In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Treat
When I think of a ‘treat’ I just need to look out side my glass-walled bedroom at the beauty that surrounds Villa Migelita. I have a blend of rural living along with the luxury of a home with beautiful views and comfort, a lifestyle I would love to share with others in the world. I wake up and do Yoga while looking out over the Valle del Cauca, Colombia. I go for bike rides while passing cattle grazing and horses wandering in their fields, I hear birds calling and my heart is set free of any anguish it might be carrying. More than the scenery draws me in, it is the authenticity of my surroundings. There is no pollution, nor disturbance of any habitats that are necessary for the survival of the creatures around me. I can walk or ride for hours without encountering any noise but that of nature. A very genuine way to live.
The Valle del Cauca can be seen from the mountains of La Buitrera de Palmira, Colombia
In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Careful.”
On New Year’s Day 2013 my goat Mona had babies. We were not even sure she was pregnant, and she had twins! You can imagine the surprise around Villa Migelita when she went into labor. The following photos encompass how special the birth and the subsequent days were. I ended up donating the mother Mona and her two babies to a Senior Center and Drug Rehab Home. I got very tired of them eating my flowers! They also got into everything! The Home was very happy to take them as they would have fresh goats milk. I have found I have to be quick with my camera set on rapid shots in succession to get a good shot when I photograph any animal.
First baby goat is born and second is coming out into the world
In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “(Extra)ordinary.”One day I was visiting another farm near Villa Migelita and I hiked around their property. I took the most amazing photos. They were of a family having fun, doing what they do here in the Valle del Cauca. They fly kites in the summer when the breeze is just right, because families in Colombia don’t sit in front of a computer or a television. They do not have the money for that. They go out and do things with their families. This is a perfect photo depicting just that! I have lost my phone habit since I moved to Colombia. It is the best thing I have ever done. I still am able to run my business, and go on with my life. I don’t need to be connected to everyone all the time. This photo shows that. Go out and enjoy your world, wherever you may live. Look around and take in the beauty. Stop worrying about the little things, because they are not important. Take a breath, look around, and think I need to change from this circus of social media and go to a new place of minimalism. Even my clients who visit me at Villa Migelita enjoy the simplicity of my farm and the way I have nature as the focus. Simplicity speaks volumes, and this picture is a perfect example of just that.
We are not alone on this planet, us humans. We are part of the planet, we depend on the trees, the insects,the wildlife, the flowers and the atmosphere to live. So I ask; why such indifference from so many about what is happening with our planet? I know I am not young anymore but my son and my granddaughter will be living on in this world. I hear politicians say constantly “we need to save this or that for our children and grandchildren” but these are just words mouthed with indifference. If we really cared we the world, all the nations, we would join to save this planet. CHANGE. It needs to start now, not tomorrow, not the next generation, NOW. I would wish this blog would be shared over and over to make a difference. I have a Facebook page which I share videos of my life at Villa Migelita and fun videos of animals and nature. However, the truth is harsh. We are seeing the animals die needless deaths by our hands, or the insects die
Colombian traffic jam
Butterflies puddling
Looking up while he looks down
Our lions
Our butterflies
Our tarantulas
Our flowers
Our birds and fruits
Our trees
Our flowers
Our birds
Our hummingbirds
Our rare species
Flowers
waterfalls
Corazon
May God Save our Planet
from pesticides that are put on food we consume. We the people can stop this. But when will we? Do we care enough for the next generations to keep this planet going? My only hope is enough of us will protest, write, report, draw attention and keep sharing our thoughts on what we should do to stop the destruction. Stop the poaching, stop the murder of innocent animals, stop the pesticides that kill our bees and butterflies, stop it now. That is what I wish would go viral. The love of all creatures, not just us humans.
Just checking out the cattle, and enjoying my view
In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Happy Place.” This photo captures all about Colombia and how nature lives with man so peacefully. This is an American Bald Eagle who for some reason has made its way down to Colombia. I will never forget stopping quickly and getting these photos of nature interacting.
My real love in life is animals in the wild. I love to see the birds that fly outside my panoramic view windows that surround my suite every morning. The sounds of their calls carry with me all day. My happy place is Villa Migelita. I worked my entire life to have this beauty that surrounds me. It is always there, I don’t worry it will leave me like it has in the USA. Colombia is still fresh with nature and rainforests. If they start building like I see in the United States, it won’t be for a long time. So, I leave you with a photo of my home. Come visit us here. We offer peace, nature, tranquility, luxury rooms, and wonderful food at amazing prices. I am on Instagram now too. Please follow me there for photos of my life as I enjoy my days. Life is amazing, I have found nirvana. You can too. Just give Colombia the chance it deserves. I have lived here for almost five years now without problem. Come see the Magical Realism of a country that is undiscovered by most travelers. You will not be disappointed.
Villa Migelita
My final thoughts on this little eagle, he left the USA because all of his natural areas are being taken from him. Let us appreciate our wildlife; let us save the environment.
Villa Migelita stands out as the mountains surround her.
When I moved to Colombia I left a lot of baggage behind. By baggage I mean: “intellectualbaggagethatkeepsonefromthinkingclearly”, it seems I was always fighting conflict before I moved to Colombia. By moving, I sought a new lifestyle free of conflict, negativity and chaos. I wanted to live in nature with my animals, to wake up and hear birds sing, write, hike in the mountains, swim under waterfalls, find a style of living that brought me to a place of peace. I have found this way of living in Colombia, although I have had some bumps along the way, for the most part it is a peaceful lifestyle and certainly adventurous. I live in a home that is beautiful and simple, and I no longer have the need for a lot of ‘stuff’ including the constant connection with others by having a phone in my hand every second of the day. Nor do I have a credit card for every store, nor a mountain of debt just because I must have the latest phone, computer, clothes, electronic devices and decor of the moment. Let’s face it; I am un-prepared and sorely behind this fast growing world of technology, the way people don’t interact with each other anymore, and I can’t find my way anywhere. I still keep my passwords written in a book. I am really lacking in many areas of social media advancement. I am not sure I care. I love my simple lifestyle. I was so grateful to return to Villa Migelita and my life of peace.
My most recent trip to the United States started off with the car rental place telling me I could no longer leave the airport without a sun-pass so I needed to buy the 13.99 a day option they were offering at a discount of 8.99 a day. I laughed so hard when he said that. I hardly use 25.00$ in tolls when visiting Florida. I told him that was ridiculous, and asked would it be possible to pay 8.99 for one day (even though that in of itself was stupid as the toll is 50 cents to leave the airport) until I could get my sun-pass from my Florida residence. “No, if you do that you will be charged 13.99 for the entire length of your car rental agreement” and he offered me the advice to go down the road a bit into Miami and buy a sun-pass at CVS drug store. He gave me directions. So after getting up at an early hour and taking a flight from Colombia, going through customs and then arriving at the rental place with my ears hurting because of my vertigo, I got in my rental car to buy a sun-pass at a CVS. I found the CVS without problem (a miracle actually if you don’t have GPS which I do not as I have a pre-paid phone in the USA) and entered and asked for the sun-pass from the cashier as it is sold behind the counter. She just looked at me as if I was speaking a strange language. I guess I was to her as she called over a co-worker who spoke to me in English, because she could only speak Spanish. Wow. So I then speak to her in Spanish and she made a face, and she acted like I was annoying her more. Great start to my vacation in Florida. So now I have the sun-pass and no way to activate it because my phone does not have media. I called a friend and thank God she answered and did this for me. I finally made it to my residence 4 hours after landing in Miami!
I am a person who treats others with respect, but I found the rudeness during my stay by many people I encountered unsettling. I go out of my way to be polite when I buy anything, anywhere! Where does this disrespect come from? Especially from employees? I seriously find that the most disturbing! When talking with the doctor’s office that had me in collections I spoke with a woman whom I knew. She said the employees who charged me the wrong price were not at fault. I asked “then who was at fault?” The answer was nonsensical as it could only be them and lack of training, so was it the superiors? I heard her say under her breath as she hung up the phone “jesus” like I was the problem! Was I the problem for trying to correct a situation that I didn’t cause? As a retired flight attendant from Delta Air Lines, I couldn’t get away with speaking to a customer that way! I would be fired. I am serious. So is this the new normal? Is it typical and I am just living in my jungle in Colombia with the birds and butterflies, no idea of the reality of the world anymore? I also found my lack of a ‘proper’ phone which everyone seems to have in their hands all the time an impediment. I have phone and text. I can also hook up to internet when available but I don’t. I really don’t care about it. I have no need to look at the darn phone all day! Am I a weird because I have no wish to be connected all the time to others on the internet? I really have no desire to see my email nor others photos and thoughts around the clock! UGH but I will say a GPS would be nice to have, but I probably couldn’t figure it out if I had one! I need to buy an old style GPS for my next trip to the USA. I got lost so much while driving I know that it is my only choice. I write directions but this seems to be a lost habit and it no longer works with all the huge expressways and different names of all of them! I don’t want to say I am horribly incompetent with social media; I actually have a knack for networking. I have a successful blog, a successful Facebook page, a successful website, and now an Instagram account. However, I am not up on the latest new thing with technology. I do have an iPad. I love it. I don’t know all I should about my device. I do have Yoga classes downloaded, and my Kindle app for reading. I have the Facebook, Instagram, and my email on it. I am sure that I am lacking so much in what I actually could have, but I don’t have anyone to teach me. I am now on Trip Advisor, and I am on AirBnB but it takes me a while to get these things started. So, like I said I am behind, like the last person running a marathon and coming up to the finish line last.
As I finish this blog I have one thing to say; ‘This is a distant world now.” No one really connects with each other in a personal way.They post photos and their life online and we all read it. I do the same. So I am not criticizing, I am just making obvious points. I miss seeing the people I love, but I understand it is not personal, it is just the way it is. I come home to my mountain home and I love my life of solitude. I am very happy to be writing my thoughts in my blog. I don’t miss real social interaction. I guess this is the new world we live in.
Goats checking us out as we ride by, no boundaries
In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Boundaries.” When I moved to Colombia I let go of all the boundaries that I had imposed on myself for many years. Now I would never use that word for my life because I have no boundaries, only adventure. I try new things, I explore, I experience my surroundings, I do not let my mind tell me I can’t do something. Boundaries to me do not exist. I am living a scene from a movie. I do not exaggerate. My life is one I have created through perseverance. I have truly been rewarded.
Hummings from Paradise 