I like the Caribbean blues.
That mix of salt and sea
is such good company.
There is a blur of blue and green
beneath a canopy of fluffy clouds.
The clouds float, in a sea all their own.
The breeze is brisk
a reminder that time
stands still for no one.
It is best to let the waves
take hold, and ride upon the ocean
come what may.
The watercolor changes day by day.
Every hue reflects back at us
the pink of dawn, and that Bermuda sand
the lavender crush at dusk
and the turquoise water, ever moving.
I listen to the chant of the sea birds
and the music of the ocean.
The watercolor of my life waits
for the next brushstrokes
the colors, a blur of endless grace.
My husband and I just returned from a cruise to Bermuda and Coco Cay in the Bahamas. It was wonderful to get away for a few days. The ocean breeze is a cure for all ills! We were on board for our fortieth wedding anniversary and that marks fifteen years since our last trip to Bermuda. For our twenty-fifth anniversary, we took a cruise to Bermuda and fell in love with the place.
I decided to try something new upon my return this time. I typed this blog on my phone! I kept thinking on the trip that it would be nice to post a blog from my phone. It is a work in progress. Unfortunately, I must free up a lot more space on my phone first!
One of the highlights from the trip was the parade of flags. One evening, all the crew members from eighty-eight different countries marched with their flags in a ceremony. It was beautiful! It was so inspiring to see all these people working together as a family. These people work very hard, but their bright smiles and congenial attitudes were contagious.
I know that I have missed much in the blogging community while I was away. Now, I will have to catch up! It is always nice to take a trip, but then, it is always nice to come home again!
Psalm 95:5: The sea is His for it was He who made it. And His hands formed the dry land.
Genesis 1: 9-10: Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear,” and so it was. God called the dry land earth and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good.
Congratulations on your anniversary. What a wonderful way to celebrate.
Thank you! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Congratulations for your fortieth wedding anniversary! This was a most beautiful post…..beautiful prose, beautiful pictures. In every post a blogger reads, something significant will strike the eye and the heart. For me, Linda, on this post was your words in the poem: “life waits for the next brushstrokes – the colors, a blur of endless grace”. Those words made me think of my life with all its experiences and the endless grace of God upon every brushstroke, every color. Thank you for writing this. The pictures are fantastic!
It is wonderful to think of our lives with a sense of newness and appreciation. Each ‘brushstroke’ matters, all the little details, all the big and little moments. God likes to surprise us with good things!
Indeed!
A marvelous reflection on time, creativity and living within a world that offers beauty and respite! Happy anniversary. Life is the very best when shared with a kindred spirit.
Thank you! The world is full of so many beautiful places. God has blessed us with so much…
Beautiful thoughts and photos. Happy anniversary!
Thank you! 🙂
What a special way to celebrate a special anniversary. The poem and photos are spectacular. xo
Thank you! I took a lot of pictures! 🙂
Sounds like a perfect way to have celebrated your 40 years together! Congratulations and best wishes for many, many more! That was a beautiful post. Of course as a watercolor artist, l was drawn in by your use of watercolor! Perfect! xoxo, Mary
Mary, you are such a gifted artist and poet! Watercolor is a wonderful medium. Thank you for your best wishes! The years go by so quickly. I feel like just yesterday I was picking out my wedding dress and wondering what shoes I was going to wear. (I always worry about the shoes and I want them to be comfortable.) I like to dance and you must have the right shoes so your feet do not hurt!
Happy anniversary, Linda! What a wonderful way to celebrate it. I enjoyed your poem. These three lines in particular resonated with me:
The watercolor of my life waits
for the next brushstrokes
the colors, a blur of endless grace.
I am glad you liked the poem! I wrote it on the beach. It was quite hot at the beach, so we were in and out of the water a lot! I brought my notebook with me. (I think if I could stay there long enough, I could write a great many Bermuda poems! 🙂 That is a fun thought, yes? At least, I wrote this one in remembrance of all that blue sky and sea.
Writing poetry on the beach–vacations don’t get any better than that!
Yes! I like to keep that little journal with me. I don’t always get the chance to use it, but it is also good for jotting down notes about different things. (My journal has lists of what I am supposed to pack for the trip, things to check off when I get there, and whatever. My grocery lists are in there too! 🙂 I like to write down quotes I want to remember and passages from the Bible. I go back and read the old journals sometimes, and it really brings back the ‘days’. I have some journals from high school and college also. You change a lot over the years, but some things do not change. It is fun to look back and see how many things come full circle.
I’ve never kept a journal. All of the old me’s are in my fiction and poetry. (With varying degrees of poetic license.)
Our words do tell a story wherever they happen to fall upon a page! Like leaves that scatter on an autumn day, the trail of words leads to many places. The wind picks up and the pages dance in the breeze. The words find their place and the story goes on!
Eloquently stated!
Happy Anniversary! And what a wonderful way to celebrate it…a cruise to Bermuda! I’ve always wanted to go there, and maybe someday I will. Meanwhile, I loved your poem. Thanks for sharing it, and welcome back!
Thank you! Bermuda is a lovely place. I would like to go back again and stay longer! But then, there are so many beautiful places to visit!
Happy anniversary! Hope you had a wonderful trip – I’d love to go on a cruise!
I think you would love it! There are so many options to choose from and you can plan way ahead. There were a lot of families on this cruise and so many little children. Really, there is something for all ages. I hope you put a cruise on your travel list!
Lovely verse, Linda. I especially like the ending lines. And your photos of the sunsets are gorgeous! What a lovely way to celebrate 40 years together! Kudos to you & wishing you another happy 40! 🌞
Thank you, Lisa! I carried my phone with me everywhere and I took a lot of pictures. I kept thinking that no matter how many pictures I took, I could not really capture the grandeur of it all. And, that is as it should be! 🙂
congrats on 40 years Linda, a big one! And this looks like the perfect holiday, sand sun and nature. Glad you got the photos but they can never really capture the ‘atmosphere or ambiance’ of such a magical tropical holiday 🙂
Really love this verse, it captures they rhythm well 🙂
It was the perfect holiday…sand, sun, and nature! 🙂 Sometimes, I take a lot of pictures and they all look the same! (I can’t get quite enough of whatever I am looking at!) 🙂 Then, later, I have to delete a whole bunch. In the end, there is only a couple that I really like. It is as you say, impossible to capture the ‘magic’. It is nice to have these little momentos later to look back on. They do capture a trace of the magic, like glitter stuck to your shoes. 🙂
exactly, a delightful reminder that magic can happen 🙂
🙂 🙂 🙂
I so relate to watching the sun rise or set in the wilderness and thinking almost the same lines “The watercolor of my life waits
for the next brushstrokes
the colors, a blur of endless grace.”
congratulations on another anniversary.
Thank you! The sea is a wilderness as well and one that has always captured my heart. The mysteries of the deep fascinate me. I could watch those rolling waves and never get tired of it. My great-grandfather was a sea captain in Sweden. I often think of him and marvel at the life he lived. So much adventure! There is adventure everywhere, and I know that you have found it throughout your life!!! The canvas awaits, always something new around the bend! (It is God’s grace that makes it all possible.)
Happy Anniversary, Linda. In an age of so much uncertainty and strife, a solid marriage speaks of the triumph of His will and of how you cooperated through love and obedience. What a journey! Yes, it is only fitting that something as great and as wonderful as an anniversary is celebrated as you have. Also, a nice holiday is always a lovely reason to take a break from blogging😊. And you return filled with gems to share with others. In fact, you gave me something too: that first of three shots of sunrise. It was as if a gentle Hand had reached out and paused my turning of the pages, to tell me to linger over the photo.
I did.
When it is time, He will tell me why.
Thank you and welcome home, my friend💙💚
Thank you! I am happy to be home again! That first sunrise photo is very interesting. The sky can look so very different. Wishing you blessings!!! May you find many gems and may they bring you joy! 🙂
Ohhh…it was a sunrise!
Well, the Lord is indeed speaking💜
What a wonderful way to celebrate 40 years of marriage. Happy Anniversary! You painted a beautiful water color of words to remember it by.
Thank you! The place itself is a beautiful watercolor! We saw some interesting things. We saw a good-sized sand shark, a stingray, and some barracuda fish. (When we saw those fish, we decided to watch them from the beach!) The barracudas were not very big. There were lots of little fish as well. 🙂 We stayed clear of the stingray who kept burying himself in the sand. (I knew where he was at all times! 🙂 I know people swim with them, but I did not want to get too close. 🙂
Happy Anniversary and congratulations! It sounds like a very special and lovely trip. There’s nothing like sunrise/set over the ocean and enjoying the beach–wherever it is. Thank you for sharing!
I never get tired of looking at the water! I know from so many of your photographs that you feel the same way. You are right about the sun rising and setting over the ocean…it is incredible!
You’re welcome–and yes, you are so right. I’m always drawn to the water.
What a wonderful trip! Congratulations on 40 years of marriage! The pictures of the sea are beautiful, and yes, ocean breezes are soothing to the soul. I am happy for you and your husband. Blessings!
Thank you Elisa! We had a wonderful time. We had good weather and that was a blessing. The ocean is endlessly beautiful!!! 🙂
A beautiful poem, Linda. I loved your use of color and the metaphor of brushstrokes on your life. And the parade of flags sounds wonderful – a glimpse of the goodness in people from all around the world. I’m glad you had a wonderful vacation.
Thank you! It was wonderful to see so many people from different countries working together like family. As the song says, “It Is A Small World After All.”
We notice that in the National Parks too. It’s like a United Nations with everyone getting along and enjoying themselves.
🙂 🙂 🙂
One of the best things I have learned through so many changes in our life is to be flexible. If one is not they will break and require more care than others can give at times. A broken person can cause harm to themselves and others but mostly to themselves. We have lived in two third world countries that requires drastic flexibility. Because we tried to be that way we have great memories of our years overseas. It’s hard at first until you learn how to operate in the flexibility that is possible. It a great poem, made me think on our years overseas. We have been on one cruise, loved it, would love to take my whole family on one. . Congratulations on your years of marriage.
Thank you for your thoughtful comment! You are right about being flexible. The seasons in life are always changing and we must adapt to new experiences. I hope you do take a family cruise. We saw a great many families with children and grandchildren of all ages on the cruise ship.
Favorite places can truly inspire. Beautiful, Linda
Yes! There are so many beautiful places to visit. I hope you have a good weekend!
You really transported me to the beach. That felt so lovely. So glad you got to have such a beautiful vacation. The only cruise we’ve taken was Alaska a few years ago, but yours sounds so special.
As far as typing a blog post on my phone, hahahahahahahahahahaha. There is no way I could do that. My phone screen isn’t all that big, and my eyes are not all that good, and I can feel myself getting migrainey thinking about it! But if you like it, good for you! Have a lovely weekend, Linda. xo
I would love to take a cruise to Alaska! That must have been wonderful. It is good to get away now and then. I did not get too far with my phone in terms of the blogging because I have little space left on the phone. I will have to delete some things if I want it to work. I hope you have a very good weekend! 🙂