practicing and expressing gratitude can have positive impacts on our mind, body and heart. an attitude of gratitude improves our wellbeing, enhances empathy, and encourages an optimistic outlook towards life.

— ‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎january

• i am grateful for new beginnings timed with crescent moons.
• i am grateful for the deep sleep found under a heavy quilt.
• i am grateful for windows that catch the afternoon sunset.
• i am grateful for the warm spot where the cat just slept.
• i am grateful for the first page of a notebook, burgeoning.

— ‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎february

• i am grateful for beautiful goodbyes to very beloved friends.

• wake every morning with gratitude for the blessing of life.
• offer a kind word to bloom in someone's heart like a flower.
• speak kindly to yourself so you may speak kindly to others.
• help carry the burdens of others as a breeze lifts the leaves.
• embrace your silence, allow others to share their own stories.
• let hope become a light to someone lost in the darkness.
• use kindness as your compass, go where it leads your heart.
• use your words like a river, flowing gently yet unwaveringly.
• walk barefoot on the grass, connect with the earth beneath.
• be mindful of each footprint you leave behind on this earth.

• a: astonishment ⋅ auroras ⋅ affections ⋅ angels ⋅ autumn
• b: blossoms ⋅ bookshelves ⋅ blueberries ⋅ ballet ⋅ butterflies
• c: clovers ⋅ cottages ⋅ curiosity ⋅ candles ⋅ constellations
• d: delight ⋅ dandelions ⋅ daydreams ⋅ dewdrops ⋅ daffodils
• e: evergreen ⋅ eucalyptus ⋅ empathy ⋅ evenings ⋅ ephemeral
• f: forests ⋅ feathers ⋅ forget-me-nots ⋅ friends ⋅ fireflies ⋅ fawns
• g: gardening ⋅ green tea ⋅ gratitude ⋅ golden hour ⋅ gentleness
• h: hummingbirds ⋅ hyacinths ⋅ hope ⋅ honeysuckle ⋅ hues
• i: ivy vines ⋅ instrospection ⋅ irises ⋅ incense ⋅ imagination
• j: joy ⋅ jardinières ⋅ jasmines ⋅ journaling ⋅ january ⋅ jokes
• k: kisses ⋅ keepsakes ⋅ kindness ⋅ kn...

therefore i am: birds singing in the early morning ⋅ chamomile tea with honey ⋅ claude monet paintings ⋅ flowers that grow against all odds in harsh places ⋅ public libraries ⋅ reading books while sitting by a window ⋅ evenings at the ballet with my friends ⋅ lavender perfume ⋅ raindrops tapping gently on the roof ⋅ receiving handwritten letters ⋅ nurturing plants into flourishing ⋅ first dates at the café ⋅ old music boxes with twirling ballerinas inside ⋅ identifying constellations ⋅ french and italian opera ⋅ freshly picked blueberries ⋅ old photographs of family members ⋅ the scent of the earth after rain ⋅ barefoot dancing ⋅ gentlemen that open doors for you ⋅ the full moon in a clear night ⋅ frederic chopin ⋅ the pages of a well-worn journal ⋅ afternoon naps ⋅ beginner-friendly pottery classes

• farmer: roux ⋅ spring 11.
• farm: rosarie farm ⋅ hilltop ✦
• favourite thing: roseleaf tea.
• relationship: elliott, the poet ⋅ boyfriend.
  • loves: feathers, ink, pomegranates.
• friends: leah, the artist ⋅ robin, the carpenter.
• pets: rouge ⋅ cat / rosavelt ⋅ horse.
• favourite places: cindersap forest ⋅ elliott's cabin.
• animals:
  • poultry: raisha ⋅ rubra ⋅ roisin ⋅ rhodie ⋅ ritter
  • cattle: rubie ⋅ russet ⋅ rachis ⋅ ramah ⋅ ratcho
  • ovine: rusula ⋅ rosier ⋅ romeo ⋅ rosanna ⋅ raubritt

• dance of the willis · giselle, act ii · adolphe adam. ✦
  • a moonlit forest glade is haunted by vengeful spirits of betrayed brides called willis. their beautiful dance ritual hypnotises trespassers to their death.
• balcony pas de deux · romeo and juliet · prokofiev. ✦
  • strings surge with an adolescent fervor as forbidden lovers unite under the starlight, their urgency melting into tenderness, then shattering with the sunrise.
• chambre · manon, act i · macmillan / massenet. ✦
  • in a shabby attic lit only by the moonlight, this pas de deux evolves slowly, just as the characters blur the line between tenderness and possessiveness.

my name is florrie. (she/her) i am an april-born daydreamer, quiet-talker and rabbit-hearted girl. i am an enthusiast of handwritten letters, secret gardens, old music boxes, overgrown cottages, forgotten journals, and all things that can safekeep memories. i enjoy reading poems, picking flowers, drinking tea, daydreaming, listening to orchestras, and writing little notes about it all.

• delighting in: sunlight reflected through aureate objects
• paying attention to: evening rain and its earthy scent
• spending time on: slowly rebuilding my old reading habits
• listening to: the neighbourhood children returning from school
• indulging in: green vegetable soup to avert the coldness
• visiting: the parish for a few minutes before going to work
• practising: being a beginner and asking questions, humbly
• looking forward to: the slow return to life's quotidian routines

— ‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎january

a soft morning rain tracing silver lines down the window ⋅ the weight and scent of a new journal ⋅ the way the lamplight gilds the cobblestones at six o'clock ⋅ handmaking ceramic candleholders ⋅ a conversation with an old friend about night-blooming flowers ⋅ painting my nails a milky white colour ⋅ welcoming a new priest into our parish ⋅ waking from my after-lunch naps to find the bedroom lit by a soft pink sunset ⋅ the early arrival of grape season.

— ‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎february

rain falling on a slate roof ⋅ the companionable silence of reading in the same room as a stranger ⋅ homemade almond biscuits ⋅

• forget the map. follow the moss on the north side of the trees.
• kiss the sunlight until my shadow grows warm and long.
• carry less. what is vital will find its own way to my pockets.
• greet my reflection with the kindness owed to a stranger.
• find forgiveness in the small: the missed bus, the lost keys.
• unclench my hands. accept both feathers and stones as gifts.
• befriend the version of me that everyone else seems to know.
• build a room in the mind where the weather is still. visit often.

the bible in a year is a reading plan and audio series that guides you through the entire catholic bible in 365 days, organised by historical periods. this allows you to follow the complete biblical narrative as a continuous story.

— jan 01 ⋅ jan 26: early world & the patriarchs

• ▨ narrative readings: genesis 1–50
• ▨ supplementary readings: job 1–42
• ▨ wisdom: psalms 1-2, 16-17, 19, 104, 136; proverbs 1–4

— jan 27 ⋅ feb 15: egypt & the exodus

• ▨ narrative readings: exodus 1–40; leviticus 1–27
• ▨ wisdom: psalms 44-50, 53, 71, 73-79, 81-83, 115, 119

— feb 16 ⋅ mar 21: desert wanderings

• ▢ narrative readings: numbers 1–36; d...

i believe that poetry is the most beautiful expression of human creativity. every month i select five favourites of the poems that i have recently read. they are often about hope and wonderment, the beauty of nature, and humanity's shared love for this world.

— ‏‏‎ ‎‏‏‎january

• the year, ella wheeler wilcox ✦
• a prayer in spring, robert frost ✦
• january poem, suzanne matson ✦
• scimitar, arthur sze ✦
• in the woods, kathryn simmonds ✦

• antiques: porcelain teacups · leather books · pressed flowers
• architecture: stained glass · wrought iron · arched doorways
• baked goods: croissants · scones · madeleines · brioche
• birds: hummingbirds · nightingales · rain doves · robins
• colours: periwinkle ⋅ mauve ⋅ porcelain ⋅ gainsboro ⋅ lilac
• desserts: blueberry cake ⋅ macaroons ⋅ shortbread cookie
• feelings: connection with nature ⋅ a contentment in stillness
• flowers: hyacinths ⋅ roses ⋅ lavender ⋅ baby's breath ⋅ wisteria
• garden features: trellises · bird baths · stone pathways
• hobbies: reading ⋅ pottery ⋅ flower-picking ⋅ journaling
• insects: fireflies · ladybugs · dragonflies · ...

• when she entered a room, she meowed at everyone present.
• she smelt every new flower that blossomed in the garden.
• hated visitors and bit them when she wanted them gone.
• climbed fruit trees, then meowed to be brought down.
• only hunted the critters that were colourful and pretty.
• enjoyed being carried stomach up, like one carries a baby.
• prefered to drink from the watering can than from her bowl.
• was afraid of fireworks, but mellowed when music played.
• squeaked, purred, and hummed when she was dreaming.
• was nicknamed by her vets "the gentlest little lady".
• posed elegantly when someone approached w...

• 0101: holy theotokos, mother of god
• 0401: the epiphany of the lord
• 1101: the baptism of the lord
  • the beginning of ordinary time
• 2401: ocia classes resume ✦
• 0202: the presentation of the lord
• 0802: retreat ✦
• 1802: ash wednesday
  • the beginning of lent
• 1903: saint joseph, husband of mary
• 2503: the annunciation of the lord
• 2903: palm sunday of the lord's passion
  • the beginning of holy week
• 0204: holy thursday of the lord’s supper

• le jardin de capulet · roméo et juliette, mvmt ii · berlioz. ✦
  • the capulets' garden is silent and deserted, until it is filled with the sound of the young capulets leaving the banquet singing snatches of music from the ball.
• allegro giocoso · symphony no. 4, mvmt iii · brahms. ✦
  • a sudden eruption of triumphant energy, pounding like a victorious dance, before slowly yielding to a soft trio of woodwinds, tinged with a soft melancholy.
• con grazia · symphonie no. 6, mvmt ii · tchaikovsky. ✦
  • a graceful waltz set in an unusual rhythm, where you can almost feel the sorrow gliding across the ballroom, like a young dancer with a broken heart.
• poco allegretto · symphony no. 3, mvmt iii · brahms. ✦
  • once described by clara schumann as “a ...

• miniature pie tarts with a blueberry filling ✦
• blueberry macarons with a cheesecake filling ✦
• blackberry and lavender macarons with lemon filling ✦
• the best chocolate chip cookies of all time (really) ✦
• buttery shortbread cookie with blueberry jam ✦
• raspberry crumb bars with a sweet jam filling ✦