when our hearts are conscious of our treasures

This quote from Thornton Wilder tells us that our hearts know and have their own consciousness. It seems that our hearts and not our brain are really the ones that know about our true self. Even St. Exupery talked about seeing with the heart and now Wilder talks about being conscious with the heart.

By the way, Thornton Wilder is an American play write who won three Pulitzer Prizes for a novel and two plays. 
 

The photo I used here is the the flower of the matchstick bromeliad or Aechmea gamosepala.

Happy Mother's Day

Just want to greet all mothers, a Happy Mother's Day!

face reality

This quote from Jack Welch is a good reminder for us. We really have to learn to face reality or we will not be able to move on.

The photo is a bud of the Dahlia flower.

when I stand before God

I like what Erma Bombeck said in this quote. However, I would like to add that we should not only use everything that was given to us, but we should also multiply it several times so we can share with others more.

I don't know the name of this flower. It was given to me by a friend.

limitless

All I can say about this quote from Lorii Myers is, "how true! how true!" We sometimes hold back on things because of our fears and lack of trust. If we can only put our trust in God then we can "become limitless" because God is of course limitless!

I'm sorry I don't yet know the name of this flower. I just found it in a public garden. However, I find that the way it grows encapsulates what "limitless" means. Don't you think so?

when we love

Isn't this quote from Paulo Coelho so true?  We really "always strive to become better" when we love.

The photo is the flower of Pseudomussaenda flava.

patience and good character

In our present world of fast-paced activities, this quote from Heraclitus is a very good reminder for us. There are just certain things that cannot be accomplished instantly and as he noted, "good character" is one of those that need time to develop.

The photo shows flowers of Begonia semperflorens.

natural laws and beauty

JWvonGoethe sure knows his natural laws. How indeed can beauty not be an outcome of natural laws? So I admire people who make us see the beauty that sometimes we fail to notice.

The photo is a variety of daisy. Some call it spider daisy because of its thin petals.

Appreciation is the highest form of prayer

I like how Alan Cohen described appreciation as "the highest form of prayer." It's so true that every time we are thankful, we acknowledge the presence of goodness. It also brings a smile to our lips and eyes! Just thinking about being thankful for something makes me do that - smile, that is!

The photo is a white mum with a tinge of pink and yellow.

felt with the heart

I find Helen Keller as such an amazing person. For somebody who has impaired sense of sight, she surely knows how to see what is beyond and behind the surface of things and people.

The photo is a raindrop at the tip of a flower. I love taking photos of raindrops and flowers and this is one of my favorites.

Beauty around you

There is really so much beauty around us. Our problem is we fail to see what may sometimes be under our nose. Thanks for this reminder from Anne Frank!

The photo is a pink bougainvillea flower.

criticism should be gentle

Frank Howard Clark shows his understanding and love for people in this quote. Criticism is something that should "nourish a man's growth" and not destroy "his roots." I like best the line, it should be gentle like rain. 

The photo is a Mimosa flower wet with raindrops.

pray with all your heart

This maxim from Blessed Maria Domenica is really meant for the sisters in her congregation. However, I think that it can also apply to us. We really need to pray all the time even if only for a little bit as long as we take it to heart.

The photo is a bunch of Dianthus flowers.

Build community

I like this reminder from Jean Vanier about building community. We really need to build community wherever we are. It's the only way to live a healthy and happy life.

The photo is a bunch of bougainvillea flower.

a flower blooms in adversity

This quote from "Mulan" of Walt Disney Co., is so true and inspiring. Adversity usually hones us and strengthens our character. The same is true for a flower. If it blooms under the most adverse conditions, then it is most beautiful.

The photo is a flower of the mickey mouse plant or Ochna wightiana.

perfectly imperfect

I like the term used by Steve Maraboli in this quote, - "perfectly imperfect." Somehow I am reassured of my own worth even if I am "perfectly imperfect!"

The photo is a bi-colored Gerbera daisy.

Sometimes

These lines come from a poem by an unknown author. The first two lines are actually what attracted me to this poem. It's because I love taking photos of flowers with raindrops and so I thought my photo and the poem fit each other.

Here is the whole poem:
      

"Sometimes it takes rain
To make the flowers grow
Sometimes it takes real pain
Before real joy one knows
Sometimes it takes tomorrows
To understand days gone by
Sometimes before the laughter
There comes heavy sigh
Sometimes it takes the midnight hour
To value morning light
Sometimes it takes the longest mile
Before things come in sight
Sometimes you often wonder
Why your heart can get so sore
But its the rocky paths in life
That makes you cherish the smooth roads more!"

                                        - Unknown

Do what you were made to do

This quote from O.S.Marden is so inspiring. It tells us that we have to trust what our heart tells us to do and we will be able to do whatever we are supposed to do. Isn't that amazing?

The photo is a flower from a kind of bromeliad. I do not not its scientific name.

If I have not love

Love is really the greatest of all as this verse from 1Corinthians tells us. Actually, the whole verse 13 in 1Corinthians speaks about love and ends saying that among faith, hope and love, love is the greatest.

The photo is a very small flower from a bamboo-like plant in my garden. Sorry, I don't know the name.

See with joyful eyes

This quote from Jonathan Lockwood Huie reminds us that our perception of things depends a lot on how we look at them. So something can be be beautiful to us but can be ugly to another. I have several personal experiences that proves this is true.

For example, I remember a movie that I watched with a friend after I successfully finished defending my Master's thesis. At another time, we would have found the movie corny and boring, but at the time we watched it, we were just so happy and relieved that we laughed heartily and sometimes hysterically throughout the whole show.

I'm sorry I don't know the name of this flower. It looks like a kind of wild daisy. I just found it on the roadside. When I took the shot, I forgot to change my settings after coming from an indoor shoot. So naturally, the shot came out overexposed. However, when I looked at it in the computer, I thought it looked like a washed out painting, so instead of deleting it, I used it as background for this quote.