Surrounded by Beauty

The finals are over, so now I've got to start prepping for the writing competition, which starts in a few days.

But today I took a day off, because I'm rather unwell and also, to stop and smell the flowers.

This year wasn't the best for me, health-wise, the second semester especially. The sharp swings of the weather had taken the toll on my immune system and sinuses, and stress has done the rest of the job. Add in being stuck in small rooms with 79 other people every day, NO ventilation, and too much air conditioning too early... and you'll get a recipe for lots of rounds of infection.

So right now, I'm battling yet ANOTHER cold, and it's not fun.

Nevertheless, I made a valiant effort and went up to Fordham today. I had some business there (which didn't work out), but after I got rid of the issues quickly, I went downstairs to the cafeteria, and looked out the window.

Outside the law school cafeteria we have a nice patio with tables. I ought to make a better use of it next term, while it's still warm. Just the other day, I realized how strikingly beautiful that patio is, and decided to return with the camera today, to take pictures before the flowers all bloom out. Despite having a cold, it was a really great day for picture-taking, since it was warm, sunny, and no one was around to take up space or ask dumb questions. Being in the cafeteria all by myself was a bit strange, but I liked it. It's not often that I get so much space all to myself. Had I not been sick, I really would have spent a lot more time there, just hanging out. I'm weird like that. Well, maybe next year.

Well, the first thing that struck my eye was all the rich, gorgeous COLOR. Inasmuch as I'd rather be in some exotic locale right now, that's a good lesson on appreciating the small things in life and finding beauty everywhere. There are so many things that I find annoying about the law school building, but despite its architectural ugliness and space shortage, it definitely has its charms. It has its own secret little garden,, which smiles with its flowers at everyone who passes by.

Here's the inside look:









Apparently, the quiet beauty of this bright little corner attracts other life forms as well.

I spotted a gorgeous bird, singing a sweet song to attracts its mate... It was incredibly close to me, so close that I held my breath, scared that it would fly away before I took a picture... However, even it left, I noticed that it remained closed by the law school... Maybe he'll even build his nest close to us!





Everything around the law school is so little, but from the corner, where I was standing, it somehow appears very spacious and enchanting. I felt as if trapped in a fairy tale... there's just something magical about the way the exterior of the law school is designed, very inviting, but at the same time, slightly mysterious.











It's almost like sitting in a real garden, isn't it? : ) But my favorite thing about Fordham are the birch trees. There's only a couple other places I've seen birches since I left the Ukraine, and I miss them terribly. I love their amazing striped bark; I can't believe that there are trees, which can have white "skin". And Fordham, of all places, has some very beautiful birches...





Every time I feel depressed or too downtrodden by the harsh reality of exams and the drudgery of the "real-life" routine, all I have to do is look outside and remember that there's a fairy tale, an enchanted garden, waiting for me just out the window...

(a few more pictures on Facebook!)

Charmed,
Irina