The best ingredients in life are love, beauty, nature, happiness, and reaching for dreams

Most would agree that wisdom comes with age. As we get older, we should concentrate on life’s priorities. Spending time with the ones that we love, and truly appreciating them, is very important. Becoming aware of the intricate things of beauty around us can help us greater endure hardships and greater heighten the positives in our life. Encountering hardships are a certainty in life, and we must merely endure them as best we can. On the other hand, the beauty of life is usually taken for granted. Being aware of beauty, experiencing it, and cherishing it, should always be a part of our life. Not taking advantage of a new opportunity to experience beauty is an opportunity wasted. This heartfelt collection of prose can mellow the heart as it explores life, love, beauty, nature, happiness, losses, dreams, and nostalgic memories. Take time to enjoy these unique observations, and discover the soft and gentle aspects of life.

Jim was the youngest of eleven children and grew up on a farm near the rural, small town of Metamora, Indiana. From an early age, all of the children were expected to help with the farm chores, which consisted of raising a garden, picking berries, putting up hay, milking cows, and raising crops. Everything took a back seat to work, but the children somehow found time to play and establish memories that would stay with them forever. The family farm still survives 95 years after Jim’s grandparents settled there, and his love for the land has led to him owning part of the family farm for 43 years and still counting. In addition, he has owned much of the valley surrounding it. His early passion for writing began in the valley, and it has remained undiminished since.