Home is Where the Heart Is...1 year later

Don't you just love happy endings -- the kind that moves your spirit, makes you swallow hard and catch your breath as a burst of joy washes through you?  

Some of you may remember last December's posting,  Home is Where the Heart Is from Greg Sarles. He shared the poignant story of the tragic loss of his parent's cabin,  "a home away from home."  One of things that made this place special was the heart rock embedded in the hearth.  Greg reached out to the Heart Rock Collective to share his story and ask where he might find a replacement heart rock. One of our HRC readers reached out to him and offered him the gift of some of her heart rocks. Open Hearts...giving and receiving.

A few months ago, I received another email from Greg. Reading this one left me with a warm feeling and a permanent smile etched in my heart. Here's the rest of the story as Greg tells it:

Kimberly:

One of your reader's  (I believe that her name was Jenna) sent a gift of two-heart
rocks and a "Heart-Rocks" book to me this past December after you had posted
the story of my parents cabin fire.  I in-turn presented Jenna's gifts to my parents at
Christmas.  My usually reserved parents both reacted with sincere joy and hope in
receiving such a thoughtful gift.  I just want to express my thanks to you and Jenna
for sharing your heart and hearts!

I have included a couple of photos of the hearts solid in their new hearth.

Sincerely,
Greg Sarles

PS...Hear is the original story...
 

In 1990 my parents built the cabin of their dreams on Ten-Mile Lake in

 Northern Minnesota. The most amazing feature of the cabin was the

field-stone fireplace rising from the floor to the ceiling 25 feet overhead.

We spent hours looking for faces, animals, and hidden objects within the

rocks of this majestic fireplace. In the middle of the fireplace was a beautiful

heart-shaped stone that my mother had insisted that the builders center in the

rock formation.

This past weekend, the cabin burned to the ground. Only the fireplace stands intact.

But the intense heat caused a majority of the rocks to explode, shatter, or crack.

Although all of the personal belongings and family heirlooms in the house were

lost, we feel extremely blessed that no one was home at the time of the fire,

especially considering that the entire family was planning on spending the holidays

together at the cabin this coming weekend.

The cabin was insured and a new structure will soon replace the former, but the

"broken-heart" pictured is very symbolic of the loss. I would love to surprise my

mom with another heart-shaped stone which she could use to anchor the new cabin.

Please contact me if you know of where I could purchase such a heart!

'I Got the Blues...'

Found this heart rock at Great Meadows Wildlife Refuge in Concord, MA. (Took a little artistic license with the image)

Heart Rock Sculptures...

Hi, I've collected heart shaped rocks from around the world, and after gathering several thousand of them, I wanted to display them in a way I could enjoy them.  Here are some of the results.  ~ Rives McDow  (April 19, 2010)

To see more of Rive's work....check out his sculptures on flickr.

Collective Garden of Serenity

What am I going to do with all these rocks?

If you're a voracious rock collector, like myself, you've probably pondered this question many times.

The idea of a desk 'rock garden' emerged one day at work with my desire to create a welcoming and peaceful atmosphere for our clients and colleagues upon first entering our office suite.  Someplace to relax...a place of refuge from the demands of the work day. 


It started with a few simple rocks...you know how that goes. The 'rock' garden continued to grow as colleagues and friends dropped by the office with gifts of rocks and shells from their vacation and travels. When someone asked about where I found all these rocks, I'd smile and then begin to share the stories behind each rock. 

My former colleague, Barbara, told me that as she trekked through the deserts of Arizona, she remembered my love of rocks. She slipped a few precious finds in her backpack to bring back for my collection.

Strangers would pass by my office window; stop to admire the garden and a few would venture into the office to share their passion for rocks.

One colleague joked that soon my desk will be covered in rocks and there would be no desktop to work (yes! that is my plan ;)

How do you share your 'heart' rocks? We'd love to see/hear how you spread the love with your collections...please send your stories to heartrockcollective@gmail.com.

.

For where your treasure is there is your heart...

Thanks to Shelley Stejer for sharing her 'heart rock' story with us on the Heart Rock Collective.




Found all these in about an hour without even looking, and about 8 more later. Every time I looked down, there were more. I keep wondering what this means. I found them the day we purchased and took ownership of a small piece of land on a lake. They were all found right at the entrance to the land in front of the gate :)


Shelly Stejer

Grace in Rocks

A beautiful reminder that thoughtful gestures 'with heart' and from the heart offer grace to the giver and receiver. Read Jane Kovacs heart rock story...Grace in Rocks.

Home is Where the Heart Is...

The Heart Rock Collective (HRC) ~ A Blog with Heart(s)

Greg Sarles emailed the HRC to share this poignant story of the tragic loss of his family's home. Nothing touches the human heart more deeply than the loss of one's dreams, priceless memories and the treasured place one calls "home".

This Christmas season, my wish for Greg and his family is one of hope for the future. May they rebuild their new home upon a solid foundation of loving memories and long sought after dreams. Home is where the heart is...

In 1990 my parents built the cabin of their dreams on Ten-Mile Lake in Northern Minnesota. The most amazing feature of the cabin was the field-stone fireplace rising from the floor to the ceiling 25 feet overhead. We spent hours looking for faces, animals, and hidden objects within the rocks of this majestic fireplace. In the middle of the fireplace was a beautiful heart-shaped stone that my mother had insisted that the builders center in the rock formation.

This past weekend, the cabin burned to the ground. Only the fireplace stands intact. But the intense heat caused a majority of the rocks to explode, shatter, or crack. Although all of the personal belongings and family heirlooms in the house were lost, we feel extremely blessed that no one was home at the time of the fire, especially considering that the entire family was planning on spending the holidays together at the cabin this coming weekend.

The cabin was insured and a new structure will soon replace the former, but the "broken-heart" pictured is very symbolic of the loss. I would love to surprise my mom with another heart-shaped stone which she could use to anchor the new cabin. Please contact me if you know of where I could purchase such a heart!

Sincerely,
Greg Sarles


==============================================

What better Christmas gift to give than to share one's heart. Any Heart Rock Collector who would like to share a "heart" with Greg, please contact the heartrockcollective@gmail.com!!

Healing a Broken Heart...Tasmanian style

The Heart Rock Collective ~ A Blog with Heart(s)

Benny, another heart-rock collector from the 'Land Down Under' shares this powerful story of how a Tasmanian 'get-away' offered solace and peace for a broken heart...

"Oh wow, in response to Troy... As it happens I've lived in Wollongong for 7 years and recently I had my heart broken in many places, not so much by a lover, but by 'life'... everything that could was going wrong... So a friend in Tasmania suggested I could visit for as long as I needed. The town in Tassie is on the beach. I decided to explore the beach with my old dog and I was surprised to see a lovely heart shaped rock. I took that as a lovely gift from God and nature and took it with me. The next day, I walked along that same beach and everywhere I looked, there were heart shaped rocks. I collected another 3. Two days later I decided to take my dog to another beach and I went back to my friends place with my arms loaded with heart shaped rocks of much bigger size! In all, in 4 days, without even trying, I collecetd 17 heart shaped rocks from just a few centimetres across to some quite hefty ones... but the most amazing one is one that I found just a couple of days ago, same beach, which looked so real in colour, size, shape and proportion that I actually squirmed as the surf washed over it and touched it's blood red shape... I hoped I wasn't seeing a real heart that someone had dropped on the beach, improbably from the butcher or something grizzly... and I quickly poked it, fully expecting it to wobble like the real thing, but, it was just, thank goodness, another rock! The interesting thing is that I lived in Wollongong and I just love it there, but nothing was working out... I came to Tassie where I have no intention of staying forever, and yet, I have found a quiet peace here and a whole collection of heart shaped rocks!"

Give Your Heart(s) Away...

After days of never-ending rain, this afternoon offered a refreshing change with its endless blue skies, billowing cotton clouds and golden sunshine -- the perfect day! I spent the afternoon enjoying the quiet beauty of Great Meadows Wild Life Refuge (Concord, MA). Along the trail, bordering the wetlands, the cattails swayed in the gentle breeze as the sound of the marsh wrens filled the air.

Nature offers just the right balance of solitude, joy and beauty to soothe the weary soul...and sometimes unexpected treasures turn up. I found three heart rocks (pictured above); each one -- uniquely shaped -- reminding me that love is present all around. Whether the shape of your heart is worn down and hardened by the harshness of life; a little rough around the edges or open and full of love, the message remains the same...if you want to receive love, give some away.

Love is a decision.

So...I made a decision.

I gave away my heart(s) today in hopes that someone in a need of love will happen upon these little heart rocks tucked away in the marshes of Great Meadows Wildlife Refuge awaiting discovery.

Peaceful Blessings to all, may God continually shower you with His love in unexpected ways.

~ Kimberly
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My profession is always to be alert, to find God in nature, to know God's lurking places, to attend to all the oratorios and the operas in nature. ~ Henry David Thoreau

You will find something more in woods than in books. Trees and stones will teach you that which you can never learn from masters. ~ Saint Bernard

Labor of Love

If you believe in love, love can move mountains...even giant 'heart rocks'.

A heavy equipment operator discovered this 'gem' (his favorite among many cool rocks found at his work-sites) and brought it home to become part of a beautiful waterfall (pictured above) that he built for his in-laws.

Thanks to David A. Perry of Connecticut for contributing this heart rock story and reminding us that 'hearts' are moved by love.