How are things in your corner of the world today? I’d love to hear from you. Feel free to respond with a single word, a sentence, a photo, or even a particularly apt emoji if you’d like! Longer answers are welcome as well. 😊

Make the world more beautiful by sharing your voice. This is a thread for sharing our hobbies, our passions, our works-in-progress. Let's prepare a beautiful patchwork together. :D

Recently I started a new book, “The Book of Delights” by Ross Gay. And so far, it *is* a delight! This morning, I read a sentence (or technically, two—you’ll see why I say one in a moment) that I must share with you. It’s a wandering thought that captures the mind when wandering in a way far more poetic than I can. Writing about his decision to create the collection, a project that he intended to involve crafting a short essay a day for an entire year, he says he came to the idea while walking . . . “When I decided this I was walking back to my lodging in a castle (delight) from very strong espressos in a cafe in Umbertide (delight), having just accidentally pilfered a handful of loquats from what I thought was a public tree (but upon just a touch more scrutiny was obviously not—delight!), and sucking in the ripe little fruit, turning the smooth gems of their seeds around in my mouth as wild fennel fronds wisped the breeze on the roadside, a field of sunflowers stretched to the horizon, casting their seedy grins to the sun above, the honeybees in the linden trees thick enough for me not only to hear but to feel in my body, the sun like a guiding hand on my back, saying everything is possible. 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. “ 🤩 This winding sentence *is* in fact everything. And minus the light theft, 😂, EXACTLY why I write so much about wandering. THIS is wandering. *This* is what I live for. Can you relate?

Here in Ohio, we’ve been experiencing cooler mornings, and many of my favorite songbirds have been molting. What are some changes you have been noticing lately?

Happy Friday! I hope you have had a wonderful week. Ours has certainly been a bit of a "mixed bag." 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗢𝗢𝗗 On the positive side, a bundle I am part of is finally live and I can share it with you! It's hosted by my good friend @Rebecca B , and I know a couple of our members here are part of it as well. @Rachel Mohl It's called the "Cozy Seasons" bundle, and it has 35 printable and digital products to make your fall a little extra special. And it's free! :D My contribution is something I made for kids, and if you're a member of this group and have children or grandchildren, or if you are a teacher, I think you may truly enjoy it. It's called "Noticing Nature: Autumn Observer," and it encourages kids (especially around the 7-12 years old range) to get outside, notice, create, and reflect on their experience. If you're interested in the bundle or checking out my work, you can access it here: https://amandareneectrlz--keb.thrivecart.com/the-cozy-seasons-collection/ . Please note this is an affiliate link. While the primary bundle (including my creation) is free, there is a VIP pass that you might be interested in. It adds even more resources and goes a little deeper with its offerings. It also allows you extended time to access the gifts inside, and as you know, I'm all about decreasing the urgency of things. 🙂 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗘𝗦𝗦-𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡-𝗚𝗢𝗢𝗗 We are safe and healthy, but two things we could have gone without this week are a failed air conditioner and six inches of rain in one night! I posted about the six inches yesterday in the group, so I'll focus on the air conditioner today. It also brings a couple of questions I've been pondering that I'd love you to consider . . . When we moved into our house over 20 years ago, my father (who has HVAC training) noted that the air conditioner would likely need replaced soon. So we are quite lucky that it only finally breathed its last this week! (Both because of the quality of products from years back that seem so much better than those offered in the age of obsolescence, but also due to a dad who did his best to keep that thing keeping us cool for all of these extra years.)