Yesterday I presented an overview of my course scheduled for spring at Renaissance Institute!  It was wonderful to see so many friends and hear about the other presentations being offered! The amount of creativity and talent in this world never ceases to amaze me! 

I'm presenting Seeds, Roots and Routes - 
Our lives are rich with miraculous seeds - a thought, a smile, a class . . .  Roots gather nutrients to help seeds grow. We will explore stories, legends and symbolism, protection and  conservation, paintings, songs, short videos to illustrate parallels to our life experiences and journey. Bring a journal to reflect on your life’s seeds, roots and routes - past, present and future.

When I journal, I add seeds at the bottom of the page. A seed may represent a new friend, a class, an idea, etc. When I review my pages at the end of the year it's interesting to see which have flourished, which have remained dormant and may sprout at a later time, and which are best to let fade away. 

Decades ago I attended a Brownie registration event in a church basement. I wanted to enroll my oldest daughter, Mycala, in a Girl Scout Brownie troop but they didn't have a leader. I was somehow recruited and loved working with the girls. That led to numerous volunteer positions and I was later hired as a training specialist, then adult education director. The seeds sprouted into numerous friendships that are alive and thriving today! 

My training in Girl Scouts was superlative.Francis Hesselbein, our CEO, raised the bar on every aspect of leadership. "Peter F. Drucker, the founding father of management, proclaimed Frances Hesselbein “the best CEO in America.” “She could manage any company in America, even General Motors, and do a great job,” Drucker said."                                            ~ Management Matters Network

When she was called to lead the Girl Scouts, Hesselbein sent all the troop leaders to a leadership training program at Harvard. She believed that it made the leaders feel better about themselves, commenting, “We thought they deserved to go to Harvard that they were the best.” 

That seed provided me with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to deliver fun and effective training with SMART goals and objectives,  always using the experiential learning cycle as the base. 

One unexpected experience in a church basement changed every aspect of my  life, leading me to complete my masters in training and become a certified instructor of trainers. It provided me with the opportunity to work with women and girls who were striving to live up to their best potential. 

Watching the girls in my Girl Scout Brownie troop, and others in our community, grow into community leaders has been a joy! Continuing friendships and experiences with women of sterling character has been one of the greatest gifts of my life. 

The seeds of opportunity are everywhere. Have you had an experience that changed every aspect of your life? Please share in the comments below! 

I love vision boards and goal settings, but if they aren't visual and engaging, I lose interest. I started making maps years ago and they keep me on task! Circling completed tasks gives me much more satisfaction thank checking off linear lists. If you are a creative, you may want to try this approach.  The limbs  from the  my tree are based on my  values. These have changed over the years, but always  include health, relationships,  creativity, and learning  and education.

 Gratitude is alway at the base of my goals.  If  we don't appreciate what we have now, we'll  never be content. Leave a space for seeds - people, places and/or things that may -  or may not - flower and grow. Also included a space for  completely unexpected opportunities! One year I took a trip to Paris and bought a house - both completely unplanned when I made my draft goal map! Life is over flowing with possibilities. Leave a space for them! 

​The last few weeks have been overflowing with color and kitsch, both here in Baltimore and on recent travels. Seeing so many vibrant creations - kinetic and still sculptures, statues. screens, jewelry and even menus was a whimsical delight. From now on, in addition to museums, natural and historic sites, and more typical tourist attractions, I plan to seek out whimsy when I'm touring!  I returned with my sketch book over flowing and numerous ideas for gifts, home and garden!

Baltimore, MD
Kinetic Sculpture Race 
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On Saturday, May 5, we headed to the harbor early to see the start of the kinetic sculpture race, followed by lunch at Marie Louise Bistro and a stroll through historic Mt. Vernon for their annual Flower Mart. 
Baltimore's Visionary Art Museum's annual kinetic sculpture race - "a race through Baltimore of wacky, imaginative, TOTALLY HUMAN-POWERED WORKS OF ART, DESIGNED TO TRAVEL ON LAND, THROUGH MUD, AND OVER DEEP BALTIMORE INNER HARBOR WATERS, constructed out of used bicycles, gears, and parts, created by a lunatic genius who tinkers around in the garage or backyard.

Jim Thorpe, PA
This is just a small sampling of the delights in Jim Thorpe. I've narrowed the number of photos down by focusing on all things Alice in Wonderful!

A few pages from my Comfort book for Carrie, to bring me comfort and peace after my brother's passing. 

The rustic Enchanted Woods at Winterthur contrasted with the polished and elegant surrounding of the rest of the Dupont Estate. It was pure fantasy! I have always believed in fairies but this is the first time I actually felt like I was one!

The tree I'm standing in is made from a one hundred year old tulip poplar tree! There is room for two chairs inside, skillfully carved with squirrels and acorns. 

The wildflowers are just beginning to bloom. Virginia blue bells, spring beauties, sorcerer's violet, trout lilies and  blood roots grew in profusion, creating colorful carpets. 

Be careful crossing the Troll Bridge, and if you dance in the center of the Ring of Toadstools you may well disappear! 

There are so many reasons to visit this 1,000 acre site! Winterthur is abundant with treasures, varied and delightful, ever changing with the seasons!

I enjoyed painting while it snowed today but really hope that this will be the last snow day until fall of 2014. And I've had too much time to think.

It's been a bitter sweet time. Birthday celebrations and funerals. One of our dear choir members from Baltimore died recently and a very beloved musician from Central PA died of pneumonia at 48 years of age - about the same age as my dad when he passed. Each day is precocious. Find your loved ones and give them a hug or a call. Tomorrow isn't promised. 

Hugs,
Mikell

On Monday I'm meeting with a realtor to sell my beloved property on the Yellow Breeches. I lived there from January 1, 2000 until April 2011. The night of April 17th, water rose into my first floor for the first time due to an unprecedented eight inches of rain over night. I left in waist high water with Zippy, my puggle and Rocky, my cat. For eleven years, when most properties in the area flooded, my property was unharmed. 

I was blessed to have had over a decade of precious memories by the creek, but now it is time to move on. A series of glitches have cause me to believe that I am not meant to return. God obviously has different plans for me and I have finally accepted that it is time to relocate. I will miss my family, friends and community sorely.

Please send prayers that my land will sell to someone who will cherish it and find the peace and joy I've experienced there for over a decade. I truly believe it is a sacred space.

Thank you to all of you who have encouraged and supported me through this ordeal. My heart is over flowing with gratitude for the wonderful people I am leaving behind. Hopefully, Facebook will  provide a way to continue to stay in touch after I leave the area. 

"Every day is a winding road. I get a little bit closer." Sheryl Crowe

This morning I journaled about all of the places I've lived - a farm in Indiana, college town in West Virginia, suburbs in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, a small village in Germany, then back to Pennsylvania. It's been a mix, but one thing I haven't tried is urban living in a high rise. 

In April, Mycala asked me to join her to look at condos at the Penthouse Tower. She has decided to purchase one, and I joined her this week to see if moving there might feel right to me. She has been asking me to move to Baltimore for years.  

The area was charming - a farmer's market right outside the door teeming with flowers, fruits and vegetables, a park near by, an historic church with a shop that reminded me of Styles Boutique, and a gypsy bus painted in glorious colors and filled with vintage clothing.

A shop filled with mermaids lured us in, Urban Outfitters was close by and there were restaurants featuring cuisine from around the world sprinkled through out the neighborhood. We ate at a divine Italian restaurant and had gazpacho and a fresh tuna and artichoke salad that took me back to Tuscany. 

When I returned, I met friends for dinner to share my impressions and to see if moving to that area felt like the right thing to do. It does! But when they asked to see pictures, I realized that I hadn't taken one photograph of any part of the apartment building. Everything was the abundance of nature and beauty surrounding it. What a delight to find so much natural beauty and abundance in the heart of the city - the best of both worlds!