Flowers in Holland

Keukenhof – known as the Garden of Europe – is one of the best places to view the abundance of spring flowers in the South Holland region of the Netherlands

 

 Amsterdam's flower market – the Bloemenmarkt – reflects the 

country's passion for cut flowers and plants

 Around seven million bulbs are planted each year 

in the park at Keukenhof, in an area of 32 hectares

 Tulips originated in the east and were brought to Holland 

from the Ottoman Empire in the mid 1500s

The Bloemenmarkt - set on the capital's Singel canal 

and said to be the world's only floating flower market -

has a score of stalls where you can buy all sorts of plants, flowers, bulbs and seeds

 

The mild climate of Holland, with its wet springs makes it an ideal place for bulb cultivation

 In springtime, the lowland area by the North Sea is carpeted with fields

of gladioli, hyacinths, lilies, daffodils, crocuses... and, of course, tulips

 Keukenhof - literally 'kitchen garden' - is part of the hunting grounds 

of the ancient Teylingen estate

 This year, the theme for the Keukenhof exhibition is  

Germany: Land of Poets and Philosophers

 The patchwork quilt of colours in the Keukenhof park, just outside Lisse 

in South Holland, is a veritable feast for the eyes

 The bulbs of Keukenhof are re-planted each year according to the current trends and in collaboration with a number of gardening magazines

 Spring in Keukenhof is one of the main tourist attractions of the Netherlands

Happy Spring

Beacons Of Hope

 Old Light House

 

Lighthouses are not just a thing of beauty.  They are also inspiring and beacons of hope which is why I like them so much.  When I am battling on the rocky seas of life I love to get into a contemplative mood while looking at the Lighthouse pictures and ornaments that adorn my office, home and garden.

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Outer Banks, NC

 

L'Anse Amour

 

Lobster Cove Lighthouse

 

Long Point Lighthouse in Twillingate

 

Prince Edward Island-Canada

The Coffee Shop Where Everyone Pays for Everyone Else's Drinks

The main conceit of the 2000 Kevin Spacey film Pay It Forward is that if one person does a kindness for three strangers, and those three people each do kindnesses for three strangers, and so on, one person can change the world.

Rarely do we see this acted out in the real world the way it was cinematically—one scene finds a man giving away his brand-new Jaguar to a guy having car troubles—but on a smaller scale, these sorts of random niceties happen far more often than you might think. Today, it's selflessness at a small coffee house in Bluffton, South Carolina.

It all started two years ago at Corner Perk, a small, locally owned coffee shop, when a customer paid her bill and left $100 extra, saying she wanted to pay for everyone who ordered after her until the money ran out. The staff fulfilled her request, and the woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, has returned to leave other large donations every two to three months.

"People will come in and say, 'What do you mean? I don't understand. Are you trying to buy me a coffee today?'" the shop's owner, Josh Cooke, told the local news. "And I say, 'No, somebody came in 30 minutes ago and left money to pay for drinks until it runs out.'"

It took a while, but word has started to spread around the tiny coastal town, home to about 12,000 people. Now, more and more customers have been leaving money to pay for others' food and drink. Cooke says some people don't even buy anything when they come in; they just stop to donate and head right back out.

A medium cup of coffee at Corner Perk costs $1.95. That may not seem like a lot, but for a family struggling to save money in these tense and difficult economic times, two bucks saved at the right moment probably feels like a million. And a jolt of generosity is a better pick-me-up than caffeine any day of the week.

Great Signs

Lessons from Butterflies

Butterflies start off as caterpillars feeding on leaves until they finally cocoon themselves turning into butterflies.  The process of the butterfly breaking out of the cocoon is quite strenuous and can take a while to do so.  However, this process actually strengthens the butterfly’s wings and allows the butterfly to have the strength in it wings to fly away from the cocoon.

If someone decided to help the butterfly in the cocoon by removing the layers of the cocoon, the butterfly would be denied the opportunity to strengthen its wings. Once free from the cocoon the butterfly would fall to the ground and die.
 
When helping others never deny them the opportunity to strengthen their wings, so they too can fly like a butterfly.

Inspirational Waterfalls

Victoria Falls is located between Zimbabwe and Zambia.  It used to be called The Mist That Thunders  until 1855 when it was named after Queen Victoria.

3 waterfalls make up the most powerful waterfall in North America that is located between Canada and the United States.

 

Yellowstone Falls in Wyoming, USA is made up of 2 major waterfalls on the Yellowstone River in Yellowstone National Park.   The Upper Yellowstone and Lower Yellowstone Rivers both enter the Grand Canyon.

Several falls make up the beautiful Iguazu Falls which is located on the border between Brazil and Argentina. 

Angel Falls is the world’s tallest waterfall at 1024 m.  It is located within Canapa National Park in Venezuela.

Get Inspired some more:

The Inspiring Beauty of Life

I am always in awe and terrifically inspired by the life cycle of a butterfly.  The beauty that flies but for a short time, carefree at last after everything it has been through.

It starts out as a Caterpillar crawling through life!

This is a Monarch Caterpillar that will soon look like this:

And here is a Black Swallow Tail Caterpillar

That will soon look somewhat like this Tiger Swallow Tail Butterfly

The transition from Caterpillar to Butterfly is not an easy one and in fact according to scientists is very painful.

But look at the freedom after!  

Look at the beauty!

The Freedom!

And finally since they don't sit long enough for you to learn about them, here is the anatomy of a butterfly!

Think about your life!

Where have you been?

What have you been through?

Are you ready to fly?

For it is your destiny to fly!

Lessons From The Geese

* As each goose flaps its wings, it creates uplift for the bird following.  By flying in a V formation the whole flock adds 71% more flying range than if each bird flew alone.

Lesson: People who share a common direction and sense of community can get to where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the thrust of one another.

* When ever a goose falls out of formation it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to fly alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the birds immediately in front.

Lesson: If we have as much sense as a goose we will join a formation with those who are headed where we want to go.

* When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back into formation and another goose flies at the point position.

Lesson: It pays to take turns doing the hard tasks and sharing leadership with people as with geese, interdependent with one another.

* The geese in formation honk from behind, to encourage those up front to keep up the speed.

Lesson: We need to make sure our honking from behind is encouraging.  Not something less helpful.

* When a goose gets sick or wounded or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow the other goose down to help provide protection.  They stay with this member of the flock until he or she is either able to fly again or dies.  Then they launch out on their own with another formation or to catch up with their own flock.

Lesson: If we had as much sense as the geese we would stand by one and other like they do.

The Trouble Tree

The carpenter I hired to help me restore an old farmhouse had just finished a rough first day on the job. A flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit and now his ancient pickup truck refused to start.

While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence. On arriving, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching the tips of the branches with both hands. When opening the door he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles and he hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.

Afterward, he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier.

"Oh, that's my trouble tree," he replied. "I know I can't help having troubles on the job, but one thing for sure, troubles don't belong in the house with my wife and children. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home. Then in the morning I pick them up again."

Funny thing is," he smiled, "when I come out in the morning to pick ‘em up, there aren't nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before".

By: Author Unknown

Symptoms of Inner Peace

A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than on fears based on past experiences

An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment
A loss of interest in judging other people
A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others
A loss of interest in conflict
A loss of the ability to worry
Frequent, overwhelming episodes of appreciation
Contented feelings of connectedness with others and nature
Frequent attacks of smiling
An increased susceptibility to the love extended by others as well as the uncontrollable urge to extend it

Author: Saskia Davis