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Sharon Lovejoy
San Luis Obispo, California, and, South Bristol, Maine, United States
Author ~ Illustrator~Lecturer

For many years, I owned Heart’s Ease Herb Shop and Gardens in Cambria, California, where I taught classes for grown-ups and kids, and began the Rosemary Festival and the Children’s Faerie Festival.
In 1989 when Country Living arrived to photograph my home and shop, I was asked to write a column for the future Country Living Gardener. From the first issue to the last, I wrote my column, Heart’s Ease. My home and gardens appeared in numerous magazines and books (see http://www.sharonlovjoy.com/pub.html). In 1991, my first book, Sunflower Houses, came out and life changed dramatically.
In 1996, my husband and I bought a cottage in Maine and restored it for the September 1997 issue of Country Living. Since then I’ve continued to write and illustrate books (see http://www.sharonlovejoy.com/sllbooks.html), lecture throughout the country, and to spend half of every year on our beloved island.
Writing is by nature something that must be done alone, through long periods of stillness. Mail and e-mail are my quiet visitors. Please join me whenever you can.
sharon@sharonlovejoy.com
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Sunday, November 8, 2009

What Gives YOU Joy?

Every day I am thankful for my family and friends, but I always try to find other, less obvious things that make me smile and experience what is called the Joy Factor.



I walked into the kitchen this morning and saw my Kitchen Fun: A Cook Book for Children (1932) with a cover by one of my favorite 20th century illustrators, Jessie Willcox Smith. A slant of autumn sunshine lit the companionable huddle of pumpkins, squash, and a jewel-like pomegranate surrounding the book. It gave me joy.

What is YOUR joy today?

Sharon
sharon@sharonlovejoy.com

10 comments:

My Farmhouse Kitchen said...

What gives me JOY.....that's easy...my pets...Butterscotch, Whiskey Sour and Dandelion....

See you in the morning
xxx
K.

Anonymous said...

What gives me joy is watching a fire crackling in the fireplace on a cool, fall evening.

Kat White said...

Today it was the little bit of green grass growing on the hills, the happy greeting I got from the cat at work when I stopped by to take some photos and finding that my pumpkin vine is still growing its heart out.

Aisling said...

I find quiet joy in having everyone in the family home... though busy with their seperate occupations (reading, games, etc.). I like to light a few candles and cook something comforting, and then just enjoy the way the lights and sounds and fragrances of home surround and connect us as a family.

I share your love of Jessie Willcox Smith and have an alphabet book somewhere filled with her illustrations. :)

Hens Teeth said...

Hello
Thank you so much for inviting me to contribute:-)
My joy today has been to come home from work, tired and a little frazzled and I am now listening to my favourite music, which does fill me with joy and is so relaxing.

Fun Mama - Deanna said...

This afternoon, I looked out my back door and saw in the distance some horses and goats frolicking. Instead of just enjoying it from out porch like we usually do, my 2 year old and I hopped in my car and drove to the next street over so we could view them in person. Then we got to meet the person who lives with the horses and goats full time. What a fun outing for an ordinary day.
I think I'd love looking out your window too. What a lovely view, inside and out.

Sharon Lovejoy said...

Joy factor for yesterday..

My old pal Kary http://myfarmhousekitchen.blogspot.com and I took a day to visit with a dear friend from Cambria. Then we explored back roads in the county and reveled in the sunshine, the flock of western bluebirds, and the crimson and golds of the leaves. Sycamore trees, my favorites, have leaves like cornflakes now.

Sharon

My Farmhouse Kitchen said...

What a glorious Novemeber day yesterday...Love driving down Vineyard Drive with all the fall leaves fluttering on the road....

A fun day with dear friends....

Brenda@CoffeeTeaBooks said...

I love seeing the early morning sunshine filtered through the lace curtains in my dining area.

A couple of weeks ago, it was breathtaking to walk out of my front door and view the gorgeous trees.

Sharon Lovejoy said...

Jim Long is an old and treasured friend. He lives on an herb farm in the Ozarks and creates magical gardens, great books, and fantastic home cooked food. His Jim Long Garden blog is one I check every day.

Jim dear-that is not our kitchen counter, it is the bookcase for cookbooks. Sometimes that space is crammed with seedlings, food, or my grandkids' art work, but right now, for a short breath of time, it is pure.