Ancorā impāro

 I’ve gone through a lot in the past year, I ended up some place I would have never guessed would be a place for me to be.   Here are some things that I’ve learned in the past year believe me this is not all inclusive.

Sometimes bad things happen to good people and no matter how you want to help the best help is just being there.

When one door closes another one opens, it just takes you looking to see it.

Never underestimate the stupidity of people as some will let their kids swim in the surf of a tropical storm with waves that hit the bottom of a 20 ft high pier, while the red signals are flying.

Take the scenic route home, it may be longer… but the stars are prettier.

Some family is by birth… some family is forged in fire.

It is possible to idolize someone for their good traits and recognize the bad traits… and accept them for what they truly are.

Opportunity comes where and when you least expect it and can change your life. 

Soul mates do exist and you can fall madly in love with them… and have to acknowledge that the timing is wrong and you can’t be together just yet.

Sometimes things that are too good to be true really are… however not always.

The amount of time that it takes someone to etch themselves on your heart can vary from a short amount of time to an inconceivable amount of time.

Children can speak words with such truth that it can make you cry.

The ocean is a powerful living being that can humble you in your most prideful moments, and it can cleanse you of all that is troubling you… and it can take your very life away… all in an instant.

It is possible to love again when you never thought that it would be possible.

The past year has been an adventure and it is no where near over… I am still learning. 

(Images representing the three states I have lived in this year.   Florida, Mississippi, and North Carolina.) 

My Florida

This is a view of Florida's Emerald Coast from my eyes through just a few of my favourite photos from 2011.

Remember

September 11, 2001 a day that will forever be remembered as a moment in time where it all changed.   Not just for the American people who were attacked during peacetime on their own soil, but for those affected by the repercussions that spread thereafter like ripples in a pond. From New York to London all the way to Kabul, Bagdad and Abbottabad, this chilly morning ten years ago was the moment that everything changed. 

  Today I remember the heroes that lost their lives, and all the men and women of all nations that continue to fight in the War on Terror.   I also thank all the men and women who put their lives on the line everyday to ensure the safety of all of us from firemen to police all the way to EMTs and TSA.   Thank you.  

My words will forever pale to express the sorrow and horror of that chilly morning ten years ago.  I wrote this poem in the aftermath of that fateful day, and ten years later I feel it still expresses my thoughts and feelings.   Bless America and her allies.

United

11-September-2001

We will never be the same, they have seen to that.

They have broken our hearts, but not our spirit.

For once again we stand a nation united.

United under God.

United under freedom.

United Under courage.

United under the great banner adorned with stars and stripes.

Forever we will stand one nation indivisible.

They may try, but they can not take that away!

 

(These photos are from the 9-11 memorial in Panama City, FL. All Images and Words ©2011 J.G.W. Blakeney)

A Rose

Love is a lot like a rose.   So beautiful and sweet, and so fragile that it needs to be kept safe by thorns.   Too often we allow our love to be displayed for the world, and soon we are left with just a fragment of the beauty that once was.  Perhaps we should keep our love bound to us and safe from the torment that the world can provide… safe just for our own enjoyment… that is the safe way.     No… Perhaps I am wrong, maybe the best thing to do is to make it able to stand the tests of time, only then will it forever be just as beautiful as it was the day it first sprouted.  

Little Eyes

 

The same is true in Florida as it was in Mississippi and is anywhere on Earth… You are never alone.  Lurking in the trees, brush, and the water are little eyes.  You are always being watched so always be aware of your surroundings.

This Gator was stalking me and other food items at the aptly named “Gator Lake” in Saint Andrews State Park just outside Panama City Beach.  I have seen these magnificent creatures in nature many times in the past; they never cease to demand respect and awe.

Basking

 

Pelicans rest after a long day of foraging for food in the wild areas of Florida.   They overlook Saint Andrews Bay from a pier silently basking in the evening sun.  Sometimes I feel like one of these pelicans, no matter what I may go at life alone… I am never really alone.   When it is time for me to bask in the sun and reflect, I will do so with those closest to me.  

Part of Watery Wednesday.