Seeing Beauty in the Simple Things

“The purpose of our lives is to be happy”
~The Dalai Lama

Judy and I have been blessed with the opportunity to travel and witness many beautiful views;
a beautiful sunset over Paris from the Eiffel Tower, the romance of Trevi Fountain in Rome, the awesomeness of the glaciers in College Fjord in Alaska, the reverence of St. Peter’s Basilica, or the grace of a gondola skimming through a canal in Venice. But there is beauty, simple beauty, around us every day of our lives.

One of my most beautiful experiences occurred back in the 90’s when I drove my twins to Lancaster County, PA for a Bible quizzing competition. We stayed in various homes throughout the county. The next morning, the sunshine resonated an early morning wake- up call off newly fallen snow. For those of you that might not know, Lancaster County is Amish country. So that morning, I drove around the countryside.
The black barns, black buggies, and black-clad Amish farmers formed a stark, but beautiful, silhouette against the pristine cottony blanket.

Another “work of art” I often enjoy is occasionally, just outside my window, a writing spider, often called a garden spider, decides to weave his intricate patterns. At times, there will be dew on the spider web, and the sun rises immediately behind it, making the web sparkle. I have no doubt the writing spider has written, “Gee, it’s going to be a beautiful day.” I have a wonderful picture of this, but I am not going to post it, because if you guys are half the arachnophobia my wife is, I’d lose half my readers to a heart attack. So, if you would like to see the picture, then e-mail me and I’ll send it to you.

Judy and I no longer enjoy long, cold, snow-filled winters. But we both enjoy the first snow of the year. We fire up our gas logs, open up the curtains, fix us some hot chocolate, cut off the lights, and just watch the snow fall. The added feature is the birds attracted to my feeders. (Then we pack our bags and take off for Myrtle Beach before the second snow hits.)

So my challenge to you today is to find one simple thing of beauty, and post a reply telling me what it is.

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About Jerry Haynes

OK, where do I start. I was born…., no that line has already been taken.Call me…, oops so has that one. Well, I won’t attempt to spout musical prose, and just be myself. I grew up in the small cotton mill town of Fries, VA. My parents were hardworking members of the middle class. They never earned more than a little over minimum wage, but I can never remember lacking for anything. After graduating from Fries High School in 1969, I started to VA Tech. After two years of partying (1st), going to movies (2nd), and studying, well, much further down the list, VA Tech decided I need a two year break to get my priorities straight. With a number 8 in the draft lottery, I knew that even if the Hokies didn’t want me, Uncle Sam did. I joined the US Navy. I got my priorities straight. I’m proud to be a Viet Nam veteran, but feel guilty I never got deployed. I graduated from Tech in 1977 with a BS in Civil Engineering. For the next 35 years I would work in both the private and public sectors. My first job took me to Tazewell County, Virginia where I soon joined the Jaycees. This ignited my passion for individual development. This passion still burns today.

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