hope. Have something to hope for, work for, reach for….and take action. Make yourself a person who can attain that hope and remember: Hope plus action makes things happen.

2037. copycat!

copycat!

who does she think she is!

harumphh!

Here she is again with another old self-portrait. Hah! Who does she think she is? Paul-a Gaugin?!!!

2036. sweet clover

down to the ground

in a bed of sweet clover

like a honey bee

Oh, sunny day—a picture of a picture to ponder. What would it be like to be a bee? Emily Dickinson said, “The lovely flowers embarrass me. They make me regret. I am not a bee.” I wonder if she ever sat down close, like Dan, in a field of flowers to smell the sweet clover and see the bees….

2035. they say….

cats live nine lives

isn’t that wonderful!

what about frogs?

Here’s something I saw posted on a page-a-day-calendar the other day: “Some frogs freeze solid in winter, then thaw in spring.” I couldn’t wait to make some frogs!🐸

2034. for Dan

in search of herself

leafing thru an old sketchbook

turning green

the moon was green,

the moon was green.

a loan spotted cow gazing

up at the moon…

jumped

Back in 2000 something I made a decision to do 100 self-portraits. Of course, I never finished. But this morning paging through an old sketchbook, I found a few of those old pastel drawings, along with a silly verse. (Dan always tells me: “If you don’t have a good picture to post, just do something!” So, this one’s for Dan!😘

2033. tulip tree

many a winter night

it arrives and says for a moment:

i am still here*

Tulip Trees are good native pollinators, blooming May thru June. They grow very fast up to 25 feet each year. They serve as tall shade trees, 60 to 90 feet and much higher, and can live 200 to 300 years and longer.

* This poem is the closing verse from “The Tulip Tree,” by William Stafford.

2032. oh noo….🫣

oh noo….there they go

all over the kitchen floor—

red raspberries!

First thing, as soon as the box of raspberries dropped down and spilled all over the carpet I said to myself, take a picture! Then I quickly googled, Do raspberries stain?….Yes, Raspberries, notoriously stain white clothing, leaving red or purple marks due to their natural pigments! Oh noo…there goes the pretty white-colored carpet! Funny, how when something happens now the first thing I do is pick up my phone.📱😘

2031. just chillin!

it’s tuesday

another chilly day

just chillin’

“Enjoy Your Day” — 10x8 — Origami

Time to get up and I don’t have a new picture to post today, so here’s an oldie but goodie to start the day. Enjoy your day!😻

2030. what is spiritual?

in the midst

of the mist above the trees

the rain waits

“If the rain comes down, if the mud fills our shoes, or if we kneel down on the grass to light incense and pray – the very act of being fully present in our lives is spirituality enough, for being present is to acknowledge that everything is spiritual.”

2029. moms

moms are love

there’s no one like mom

hooray for moms

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Moms out there!😻

2028. for rent

for rent:

cozy cabin in the woods

$500/month

Thinking back, I can remember paying $400/month for rent 50 years ago. $500/month today sounds like a pretty good deal.😘 Anyone interested?

2027. perspectives

pondering

yet another way to look

at things

“Unexpected events can set you back or set you up. It’s all a matter of perspective.”

2026. school daze

school daze:

a school of fish or is it fishes

in a daze

“Unfinished Business” — 10x13” — Origami

Is it fish or fishes?….or swishy wishes! Unfinished business. I don’t know where they’re headed but I made all these fishes and they just had to get up, stretch their fins, shake their tails, and go for a swim!😘