A Song For Simple Things

I've had this on my fridge for years, passed on by a dear friend. Maybe it was growing up on Mt Veeder with lots of freedom, siblings, fresh air and imagination - Corbin's words touch me.

'I have a heart for small and lonely things
First star; far steeple on a gathered town;
A need for separateness to heed a circling hawk,
Or know an owl's low and sleepy tremolo
Before the line of sun slices down the hills
To brighten golden boulders in a brook.
I am in love with lovely, simple things.

I've hungered long for shy and hidden things -
The plunging woodcock's amorous trilling from the sky,
A dazzle-sheen on beetle wing beneath the bark,
Old foxfire in a rotten stump I scatter with a stick,
Or cooling kiss of a milkweed silk along my cheek,
The pepper-tingle of nasturtium seeds I bite -
I am in love with hidden, simple things.'

HAROLD CORBIN

Photo by Kristen Loken / Flowers by Kathy Hoffman /

Quintessential Barrel Room...

Whewww, what a week. This morning seems like a long time ago.

I had to post this picture of a rehearsal dinner I did in the Fall. More images on this to come. Barrel room, amber tones, garden roses, rusted candelabra, amazing linen - visuals don't get better than that, wine county at it's best. Oh, and it was harvest season. I can just stare and stare.

flowers by Kathy Hoffman and photo by the talented Anna Kuperberg.

Off to rest and drink some tea.

Be who you are and be that well.....

I can't take credit for that great thought. The credit goes to an amazing Saint who changed my life, St. Francis de Sales. I believe today is his feast day. There was a time about 5 years ago when I was over my head in work, waking up already behind and buried in tasks, meetings, details, timelines, you name it. It was my biggest wedding season ever; my team and I did 21 full service weddings.

That year, I stumbled upon a quote of his and kept it on the fridge for years. Agg, cannot find it at the moment, but in essence, He said...'do one thing at a time and do it as well as you can.' Wow. Process that for a minute. Total peace, because one doesn't think about the next task if one is giving 100% to the present task. The ripple effect in your business and personal life of doing 'one thing at a time as perfectly as possible' is astronomical. My stress level went down and my quality of product and service went up.

From that point, I became a bit of a follower of his ideas. Here are some of his thoughts I keep nearby and handy (his sayings abbreviated in to my own words...)

Give the Holy Spirit permission
Be persistent in your prayer, don't stop knocking on the door
Accept and do not be afraid, grow in your faith
Difficult situations form me, the PRESENT is God's will
Be steady in the course of holiness, never give up
Follow God's will in making decisions, if we act upon holy inspirations, it will bring us peace
Learn to embrace your cross
Do not be discouraged by your failings, that is how we learn. Get up and move on

Abandon yourself completely to God's will - His will is perfect in His time.

New Beginnings

I love new beginnings
I love New Years
I love new notebooks and brand new black medium sharpies
This blog is my new notebook and sharpie.
I'll write about anything that inspires me. There are no grades, I am not competing, I'll speak my mind. I'll share my faith, my work, some of my family and pretty much anything that catches my heart, eye or imagination.

Ellie's smile catches my heart.

'Mission Statements' aren't just for companies

Over the past 10 years I grew to really love working on my business, making it grow, making it better, improving systems and communication and learning how to stay real and close deals. I am missing some of that right now; so, it was timely to find an article in www.inc.com about www.holstee.com Mission Statement. LOVE IT! Trust me, if you've not yet read their inspiring mission statement, take 5 minutes to do it. And then take another 10 minutes to write your own.

What do you think of the idea of a mission statement that is an expression of who you are and where your values lie, a manifesto that is genuine and personal, yet something folks around you can identify with. Mission statements aren't just for companies. We all need a manifesto.

Moi

I am Rebecca Feeney. Where do I start??? I am a wife and mother, I married my best friend and still have a big crush on him. We adopted three children in 3.5 years. I've planned 170 weddings over the last 11 years, I've logged over 20.000 hours working with brides and their families. Love to garden, wish I were better at it. Love to cook, wish I were better at it. I love great coffee, sunny mornings, a long Saturday run, a great book and a cup of tea at night. I am new to the blogging world - I am constantly inspired and I think this is a pretty neat spot to compile the things that I love. These are my Valley Views.