“Solitude is where I place my chaos to rest and awaken my inner peace.”
Nikki Rowe
Rest
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Sunrise on a cold morning this past February at Pineridge Natural Area -
Nature’s Invitation
Waking early I took my camera to Pineridge Natural Area to watch the sun rise. It was cold this morning at 36 degrees. A frigid breeze was enticing the brown grass of the meadow and rabbit brush to joyfully dance together. I was greeted with a meadowlark singing its song of happiness, then joined by a second meadowlark. A couple of robins perched themselves on the fence in front of me and joined in with their glad tidings. I watched a goose smoothly paddle across the reservoir leaving behind its v-shaped wake. A pair of mallards circled above as if not sure where to go. A half dozen white pelicans used their webbed feet to silently float along the north end of the reservoir in search for food. I wonder if that’s where the big fish are?
I offer thanks as I am never disappointed with the gifts nature gives me at these sacred places and times. I like to call these times gifts but they seem to be more than that. Could it be nature’s invitation to share our presence in all of creation? Maybe these times are the most natural thing we can do with nature. By now my hands were cold and I could picture in my mind wrapping them around a hot mocha latte. It has been a good start to a wonderful Sunday! May you have also have a wonderful Sunday!
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Starting Tomorrow
Sunrise at Topminnow Natural Area I worried a lot. Will the garden grow, will the rivers
Mary Oliver, Devotions
flow in the right direction, will the earth turn
as it was taught, and if not how shall
I correct it?
Was I right, was I wrong, will I be forgiven,
can I do better?
Will I ever be able to sing, even the sparrows
can do it and I am, well,
hopeless.
Is my eyesight fading or am I just imagining it,
am I going to get rheumatism,
lockjaw, dementia?
Finally I saw that worrying had come to nothing.
And gave it up. And took my old body
and went out into the morning,
and sang.I’ve worried a lot, too. I worry much less at my age because I also finally saw that it never really helped. I’m also a hopeless singer, with most of my practice done in the shower, solo. But, Mary Oliver’s poem has inspired me to stop worrying whether I’m as good a singer as a sparrow and just sing. So, starting tomorrow morning…
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Experience of life
Sunrise at Pineridge Natural Area You have to understand that it is your attempt to get special experiences from life that makes you miss the actual experience of life.
Michael A. SingerA quiet stillness greets us this morning after several days of almost constant wind. Sunshine brightens the world around me. It’s also 15 degrees. And, I do believe the blue sky is bluer today. Welcome the new day and don’t miss the experience of life. Now headed to Old Town and meet a friend for coffee. Have a great day!
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Try to be there…
“The answer must be, I think, that beauty and grace are performed whether or not we will or sense them. The least we can do is try to be there.”
Annie Dillard, Pilgrim at Tinker CreekThese are the predawn colors at Pineridge Nature Area this morning. A strong wind was blowing from the north, robins were singing and magpies were squawking. At first one may think the magpies are complaining but I like to believe it’s their way to greet me in the morning. Just maybe they are thanking me for being there. After some journaling at the natural area I made my way for my morning mocha. They also thanked me for being there.
Back home and clouds now fill the skies. A steady rain is being offered to our parched land and souls. This rain is welcomed, a wonderful sign of spring, so I have a thankful heart. Hope you have a great day and try to be there.
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Cloudless Horizon
We must be true inside, true to ourselves, before we can know a truth that is outside us.
Thomas MertonI finished my taxes yesterday. My taxes are pretty easy because I do not have the millions that some of you have to deal with. I just enter zeros and I’m done.
I’ve been working on a couple of ongoing writing and photography projects the last few days and plan on more of that today. Drove to Pineridge Natural Area early this morning for predawn colors before having a mocha latte at Mugs. I’m usually not too excited with cloudless skies but this morning was an exception. Hope you are being true to yourself today!
- Arapaho Bend Natural Area, clouds, landscape, Mary Oliver, natural areas, poems, seasons, snow, sunrises, winter scenes
Astonishment
Sunrise at Arapaho Bend Natural Area Let me keep my distance, always, from those
Mary Oliver, Evidence: Poems
who think they have the answers.
Let me keep company always with those who say
“Look!” and laugh in astonishment,
and bow their heads. -
Silence of sunrise
predawn colors
ms
painted on eastern horizon
silence of sunriseWe had some beautiful skies this morning during predawns performance. I just happened to be there and have my camera with me. We will enjoy the day before we have 5 days of cold temperatures with rain and snow. A pattern of nature before entering into full spring. Have a wonderful day!
