Whippet Wisdom – a Highland Journey
A journey through the seasons with two adopted whippets, a poet and a camera
soft clouds
moving east to west
sand shifts
with a quiet mind
we welcome earth’s small changes
© Xenia Tran
Take 5ive, 2023 Earth Day
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Rag Tag Daily Prompt: Ripple Marks
Your Daily Word Prompt: Definition
gorse blooms
where the sun glitters
across the bay
~ in gratitude ~
as if we knew one day
how you’d be there for me
and I’d be there for you
© Xenia Tran
While we were walking around Findhorn Bay in the sunshine it felt extra special to be here for each other, at this moment in time.
Below is a video showing the lyrics of Old Soul, a beautiful song by Colin MacLeod, featuring Sheryl Crow, which seems very fitting:
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Misty and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
CFFC: Things People Visit
Your Daily Word Prompt: Grateful
morning walk
the forest breathes
tranquility
we lose all track of time
where the river calls us home
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a blessed rest of the week,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Tanka Thursday: Time
Your Daily Word Prompt: Halcyon
green grass
even in the shadows
signs of spring
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Monday and a peaceful new week,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
CMMC: Spring or Autumn Season
Your Daily Word Prompt: Epitomize
Wishing you all a wonderful Wednesday,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Your Daily Word Prompt: Yonder
We are delighted to have been able to make another donation to Dogs Trust with proceeds from Between Heather and Grass raised during the 2020-2021 Tax Year.
Dogs Trust is the UK’s largest dog welfare charity and has been caring for dogs in need for 130 years. They take in dogs that have been abandoned or handed in by owners who could no longer care for them and find them new, loving forever homes.
They have twenty-one rehoming centres across the UK and provide special foster homes for dogs from families fleeing domestic violence. In addition to these services they run educational programmes in schools, training programmes for owners and actively campaign on dog welfare-related issues.
To find out more about their work or to support Dogs Trust directly, please visit their website here.
We have donated the same amount for the second year running to Children with Cancer UK, in memory of our nephew Jamie. They have kindly sent us a certificate for the total amount raised so far.
Children with Cancer UK is the leading national children’s charity whose vision is a world where every child survives cancer. They work to develop safer, kinder and more effective childhood cancer therapies, with fewer toxic side effects.
They are there when families need help most. By funding welfare projects, delivering unforgettable events and fostering a loving environment, they strive to make the world a happier place for the children who are diagnosed with cancer.
It is with a warm heart and gratitude we are able to continue to make a donation to this amazing charity.
To find out more about their work or if you want to support the charity directly please visit their website here.
A very big thank you to all you fabulous people who have bought a copy of Between Heather and Grass, left a review and helped to spread the word.
If the book is new to you feel free to click on the cover below for a peek inside …
… or scan the QR Code below:
Wishing you all a very happy Monday and a wonderful new week,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Your Daily Word Prompt: Savor
Word of the Day Challenge: Vision
quantum leap
nature has her way
of painting
small delights into
the day’s air
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Thursday and a peaceful rest of the week,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/2.8 – 1/2.8 – 1/640 s – ISO 100.
Tanka Thursday: Air
Your Daily Word Prompt: Genial
parallel lines
nature paints choices
between water and ice
reeds shuffle and wonder
how peace on earth can grow
© Xenia Tran
We are deeply honoured and delighted that Frameless Sky Issue 13 on the theme of Our Connection with Nature is now available on DVD and YouTube link. The video features forty nature photographs by yours truly, poems by seventy-six poets from eighteen different countries, a special reading by Hemapriya Chellappan and music by Sascha Ende. A very big thank you to Chrissi Villa and Shloka Shankar for featuring my work and putting this beautiful edition together!
Wishing you all a very happy Monday and a happy Burns Night to our friends in Scotland,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Canon Powershot SX60 HS, Settings: f/4 – 1/800 s – ISO 100, f/4.5 – 1/1000 s – ISO 100 and f/4 – 1/640 s – ISO 100.
PI Prompt: Parallel
Your Daily Word Prompt: Irenic
The mild Winter that began in 2019 continues into 2020 and we go hiking in other parts of the Highlands and Perthshire to make the most of the ice-free roads. Waves of Gratitude, Love at First Sight and Windows of the Soul become the most popular posts in this period and reflect some of these unexpected journeys.
News of the pandemic begins to filter through and on 23 March the country goes into lockdown. We can only go out once a day for exercise, all non-essential shops and services are closed. Many people begin to hoard and panic-buy, leaving the rest of us without essentials.
village store
the parrot tells us
there’s no bread
© Xenia Tran
Bundled Wildflowers, Haiku Society of America 2020 Anthology
Spring still has a few cold days before the temperatures rise. Our most popular posts of the season are Spirit Mountain, Pink Moon Rising and Circles and Spirals.
Without traffic and tourists, our air, our beaches, river and sea become cleaner than we’ve ever seen them before. The birds and wildlife are rejoicing. It is truly amazing to see nature bounce back as soon as humans retreat.
shaded meadow
a range of flowers
surrounds our nest
the lockdown gives us time
to see each other clearly
© Xenia Tran
Ribbons, Spring/Summer , Volume 16 Number 2
At the beginning of July our travel restrictions are lifted and we venture out for the first time in four months, avoiding all the tourist hot spots. Because it is crowded in the places we would love to visit we continue to spend most of our time close to home.
I learn how to make videos and include these with our new Look Inside and Shopping features for Sharing Our Horizon and Between Heather and Grass.
Trust, Buck Moon and Memories in Motion are the most popular posts in Summer.
We donated dog food, dog bowls and other items on the Wish-List to DOTS (Dogs on the Streets) with the proceeds from Sharing Our Horizon and made donations to Dogs Trust and Children with Cancer UK with proceeds from Between Heather and Grass. A huge thank you to all of you who buy and read our books!
Autumn begins with sunny, mild weather and glorious trails for walking. Aureate becomes our most popular Autumn post and the most popular post of the year, closely followed by Chosen Route and Daydream.
Through an unusual sequence of online encounters I meet someone who turns out to be a distant relative. He is able to fill me in about part of my ancestral history. Another contact provides me with old film footage that features them and the village they grew up in.
all souls’ night
my great-grandparents
play in the snow
© Xenia Tran
Autumn-Moon Haiku Journal, Volume 4:1, Autumn-Winter 2020-2021
As Winter arrives we look back at an unusual year. We lost people from our haiku community and our local community, many local businesses struggled to survive. At the same time nature and wildlife were thriving.
the air so clean
in our lockdown days
a healing
pulsing through the stars at night
where earthlight weeps and breaks
© Xenia Tran
Ribbons, Spring/Summer 2020, Volume 16, Number 2
We got used to new ways of working, walking, shopping and interacting with each other. We wear our masks and keep our distance.
two metres apart
no one walks between our words
on the pavement
© Xenia Tran
Haiku Dialogue, The Haiku Foundation, 25 November 2020
With so many people now working from home, adoptions from animal shelters increased. It was lovely to see so many dogs and cats from shelters we support find their loving forever homes and we hope this is a trend that will continue.
If you are thinking about getting a dog or a cat, please consider adoption as your first option. Please consider adopting an older pet too if you can. We have done this several times and it is very rewarding.
his grey hair
full of sunlight
the sea retreats
© Xenia Tran
The Bamboo Hut, Number 4, 2020
We want to thank all our readers and followers for your support and inspiration this year. We had more time to write and there was a lot to write about.
Feel free to browse the monthly archives for posts about the support within our community, a tribute to a poet lost early in the pandemic, the Hope project and many more moments that made this year so special.
Thank you to all the editors and publishers who featured my work in journals, anthologies and special features.
Huge thanks to Eve, Frank, Kristjaan, Misky, Ronovan and the team at dVerse Poets for a great variety of poetry prompts, to Becca, Sheryl, Kristian, Brian, Christine, Emily, Heather, Katherine, Ping, Punam and Tracy for your wonderful writing prompts and to Cee, Jez, Paula, Sue & Gerry, Cathy, Terri, Amy, Ann-Christine, Patti & Tina for your fabulous photographic prompts throughout the year.
A big thank you to all the healthcare workers and people who kept us fed and cared for during the pandemic.
We wish you all a blessed, happy, healthy and creative New Year!
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia.
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Your Daily Word Prompt: Tidings
Word of the Day Challenge: Wishes
Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #129: Favorite Images of 2020
The sun is slow to rise above the trees, brightening a small strip of sand near the shoreline. The surf sings her song, a large piece of driftwood listens and greets the day with wing-like branches.
morning frost
a seagull tip-toes over
the pure notes
© Xenia Tran
Wishing you all a happy Monday and a blessed new week,
with love from Eivor, Pearl and Xenia xxx
Photographs by Xenia Tran, edited in lr.
Camera: Panasonic Lumix FZ200, Settings: f/4 – 1/500 s – ISO 100 and f/3.2 – 1/1250 s – ISO 100.
Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #127: Precious Moments
Your Daily Word Prompt: Faithful
Whippet Wisdom - a Highland Journey 
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