smell the roses

All too many times in life I have been reminded of how fragile our lives are. Every time I say to myself, 'it's time to live'. Well I actually guess I'm lucky. I have a roof over my head, a loving family, children I'm very proud of and I'm doing what I love, my art and writing. Okay so if I'm honest it barely pays the bills, but I'm happy in building my business, a name for myself, always in the hope of recognition.

I have achieved things I'm very proud of, the main one being a silver gilt medal at the Chelsea Flower Show a few years back, for an exhibit I designed and illustrated and my wonderful team helped me construct.  I worked for several years in horticulture and still have a passion for plants and beautiful gardens and landscapes.

Those landscapes still inspire me, as an artist and writer. If I hit a stumbling block for ideas, a walk in the woods or on the beach is sure to inspire. For me it's a reminder of the beauty there is in the world. With all the sadness and horrors that currently pour into our lives via the media, I'm saddened at humanity. I long to hide away in the beauty of the world, give me a small natural built home in the middle of nowhere to be self sufficient, write, paint and work with nature, that sounds like bliss.

We all have dreams, aspirations. The grass is always greener and so on. But sometimes, on those days where we are feeling down, we need to look at others and understand that we all have our troubles, our sadness, and take time to reflect that our lives are really OK. Count our blessings. Take time to smell the roses, watch the sky, the stars, hug a tree (yes there is an underlying hippy in me). Even in the city there is beauty, sit and people watch, take a walk in the park, kick through the autumn leaves, put a shiny conker in your pocket as a reminder. But above all take a few minutes each day to just stop, forget the rat race, the bills to pay, the worries about our children, our parents, just a few minutes for just you. Stop, breathe and still dream those dreams, work towards them but remember to live for now, we forget that all too easily.