Passionate...To have Strong Feeling



I like many things

and

I love some

but

 I am passionate about only a few.

 The South

My roots are firmly planted in the South.

I am a southern women

who

is passionately in love  with

 warm, sultry weather

collard greens. fried okra,  grits, shrimp Po-boys

and

sweet iced tea

 wearing  bright colors like reds, blues, hot pink

and lime green all year long

always made of cotton or linen

because

it is really, really hot in the south

the sound of southern accents

with their long drawls

and

second syllables is my language,
the

 music of my heart.

my grandmother Georgia and her family at their home on Old Gulf Island

Galveston Island

My grandparents had a summer home on Jamaica  Beach
for as long as I can remember.

All of my very best summer memories are
wrapped around it.

Galveston is a narrow island with the bay on one side
and
the beach on the other.

It is also a magical place for me.

I am drawn to it when I am happy and even when I am sad.

it is a place of colorful houses very close together looking happy

it is where I walk on the beach, run in the waves, collect seashells

or sometimes just breathe easy and take everything in.

Galveston has a rhythm to it
and
I heard it long ago
on the quiet streets of the inner city
far
away from the crowds.

The

 air is salty and filled with the sweetness of jasmin and honeysuckle

colored lights and paper lanterns glow from the trees

jazz is played on the street corners

there are hidden old parks with beautiful gazebos

churches with breathtaking stained glass windows

tiny cafes

and

Clary's
a restaurant that seems almost lost in time.
Oh! Be still my heart.

The island has always been a part of my life
and
the sound of the sea like a heartbeat.

Gardening

I am happiest in my garden
at sunrise, in the hot midday, the cool of the evening and at sunset.

 Have your ever planted a moonvine
from seed and watched it bloom in the moonlight
or
experienced the thrill of a tiny seed you planted grow to be six feet tall
and
 filled with red tomatoes?

In my garden my soul is sunshine.

I am a women who speaks with a slow and soft southern drawl

who loves warm weather

 eats local food from our farmers' markets
and the garden

whose heart hears the sound of the sea

and

is passionate about the miracle of

 just being Dottie.

♥

I am linking to A Southern Daydreamer Outdoor Wednesday.
and
Thursday's Simple Pleasures.