Tiffi's Treasure

"Okay, Tiff, we have 5 minutes to find a heart, can you help me search?" ... my niece and I, bound and determined to find a heart and only a few minutes to spare. She'd gone out of sight for just a moment when -- "Hey Aunt Clytie! I found one!". Sure enough on the bark of the tree around the corner ... a perfectly beautiful and perfectly new heart scratched lightly onto the tree! Good job Tiffi! Because you know what? There are times when you really need to make your own heart!!!

Thank you for that reminder, Tiff. I can't wait to see what you come up with next time!

Cradled in Bark

I wasn't sure this heart would show up in the photos (just barely, but it's there!). The sun was in the wrong spot; traffic was whizzing by the road 2 feet from my behind; my camera was having seizures; the neighbor's dog was running at me. I took 2 pictures, then fled. I am so very glad they turned out - better than I thought they would! I love the way the curling bark cradles the heart, trailing ribbons below.

Tombstone Heart

I did not expect to find any hearts here in this pioneer cemetery, but I found one anyway!

Another Lichen Heart

I found this heart on an old wind-fallen fir branch just inside the woods. I think it's perfect!

Victoria's Hearts

I totally overlooked these beautiful leaf (Cottonwood, I think) hearts, and walked on by. But my daughter saw them and pointed them out to me. Even though they are worn and torn, they are still Random Hearts.

Dainty Cloud

Thank you to Beth at Beth Niquette Fine Art for reminding me to not just look, but to see the clouds. Her cloud paintings are fantabulous!!! I remembered to look up this week, and found this beautiful heart ...

Towel

From the mundane to the totally unexpected! I was putting away towels this morning, rolling them up as I normally do, when I came across this heart. In fact, it's kind of a heart within a heart!

Sit Here A While

Okay, so it's a little mundane, and the chair back is a little worn and scratched ... but who would have expected to find a heart here?

My Puzzle Tree

When I was about 4 I was fascinated with pine trees, and the way their bark flaked off in the shapes of puzzle pieces. I must have collected a million of them when we took a driving trip to Yellowstone. That year for my birthday my parents took me to a nursery and I got to pick out my very own "puzzle tree", a small sapling almost as tall as I was.

A few (ahem!) years have passed since then, and my tree is all growed up, straight and tall. It still isn't old enough to "puzzle" very well, but I found my tree has given me a wonderful heart.

Gummed!

I had a long hard day today, with a lot of driving and waiting. During one of my 'waiting' times, I found this beautiful heart in the parking lot. Someone's used chewing gum ... poor thing -- chewed out, spat on, squashed flat, driven upon, never noticed ... and yet still, somehow, a stunning heart. There's a lesson here for me....

Back Porch

I felt like whining today.
The wind is gusting something fierce.
The rain is pouring down.
The low spots in the yard are mudpits.
How can I take my daily picture-taking walk?
When I can't see?
When I can't feel my hands?
When I can't even stand upright?

I don't feel like whining anymore.
The wind is still gusting something fierce.
The rain is still pouring down.
The mudpits are still growing.

But I found what I wanted to go out searching for ...

Right on my own back porch step!

Yellow Lichen

I found this yellow and red lichen heart the other day.
The sun made the colors seem to glow!
Alas, it would have not worked today.
Cold. Windy. Rainy.

Spilled Paint

There's a spot on the railroad tracks in town where some local painters apparently think it's okay to dump their paint ... they just pour it out randomly over the rocks ... I found this beautiful heart here, along with abandoned paint cans, dropcloths, and trash. It doesn't seem like anybody cares, because this mess has been here for months, added onto several times over. What a shame.

Stretchy Heart

I found these broken rubberbands near the compost bin, and couldn't help seeing the heart created!