The world around me — nature, colors, shapes, images, travel.

Water, tides ebbing and flowing.  The shades of color from shore to the horizon. The way light changes the sky.  The night sky, the sky at dawn or evening, leaves and flowers.  Shadows and light.  The shades of green in rice fields from first growth to harvest.  The Mediterranean and Aegean.  Greece, either in Athens or on an island or watching the colors of water.  The quality of light in each country.  Wandering around Florence or Istanbul or London.  The countryside of England.  The family farm — the pastures as I look out windows.  Memories.  Family and friends, my pets, my home, laughter and love. Reading.  Teaching.  Music, always.  The very gems and stones that I work with.

Life itself, in other words.  The joys of loving, the pain of loss.

Joy.