The Army of The Kind

When I felt compelled to write about hope at the beginning of this year, little did I know what lay ahead for New Zealand & the terrible events that would unfold in but a moment, one lunch time, last week, in Christchurch; when a massive earthquake demolished much of the Canterbury region, dismantled precious lives & homes & squashed livelihoods.
Now it makes a great deal more sense to me, why the message was:
Carry Hope Close

With the iconic Christchurch Cathedral now destroyed beyond repair..

photo: Mark Mitchell via the NZ Herald

It now seems so fortunate that, just after NewYear, I received a note from my lovely friend Leigh (who shares my passion for vintage loveliness especially Sanderson fabrics) saying

 "Catherine I know that you're very fond of angels and I've attached photos of the new Arch Angels at the Christchurch Cathedral. They are absolutely spectacular and I thought of you as I was standing in the cathedral looking up in awe! Arch Angels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael are all 2.5 metres tall and very life like. They were commissioned specifically for the cathedral and were made by renowned Christchurch artist/designer Caroline Travella and her daughter Carly. They are suspended from the cathedral ceiling from Christmas until mid January. I'm afraid I did not take great photos and I need a longer zoom lens but you get the idea.”

Here are her photos

 Hope Notes can so easily become more than words...fluidly step in to actions of hope. That's something that every one of us can participate in, now, in this time of National disaster & practice on-goingly in our everyday lives until we get really good at it!

When I visited Erin's blog to find the link for her wonderful calendar picture I found the words PRACTICING KINDNESS waiting for me. 

What the world needs is a new kind of army -the army of the kind.

Cleveland Amory
Tenderheartedness goes a long way..

Mary Cicely Barker

I  love this practical generosity.                                      

In the midst of such sorrow & fear it is heart-warming to see such marvelous goodness; our nation pulling together, working together & simply caring.  Anne, in her blog, Ungardened Moments observed these same sorts of things here.
I can but only pray..
Lord come & heal our hearts & our land. Wrap your arms around a hurting people & give us courage & strength to do what must be done.

The National Anthem for Christchurch sung by Cindy Ruakere

I love this woman! She is so power-FULL & truly amazing.

A message:

People of Aotearoa, Cindy Ruakere would like to give you her rendition of our national anthem. Please download it, share it, sing it and pray it. Gather before God and cover our isles and our people in prayer.

Click here for free download.

6/ 3 /11 Post Script..a full search has been completed at the Cathedral in the last few days & it is with relieved & grateful hearts that we now know, that in fact, nobody at all was found in the Cathedral itself..truly a miracle. It was thought for all this time that there could have been 22 trapped there. Very good news amidst so much sadness.

with MUCH

 & tender thoughts to you all.
xoxox

Naked Ladies and Other Glories

I have always been fascinated by naked ladies..perhaps because of my childhood memories of my Nan's place & the entire row of them that flowered along the front fence every summer. Their scent divine & their pearlescent seeds perfect for bead making in the May school holidays, as it was way back then.

Belladonna lilies are a flower of nostalgia, much like the bedding plants still used in our Cornwall park, just around the corner...bedding begonias & geraniums..bright & cheery & flower for months.

The begonia house  has had a recent make over..such a lovely place to wander in the evenings. The light recently truly captivating.  

the colours garishly vivid but somehow invigorating

This sequoia is magnificent & is often home to the local monarch butterfly population in the time of over- wintering.

Monarchs' have been such a profound symbol of hope & comfort to me & this park so dear to my heart I think that right here would be a good place to be 'sprinkled'....in the winter the butterflies would return & the hope would live on...for those who come after me...

light is so amazing..it brings everything alive

& touches the soul

We have been utterly enchanted by this gorgeous chandelier that was so very, very kindly gifted to us not so long ago. 

 It has breathed life & delight in to our garden & created magic.

Makes me feel dreamy..wouldn't it be nice to float amongst the waterlilies & listen to the frogs.

My favourite seasons are autumn & spring so I am very happy to find the heat abating & the signs of the abundance slipping in under the gate. No place is this cornucopia more evident, than at our or Farmers Market. Peacharines are just so luscious looking.

The peppers & heirloom tomatoes so vibrant.

A basket full of goodness!

'Gypsy' bread, dark opal basil micro greens, 'delite' blueberries, local avocado (I have more!), 'purple calabash' heirloom tomato.

Want to come for dinner? Love to have you : )
Wishing you richness of life this week.
Much

 XOXO

Crochet of the Heart

I am besotted with hearts & roses & all the lovely things of the romantic life: candle light, sweet fragrance, delicacy, flowers, lace, tenderness & grace. In a world stuffed full of modernity, concrete, metal, rap music & stretch fabric my heart yearns for the enduring graceful notions of tussie mussies, moss, gentle touch & flowers. No wonder there are so many breaking, empty hearts out there desperately seeking "love". We traded romance & sentimentality for sex & sexual freedom & then couldn't figure out what the problem was. I am so heartened to see a return to loveliness bursting out all over the place. Girly girls, hearts, cupcakes & tea parties galore..so, Valentines Day & for that matter, the very month of February, is the perfect time to set the tone for the whole year; keeping our hearts alive & tender with the graceful arts of living, dancing with the delightful things, befriending Serendipity & sharing sweetness where ever the year takes us.

 It's all quite perfectly peachy this way really..

 full of prettiness..I adore this dahlia in my garden

  might even bring a tear or two..touch the heart & soften the world to shades of beauty

I am so delighted with these divine hankies especially as they were only 50c each. I really feel that I might take up another dottie angel resolve to carry a vintage cotton hanky upon my person daily...so much more graceful...yukky old tissues should be reserved for boys, emergencies & annoying cases of poorlyness involving lots of snot. (personally I have never noticed a decrease in virus transmission by using solely tissues) I am thinking, that these two wee prettiest of cases might be just the perfect home for my sweet finds.

 The world needs us to sing the Song of Romance.

My darling's favourite rose.. "blossomtime". Grown from a cutting.

 I love the detail & soft romantic hues in these two old postcards (of mine). Amazing to think that they are almost 100 years old.

My dearest Cheryl bought this for me for my birthday. So sweet the gentle wings that envelope the tender inner heart & the soft pastel green of fresh hope.

 I am quite convinced that the key to a tender heart is beauty.

This just arrived from Red Heart.com...delightful! An affaire of the heart topiary!! You'll find the instructions here

I adore this heart bunting from Bella Dia

and these are just so cute too

Swans, snow-white turtle doves..no, ducks just don't do it quite the same.

Bless you all my sweet, sweet friends & don't forget to keep your eyes open for loveliness where ever you go.

MUCH, MUCH

 ♥