It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.” Henry David Thoreau
Well...we made it back late last night, after a marathon fifteen hour drive! I came home feeling pretty weary from the road, a bad case of what I'll call 'car-seat bum'...but with the most wonderful sensation of enchantment hovering about me.
It was a totally fun weekend cruising...listening to the satellite radio...talk...loving and laughing...all the while watching the landscape transform along the way. I realized two hours into the trip that I'd forgot my camera bag...duh!!(This after I made countless 'note-to-self' reminders all morning before we left!) So, of course, we saw more wildlife than we have ever seen on any road trip before...brave mountain goats in the Rockies...herds and herds of deer in our Alberta foothills...elk...bison....and one lone, majestic moose.
Portland was lovely! Rainy...magically misty...cloudy...oh, and the sun did peep out a couple of times on Saturday afternoon just to say 'Hello!' to us.(We felt very privileged.) It was GREEN...lush lawns...ivy tumbling...moss thriving. It was BLOOMING...tulips...the sunshiney faces of daffodils were everywhere...roses...and some kind of trees that were covered in outragously pretty pink flowers. Magnolias? I don't know what they were except gorgeous!
We got blissfully lost looking for the Stars antique mall, and found ourselves on Oak Street(?)...with it's stunning, I mean STUNNING jewel-toned Victorians. Seeing how obviously these painted ladies are loved and cared for was delightful. I found myself wanting so much to know the colourful souls within.(And that was just a little tease...you can get a seriously sore neck twisting to see all the architectural lovlies!)
We did find the antiques mall. It was wonderful...we just wandered. I got some heavy duty creative inspiration...but in the end all I bought was a light green depression glass jug.
The weekend went by way too fast...and yet too slow. Coming home to my children,I did realize that truly, it wasn't so much what I looked at...it was what I saw with a little change of scenery...the timelessness of love...of family...our history...of our big beautiful planet...and all that it holds. I am renewed.
7 comments:
I thought of you this weekend as you went about embracing life with your beloved.
I am so glad to see that Portland held wonder and beauty for you to discover, and how wonderful to return home with renewed love and appreciation for all you have been blessed with.
It sounds as if it were a beautiful weekend indeed :)
love to you.. and welcome home!
xo
hee hee "car seat bum".
I miss the rockies so much! I was born in Calgary, so after we moved away, I spent many hours traveling back and forth through those beautiful mountains returning to visit family friends. Absolutely majestic, almost surreal.
So good to hear you had an inspiring trip!
xo
nah, magnolias have big white flowers and don't bloom this early...and their a southern tree.
maybe dogwood? some versions have pink flowers.
anyway, the trip sounds wonderful!!!
you paint a beautiful picture with words-no pics needed!
wow ... it sounds so wonderful, lush green and full of colour and you missed all the snow on the weekend, tee hee ...
i can't wait to visit portland! so glad you had a beautiful renewing weekend :) xo
lovely lovely weekend! Ooh, I am so jealous!!!
I loved Portland - maybe someday I will get to go back!
glad you're home safe!
Oh, the joy in your voice!!! You are home safe and sound, and refreshed, yes?
:-)
(((HUGS))),
Love,
Me
Here I am, completely late to the party again! I am so so glad that you had such a wonderful time here...and maybe forgetting your camera was a small blessing, as I am sure that all of these wonderful images are instead swirling around your being.
I hope that the last week has been beautiful for you.
xoxo~jen
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