Thinking Green

Upcycle old wooden picture frames with this Green craft from CJ Hughes of theupcycler.com. Click on the photo to be taken to a tutorial complete with step-by-step photos.

Through My Lens - Wordless Wednesday - Sunset Silhouette

photo by Denise Dion-Sullivan

Monday Musings

~The Emperor's Seed ~

An emperor in the Far East was growing old and knew it was time to choose his successor. Instead of choosing one of his assistants or his children, he decided something different.

He called young people in the kingdom together one day. He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next emperor. I have decided to choose one of you."

The kids were shocked! But the emperor continued. "I am going to give each one of you a seed today, one very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from this one seed. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next emperor!"

One boy named Ling was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly told his mother the story. She helped him get a pot and planting soil, and he planted the seed and watered it carefully.

Every day he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about 3 weeks, some of the other youths began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Ling kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. 3 weeks, 4 weeks, 5 weeks went by. Still nothing.

By now, others were talking about their plants but Ling didn't have a plant, and he felt like a failure. 6 months went by; still nothing in Ling's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing.

Ling didn't say anything to his friends. He just kept waiting for his seed to grow. A year finally went by and all the youths of the kingdom brought their plants to the emperor for inspection.

Ling told his mother that he wasn't going to take an empty pot but his Mother said he must be honest about what happened. Ling felt sick to his stomach, but he knew his Mother was right.

He took his empty pot to the palace. When Ling arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other youths. They were beautiful, in all shapes and sizes. Ling put his empty pot on the floor and many of the other kinds laughed at him. A few felt sorry for him and just said, "Hey nice try."

When the emperor arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted the young people. Ling just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees and flowers you have grown," said the emperor. "Today, one of you will be appointed the next emperor!"

All of a sudden, the emperor spotted Ling at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered his guards to bring him to the front. Ling was terrified. "The emperor knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me killed!"

When Ling got to the front, the Emperor asked his name. "My name is Ling," he replied. All the kids were laughing and making fun of him. The emperor asked everyone to quiet down.

He looked at Ling, and then announced to the crowd, "Behold your new emperor! His name is Ling!" Ling couldn't believe it. Ling couldn't even grow his seed. How could he be the new emperor?

Then the emperor said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone here a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds, which would not grow. All of you, except Ling, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you.

Ling was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new emperor!"

Reflections

photo by siriusputsch

“Love one another, but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls”

~Kahlil Gibran~

Thinking Green

“There are two possible routes to affluence. Either produce much, or desire little. "

- Anonymous

Happy 23rd Birthday J0hn. Onto new adventures in life!!!

Don't undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others,
It is because we are different that each
of us is special.

Don't set your goals by what other people
deem important,
Only you know what is best for you.

Don't take for granted the things closest
to your heart
Cling to that as you would your life, for without
them life is meaningless.

Don't let your life slip through your fingers by living
in the past or the future.
By living your life one day at a time, you live all the
days of your life.

Don't give up when you still have something to give
Nothing is really over … until the moment
you stop trying.

Don't be afraid to admit that you are less
than perfect,
It is the fragile thread that binds us to each other.

Don't be afraid to encounter risks,
It is by taking chances that we learn how to be brave.

Don't shut love out of your life by saying it's
impossible to find.
The quickest way to receive love is to give love.

The fastest way to lose love is to hold on too tightly,
And the best way to keep love is to give it wings.

Don't dismiss your Dreams. To be without
dreams is to be without hope.
To be without hope is to be without purpose.

Don't run through life so fast that you forget
where you've been,
But also know where you're going.

Life is not a race, but a journey to be savored
every step of the way.

Author Unknown

Through My Lens - Wordless Wednesday

Strawberry Island, Kennebunk
Photo by Denise Dion-Sullivan

Monday Musings

A facebook friend posted "The Perfect Political Ad" youtube video that I thought was hilarious - Okay, so perhaps I am a bit cynical about politics and politicians in my old age. Enjoy and my hope is that you also have a laugh this Monday morning!

Reflections - Be inspired...

Hopefully you'll find at least one quote in this array that will inspire you this week!

Thinking Green

I love this Etsy shop, run by " Erin, mama to two little kids- Stella and Elliot and wife to Nick",(as revealed in her profile). Fabulous, colorful and wonderfully bright toys and eco friendly to boot! Even though my sons are now 19 and 23, I still want to buy them...maybe I could just keep one of them as a summer shelf vignette. I imagine the waves below would look great with my seashells! Check out the shop ~ Imagination Kids on Etsy by clicking on the photos.

Through My Lens - Wordless Wednesday

photo by Denise Dion-Sullivan

Monday Musings

Did you know that 850 museums in all 50 states offer free admission to military personnel and their families thru Sept 6, 2010. Great idea! For more info click on the poster above.

Reflections

“Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them. "

Albert Einstein

~ photo by Denise Di0n-Sullivan ~

Thinking Green ~ A Garden Tour

As some of you may know I have been working for the last six months at a new job with the Child Abuse Prevention Council of York County. We have been busy organizing a very popular "Private Gardens of the Kennebunks" Garden Tour. If you happen to be in Maine or thinking of coming up to visit the weekend of July 17th, join us at our 16th Annual Garden Tour. This yearly event takes place this year on one day - Saturday, July 17th from 10:00 to 4:00. The self-guided tour features nine unique private home gardens in the Kennebunk and Kennebunkport area. You may view the gardens at your own pace, in any order you choose. The tour allows participants to gather landscaping ideas and view perennial and annual plants that may enhance their own gardens.

This year's special Guest Paul Parent, host of the popular Sunday morning syndicated radio show “The Paul Parent Garden Club” will share his private garden as a bonus on the tour and offer gardening tips, as well as answering questions on gardening in New England. All the proceeds from the tour benefit the numerous programs our agency offers to the greater York County area of Maine. FMI visit our website at "Kids Free to Grow" by clicking on the logo above. I hope you can make it and be sure to say hello if you do!

Through My Lens: Wordless Wednesday

In Provincetown by Denise Dion-Sullivan

Monday Musings: Food For Thought

"Children are our most valuable natural resource." Herbert Hoover

You'd think if we all just focused on basics, (and I am not speaking just about food) it wouldn't be so challenging to feed children healthy food. The documentary film, Lunch Line, was created by a Chicago-based film company Uji Film. The film looks back at the 60+ year history of our school lunch program and the power that people then, as well as now, can have on creating lasting, large scale social change. The film debates whether the program is a success or not. This particular program historically has been (and still is), a vital part in feeding this nations 31 million children every day. I look forward to the full length film. Here is simply the trailer:

Lunch Line Trailer from uji films on Vimeo.

Reflections :

"Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better." Albert Camus~
~Happy 4th of July!~

Thinking Green

I recently visited beautiful gardens on the coast and this was the path to the mulch pile. It was paved with river rocks. Click on the photo to enlarge. I just thought - how impressive...Green and beautiful!