Love is in the air ..... everywhere!

Shedding winter's garments is such an uplifting "gift" from Spring... for all creatures... in both the human and animal kingdom. Everywhere one looks... there is ample evidence of the joy and exuberance that increased warmth... daylight and the increased energy provide for man, animals and the plant world.

Geese and waterfowl have passed through the annual migration and courting rituals and have settled into nesting... one pair per puddle... pothole or pond. Other species of bird life males establish high ground parapets... from which to sing and flash their colours... to dominate their areas and to protect nesting females.Human couples stroll hand-in-hand along waterfronts and beaches... or spend quiet hours alone on a bench staring into each other's eyes.

Yes... "Love"... in its many differing forms... can be seen just about anywhere during Spring. Love springs up from "within"... it must begin there. But it travels... and can be "caught". It is indeed contagious... if "One" is open to its possibility! Despite the myth that "true love"... is hard to find... it is really everywhere around each one of us. Whether we recognize it ... respond to it... or keep it... depends upon each one of us. We are indeed the "captains" of our own destinies... and that also applies to the inclusion... or exclusion of "Love" in our journeys.

The painting displayed on today's post is a favourite of mine. It was painted immediately after our first visit to Victoria, BC to spend time with my bother Don and his lovely wife Claudia... since they had moved there 15 years earlier. Don is my younger sibling by a mere 11 months... too close a gap for comfort... for both of us. As is typical with two young lads... in a VERY small nest... we warred continually and were too unfairly compared in expectations and accomplishments.

This period of time... shortly after the passing of our parents was the very first time that we met with mutual admiration and respect for the other... without fearing the need to complete or to live up to the standards of others.It was a moment of epiphany... and relief for us both. Fully embracing our love for each other... we now we are in touch with each other weekly by phone... and even physically when one can travel.Love is... finally... and truly... in the air!

"Life is a Beach"... in this painting today... is a real beach, It is called French Beach and is a popular beach on Vancouver Island where Don and I spent time alone on one occasion early in our visit. The next time we spent there, it was crowded with many other noisy sun lovers.... and love surely was in the air, but in an entirely different form!

In closing, Life... the Beach... is a place where we can choose to exist alone, amid flotsam left by storms and uncertainty. But Life... the Beach... can also be a sunny and wonderful beach...littered profusely with many fond memories... a place where love can be stored and shared... for years to come.

I have included some addition places where I unexpectedly... but certainly "found"....Love. Love can be found to be "positive"... and Love can be "negative". It can be hurtful... and it can be healing. It seldom can be expected to be lasting... without changing. Learning how to change with it and encourage it to grow is the key to finding Happiness in Love. Learning to love and respect one's Self... is the true starting place to receive and to give love.

Good Painting... and Hunting!... to ALL!!!