Jeff told our family that one of his properties took an major beating by the fires...he has two vineyards; one of them is up in the hills near the Santa Rosa area? Yes, it's been a long time since I've been down there... but during the 60s, early 70s his dad, my dad's youngest brother, we'd go visit them when it was just a sleepy community in the mountains. I hope your favorite places were spared too, Martina! It's beautiful down there! (f)

I've travelled just about anywhere on this planet: Europe, Asia, South America, Australia, New Zealand, parts of Africa, Middle East, but honestly , nothing i've seen and enjoyed makes me want to move from Canada.

Right at this very moment, my slice of heaven is a shower of autumn leaves.

That's so sweet! I imagine that living in the desert of southern California didn't give you much of a chance to see fall foliage. I'm so happy that you're on the road, traveling with your spouse Kasey!

I love the countryside in these isles I was born in, particularly areas of rolling hills where you're never sure what might be around that corner or over that next ridge. I love the changing of the seasons, and am sad that snow is now so rare here, as I loved the contrast between the countryside draped with snow and how it looked in other seasons, sun-pillars peeking between cumulous on a stormy summer day, or a light spring breeze swishing through new foliage as lambs gambol in the fields.

I know that many, if not most other parts of the world have their own beauty and are doubtless loved by their inhabitatnts, too, but I have seen little of the rest of the world. I find the land of my birth beautiful enough that I would be content even if I never left its shores ever again. Truly, I feel deity smiled upon this land, even if many of its inhabitants don't seem to appreciate it (and even if I am often deeply frustrated by the activities of some of my fellow citizens). May you all find where you live so beautiful.

On a really warm summer day.....floating on my back in the pool, watching clouds float through the sky, and basking in the sunshine.....that's my slice of heaven :stillheart:

at night. On a cool summer/fall night. A bon fire, complete silence, and the stars. I wouldn't even mind if someone was there sharing it with me, as long as they can appreciate the nature too

ultimately..back home on Maui

"Ultimately", take me with you, kittygirl. I've never been there but I figure that with you as a local guide, I'd absolutely love it.

Slice of Heaven
 

My little ranch. I have lived here 13 years and I love every moment here. I have so many memories of family parties, bike rides, working the land, mowing, and time spent with the wildlife that live here with me on this land.

I only want to live here for as long as possible.

Here, where I live in the woods is NW Pennsylvania. During the summer there is a lot of hub-bub as this area is known for the forestry, camping, canoeing, fishing, hunting and so on for the mostly city dwellers we call "mupheres" as they come when the weather breaks. Its not really bothersome as they bring life and busyness with them, thinking they need all the comforts and running about to get them. Us locals tend to stay put on weekends or use the back roads!

The forest is really thick here, and in my heart there are no trees as beautiful as what we have around here in Cook Forest. Though all places are unique, this one has captured me even having been raised a city girl! In all that is good here, the natural life around me in the plants and trees, wildflowers, wild animals, seeing a momma turkey and her chicks, all six of them.....only to see them 3 weeks later all still alive and peeping at momma who crossed the road wanting them to follow. Then there was the 4 baby raccoons who lost their momma and hung around here for a few weeks then moved on. When I pass the cemetery just past the church is a stretch of road that I often see foxes running across to the other side, lately its been baby foxes. I am convinced they have found caves or something to burrow in during the winters here. Baby deer with their spots on their coats and running fast to keep up with mom or dad. Bunnies, groundhogs, owls and the bears scampering about breaking tree limbs or rummaging thru garbage cans. The wildflowers add to the beauty of it all with the colors and scents they send out. I feel closer to the sky here, the heavens as i refer to. The blue is so blue and those clouds seem so close, so beautiful. the night sky is unaffected by any light as it is pitch black at night here which makes for a beautiful view when looking skyward and all those stars so bright! When the moon is at half or more the lands light up enough that you can see where you are walking. My kitchen has 4 windows, one of them is wide and when the moon is full it lights up my whole kitchen!

If I have to pick a downfall, or a negative for me being here.....it is the extreme limit of encounters with other lesbians. That part surely is lonely!

But there is so much beyond that, and I can't say I would change any of this. My slice of heaven! It is cozy, I have everything I need and some of what I want. My place is clean, and well taken care of. I had an addition to the kitchen built this past winter/early spring along with siding, gutters, soffit and fascia around the whole house. I think my favorite part is the stream on my property just beside my house that runs heavy until July, then trickles and gets heavy again in October thru to the end of June. When I open my bedroom window on that same side of the house its like I am sleeping right there by the stream. It lulls me to sleep. Even in the winter, I will open my window for a bit... the rushing sound is soothing, and the air is cold....when I crawl under the covers and get warm.....I am out so fast sleeping soundly.

Winters here are brutally beautiful. Even the fall prior to winter is such a delight to see. Once the cold hits, and the snow falls......its breathtakingly beautiful. To see the snow lay on the tree branches, or the ice clinging to them making them all glisten. A winter wonderland when born overnight is such a spiritual sight to wake up to. The snow on the ground where the only life moving about is wild and leaving tracks to be seen. There is something good to be said for the virgin snow fall even while it is still falling, in big flakes that you can actually track to its landing spot! The crunch of the snow, and that strong desire to touch it, make a snow ball....or to just move the snow with your hand from a porch railing feeling the icy coldness on my warm skin.

I hope you all have a slice of heaven that is yours, even if just in heart ...mind....and spirit!

North Padre Island, Texas
 

Crater Lake National Park
 

http://www.dawn-productions.com/core...-the-Earth.jpg

It's so dark at night that the night skies are lit by zillions of stars... it's breath-takingly beautiful. The air is crisply fragrant from forest pines and when it snows, it snows deeply. Sometimes the roads that lead to Crater Lake are closed due to heavy snow conditions, during winter months.

Heaven
 

My father use to call our home "Gods back yard". The beauty and serenity of my birthplace Newfoundland Canada is all the heaven I could ever need. Fresh clean air, humidity is rare, surrounded by the Atlantic ocean , fresh seafood abound. Mountains, forests, ocean, rivers and peace and quiet is all one could ask for.

The Blue Hour is always on my "Slice of Heaven" list. I love it when I've been driving home and while crossing the river, on one of many bridges we have in town, it always mesmerizes me, how the Blue Hour envelopes the city skyline and how the lights begin to meld into the last drops of the day. :stillheart:

joy~
 

Sometimes, my little slice of heaven is right here at home. There's no city light pollution. You can see the stars and the moon, with clarity of vision. I love it on chilly evenings, too, because in the fields nearby, big flocks of geese often drift by to graze upon the fields of grass. Hundreds upon hundreds of them. And when they take off into the sky, singing like only geese can do, it brings peace to my mind. It makes me think of peaceful things like Mary Oliver's beautiful poem: Wild Geese.



Wild Geese

You do not have to be good.

You do not have to walk on your knees for an hundred miles through the desert repenting.

You only have to let the animal of your body love what it loves.

Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you about mine.

Meanwhile, the world goes on.

Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and rivers.

Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clear blue air, are heading home again.

Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like wild geese, harsh and exciting, over and over, announcing your place in things.

by Mary Oliver


In, Dreamwork
(Atlanta Monthly Press, 1986).

http://imgc.allpostersimages.com/ima...nnsylvania.jpg

Sometimes I find myself creating a tiny slice of heaven when I create art projects for myself or to share with those who are near and dear to my heart.

That is my peaceful place, creating art.

I found this tonight and I've always been inspired by Paul Foreman's Mind Mapping art. I think I will do this, make a mind map for a few people I know here at home. And, of course, make one for me too.

https://i.pinimg.com/736x/31/9f/a2/3...f3954789d0.jpg

https://lifebeinggirly.com/wp-conten...ue-chicago.jpg


Hustle and Bustle of city sidewalks.......