Tuesday, April 10, 2018

Joy

It was a heavy-hearted weekend. The shock of losing my dad so quickly, hours on the phone making necessary calls and decisions from afar, not being able to get ahold of Rick for HOURS, going to church and facing all the condolences, family conflicts rearing ugly faces; I tell you, the business of death is HARD!

But by yesterday afternoon, we finally learned it is all out of our hands. What my dad and his financial guardian intended as a will isn't, and wouldn't hold up in a court of law. Others are taking control of memorial service details that I figured would be my domain; so be it. To me, nothing in this is worth fighting for, if it would damage relationships; I've held that position all along. Thankfully, a key other seems to be there now, too. What a relief!

My old iPhone has been glitching lately, and the problems reached a peak on Friday when having a functioning phone was critical (of course). Rick decided we needed to remedy that, so on Sunday we did some research and then went to Costco. Having a phone is a necessity; having a new "camera" to play with is dessert! (I've almost abandoned my digital cameras because all they all have dust inside the lenses that create spots in my photos.)

Monday I took some flower pictures before leaving for work; the new phone captured some nice detail (I encourage you to click to biggify):





On the way home from work, I had time to stop here and there to shoot what caught my eye – a luxury I rarely have. I kept my four favorite photos and played with various filters, choosing a different one for each photo. Fun!








This morning while we were eating breakfast, a bluebird landed on the bracket for the hummingbird feeder. We watched a pair flit between bird box and house, the female seeming to favor our house over the little wooden box. I waited for a chance to document her interest, figuring I would get a silhouette, and was surprised the camera actually captured some detail. I posted this photo on Instagram with the caption, "I kid you not; the bluebird of happiness is knocking on our window this morning – repeatedly!"


Later in the morning, from a different position and with better light, I captured these:






Thank-you, Lord; I haven't felt this light-hearted in weeks! "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Psalm 30:5 I'm sure the tears aren't over, but joy is here, too.

P.S. Thank-you for all YOUR condolences!

That's it for today from . . .



8 comments:

Mama Pea said...

Light-hearted . . . what a wonderful feeling that must be for you after months and months of difficulties dealing with your dad, his situation and now his passing. A good time of year to begin anew, Michelle.

As always, your flower pictures blow me away! Gorgeous. Thanks for sharing.

Theresa said...

Oh my what a view you've got! Great pics. Glad there is some sunshine and lightness
in your heart.

thecrazysheeplady said...

I'm so glad you were able to find some joy :-). All will be well...

Anonymous said...

It would be really very hard time in life without our lovable father.

Good collection of photos. All looks amazing:)

sylkan said...

May the bluebird of happiness set up permanent residence in your heart. Hugs.

Susan said...

What wonderful photographs - I didn't think they could get better! Wishing you peace and lightness, Michelle. Thank you for sharing all this beauty with us! xo

Anonymous said...

Just now catching up with you. I'm so sorry that you had such a hard, shocking day last Friday.
It's a blessing that you were able to spend the time you did with him in these final months and that he had made peace with God. God's peace, and joy surround you during these days.

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