Night Bloom…

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abstract art, botanical, botanical art, botanical prints, Colorful Art, floral, floral art, flower, flower art, flower garden, flower painting, flower paintings, flower prints, flowers, flowers art, flowers painting, mosaic, mosaic art, night bloom, nightfall, nighttime, sharon cummings art, spring, spring art

Sometimes I like to find what’s in the darkness….It’s still pretty. 🙂 Lavender petals with a fading night sky….botanical flower art for everyone!

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Eternal Youth Flower…

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abstract, abstract art, beach, botanical, botanical prints, Colorful Art, colorful floral, colorful flowers, floral, floral art, floral paintings, floral prints, flower, flower art, flower paintings, flowers, modern, modern art, sharon cummings, sharon cummings art

Or Wishful thinking…At any rate, it will always stay young!

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I’ve Got the Summer Blues…

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abstract art, botanical, botanical art, botanical prints, Colorful Art, floral, floral art, flower, flower art, flower paintings, flower prints, flowers, hydrangea, modern, mosaic, mosaics, sharon cummings, sharon cummings art, spring, spring art, spring flowers, still life, still life art, summer, summer art

But not feeling down as long as I have fresh picked flowers to fill my world. 🙂

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Wow….

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abstract art, botanical, botanical art, botanical prints, contemporary art, contemporary floral, daisies, daisy, daisy art, daisy flowers, modern floral, modern flower, modern flowers, sharon cummings, white daisy

Daisy wow! Three bright white daisies floating in a perfect blue sky. Enjoy!

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Better Together…

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abstract art, botanical, Colorful Art, floral, floral art, floral prints, flower, flower art, flower petals, flower prints, flowers, love, love art, love gifts, love prints, lovers, modern art, romance, romantic, romantic art, sharon cummings, sharon cummings art

Whether it’s a lover, a friend or a family member, we need each other. Embrace the love!

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Fuchsia Petals…

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blue, blue art, botanical, botanical art, botanical prints, burgundy, floral, floral art, floral prints, flower art, flower paintings, flower petals, flower prints, flowers, fuchsia, modern, modern art, modern decor, modern flower, sharon cummings, sharon cummings art

Let them draw you right into their blue, pink and burgundy spiral!

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Wild Adventures!

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art, botanical, bright colors, Colorful Art, floral, flower, flowers, garden, gardener, gardening, inspiration, life, pretty art, sharon cummings, wild, wild flowers

In flowers that is….Still intoxicated with mandala madness. 🙂

Look With WILD ABANDON Here…

I Blinked & Spring is Gone…

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botanical, common weeds, eco, flower, garden, gardening, lavender, macro, macro photo, macro photography, natural, nature, painting, petal, petals, plant, plants, purple, sharon cummings, spring, summer, weeds, wild, wildflower, wildflowers

 

I went outside today to see if there were any flowers left blooming.  In Florida we have a short Winter and then a handful of nice Spring days with bursts of color everywhere.  The azaleas…….the bromeliads……and then it all dies………….9 months of HEAT. Not much grows in Summer except the grass and weeds.  All of my irises are brown and crispy looking.  The lilies look like beef jerky.  But this little group of tiny dancers was still celebrating, so I snapped them quickly before the sun was full in the sky.

I will be in my studio painting now for a good long while……..expect some new acrylic work very soon!

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Just S.M.I.L.E.

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arrangement, art, bathroom, beautiful, bedroom, botanical, botanical art, botanical painting, botanical prints, bud, buds, cottage, cottage art, country, country cottage, elegance, elegant, feminine, floral, floral arrangement, flower, flower buds, flowers, garden, gardening, happiness, happy, health, health benefits, healthy living, kitchen, ladies slippers, lady slipper, orchid, orchids, phaphiopedilum, photo, photograph, photography, rich, sharon cummings, smile, smiling, soft, table, traditional, vase, vases, yellow orchid

 

It’s so simple.  Just smile.  Even if you have to look at cute videos on YouTub of babies laughing or puppies sleeping, it’s a great way to improve your health and it makes you feel good about yourself.  Below are some of the rewards of lifting those cheeks:

1.  It Lower Heart Rate – Smiling slows the heart and relaxes the body. People who smile and laugh often are less likely to develop heart disease. Smiling reduces blood pressure temporarily too.

2.  It Reduce Stress – Stress relief may be as simple as smiling a little more throughout the day. Smiling releases endorphins that counteract and diminish the stress hormones.

3.  It Increase Productivity – Smiling has been shown to increase productivity while performing tasks. There’s truth to the “whistle while we work” mentality. This also explains why silly internet memes and pictures of cute animals can actually get people motivated and working harder after a few moments of smiling or laughter.

4.  It is a natural Pain Killer – Smiling and laughter both have been shown to lessen pain. They release endorphins that lift our moods, but many of these act as natural painkillers too.

5.  It Increase Attention – Stress limits our perceptions and narrows our attention. Our body kicks into fight or flight mode where we can focus only on one of those things. Smiling counteracts this and widens our attention again, opening us back up to multitasking and insights that come from the fringes of our perception and our subconscious.

6.  It is Contagious – Around 50% of people smile back. This spreads the health benefits throughout those around you and it comes back to you several times as well.

7.  It makes you more Attractive!  – Smiling makes people look more appealing. This seems to be especially true for women. Men are more likely to approach a woman who smiles than one who simply makes eye contact while women aren’t necessarily drawn in by a smile alone.

8.  It makes You Look Younger – Smiles naturally lift the face and in studies have shown to make people look younger, around 3 years younger on average.

9.  It increases Longevity – The effects of a good smile extend past just the exterior good looks. People who smile more often live longer too, around 7 years longer than most according to one study. It releases stress, helps the heart, and much more to keep you healthy longer.

10.  It Boosts the Immune System – Smiles help the body relax and this lets the immune system react more quickly and effectively against invaders.

So C’mon…………………………………………………..S.M.I.L.E. 🙂

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The Wonder Years….

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Are you trying to hold on to your youth?  Your children?  A dysfunctional family?  A job that isn’t right for you?  A marriage that doesn’t work?  That D you got in trigonometry in high school?

So many of us cling tightly to what is familiar or comfortable.  Others bind themselves to the past and allow it to punish them for their entire lives. Change is scary.  Some just cannot picture a life different than the one they currently have.  I have learned that the harder you grasp something, the more it hurts when it slips away from you.  The secret to life is “letting go”.  Also known as acceptance.  This has nothing to do with giving up and everything to do with knowing when it is time to move on.

I had a few years of uncertainty and fear as I moved into middle age.  I was panicked at the thought of my little girl out in the big mean World all by herself. My marriage had a major hiccup one Summer and I was not sure we would make it.  I noticed that I was starting to lose the interest of men when I walked into a room.  My body and face were aging and I did not know how to handle it. I was also very confused about what I wanted to do with my business.  I considered shutting it down and taking a different path by getting back into Holistic Medicine.  I call those years “the worry years”.

Slowly I started to realize that I could not hold onto all of those things that I wanted to remain the same.  More importantly, I did not want to. I discovered it was safe to let go and just celebrate where I was headed.  I was not only physically different, I was also mentally and emotionally transformed.  At 45 I am now excited to watch my daughter leave for college and blossom into her own life.  I will not be keeping her bedroom as a shrine where I can focus on the past.  Instead it will be converted into a sanctuary for yoga and thinking. She will be welcome to visit anytime, but I will use that space for mediation.  I have learned to work “with” my partner instead of “against” him as we weather life’s bumps.  I am less selfish.  I have also decided that I will not be artificially preserving my youthful face.  It’s gone and no amount of face lifting, injecting or sand blasting is going to bring it back.  It’s o.k. to have wrinkles and fine lines.  In fact, if you allow yourself to let go of what society dictates is beautiful, you can actually admire them for what they really are: signs of a life that has endured numerous storms and celebrated many triumphs.

As for my career that is still being pondered.  I have a few new ideas about what direction I would like to move in. But whatever I decide, the process leading up to it will not be fraught with anxiety.  No, these are truly “the wonder years” for me.  The dictionary tells us that “wonder” means:  a feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar, or inexplicable.  And that is exactly where I am.  Bring it on life!