Find Good in Everything

And this, our life, exempt from public haunt, finds tongues in trees, books in running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in everything. ~~ William Shakespeare

I love this quote! I think I want it inscribed on my grave marker! What a wonderful way to live -- seeing stories and books, hearing sermons and tongues and finding good in everything. I almost believe some people are sprinkled with favor, like a magic dust, that allows them to see the story and hear the sermon.

One afternoon, my son and I were going out to eat, and I saw something spectacular on the roadside. I can't remember what because I didn't have my camera, but I do remember a statement he made. "You don't miss anything, do you? How do you notice all that stuff?"

Matt is trying to refine his palate by trying different foods. The oral palate is often mistaken as an organ of taste; however, there are many more sensory receptors for taste on the tongue. Our aesthetic palate is the taste we perceive - an intellectual taste or mental relish. In order to have a discerning taste for fine food or wine, we must have a cultivated palate of perception. Mahatma Ghandi said that the control of the palate is a valuable aid for the control of the mind. The same is true with what we see around us (or smell or touch). Most of us are blessed with basic eyesight, but very few people have cultivated their ability to see the beauty that others miss.

Muscadine Shine!

Cedars Crying

Fine Dining

The Season's New Blue

Hole-in-One High Rise

Last Saturday, my mom and I were waiting at a country road stop sign. I looked out my passenger window and saw a bantam chicken and her five little chicks crossing the road. I had my camera; however, the driver of the car behind us was impatient and blew his horn for us to go. I missed the rare picture, as the tiny chicks were following their mother in one straight line.

Some people see stories, and hear sermons, and find the good in everything. It's their palate for living - refined, cultivated, trained. It's what separates us from mere existence (and road signs) and offers us a taste of the Divine (like Abramovich Filet and Creme Brulee at Olga's, Matt!)
And this, our life...

Dianne ; )