The Joy of Pies

Join me in celebrating my birthday with a slice of pie today!

Have you seen the movie Waitress? If you have then you may understand why pies have become symbol of joy and fairy tale endings for me. If you haven't seen it, you should definitely check it out! (And if you get the DVD, you can get pie recipes, too!!)

Keri Russell and Andy Griffith, via the New York Times

Part of what made the movie so lovely was that Jenna (Kerri Russel's character) expressed herself through her pies. There was the "falling in love chocolate mousse pie" and the "naughty pumpkin pie," for example.

"I can't have no affair because it's wrong and Earl would kill me pie"
vanilla custard with banana . . . hold the banana
via Girl in the Afternoon

Coming up to the big 3-0, I'm looking back over the year with some pride and joy for how my life has grown: I've worked on my personal myth project, I've gotten a new job that I'm really excited about, and I've started this blog. I've also had another fairy tale year with my husband. Life is good.

If I made a pie, it would be the "a dream is a wish your heart makes" pie, and it would probably involve a raspberry and strawberry filling topped with honey-flavored meringue.

What about you? What would your pie be?

via Delicious Magazine UK

Poetree

Continuing yesterday's theme on the magical world of words . . . Have you heard about the mysterious paper sculptures that have been left in various locations around Edinburgh? I just did, and the mysterious appearances have been continuing on for months!

The artist has been leaving them at locations that support "libraries, books, words, ideas," such as the Scottish Poetry Library, the Scottish Storytelling Center, and the Central Lending Library.

The "poetree" was left at the Scottish Poetry Library, with the note: "It started with your name @byleaveswelive and became a tree . . . We know that a library is so much more than a building full of books . . . a book is so much more than pages full of words . . . This is for you in support of libraries, books, words, ideas . . . a gesture (poetic maybe?)

Poetree, by Mysterious Book Sculptor with a Heart of Gold
Photographed by chrisdonia

My other favorite is the one that was left at the Scottish Storytelling Center, with the note: "For @scotstorycenter - A gift in support of libraries, books, works, ideas . . . Once upon a time there was a book and in the book was a nest and in the nest was an egg and in the egg was a dragon and in the dragon was a story . . .

Poetree, by Mysterious Book Sculptor with a Heart of Gold
Photographed by chrisdonia

For more pictures, visit Central Stn, where I first heard about these works of art.

Whooo are youuu?

The caterpillar asks Alice, "Who are you?"
Alice and the Caterpillar, by the Emily Martin, aka the Black Apple

I came across a lovely article by Anne Lamotte on Oprah's website (via Medicinal Marzipan).

I love that Anne describes the process of coming to live authentically as an often messy, embarrassing, painful process. Because if you're really wanting to see transformation, it's going to take courage.

Alice and the Piglet, by Emily Martin

The Mad Tea Party, by Emily Martin

Read the whole article; it's so worth it! And then ponder the last two sentences with me, because they're too poetic to not become a sort of mantra:

"To love yourself as you are is a miracle, and to seek yourself is to have found yourself, for now. And now is all we have, and love is who we are."

Still Life with Live Flowers, by Emily Martin

Unseen Bestiary

Looking forward to Lindsey Carr's drawings over at the Unseen Bestiary. Her work is truly magical! 

The Procession, by Lindsey Carr

Visit her blog to see more.

Natural Dark, by Lindsey Carr

What I love about bestiaries is that they show a fundamental relationship between humans and the world. Who could hear about or see a magnificent creature for the first time (for example, the buffalo of North America) and not create a whole mythology around it? 

by Conrad Gesner, via Mon Cabinet de Curiosites

Leafy Sea Dragon, by William Beulow Gould, via the Book of Barely Imagined Beings

Future Fictions

Thumbelina, by Maxwell Armfield

My husband is one of those people who innately plans and dreams for the future. It's something I've always admired about him. I'm more of a minute-by-minute kind of gal, and as fun as that is, I'm sometimes left wondering where the time has gone.

I do believe that dreaming and imagining the future is one of the best ways to be an active participant in your life. When I visualize what a successful day looks like, I find that I'm happier at the end of it. My successful day? It includes a nice walk with the dog, a short meditation, time being social, and of course, the feeling that I've been productive. What about you, dear reader? What makes a great day?

The Little Mermaid, by Maxwell Armfield

"The very least you can do in your life is figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance, but live right in it, under its roof."

   —Barbara Kingsolver

(Thanks to Yum & Yuk for the quotation.)

What is enough?

For me, it's the question of achievement. For others it's food, possessions, money, etc.

How much do we need before we can be happy?

The Princess and the Pea, by Heather Ross

For me, I need to know that my gifts and talents are being used to their fullest, to bring joy to the world.

Singing Joy without Words

Sometimes, happiness just can't be put into words. When I listen to this song, I think I hear the words, "beauty," "heart," and "when you keep..." But the melody itself conveys so much meaning beyond those individual words. I hear encouragement to live a magical life.

I love that the video ends with lovers floating over a river, with the moon's reflection. What a beautiful image for going beyond words and logic . . . Is there any other way that we can fully experience the joy of living?