Twenty or so years ago paddling in Northern Quebec
I came across a wild iris by the side of a wilderness lake
A few feet from a sandy beach
Huge and beautiful, swaying in the wind
And I wonder how it got there, all alone
The only one that size I’ve ever seen
At first I thought, “A lonely beauty.”
Next I thought, “No, beauty in solitude.”
- Rod MacIver, Journal Note

I’ve been wondering if the exploration of subjects at the core of living a quality life on one’s own terms isn’t a little heavy, from time to time, for a daily blog/email (or whatever this is) entitled “A Pause For Beauty.”

I’ve been wondering, in part based on feedback, if I shouldn’t instead express gratitude here, in these posts, express my appreciation for the beauty and mystery of wild nature and of life itself. That was my original intent when I relaunched this Pause For Beauty. Let me know your thoughts. I think I’ll try that for a while. A short beginning to the day that we all can use to focus on what is really important — beauty, gratitude, mystery. Start the day off right.

Celebrating the beauty that surrounds is a spiritual practice, and one I more than occasionally neglect in my striving to improve my writing and art, and make Heron Dance into everything it can be.

I’ll continue to post new chapters of my upcoming book, “The 45 Laws of Living A Quality Life On Your Own Terms”. My latest chapter, this one on “Death Gives Life Meaning,” can be found here.