Freedom in Freedom Park

A bridge over untroubled waters.



Yesterday was a gorgeous day here in Charlotte. Made all the more glorious by the same friend whose house I photographed recently. She took my children to play tennis, eat lunch, go for a walk, eat ice cream, and then head back to her house to watch UNC play basketball.

I had five splendid hours alone. For my first stop, I made my way to Freedom Park and walked around the pond. I sat on a bench for a while and basked in the sunlight, the spray from a fountain, and the sound of other people's children chasing geese, dogs, and each other.

I was so smitten by the beauty of the morning and the park that,
even though I was loaded down with things to do,
I neither read nor journaled. I just sat there.
Listening. Looking. Thinking. Praying. Breathing. Smiling.
Bliss.


There is my striped leg, swinging happily towards the pond in the park.
Soon after I took this photo, a solitary duck swam past. Squawking.
"I know what you mean," I said to her. "I know exactly what you mean.
Sometimes the best thing to do is leave the maddening crowd behind and get away alone."

The socks earned me several compliments over the course of the day.
FYI: Target is a great place to find thigh high socks.
Not that I've bought any in the past couple of months...


As cliche as it may sound, I felt a lot like this flower,
a newly formed bloom
growing out of the trunk of a hollowed tree.
There is still life in there. Nutrients are still flowing.
We have great hope. A promising future.
Indeed.