Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Happiness Runs in a Circular Motion....


Hey!! I am out of the weird melancholia funk I was in yesterday! What made me feel better? First of all, this amazing group of virtual supporters whom I love and am SO grateful for! Seriously, this girl has a LOT of gratitude in her heart this summer at the thought of all of you! Also, it's easy to be happy in my home. This is what my home has looked like most of the summer. The flowers change, but we get new ones practically weekly as my sister works as a bar tender for a big wedding resort center in the mountains. After the parties she gets to bring home any and all flowers that she wants! She always takes as many as she can carry and I spend at least an hour arranging them and smelling them and loving them each Saturday morning.
This is an overhead view of my coffee table. Three full vases of flowers!! 

Other things that have made me really happy this summer are creative writing, falling asleep listening to Van's Moondance album, getting a whiff of a beautiful man's cologne, people being so loving and patient and forgiving with me, buying a new journal on a special day, having amazing dreams that wake you up in the night because they are so crystal clear and beautiful.
Another view of the table with vases that I have found at thrift stores, fashion boutiques and yes, one from IKEA !

I have also been happy taking in the moonlight at night, softly dancing and singing, hearing the cooing noises of a contented niece, playing Spiderman games with my nephews and American Girl Doll with my nieces, seeing two of my nieces learning to talk this summer and hearing them say my name for the first time (tears of joy to hear a baby say your name for the very first time!!), planning vacations for September, October, and November, dried blossom petals, blogging
My kitchen sink, doing the dishes is much more enjoyable with some good tunes and some orange tulips.


My only form of dish storage...have I mentioned that I have a thing for pure white dishes and colorful foods?

Gypsy souls, brand new days, mystic moments, poetry composed in cards, photo shoots, smiling faces, oatmeal cookies, whole milk, good books, painting, Harlem, playing love songs on the guitar with the intent to sing them for someone special one day, fresh brown eggs from my neighbor, thoughts of Paris and the French countryside, and a thousand other moments that have come to me in words, in music, in voices, in tapes, in books, in first meetings, in old friends, in new phone calls, in online chats late at night, and in YOU!

Yes, this is the chair where I read often in the afternoons. My entire house has stacks and stacks and stacks of books, everywhere you look! It's shameful, or as my sister told me last night, "D'Arce, you have a SICKNESS!"  If so, may I never recover, the world of books is what helps me fill my world more fully.

What has made your summer unforgettably happy? 


15 comments:

Jenn said...

I finally graduated and got to spend the summer doing something other than school!

By the way, I have the same love for plain white/off-white dishes...

Fletch said...

You mean besides the lice, the floods, the tornados, the extra dishes, the flu, the constant, incessant company of four bored kids?

I'd have to say...the fact that it is almost over! J/K

Quiet reading in the early mornings before anyone else was awake, writing during naptimes, capturing my kids in their spastic moments on camera, and eating lots and lots of chocolate.

Stina said...

Two things that made me happy just looking at your blog: Peonies and White Dishes!

I had an obsession with peonies for my wedding and think they are the most beautiful flower. Lucky you for always having fresh flowers in your house! And I need to show you my china - when you come over for dinner one day - all white dishes!

jo said...

i love, love, love the shots of your house, d'arce! gorgeous flowers, and i can tell you really have a flare for decorating.
i'm so glad you're out of your funky junk. let the sunny days begin!
i think i might copy you and do a post on my blog about things that have made me happy this summer!

Michelle said...

Knowing I can have a great summer alone makes me happy.

Sugar Jones said...

Okay, so my summer has been work work work! I homeschool my little ones, so the day after we completed our curriculum, I got going on all of my photo marketing collateral, getting hooked up with events as the official (read: free) photographer, filling up the portfolio with beautiful families and babies and flowers, oh my... plus all the learning I've been doing on the tech side of this blogosphere... I feel like summer sort of wooshed by!

But we have things a little different here in San Diego. It's pretty nice weather, but it doesn't get really warm until September and October, just in time for all the tourists to give us back our beaches. (Thanks for the influx of cash... buh. bye. ) I woke up this morning and realized I hadn't been surfing since spring. The water is tasty warm. I'll have to go out this week...

Rowena said...

d'arcy, your home is beautiful. I wish I had one that was as lovely, but I am in transition now... oh well, that just means I will be able to decorate and nest when we find the right place.

Happiness this summer? I realize that it has gone hand in hand with the blues. The cycles are getting tighter, or maybe they are happening simultaneously.

So, aside/in conjunction with the funks, I have really been developing my creativity-- Ohhh.... I wonder if those two have anything to do with each other? Does a light funk feed our creativity? I don't know.

Okay, so happies, my art has been growing and I have received a lot of positive feedback. My blog completely took off. It's hard to remember how I was writing into the void only a few months ago. My kids make me happy, even though they also make me exhausted, they are so full of beauty and joy and wonder. Taking photos make me happy. Reconnecting with people, even if only on Facebook. Being able to help friends. My brother's wedding and the beautiful mountains. Watching the kids grow stronger, faster, smarter, every minutes. Hanging with my uncle, the kids love that too. Getting new art supplies. Paying attention to the beauties as they pass. I've really got to get back on my happy pages, which I have been sadly neglecting.

Rowena said...

Oh! And finding other people in the blogosphere that think like I do... I'm pretty weird, so it's rare. I never thought the internet would be a way of connecting with folk in that manner.

skippylongjacket said...

Being blessed with an abundance of friends. A job I love. Trips galore! Europe, New York, San Francisco, Jackson, Cedar! Life really is so good. Special moments not to be lived again. I too, adore summer nights, with the sky in all its magical glory, the warm breezes and the light scent of beauty. Oh, how I love this time of year!

Ruahines said...

Kia ora D'Arcy,
Well I can't write I have enjoyed THIS summer at all, as it is winter here in the southern hemisphere. I am glad to read you are feeling better. Hope Van helped! Love your floral art. Have a great day.
Rangimarie,
robb

HWHL said...

What a wonderful post! I love posts like this, where you get a glimpse into another's life.... not just the physical aspects of their home and belongings, but a glimpse into their psyche and what makes them HAPPY!

Yay for D'Arcy! (waving pom poms...)

Let's see... what has made ME happy this Summer:

1) time with my kids.... a FULL Summer home with them for the first time EVER. (Granted, I had to squeeze work in and that BALANCE was a daily challenge, but still... the time with them was wonderful.)
2) Summer fruits (blueberries and cherries especially).... I could eat my weight in those... and I may have done so this Summer)
3) 2 trips to the beach.... possibly 3 if we go Labor Day...
4) Our puppy Diva. Destructive, boisterous, pee-and-poop-filled little Love Monster.
5) My wonderful friends - I have such a great network of wonderful, special people who make my soul sing.
6) Good music, good food, good writing.
7) Last, but definitely not least, just chilling out pool-side (or "couch-side" with Hubster and our 2 kids...)

Gustav said...

Dear D'Arcy

Everything is going to be alright.

Anonymous said...

What a lovely home you have! It's just beautiful. And I love the fact that you have books all around. And flowers, too, of course. You're my kind of woman! :)

I love to go to the farmer's markets and linger over the beautiful produce. That makes me extremely happy!

And I love to go to the pond and swim with the ducks. And go for long walks in the woods with my children, and take pictures and collect treasures along the way. Just wonderful! There couldn't be a better way to spend a summer morning.

Anonymous said...

Those peonies are beautiful. I'm jealous.

Olivia said...

Someone try to tell me once that your bookcases should hold one third books, one third knick-knacks, and be one third empty. My bookcases are for books, books, books! And are always full and usually overflowing. We are once again reaching a place where another bookcase is needed. :) My dream house has a room with wall-to-wall built-in white bookcases, white door frames and window frames, and lots of windows looking out on a large yard. The floor would be dark wood with a bright throw rugs. Low back couches and a coffee table. Several simple stand lamps. A CD player. That's it. That would be my room.