• flowers,  insects,  Plants,  quotes

    It’s interesting…

    July 2, 2022
    Fern-leaf Yarrow and pollen laden bee

    The inner spirit is who I really am. My body is alive in this nature and exists in its frame. I do not need to be spiritual to find this. I only need to stop believing that the ego, the small self, is me. If I do, a different knowing emerges which has a largeness and a certain beauty. It is an expression of power and love beyond the usual definitions. To live in its knowledge is to know yourself to be free.

    from A NEW SET OF EYES by Paula D’Arcy

    This is fern-leaf yarrow, and is an upright, clump-forming yarrow that is native to the Caucasus, Iran and Afghanistan and is in the sunflower family. Interestingly one name listed for them is nosebleed. (?) It is considered an invasive species by some states in the US. And, man is still not on that list. I find these plants in almost every natural area I visit. I really like how they look and the pollinators seem to like them also, as you can see with the heavily laden bee in this image.

    I’m in a place in life where I resonate with the above quote. This process of uncovering who I really am, this knowing who I am, is exciting and freeing. Interesting that this bee does not consider what political party to belong to, what church to attend, what it’s favorite band is this week, and the other stuff we place in our lives. It lives in the knowledge of what it is and the life it is meant to live. It is free!

    It’s interesting that I have used the word interesting three times in this post. Now four. 😂

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  • insects,  quotes

    Courage

    September 28, 2021

    “Courage is the measure of our heartfelt participation with life, with another, with a community, a work; a future. To be courageous is not necessarily to go anywhere or do anything except to make conscious those things we already feel deeply and then to live through the unending vulnerabilities of those consequences.”

    David Whyte
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  • insects,  Mary Oliver,  quotes

    Astonishing

    September 11, 2021

    “Let me keep my distance, always, from those
    who think they have the answers.

    Let me keep company always with those who say
    “Look!” and laugh in astonishment,
    and bow their heads.”

    Mary Oliver, from 𝘌𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦: 𝘗𝘰𝘦𝘮𝘴

    Spent time yesterday morning at The Gardens on Spring Creek. They now have a Butterfly House that I was able to visit for the first time. I hesitated but it was well worth the visit. Astonishing!

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  • insects

    Remembering….

    July 31, 2021
    Widow Skimmer Dragonfly (I think)

    It rained yesterday afternoon and through most of the night, with a soft gentle rain here. However there was major rain in the mountains in the burn areas from last years forest fires. Major flooding took place and a flood warning out for today. Interesting that 45 years ago today we had the Big Thompson Flood that took 144 lives. A 20 foot wall of water came down that canyon almost completely taking out Highway 34 between Loveland and Estes Park. I remember how it sounded like a war zone with helicopters constantly flying overhead. I know those who lost loved ones in that flood and have a sister who survived those waters.

    Data for those who want to know: Fujifilm X-T3 and XF 16-80mm f4.0

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  • animals,  flowers,  insects,  Plants

    Another time

    July 23, 2021

    Met my friend, Diane, at Gardens on Spring Creek. The gardens are an impressive 18 acre facility. Great for us older kids to enjoy! We brought our own coffee and met in the parking lot. They have this set aside time for members to have the garden all to themselves on certain days from 8:00-10:00 am. Today was one of those days. What a wonderful world it is. They also have a butterfly pavilion but it did not open until 10:00 am. Another time.

    Had this little one come right up to me as if I was suppose to feed them. Hope you are having a great day!

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  • flowers,  insects,  Plants

    Getting Close

    July 19, 2021

    Well, so far I am pleased with the Fujifilm XF70-300mm f4.0-5.6 OIS WR. In the reviews I’ve read they talk about the close focusing ability of this lens and I find it to be true. All of these images were taken at 300mm and handheld.

    I am noticing quicker battery drainage but that may be caused by shooting more images as I learn, practice and experiment with thisl ens.

    This spider is about the size of a quarter. I am about three feet away and maybe could have gotten closer so the close focusing distance is good for me.

    Also, all images are cropped to some extent.

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  • insects,  natural areas,  Plants,  quotes

    Metamorphosis

    July 17, 2021

    We are living in what the Greeks called the kairos – the right moment – for a ‘metamorphosis of the gods’, of the fundamental principles and symbols. This peculiarity of our time, which is certainly not of our conscious choosing, is the expression of the unconscious man within us who is changing.

    Carl Jung
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  • insects,  quotes

    Discovered the fly

    July 11, 2021

    “The Utah deserts and plateaus and canyons are not a country of big returns, but a country of spiritual healing, incomparable for contemplation, meditation, solitude, quiet, awe, peace of mind and body. We were born of wilderness, and we respond to it more than we sometimes realize. We depend upon it increasingly for relief from the termite life we have created. Factories, power plants, resorts, we can make anywhere. Wilderness, once we have given it up, is beyond our reconstruction.”

    Wallace Stegner

    I believe Stegner’s quote is valid for any place. Wilderness is always close by even in our cities but becoming smaller all the time. And we mistakenly call the elimination of these places development. Sigh!

    I noticed some Campanula rapunculoides, also known by the common name of creeping bellflower, in a greenbelt and canal area on a walk along Shields Avenue. I felt a closer look was necessary. After a few photos I spotted these mushrooms. Since I was already on my knees I decided they also needed to have their photo taken. I took three photos of the mushrooms and later discovered the fly is only in one image. Guess the fly wanted their photo taken also. 😁

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  • bees,  flowers,  insects,  Mary Oliver,  Plants,  poems,  prayer

    My Way of Praying

    August 11, 2020
    The pink rose displayings beauty and accepting a very tiny visitor

    How I go to the woods

    Ordinarily, I go to the woods alone, with not a single
    friend, for they are all smilers and talkers and therefore
    unsuitable.

    I don’t really want to be witnessed talking to the catbirds
    or hugging the old black oak tree. I have my way of
    praying, as you no doubt have yours.

    Besides, when I am alone I can become invisible. I can sit
    on the top of a dune as motionless as an uprise of weeds,
    until the foxes run by unconcerned. I can hear the almost
    unhearable sound of the roses singing.

    If you have ever gone to the woods with me, I must love
    you very much.” 

    Mary Oliver
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