a lesson from spring.

a few weeks ago at church, they announced that they would be collecting photos of "new life" to use for power points, weekly bulletins, and the website, and they encouraged everyone to participate and be on the lookout for inspiration as we celebrate easter and the coming of spring.

since i can never resist a photo challenge, i started my search yesterday afternoon on a walk with mr. lesley and sir winston in the afternoon sun.

and i learned something as i walked...

i learned that you see a lot more of the good stuff when you are trying to find the good stuff.

flower buds that would normally evade my gaze now stood out to me. 

the reds and yellows that can sometimes fade into the background suddenly invaded my view.

and because i was looking, i saw it.

of course most of the trees are still barren and the grass may still be dry. 

but because i was focusing on the flowers that practically scream "new life" i didn't have a chance to notice. 

now the life parallels here are quite apparent, especially for me.

this winter was hard.

the cold of it seemed to permeate my every day.

it felt dark. 

it felt never-ending. 

it felt like a lot of anxiety and questions and doubts.

but, now it is spring.

figuratively and literally.

i feel new strength and grace to seek out the good and to know that beauty is there, sometimes {well, a lot of times} right in front of my face. 

this is so different from pretending life is perfect or avoiding the difficulties; instead, it is choosing where to focus your gaze. 

i'm thankful for the changing of seasons...

for the reminders of where i should be looking...

and the good stuff to be found when simply choose to see it.