Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy. – Anne Frank
This week, we welcome Sheetal as our special guest host, with the theme A Glimpse into your world. ”Show us the things you love that makes your world spin or things about your world that make you delirious with joy.” Sheetal tells an interesting story of music and travel – and of The Beatles!
Many things in life fill me with joy, but few things make me ”delirious” anymore. I guess that comes with age…but I always strive to keep my eyes and mind fresh and open. My most enchanted moments are always with Nature and all its living creatures, with Flowers and Light. Together they make my world complete and whole. I must live close to nature and just like Monet, “I must have flowers, always, and always.” And Light. With these few images from my Nordic home, I want to show some of the moments when I felt totally immersed in the beauty and wonder of our planet.
One of the strange things about living in the world is that it is only now and then one is quite sure one is going to live forever and ever and ever. One knows it sometimes when one gets up at the tender solemn dawn-time and goes out and stands out and throws one’s head far back and looks up and up and watches the pale sky slowly changing and flushing and marvelous unknown things happening until the East almost makes one cry out and one’s heart stands still at the strange unchanging majesty of the rising of the sun–which has been happening every morning for thousands and thousands and thousands of years. One knows it then for a moment or so. ― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden
Nature is so powerful, so strong. Capturing its essence is not easy – your work becomes a dance with light and the weather. It takes you to a place within yourself. – Annie Leibovitz
Give light, and the darkness will disappear of itself. – Desiderius Erasmus
I really just want to be warm yellow light that pours over everyone I love. – Conor Oberst
By almost any measure, Iceland is one of the world’s most unique lands. – Roger K. Sandness
And the Nordic Light – is purely Natural.
Remember: Always walk in the light. And if you feel like you’re not walking in it, go find it. Love the light. – Roberta Flack
Thank you for last week’s fun challenge from Tina – and thank you All for showing us more useful tricks to enhance forgettable pictures! Very creative. As always, please remember to link your responses to Sheetal’s original post, and to use the Lens-artists tag to help us find you. Until next week, stay warm, well – and even a bit delirious with joy? We are looking forward to seeing what makes Your world spin!
Leya 
Now I will second-guess every sky that I see!!
Hahaha, I’m sorry I tricked you into that one, Manja! But that was the one and only (so far… ;-D)
And now I’m expected to believe this! 😉
You are!
Beautiful post. As you know, I am happiest and need to be close to nature and flowers, too. Kindred souls!
♥
Oh wow! Your photos are stunning Anne-Christine!
Thank you, Aletta!
Uhhh… WOWWW. What incredible selections. The best of the best. Out-STANDING!
Now you made me smile again, John – thank you!
Some of those cranes have been very close to my house, in the Gallocanta lagoon they have a stop on their trip.
I love the place where you live surrounded by nature😘
♥ I am happy to say so do I!
And happy the cranes are stopping by near your place!
I liked your Nordic Light – Sweden picture in particular. Interesting sky and landscape. The garden is so full of color! Beautiful.
Thank you – interesting that you like the dramatic sky!
That secret garden really grabbed me!
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Such beautiful captures. And what makes me delirious with joy are the 16,000 cranes and the boats in Iceland. You have an eye for the best life has to offer.
So happy to share something from my part of the world! Thank you!
Your posts sometimes cocoon me in warmth, Ann Christine, no matter how cold it might be. I was standing there in wonder with you at 3am. 🙂 🙂
Woollen and all…;-D Glad you came with me, Jo!
That’s a lovely light you show. I remember the Nordic light on long summer evenings, lovely in a way. But also annoying that it was always in my eye. I’m used to the sun being higher up, or dropping quickly once it is at eye level. I had to find a pair of dark glasses for use in the afternoons and evenings. Now that I remember it, I find that funny.
Hahaha, I complain about this every summer when driving to our summerhouse and back again – always the sun in my eyes, and I am a bit short so the little sun shields in the car won’t cover my eyes!
Good to know that Swedes are not born with sunshields in their eyes!
Ha!
Your home is beautiful!!
I am very grateful, Nora! Thank you!
Such a beautiful series of photos. The cranes arriving at 3am and that secret garden would be my favorites among this collection but all are a marvelous glimpse into your world.
Thank you, Anne. The world around us is still beautiful. ♥
mumma mia do you ha e some natural beauty surrounding you! as many of your followers have noted over the posts here – it sure is nice that we get a piece of this beauty through your blog.
ahhhhh
😊☀️🙏
Hahaha – now you made me happy tonight! Thank you!
🙂
I am forever in awe of your world. There was a time when I researched those areas in travel brochures but I didn’t quite make it there because of the price. They said that, that part of the world is the most expensive so we decided to go to Central Europe instead. But that would forever be in my dreams so thanks for sharing your lovely photos, Ann-Christine.
Delightful to slowly reach each scene and try to imagine oneself blessedly there . . . for me and many others it seems the garden at the top especially parted with a secret or two to being momentary peace and beauty into the everyday reality . . .
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Love your world, AC! Secret gardens, birds, lights, landscape, wow…! I love all of them.
Beautifully captured, as always.
Thank you, Amy – I guess we all love our worlds, hopefully, and I am very grateful for mine!
You had me at the garden of course and then it just got better and better. Yes you are right, I should visit in Spring and Summer to savour the delights of your Nordic world Ann-Christine 🙂 🙂
You are so welcome – just give me a call.
I most certainly will A-C
Beautiful images. I am right there with you, nature, flowers, light❤️
I guessed you would be with me – this is a great part of our lives! ♥ Thank you, so glad you liked them.
🙂
Every one of them is stunning.
Susan – thank you – I am so grateful for living where I live. And one day I will go visiting all the beautiful gardens in Britain…♥
What a beautiful collection of photographs. That secret garden is simply stunning. The Nordic Light images – Iceland and Norway – have me wanting to hop on a plane for a visit … absolutely gorgeous captures!
Thank you so much, Ingrid – I will go again as soon as covid is gone…which might take a year or two…or more…
Wonderful images and beautifully chosen words. Thank you Ann-Christine
Glad you enjoyed this, Su. I am grateful of having these landscapes so close, even if I cannot visit right now.
I love all the photos and quotes, A-C, but that first photo with all the flowers is just wonderful.
janet
♥ Thank you, Janet. The long quote…is just how I still can feel when I am alone in nature. It doesn’t have to be a sunrise…
Beautiful images Ann-Christine and I love the Nordic Light too! 💖 xxx
Thank you, Xenia, and I know you love that light too. ♥
These photos are simply majestic! Beautiful writing as well.
So glad you enjoyed them, Mary Jo. I am grateful to have these beautiful landscapes close by.
I agree with Jude’s comment…and I seem to recall that delightful secret garden from a few years back…one a of your neighbours?
The beautiful garden belonged to the little man in the forest, the man I always talked to about the trees and the birds. He and his wife traveled the world for bird watching and collecting rare plants for his garden. A couple of years ago they decided it was too much work for them, so they sold it…And now it is gone, overgrown and mismanaged. Had I only been young and handy with all sorts of gardening, I would have bought it. One of the big sorrows to think about.
Yes, I remember you telling me a while back….
I like your world, Ann-Christine! 🙂
♥ And I am happy to share it with you.
The pictures of the arriving cranes is breathtaking. You were up very early 🙂
Enjoy your sunday.
Yes, an experience out of my ordinary world. And I remember we started drivin at 2 a m to be there in time. Stone cold, but all worth it.
The flower garden’s scent and stone step’s chill opened the door to amazing landscape’s colors. Thank you for gifting us with the beauty of this planet beyond my tiny patch.
♥ Beautiful words, Brenda. Thank you.
Beautiful photos, Leya.
Thank you, Timothy. There are beauty still in our world!
You truly live in a beautiful part of the world, my friend. I would love to walk through that secret garden image. Beautiful.
Well John, we all love our own neighborhood I guess. But I am grateful for my world. The secret garden was a wonderful place, but is no more. I would have loved to walk there again.
Nature and light. I can go along with that. The secret garden is so pretty. And the landscapes exceptional. You have seen a lot of beautiful places.
I am very grateful, Jude, thank you. I cry every time I see that garden…as it is sold and lost forever. I cannot bear to walk past the house and the garden – it is totally overgrown and devastated.
Oh, no that is very sad.
What a gorgeous glimpse of your world, AC. The quotes were also fabulous. The one from Frances Hodgson Burnet is in my files as a favorite. I recently re-read A Secret Garden. It is such a wonderful time to read it. It is so uplifting. Your post is so uplifting, too! Your images are fabulous. I appreciate your gift of sharing such light and beauty with us!
Thank you, thank you, Patti! So glad you liked it – and now I believe I will have to find my copy of A Secret garden and re-read it again. I loved that novel.
Loved the play between the words and the light! Right from the quotes that went perfectly with the images , this blog post was a delight from the beginning to the end . Thank you for sharing your world, Ann-Christine. It is spectacular.
Happy to share, Sheetal – and thank you for being our host!
Stunning images Ann Christine! Thanks for taking us along on a tour of your world. Yes, we need to live in gratitude no matter what our situation.
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Absolutely loved your view of your world this morning Ann-Christine – and your quotes were outstanding along with your images. Of those my favorite is the glorious opening garden – is that truly from your home?!?! And of course the arrival of the cranes in the pre-dawn hour – the light is incredible. I would so love to see them one day. Of the quotes, the Burnett is quite beautiful and the Anne Frank one I’ve always loved knowing her situation when she wrote it. A magical view of a beautiful world.
Thank you so much, Tina, so glad you enjoyed this post! I had some difficulties in what to choose, but as we had such dark months November, December I knew that Light would be right. And I know you love the cranes…if you ever come this way, you know they come in March already, when it is still very cold. But it is possible to wear warm clothes!
The opener is from my garden, but the steps and flowers belonged to the most beautiful garden I have ever seen. The old couple sold it some years ago, and after that…it has all fallen apart and is overgrown. If I had been younger and more into extensive gardening – I would have bought it. I cannot bear walking there now without crying. Sadly enough this is often what happens to old, fantastic gardens.
Oh that is so sad Ann-Christine. It was so glorious. Happily you have an image and your fond memories of it.
In fact I made a book out of my many photos from this garden, and gave it to the owners as well. I miss the garden and I miss its lovely owners. Life gives us many precious gifts, but also takes them from us.
Your pictures illustrate your thoughts perfectly – and supported by such apposite quotations too. Yes, deliriousness is in short supply. But that’s fine. Quiet satisfaction is on the whole more sustaining.
Quiet satisfaction sounds good to me, perfect! And now I learned a new word again – apposite. Thank you!
Your English is so good it’s satisfying to have anything to teach you!
Ha! ♥
These images make me smile! I just want to walk through that beautiful garden! I enjoyed all of the nature quotes. I just finished reading ”The Diary of Anne Frank” and you chose one of my favorite quotes from her diary.
Thank you, Beth – what a coincidense! That you just finished her book, and that quote is also one of my favourites. And a walk in the garden would be lovely!
I’ve seen several posts around this challenge, and each has been extra special because (for me) a very personal touch. This is an excellent look at your world accompanied by meaningful quotes. (Burnett’s my favorite). Thank you, Ann-Christine. … and Happy Valentine’s Day.
Frank, I hope you are having a lovely Valentine’s Day too! I too love that quote. So glad you enjoyed the theme and my look as well. Up here we have so much darkness during winter time, and November, December last year were not uplifting. I think we had less than 5 hours sun and light for two months. That’s why Light mean the world to me.