Leah – Page 3 – Leah Wise

month in review: 10/14

November 11, 2014Posted in thoughtsTagged fall, journal, month in review, october, party, pie, shenandoah, skyline driveLeave a comment

When’s the last time I did a Month in Review post? Why, it was January 2013!

I’ve been reading Brene Brown’s Daring Greatly and in it she cites research that indicates that those who are acutely aware of what they’re grateful for are more contented. That makes a lot of sense to me, but often I’d rather not “waste” time contemplating the good things; I’d rather distract myself with activities or blogs or online shopping. But I’ve been feeling awfully restless and discontent for no real reason, so I think it’s time to give this another try.

In October, I (often with Daniel in tow):

coordinated the thrift shop’s anniversary sale
attended a beautiful wedding
partied it up at a friend’s birthday party
visited with college friends who came to visit
picked apples at Carter Mountain Orchard
ate delicious, home cooked apple pie thanks to the friends who came to visit
sight saw on Skyline Drive on a foggy day
sang a solo part in the church choir
moved my fair trade blog over to Blogger (and got 1,070 views in the first month!)
wrote about lessons learned working at a thrift shop
went on my church’s 2nd annual hike
helped secure funding for the thrift shop’s maintenance fund
watched Fright Night with friends on Halloween
started reading Silence by Shusaku Endo

this is it

November 10, 2014Posted in UncategorizedLeave a comment

“What horrifies me most is the idea of being useless: well-educated, brilliantly promising, and fading out into an indifferent middle age.”

– The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath

a beautiful day in the neighborhood

November 10, 2014Posted in UncategorizedTagged 50 mm lens, adventure, canon eos rebel xs, charlottesville, color, fall, fall leaves, landscape, photography, walk2 Comments

This fall is the best fall. Today is the best day.

I went on a meandering walk through my neighborhood this afternoon and discovered the loveliest views. It’s 65 and sunny. Neighbors are raking leaves, listening to music, and taking walks. The roads are quiet and the squirrels are out in crowds stocking up for winter. I was under the impression that most of the houses in my branch of the neighborhood were built in the early ’60s, but a few steps off the main road I discovered a Free Will Baptist Church and houses that must have been built around the turn of the 20th century.

summer roadtrip

September 29, 2014September 29, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged 50 mm lens, canon eos rebel xs, charlotte, family, florida, nature, photography, roadtrip, south, st augustine1 Comment

After our car broke down, my grandparents graciously offered to sell us one of their cars. The only problem was that it was in Florida. So, within a week, we booked our one way flight to Tampa and prepared for a week of travel through the south.

We spent a relaxing few days in Bradenton at my grandparents house, enjoying Grandma’s beef with Amish noodles and watching a documentary about Florida on TV. On Sunday, we headed up to Orlando to attend church with Daniel’s mom before caravanning up to St. Augustine to be tourists for the afternoon.

A pirate ship!

After spending the night at my sister’s house in Jacksonville, we traveled up to Charlotte, NC. After a day of driving, we were fairly well exhausted, so we ordered takeout and watched trashy television into the evening.

The next day, we took a self-guided walking tour through Charlotte, admiring the Painted Ladies and modern downtown architecture, visiting a local Episcopal church, drinking delicious coffee, and eating at a local Greek restaurant.

It was the sort of trip everyone should take in the summertime. We paced ourselves and managed to see lots of friends and family as we snaked our way back to Charlottesville. I’m grateful that fate forced us to get down to Florida this year. Being with people who have known you forever is quite grounding.

shrinemont weekend ’14

September 29, 2014September 29, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged episcopal church, friendship, George Washington National Forest, landscape photography, nature photos, photos, shrinemont, virginiaLeave a comment

In the beginning of July, Daniel and I headed out with friends from church to attend the annual congregational get together at the Episcopal campground that borders the George Washington National Forest. It’s taken me forever to get to posting these, because on the way there, our car broke down (RIP) and the rest of July was spent either car-less or in Florida to buy my grandparents’ car (thanks, Grandparents!).

I had a most relaxing time despite the stress of losing a vehicle. We played literary games, sang gospel songs in three parts, read on the covered porch, ate s’mores, and went on a very educational hike thanks to the presence of an ecologist and a former geology major. I fell in a creek, got bitten by a horsefly, and overheated a bit, but that’s part of the joy of summertime!

The weekend could not have been better.

2nd annual Canterbury hike

September 29, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged blue ridge mountains, charlottesville, church group, hike, mountains, nature photography, shenandoah, skyline drive, virginia1 Comment

I spent Saturday in the mountains with my church’s college group. You may remember that I went on the same hike last year and really enjoyed it.

We read Psalms, closed our eyes and listened to the gentle shhh of wind through leaves, and had Eucharist on the mountaintop.

Focused breathing up steep paths is a special sort of meditation. It’s so very rare for me to be able to let go of daily stresses and live in the moment for hours at a time, but something about Shenandoah does it for me. I was distracted by panoramic views, new friends, and the marvelous way the body adapts to uneven terrain. It was a lovely and exhausting day.

humanity

September 17, 2014September 17, 2014Posted in newsTagged confusion, crisis, disappearance, essay, hannah graham, hope, loss, missing person1 Comment

I first heard of UVa student Hannah Graham’s disappearance through friends on facebook who know her personally. Later Monday evening in the Women’s Prayer Group offered through my church, a couple of students who are acquainted with her spoke of the difficulty they were having processing the incident.

We lit candles as we prayed for her life and the lives of others. And that visual image of light – of lives alight with concern and hope – shattered the safety net I’d placed around Charlottesville and around my life even as it helped unite us. It hit me hard. I’m not sleeping very well.

It’s every feeling, all at once.

It’s the what-ifs of a young woman who vanished, it seemed at first, without a trace. The uncertainty of what dangers await every young woman in this quiet town. The realization that our houses and our buddy systems and our routines create only a semblance of control. We have so very little control.

It’s sheer terror mixed with anxiety mixed with the desperation of hoping for her safety and fearing the worst. I feel for her and her friends. I fear for myself living in a world where someone can somehow stop being so quickly.

two post it notes

August 4, 2014Posted in thoughtsTagged death, hope, nostalgia, original poetry, poem, the futureLeave a comment

Someday, when the world begins
to darken, I’ll
walk in the silence
of early morning, peering
into empty shops with
cataract gray eyes

And I’ll remember being
young, moving fast, skin
smooth like a new bar of soap,
and wondering when I would
make it.

I’ll know then, there
is no making it.

Child, you’re already home.

At 4:00, I’ll eat my
dinner, just the basics –
salad, potato, tea.

And I’ll look out the window
near the garden and watch
the early robins feast
until my eyelids flicker,
slowly, closed.

The final act, not a drama but a lullaby.

skyline drive with mary

July 9, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged blue ridge mountains, charlottesville, college, digital photography, friendship, landscape, primordial, roadtrip, shenandoah national park, skyline drive, summertime, vacation, virginia1 Comment

Mary and I have been friends for nearly 10 years. We met our junior year of high school, attended college together, and were roommates for a year and a half. She came up to visit last month, so naturally we went to Skyline Drive. It’s one of the most impressive parts of this state and I’m lucky to live so close to it. I especially love the foggy haze and flash storms that visit the mountains in summertime. It’s like exploring a primordial rain forest.

more flowers, more bees

June 1, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged 50 mm lens, bees, black and white flowers, canon eos rebel xs, insect photos, macro, virginia photographyLeave a comment

I spotted a big fat bee enjoying a floral feast and got to snapping photos. I love how they dart around without fear, getting close to my camera lens then taking flight to find the next heaping bowl of nectar.

experiments

June 1, 2014June 1, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged canon eos rebel xs, ethereal, film, fog, hazy, humid summer, nature photographyLeave a comment

Just a bit of unedited experimental photographs taken in the yard.

around Grounds

June 1, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged academical village, charlottesville, grounds, landscape, photography, robin, thomas jefferson, uva, virginiaLeave a comment

Daniel had to stop by the library to pick up a few books for a research paper last weekend, so I parked nearby and took a self-guided tour around UVa. UVa’s campus is nearly always referred to as “The Grounds.” It’s a funny, sort of pretentious little quirk. I like to say it in my best high English accent: “Shall we take a stroll around The Grounds?”

They also have student/faculty housing located on the main lawn called the “Academical Village.” Sigh. What a bunch of weirdos.

Easter still life

April 21, 2014Posted in life in photosTagged 50mm lens, canon eos rebel, coffee, easter, ethereal, golden hour, hot coffee, steam, steam in sunlight, teacup1 Comment

I have never been more pleased with a photograph. Steam rises from a hot cup of coffee in the late afternoon sun on Easter. I had the most pleasant day yesterday; it couldn’t have been lovelier. Cool breeze, hot sun, open windows, exposed wood beams, a home cooked meal, and good conversation.

I leave you with a verse from one of my favorite Easter songs, Now the Green Blade Riseth:

When our hearts are wintry, grieving, or in pain,
Thy touch can call us back to life again;
Fields of our hearts that dead and bare have been:
Love is come again, like wheat that springeth green.

april flowers

April 16, 2014Posted in UncategorizedTagged 50 mm lens, april, canon eos rebel xs, charlottesville, dogwood, floral, flower photo, flowers, landscape photography, macro, virginiaLeave a comment

This journal has turned into a place for photos and little else. I talk plenty in everyday life, but I haven’t felt the need to reiterate here. I’ve always journaled in some form or the other, but with access to various social media platforms, I have so many ways to have my voice heard or reflect on my day in small phrases and brief conversations. Maybe I need long form, but maybe the quiet is fine, too.

Charlottesville went from black and white to vibrant technicolor in the past few weeks. I’m enjoying the spring blooms as much as I can because I know they’ll give way to lizard green leaves in a few short weeks.