Posted tagged ‘sea grapes’

Goldilocks Season

November 4, 2011

We entering into Goldilocks Season on Grand Bahama. The weather is not too hot, not too cold … it’s juuuuust right. It’s the kind of weather that makes you say “aaaahh” and draws your eye extra-much to every bright yellow bit of tropical bliss … … from cerasee bush medicine growing along the garden wall … … to fresh guava in the kitchen … … to more yellow elder (the national flower of The Bahamas) …

… to the way the sun bathes the palm fronds in warmth while a woodpecker taps his tat-a-tat-tat tune …… a soft light glowing on everything … ripening the sea grapes

  

photo by Caitlin Farrington

… renewed gratitude alighting in our hearts, and reminding us of so many golden days … giving thanks for the not-too-hot, hot-too-cold glories of November in The Bahamas! (And to how marvelous it is when the weather matches your mood … here’s to the glow of your internal paradise keeping you warm if you’re bouncing back from that too-cold-too-soon snow storm up north, or still waiting for a touch of fall—like we’ve been doing during the high humidity the past couple of months! Here’s to paying attention to the subtle and not-so-subtle shifts of season and keeping a weathered eye on the blessings that abound everywhere.) Tra-la.

Sea Grapes and The Power of Pause

October 20, 2009

SeaGrapes

The semi-wild, abundant island garden in my back yard is full of tropical treasures. This is the season of sea grapes in The Bahamas. These beauties are growing on a big shady tree just behind the house and have a subtly sweet, somewhat tart taste when they turn a ripe purple.  The big sea grape leaves are about the size of dinner plates, and in fact, a wonderful guide out at The Garden of The Groves once told a story about how she remembered her family in the small charming “out islands” of The Bahamas using these sturdy leaves as the perfect natural disposable plates for outdoor dining!  It’s so easy to take the ever-green, infinitely lush landscape here for granted, and so exhilarating to stop and really admire it with gratitude. A favorite author of mine, Terry Hershey, is a great advocate of slowing down and embracing the Sacred Present.  His funny stories and gentle reminders to pay attention to the moments that make us feel most alive are something I look forward to in his weekly Sabbath Moments newsletters, and now in a new blog that he’s just started — can’t wait to read more of his musings and witty wisdom more often! (www.terryhershey.com) I am also enjoying a copy of his latest book, The Power of Pause. It’s so good to stop and savor the sea grapes of life … the sweet and the unsweet … the ripe and the not-yet-ripe beauty all around us and within us.

PowerOfPause.bookcoverhttp://www.terryhershey.com/power-of-pause.htm


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