postaday – Jennifer's Journal

Evergreen Post: Thinking Out Loud

Published on September 7, 2022September 7, 2022 by J. Kelland Perry30 Comments

This is a post of mine from a previous September. I hope you enjoy it!

What is the essence of a life?

A deep thought indeed, but putting aside the belief in the existence of a supreme being for a moment, what is the first notion that question conjures for you?

Is it the wail of a newborn when she is pushed from the womb, wet and shivering, into a cold world of bright light and jarring noise?

Is it a living being’s will and drive to survive?

Is it the slow and arduous process of becoming what your potential keeps whispering you can be, or the serendipitous ease of slipping into a role you were born to fill?

Is it what we cling to as we grow old, try to recapture, strive to enjoy in every waking moment, as the end draws ever nearer?

Could it simply be the state of being, dreaming, pondering and loving?

Or hating and enduring what the universe has given you?

Maybe, life is the constant of the everyday.

It’s the laughter of a stranger on a crowded subway, the silly song that got stuck in your head and you sang in the shower this morning, a face that suddenly smiles in your direction, a warm hug, a lover’s kiss, or a soft place to fall after a long day.

Perhaps it is the enduring memory of a giant harvest moon, the languid ripple of a pond you sat beside last summer, the smell of warm cinnamon in an apple pie, the taste of licorice, or the sweet sip of ice-cold raspberry Koolaid you loved as a child.

Some of life is lived between the lines of our subconscious, in the many subtleties of our private, innermost selves.

Life is all of this and much more. It is joy and disappointment, connection and camaraderie, isolation and despair, exquisite pleasure, and acute suffering.

Life is the endurance of the human experience and the divining of purpose.

Life is the continuity of unconditional love.

What do you think life is all about?
What is your answer to this enduring question?

Original post along with your lovely comments here.

Sunday Snap: Sunrise

Published on December 3, 2021December 5, 2021 by J. Kelland Perry31 Comments

Happy December, everyone!

Wait—what?? How can this be? I had thought my November would have dragged by much more slowly, after I signed up for NaNoWriMo and sequestered myself to my writing cave for thirty days. Most of those days started early too—pitch-black early before the clocks rolled back on the 7th—and yet the month flew by anyway.

It was pleasant rising with the sun on those mornings. Most of this blog’s “sun photography” has been of the sunset variety like the one on my header, but there is something special about the quality of the sun at dawn. The stillness, the quietude, the fresh hope that gives birth to each new day is perfect inspiration for writing a new chapter in a novel or starting a new chapter in your life.

“I write for the same reason I watch the sun rise every morning. Not to express some great truth, but because it makes me feel wildly, gloriously alive.” ~ Marty Rubin

A Photo a Week Challenge: Sunrise

Cityscape: the Big Apple*

Published on October 25, 2020 by J. Kelland Perry24 Comments

In June of 2002, husband Paul and I took a trip by car to New York City. We were attending my cousin’s wedding in Nova Scotia that month, so we settled on a plan to extend our vacation afterwards and to take in some of Maine and Massachusetts on our way to the Big Apple.

**View of Manhattan Skyline on our Liberty Cruise Boat Tour**

With our plan already in place when 9/11 happened, we thought about cancelling the U.S. leg of the trip, but ultimately decided to go anyway. No trouble to notice the absence of the Twin Towers in the photo above, as well as the absence of the new Freedom Tower.

I will never forget our visit to Ground Zero.

View of New York from the Empire State Building

In retrospect, I’m glad we didn’t cancel. It was a memorable experience all around.

*Photo Challenge: Cityscape by Nancy Merrill Photography

Vivian’s View From Here: October Bliss

Published on October 4, 2020October 11, 2020 by J. Kelland Perry26 Comments

Greetings, peeps and pets!

Vivian here, covering for Jennifer today while she rests her back from berry-picking this weekend. She loves this time of year when the partridgeberries are ripe, and when they grow on your own land, it is oh-so-convenient to pick them to your heart’s content.

But what does October mean to me? Sure, I like roaming around the bushes on the point, helping to gather berries—although Jennifer says all I basically do is get in the way with my head bunts and demand to be petted—and I enjoy the fact that when I go outside I don’t have to sit in the shade to keep cool anymore.

But what I dearly love to do in our garden is roll around in my happy place: a mysterious patch of something that grows among the grass, moss and lichen in one particular spot. It seems to have the same heady effect on me as catnip!

Check out Maisie and me below, enjoying our special spot. She blends in better than I do! This pic was taken a few years back. We can’t help but think of my sister fondly whenever I go out there.

I still miss Maisie,
but when the sun is shining,
the wind is light, and my peeps
are out and about with me,
I’m in a state of bliss.

October bliss!

“In the entire circle of the year there are no days
so delightful as those of a fine October.”
~ Alexander Smith

Photo Challenge: October

Up Close and Personal*

Published on September 27, 2020 by J. Kelland Perry13 Comments

Happy Sunday, everyone!

For today’s photo challenge, here are a few close-ups from my media files. The theme I have chosen is nature.

“Look deep into nature,
and then you will understand everything better.”
~ Albert Einstein

**One of 55 Species of Butterfly in NL**

Young Girl with Starfish Sea Star — **“Sea star on Poppy’s beach!”**

“Study nature, love nature,
stay close to nature.
It will never fail you.”
~ Frank Lloyd Wright

*This is my contribution to A Photo a Week Challenge: Up Close and Personal by Nancy Merrill Photography

Further Reading: Guest Post: How to Use Nature to Connect with Your Grandkids

Interested in sharing one of your original articles as a guest? Feel free to submit your ideas to jennifer@jenniferkellandperry.com. Preference is given to topics relevant to my blog, such as books, writing, nature, photography, travel, children and pets. – JKP

Summer Evening

Published on June 28, 2020June 28, 2020 by J. Kelland Perry21 Comments

Close of hot June day—
soft sea breeze, high crescent moon,
cool waves kiss the shore.

We’ve enjoyed a bit of a heat wave this past week, an unusually early occurrence here in the easternmost province of Canada.

I call it a bonus because our summers are notoriously short, and after a long winter and spring, warm sun-filled days are more than welcome. I’m also grateful for the coastal breezes that keep things temperate.

This is my contribution to A Photo a Week Challenge: Dusk – nancy merrill photography

A Valentine from Vivian

Published on February 14, 2019 by J. Kelland Perry21 Comments

I know you may think
that I look kind of lazy
But not every day
I’m as fresh as a daisy

Precious few are so perfect
to wear halos above us
So we look past the faults
of who we love and who love us

Like where did this dog toy
come from, we inquire
When there are gorgeous kitty cats
here to admire?

But I won’t dwell on that,
just an oversight, maybe
I’ll forgive and forget
and not act like a baby

And we won’t envy Jennifer
with her life that’s just ducky
‘Cause we know of a time
when she wasn’t so lucky

So don’t be concerned
if you haven’t seen Cupid
Don’t be down on romance
because that would be stupid

Just realize your True Love
may not be that far
And besides,
you are wonderful
just as you are!

If you still find you’re sad
and alone on this day
Take a look at our cuteness
to chase troubles away

And please, pretty please,
know we love you like crazy
Happy Valentine kisses
from me and from Maisie. ❤

The Daily Post Prompt:
Cupid’s Arrow – Write an ode to someone or something you love. Bonus points for poetry!

This was my first time using the new “Copy a Post” feature on WordPress for evergreen content. Originally shared in 2015 here.

Daily Prompt: Impression

Published on May 24, 2017 by J. Kelland Perry26 Comments

This small photo collection, all taken here in Newtown,
was inspired by today’s Daily Prompt.

Impression: (definition #3) a mark impressed on a surface by something.

Bird tracks in snow:

Cat paws in snow:

POLAR BEAR TRACKS! YIKES!

Sandy Beach fun:

Not so fun: sandy sinkhole in our driveway when we first moved here:

Oh “Deere.”

Wonderful Yellow

Published on January 29, 2017January 29, 2017 by J. Kelland Perry20 Comments

About this time every winter, I begin to yearn for an injection of more colour in my world. So when I saw that Yellow was this morning’s one-word prompt from The Daily Post, I felt compelled to take part.

The following photos were previously shared on my blog over the years, but I thought it fitting – as well as worthy – to give them a second look.

Our little girl enjoying backyard dandelions

Leah 015

Travel Theme: Oceans — Our little boy finds a teensy-weensy crab

Hey, Little Girl — Our girl on Lester’s Farm, St. John’s

Sunshine, Surf, and Sand — Jumping the waves on Lumsden Beach

The Sky's the Limit — The Sky’s the Limit on Perry’s Point

My Buttercup Runneth Over – Perry’s Point

These last two photos are from my Instagram account:

Love this beauty from an artist friend. Getting it framed soon!

Last but not least, something to wake up the taste buds:

Lemon meringue pie with a glass of Yellowtail!

***

“How wonderful yellow is. It stands for the sun.” ~ Vincent Van Gogh

Vivian’s View From Here: Window Cats

Published on January 18, 2017 by J. Kelland Perry40 Comments

Greetings, humans! 041-800x415

Vivian K. Perry here, back for another guest blog on Jennifer’s Journal. I have new photos to share today!

We had snowy, blowy weather last night, which gave us pretty windows to look through when we woke up. As much as Maisie and I don’t like it when it gets too cold, sometimes snow can add an aesthetic appeal to our long winters.

The first pic shows some of Jennifer’s other cats.

winter-window-1280x846

Now on to us real kitties…

img_2419-832x1280 At first, I thought I would like it outdoors today.
img_2417-1280x941 I quickly changed my mind.
img_2418-1271x946 Maisie seems oblivious to my discomfort. (Please disregard the high-tech reading lamp)
img_2422-1280x574 I am quickly let back inside, and then…
img_2427-1066x1280 …the shoe is on the other paw!
Ha! Snow on her nose 🙂