• Plants,  quotes

    Living its purpose

    “Our challenge is not only to recognize the face of the Creator in the beauty of creation, but also to serve the Divine by taking care of the land, the air, and all beings that dwell with us here…”

    Mirabai Starr

    This has been a wet summer for us in Colorado. So, we’ve been blessed with mushrooms sprouting in the shady area of the grass. These mushrooms are harmless but play a natural part in our lawn’s ecosystem. They have an essential role in breaking down organic material, such as dead leaves, grass clippings, and tree roots, into nutrients that plants can use. So, that means they are taking care of the land, the air, and all beings that dwell with us in their own way. Seems man is bent on doing the opposite! With reverence for their lives I bow down on my knees to shoot at their level rather than looking down on them. Such beauty, living its purpose in the short time it has on earth.

  • John O'Donohue,  Plants,  quotes

    A Sacred Gift

    May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven around the heart of wonder.

    John O’Donohue

    Colorado Climate Center at Colorado State University says we’ve received 4.06 inches of rain in the past 14 days and more rain expected tomorrow. Therefore mushrooms are everywhere. And, here’s my proof.

    We have had a beautiful day with blue skies and sunshine. As I sit on my porch and type this I watch and listen as the wind dance with the trees. Robins, blue jays and goldfinches sing. The fragrance of the locust and linden trees fills the air. I will post this and then drive to Riverbend Ponds for some bird photography or at least a nice walk. Grateful as this day has been a sacred gift.

  • Anne Lamott,  Plants,  quotes

    Maybe love is the answer

    Not sure what type of mushroom this is but I ain’t gonna eat it.

    “Hope is not about proving anything. It’s about choosing to believe this one thing, that love is bigger than any grim, bleak shit anyone can throw at us.”

    Anne Lamott, Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith

    Each day I move towards believing this at deeper and deeper levels. Hatred and violence just are not the answers. Let’s try living the idea that love is the answer. Not just talk about it but truly love! It means learning how to open our hands and offer love to others.

  • Plants

    Love my mornings

    Mushroom outside the coffee shop

    I enjoyed this particular morning with predawn pink clouds over Dixon Reservoir. Then while driving to Reservoir Ridge Natural Area a nice buck bounced across the road and up the hill, with such grace. Wild turkeys grazed nearby, with one watchful eye on me. My peeps were everywhere; squirrels, robins, meadowlarks, and now baristas.

  • Dewdrops,  Plants

    Yearning

    the physical absence
    brings an empty ache
    missing you already

    a gravesite gathering
    family saying goodbye
    hugs, tears, prayers

    taken for granted
    moments with you
    yearning for more

    ms
  • flowers,  insects,  Plants

    Getting Close

    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.

  • insects,  quotes

    Discovered the fly

    “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. 😁