It's Almost Christmas

It's looking a lot like Christmas

The tree is up, the windows are decorated, the presents are wrapped and the Christmas menu is set.

This year I did all my shopping online and it was pleasant, easy and stress free shopping.

Some might think that was impersonal but actually it wasn't. I found some amazing gifts online that I would not have found in the shops and instead of being limited to my city, the world opened up for me.

I was real busy at work the last few weeks so the tree and the decorations went up a little late.

But it's finally looking a lot like Christmas and I am looking forward to spending the day with  my family. Only 2 sleeps to go ;)

Linking to:
Six Word Saturday
#MicroblogMonday #17

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que  and check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest
Google+ Suzy Que

The Letter Q

Quietly thinking of some Q words

Q is such a difficult letter to write on and even harder to find pictures.

So the words, quilt and quilling kept going around in my head. I don't have a nice quilt to write about and never done quilling so what could I say about that.

And then I thought of Quill. Aha quill is a good one for a blogger and I had a picture of a quill.

So here it is ... Q for Mickey's Quill

I really should've chosen a better background but it is late and it's time to call it a day - that quiet time!

Linking to:
The Letter Q at ABC Wednesday
Six Word Saturday
Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #60


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Playing With Six Words and a Pot of Pretty Flowers

Thought I'd do something different for the Letter P at ABC Wednesday.

So ... Playing with 6 words and then a Pot of pretty flowers

A stressful week is finally over

Gruelling Uni assignment completed on time 

Was it my test or son's?

Glad that week's behind us now

and on a completely different note

Flowers at the market look lovely

There is always something that uplifts

The Universe is a mind reader

Each week at the supermarket I would stop and look at the flowers and I loved the little butterflies in them. And what a surprise, my friend dropped by on my birthday with a pot of pretty flowers and a butterfly!

Linking to:
Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday
Six Word Saturday
The Letter P at ABC Wednesday
Sunday's in my city


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Happy Diwali

I love Diwali - my favourite festival

Diwali is the Indian Festival of Lights. Celebrated to honour the return of Lord Rama to his kingdom of Ayodhya after 14 years of exile by his stepmother and after many adventures including killing Ravana who had abducted his wife Sita and was arrogant, tyrannical and evil.

Diwali signifies the victory of good over evil, light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance.

So Happy Diwali and Happy New Year to all.

Wish you good health, prosperity, peace, joy, love, success in all you do and wonderful new beginnings.

Lakshman, Lord Rama and Sita

Linking to:
Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #57
Six Word Saturday


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

A few "L" words

Hail on a sunny Spring day?

We had hail yesterday on a sunny Spring day that wasn't actually all that cold. For about 10 minutes the sky turned grey and it suddenly got quite cool. And then just as suddenly as the hail came the sun came out again.

Lost for words so best to say it in pictures. Loved watching the hail even though it was pounding down quite hard and loud.

Life is unpredictable, like the Wellington weather.

Linking to:
The Letter L at ABC Wednesday
Six Word Saturday
Sundays in my city
Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #55


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Joy

Antics of birds - amusing and joyful

It's so much fun watching the little birds that flock to my garden each morning to feast on leftover breadcrumbs or rice. I love how they perch on my camellia tree and it's fascinating to watch how they balance even when the wind is blowing hard.

The flowers are also starting to bloom so the garden is so colourful. Another source of joy!

Linking to:
The letter J at ABC Wednesday
Sundays in my city
Six Word Saturday
Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #53

Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Hanuman

Universe conspires to bring things together

And what's that got to do with Hanuman?  And who is Hanuman?

Hanuman was an ape-like humanoid who came to help and was an ardent devotee of Lord Rama. Hindu's now revere him as a God. He is usually found in pictures and idols as praying at the feet of Lord Rama.

About two weeks ago, my mother and I were invited to a Hanuman pooja (prayer ritual) at a friend's place down the road. It was a small gathering of just the family and us. Usually I would not go for these gatherings as though I am very spiritual, I am not religious and connecting with God for me is best done in silence and solitude.

But because my mother is unable to walk without help and she wanted to go, I accompanied her. It was a lovely pooja particularly since the primary deity was my Lord Rama.

Perhaps I was meant to go and the Universe conspired to do that. So why would the Universe conspire for this particular pooja? Because whenever I visit Mumabi I always visit the Hanuman Ghanteshwar (Bell) temple and because I love my Lord Rama.

People dedicate a bell to Hanuman when their wishes come true.  Hence it is called the Ghanteshwar (bell) temple

Linking to:
The Letter H at ABC Wednesday,  Six Word Saturday,  Sundays in my city,  Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #50


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Glad

Glad that August is nearly over

It's been a tough month with my mother being unwell - felt the strain. Hoping that September is a better month.

Glad that I got through the August #FMSphotoaday challenge

So here's the final roundup of the challenge:

Style - I took this picture some years ago when I visited Mumbai. Weddings in India are always done in style and weddings always make me glad

Fragrant - A lovely camellia from my garden. It looks so much like a rose. Camellias bloom in Winter and on a cold, wet and windy, miserable day Camellias in my garden make me glad.

Mail - I took part in a gift exchange challenge with a group of bloggers. Had to send a gift and a handwritten letter. And here is the one I received. And what made this even more special was that Nandana who blogs at Cheerful Tornado sent through a picture with the words from a post on my blog. Was very glad to receive that. Thanks Nandana.  

, 

Breakfast - My usual breakfast each morning, a cup of hot chai (Indian tea),  celery and fruit smoothie (apple, banana. strawberry, pear, ginger) and a slice of toast with spinach spread and cheese. Now that makes me so glad each morning.

Dull - A very dull day in Wellington. Dull days do not make me glad.

Travel - took this picture in Gujarat India some years ago. An interesting way to travel - a very slow amble and a lot of time needed but what a view he must have. Was glad I got a chance to take this picture

Dessert - Yummy desserts at Strawberry Fare in Wellington. Mine was a blackforest cake. Desserts make me very glad. 

Nearby - What's near you was the prompt and it was my TV. Was watching the news. A lot of the news did not make me glad, but watching some interesting programmes does make me glad. 

10am - At 10am this morning I was reading my book Rise of the Sun Prince on my ipad. The book is about the life of Lord Rama up to the point when he marries Sita. And my iphone wallpaper is of course my Lord Rama and Sita. My Beloved Lord Rama always makes me extremely glad. 

Linking to:  

The Letter G at ABC Wednesday,  Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #49,  

Six Word Saturday,  Sunday's in my city

Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Feeling

Feeling blessed, feeling happy, feeling accomplished

On Saturday we were invited to a Hanuman pooja (prayer). Hanuman is revered as a Hindu God who was an ardent follower of Lord Rama. Now I rarely go for these as for me, connecting with God or The Great Spirit is best done in solitude and silence. But my mother has hurt her knee and is unable to walk without help. So I had to go with her. Perhaps I was called to that prayer on Sunday as Lord Rama is my favourite.  Feeling blessed. Feeling happy.

And I haven't fallen behind in the FMSphotoaday challenge so feeling accomplished.

Here's the roundup for last week

Clean out the clutter from your mind (and heart) and focus on Spirit

Eat all in moderation. Our bodies need carbs, protein, veges, fruits, oils, fats, water. This is my belief anyway and it works for me. And as for the prompt Dinner - Sunday night is always Chinese takeaway. 

 Someone once said these words to me - there are no right or wrong roads. All roads lead to our destiny. We only have different adventures along the way depending on the choice we make. Ever since then, I've stopped worrying about taking a wrong road.

To do - fold up the washed clothes and put them away - done and dusted!

Before bedtime - Meditate. The nights when I'm really tired and decide not to, I don't sleep well at all and wake up feeling even more tired. So now I meditate even if it's for just 10 minutes. 

I love how my local supermarket decorates the stair wall always with drawings and/or colourings of children. 

These words "All things fall into place at the right time, in the right way" has simplified my life and removed endless worry of things not happening. Taking each day as it comes. 

Linking to
Letter F at ABC Wednesday,  Sundays In My City, Six Word Saturday, Our World Tuesday


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Enjoyment

Doing what I enjoy a lot

Photography and blogging are things I enjoy a lot. And when you can combine the two together then that's even better.

So here's a round up of the Photo A Day #FMSphotoaday challenge for the last week.

Mixing up a smoothie and enjoying fresh smoothies each morning. This one had celery, beetroot, ginger, apple and banana. On a more philosophical note, life is a mixture of ups and downs. My dad always said to me that your true strength of character shown in the down times not in the ups and the down times make life interesting.

I truly enjoy drawing Zentangles. I find them so therapeutic and as I do them free flow, I never know what they'll eventually look like which is half the fun. Not only are we all creative but also creators in our own way.

 I took this picture some years ago at a winery. I loved the mirror so much. And my daily thought was taken from my poem The Mirror Of My Soul. Poetry gives me so much enjoyment.

Birds of a feather flock together. Once on the spiritual path this saying starts to make so much sense in relation to vibrational energy. When you are a vibrational match you come together and part when you are no longer a vibrational match. Something to ponder over. But on a lighter note these birds gathered in my garden to feed on the breadcrumbs I left them. I enjoy watching the birds eat and their antics. 

A look inside my local supermarket. The balloons are so colourful, they always make me feel welcomed. I enjoy the colourful balloons. And of course it's what's inside that matters!

My mom has hurt her knee and had no strength in it to walk. I was worried that she might fall and hoped that I could find her a walker for more support and for my peace of mind. And lo and behold I walk into the pharmacy to pick up her medicines and someone has left a walker for sale. Ask and it is given and God Bless the person who left it there. My mom is feeling stronger, safer and on the way to enjoying life again. 

Linking to:
Letter E at ABC Wednesday,  Six Word Saturday, Our World Tuesday
Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #47,  Sundays In My City


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que

Daily Thoughts

Daily thoughts for a positive focus

About 3 weeks ago I started my Daily Thoughts series on my facebook page Suzy's Ilation. I also joined the #FMSphotoaday challenge for August featuring my daily thoughts.

I'm enjoying both the daily thoughts and the photo challenge heaps. The daily thoughts has helped me focus on the positive things in my life and the photo challenge has made me more observant.

So here's a round up of the last week for the photo challenge and my daily thoughts:

This was such a spectacular sky and quite strange too. Looked like a partial map of the world! What were the clouds trying to say? Taken from my dining room window just after dawn.

There's beauty in simplicity. There's not a lot in this picture, but it's one of my favourites. Probably because I love a vibrant pink. This was taken in my garden and lines up very nicely for the Thursday Challenge prompt "Simple"

Shed your load, don't pile it up. Eventually taking on load after load just wears you down.  This was taken at my local supermarket.

In the last few days so many random acts of kindness have come my way outlined in my Gratitude post on my Someday Somewhere blog. Why buses? Because the first random act of kindness is about a bus! I am truly grateful for random acts of kindness. This picture was taken from my workplace.

Featuring my favourite biscuit for the "spot" prompt. So glad I can find it in the Indian store in Welly. And from the prompt and the biscuit, came the thought of the day, keep spotting the good things in your life and life will look good all the time. Happy spotting.

I don't have any pet peeves now. Perhaps as I have grown older, my view of life has changed. But there was a time when one of my biggest pet peeves was someone rearranging my mess. I could never find anything once rearranged and tidied up. But people aren't out to be unhelpful or to purposely annoy. So now I don't let the little things annoy me.

Linking to:
The letter D at ABC Wednesday,  The Thursday Challenge,  Six Word Saturday
Our World Tuesday,  Ruchira's Wordless Wednesday #46,  Sundays in my city


Check out my Daily Thoughts on Pinterest

Tweet

Follow me on
My facebook page Suzy's Ilation
Bloglovin
Pinterest Suzy Que
Google+ Suzy Que