Heaven on Earth

March 25, 2013:  Today, I had a vision on the way to work.  Not a new vision, but more vivid and clear than ever before.  It filled me with so much joy that tears swelled in my eyes and a smile plastered my face.  My smile spread so wide that my jaw hurt.  If you were driving beside me, I’m sure you would have thought “whoa, what’d she have in her coffee this morning”, or “No sane person would be driving to work on a Monday morning with a smile like that unless she got lucky” or “I’ll have what she’s having”.  I like the latter - “I’ll have what she’s having” – because everyone should give themselves the grace to be filled with such joy on nothing more than a vision….but this vision can become reality (or at least I’m hopeful).  This vision is about community, and creating Heaven on Earth.

It’s a sunny summer’s day – not too hot, not too cold – the weather is perfect for a celebration – a celebration that has been long coming.  It’s happening in my back yard – in the newly created gardens full of sage, lavender, primrose, wildflowers, roses, native shrubs.  The path from the covered back deck meanders through the yard to the waterfall pond in the woods, just past the fire pit area surrounded by wooden benches carved from fallen trees that had once scattered the property.  A local band is set up on the stage made of reclaimed wood from the house, and their folk music fills the air as my guests mingle and laugh and celebrate the huge victory of creating paradise in the Glen.  It truly is paradise.  It’s growth.  It’s abundance.  It’s peace.  It’s bliss.  And best of all, it’s all for them – my guests – my friends and family – the community. 

Together, we all built this paradise, all with love – months of toiling, chopping dead trees, removing over-grown vines and weeds, creating space for new growth, creating pathways through the trees, planting shrub and flower gardens all around the house, apple orchards lined with lilac trees, clearing an area for a soccer field, building a retreat cabin on the ridge with the best views of the village.  A large granite rock at the base of the pine-lined driveway welcomes guests:  Welcome to Ridgeview, where our heart is always open; where anyone can come to connect with nature, and with themselves.  Spend a quiet afternoon reflecting at the waterfall pond, or an evening being mesmerized by the campfire.  Spend a night in the guest room, fall asleep watching the starry night through the skylight, and wake to the smell of bacon and coffee:  breakfast on the East terrace watching the birds play and sun rise.  Or spend a night in the Ridgeview cabin where nothing will disturb you but the songs of the swamp frogs and night crickets, and maybe the occasional coyote howl in the distance – wake up whenever the sun tells you to and have yourself a coffee on the cabin deck admiring the peaceful views.    This is Heaven on Earth, open for all to experience.

"Be inspired to create what you imagine." ~ ©Linda Spencer