the balcony scene

loyal waves crash touch

laughter-- pull away with faith--

to return once more

::

and other times life sneaks up like a huge wave knocking me down, throwing me far off course and leaving me there to see the beauty that exists but just out of reach...

all year long i thought the waves that would touch me this summer would be in maratea italy with all my friends to celebrate the marriage of two dear friends maria teresa and christophe.... but headaches and instability in this life of mine left me ashore. maria teresa and christophe have their wedding today and i won't be there.... au moins, later this week my norwegian friend will arrive from the wedding to california to give me the full report over kaffe. but i won't be in italy today and there was not question in my mind, i planned to be there for them. but life has crashed down on me multiple times since then.

and you may remember a little website we were making together for their wedding.. ya... it's still sitting there.. with one entry {ooops}. perhaps we can turn it into an online guest book / photo album for those who were there in person and in spirit. still can't think about missing their day, it makes me too sad.

dear friends that live so far that oceans get in the way and physically divide us, but at the same time, could never keep us apart.

these are photos from the last time i saw mt and chris last spring in paris. last farewell glimpses taken from the window of a train after years of friendship, two weeks of just-like-it-used-to-be, and this lovely afternoon spent in the sunny garden of their versailles house....

::

i'm not super sweet on wedding inspired stories, but their story is simply perfection and cannot be overlooked. two of the most genuine, generous, fun, funny, sweet, adorable, charming, vivacious, delightful people...

literal sunshine in my life and over my rough oceans.

you guys have brightened my life. and i'm not just saying it, i really really mean it. i wish you all the happiness. but it's been there and will be, it's already written for you.....

footprints trace those in

smooth sands deep that time will tell--

the hours-- yours to make

::

love to you mt and chris
et a tres vite j'espere...
bisoubacikisses
x c

{the first & last photos were taken in maratea italy and i absolutly love them :: by design monkey}

...to walk through this and come out again

and then this morning, after a cup of coffee i, quite by chance, re-discovered this thought:

"The wise man in the storm prays to god, not for safety from danger, but for deliverance from fear.
It is the storm within that endangers him,
not the storm without."
Emerson

friends for all seasons

it seems as though my very favorite statue in the vigeland sculpture park in frognerparken oslo, norway (my norwegian friend {and oslo correspondent} lives right near it) is covered in snow, poor girl must be cold she has snow in her hair!


(the girl i'm refering to is this statue, my favorite, i love this girl! marianne {my norwegian friend} is, i'm sure, cold as well and most likely has snow in her hair, but i'm not sure it's as dramatic as this!!)


apparently it's been snowing a lot everywhere (except here in california where there's a possibility of rain today...but that's about it).. my olso correspondant sent reports today of 'it's been snowing like crazy here the last couple of days' and i've heard similar remarks from paris and toronto.. but i only walk through it in the warmth of my mind and the pictures i'm sent, and i'd venture to say it's a more pleasent experience like that.


this is my girl basking in the warmth of an august afternoon in oslo.


and i'm including some more of the images she sent of the statues in the snow..


i love how they look covered in snow!!


though these guys look like they've had just about enough!

...they make me smile, as does that girl, and this time, i mean marianne ;)))

almost out the door.......

i always get ideas and inspirations when i don't have any paper or time to write..
on walks or in the shower or when i'm pressed to get somewhere rushing to get ready and leave the house, well it's often a sequence of inspiration: walk..shower..get ready..try to write some of it down quickly..inevitably late out the door......



and yes i find myself in that position once again. wanted to share some delightful photos of oslo in the snow, according to my norwegian correspondent ((aka my dearest norwegian friend marianne)) it snowed 36 hours straight this past weekend in oslo, and she took photos of some of my favorite places in olso..places i've only visited in the sun ((yes there really is sun in norway!!)) now covered in snow. she's one of those friends that makes me feel like i'm right there with her, walking to kaffebrenneriet for kaffe or driving through the mountains to the island sommerhus.....



oh, and would you look at the time, i'm officially running late. again. haha funny that i'm running late after just talking about my dearest scandinavian friend....ever punctual..ever patient with me..

tucen takk, stort kyss x c