Me, I belong to the fence that says wait, especially in large breed dogs.   But now that fence has developed some bumps that I have to carefully navigate.   You see, we brought home a little collie puppy.   My heart missed Casper too much, I could not heal without another little baby to help me.  

And here lies the problem.   Collie people say don't neuter until 2, 3, 4, and sometimes 6 years of age.   How is it possible to have dogs of different gender in the house without spaying or neutering one of them.   And which do you choose.   How do you pick which pet, it is like choosing one of your children over the other.    Now, some say keep them separated during the heat cycle.   If I lived in Windsor Castle and had "wings," that would be possible.   How do you have eyes in front, in back, and on the side of your head at every moment.....

Much as the thought of wolfhound collie puppies sounds lovely, I don't wish to navigate that fence.   A responsible owner sees to it that there are no accidents; but in this time of varying opinions in veterinary medicine, achieving this is not so easy.   Each vet I talk to has his own opinion, each wolfhound group and collie group have their own opinions and I have spent a restless night deciding which fence post stands on the most solid ground.

Landon, my baby collie is three months old.   Aura Lea is approaching cycle number two any day now.   Right now, thoughts of play and food dominate my boy's mind, but in a few months.......instincts will take over.   I hope by then, I have this sorted out.

I know I will not be alone in this dilemma.   I suppose more families will be going the one gender route along that fence.   I like the personalities of girls and the personalities of boys, each brings his and her uniqueness to the family unit.  But unless this dilemma is sorted out, I fear there will be more puppies being born in responsible homes or those taking the easy way out and just spaying and neutering too soon to make life "easier." "Close-up"

Blessings,

Shirl  

One of these Inns has a nice glass enclosed front "porch" area for seating guests.   You can dine inside, but feel as though you are outside and enjoy the views.  

Recently, during dinner, just outside our window, this little dinner companion decided to "pop in."   He stayed for most of the meal, scampering about for fresh grass, then scurrying back to the shelter of his den beneath the rock wall.   Soon, word got out that this was a nice restaurant and more of his friends showed up.   I would have loved to share some of my salad with them.  

I love having company for dinner, especially the furry kind........

Those that have followed me on wordpress are welcome to join me here.

I will post the link on the wordpress site until you all have become accustomed to finding me here.

Thank you for supporting my literary and artistic work.

Sincerely,

Shirl 

I love wandering cemeteries.  There is a name given to people like me, taphophiles.  Years ago, I didn’t know there was a name for this addiction, until I stumbled upon it on the computer one day.  Lo and behold, I found fellow taphophiles and treasure troves of stories in the photos taken at both famous and abandoned cemeteries around the globe.

I look for little snippets of the heart……touching mementos left at a gravestone, or weeds left to wind with abandon, each tell their own story.

For me, finding that moment that I know will transcend into my camera and into your heart is like finding a diamond in the rough.

Each resident is a diamond, some polished with manicured landscapes and some in the rough, with overgrown weeds and dandelion blossoms adorning their grave.

To me, they are all precious jewels of time, shining in the sunlight or waiting in the rain, for a taphophile’s heart and camera……………

Namaste,

Shirl"To the Light"

"Wispy Ghost"

where their war torn bodies were hurriedly buried.

Fighting at the Grove was so savage that weaponry became the dismembered limbs of dead soldiers, swung at the enemy when there was nothing left to fight each other with that day.

I constantly get orbs at the Grove, the trees there are especially “haunted”……..

One evening, while photographing the trees, in a matter of seconds, my camera found only darkness, then a peculiar ghostly shaped wisp, then nothingness again.  This is perhaps my favorite paranormal photo, I think the little wisp even has a little curly headed ghostly “do.” 

There are many stories of encounters and sightings at the Grove.   A guide once told me of a classroom in the Middle School busily taking an exam when the image of a soldier ran through the room and into the opposite wall.  He said the exam was cancelled for the day…….I would imagine no one felt like taking a test after that.

Whenever you build upon tainted ground, the energy remains and “moves into” the new foundation, the walls, the classrooms.   When you visit Gettysburg, be sure to stop at the Middle School.  You can see it from Baltimore Street.  Walk through the woods at night, if you dare.  I can tell you there is one spirit there with a negative energy; it followed me back to my room one night……..But that is another story, for another blog post.

Namaste,

Shirl

"Nature's Canvas"

And on this present day, this blog writer thanks her for this……

“The Little Ghost”………

I knew her for a little ghost
That in my garden walked;
The wall is high—higher than most—
And the green gate was locked.

And yet I did not think of that
Till after she was gone—
I knew her by the broad white hat,
All ruffled, she had on.

By the dear ruffles round her feet,
By her small hands that hung
In their lace mitts, austere and sweet,
Her gown's white folds among.

I watched to see if she would stay,
What she would do—and oh!
She looked as if she liked the way
I let my garden grow!

She bent above my favourite mint
With conscious garden grace,
She smiled and smiled—there was no hint
Of sadness in her face.

She held her gown on either side
To let her slippers show,
And up the walk she went with pride,
The way great ladies go.

And where the wall is built in new
And is of ivy bare
She paused—then opened and passed through
A gate that once was there.

I love this poem….it conjures so vividly the image of this Little Ghost…..as one so interested in the Spirit World, it has always been a favorite poem of mine.

I wonder where Edna’s ghost chooses to wander…..I hope it is in a garden as lovely as this one, and she is happily, at peace…….with no trace of sadness lingering on her spectred face…….

Namaste,

Shirl

Her humble, kneeling posture stands out....perhaps it is the glow of grace and benevolence that exudes from the atmosphere around her.

Her poignant memorial......to a beloved wife, mother, and grandmother holds up to any celebrated, notable life now residing in this cemetery, and there are many, among them, Charles Dickens and George Eliot.  My favorite photo of Caroline is one in which several orbs appear.....a prominent one right above her head......

She will forever be my most remembered resident of Highgate.......one can feel her motherly presence in the ether........

"Caroline's Orb"