• clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  Plants,  quotes,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area,  trees

    Looks Different Today

    ..amateurs worry about equipment,
    professionals worry about money,
    masters worry about light,
    I just take pictures…

    Vernon Trent

    Took this a week ago while on a walk at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area. Looks very different this morning, it’s snowing. I imagine this was one of the last days of full fall colors for this year. While yesterday was misting most of the day then rain and light snow through the night. I imagine the mountains have more snow. They are predicting this to continue through the day and into tomorrow. May you have a great week and take a few pictures!

  • animals,  natural areas,  poems,  poetry,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area,  writing/reading

    Your True Self

    A deer at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area

    “It’s not possible to save the world by trying to save it. You need to find what is genuinely yours to offer the world before you can make it a better place. Discovering your unique gift to bring to your community is your greatest opportunity and challenge. The offering of that gift — your true self — is the most you can do to love and serve the world. And it is all the world needs.”

    Thomas Berry
  • landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area,  sunsets

    Blue Skies

    Keep your face always toward the sunshine – and shadows will fall behind you.

    Walt Whitman

    Took this image at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area yesterday just as the sun was setting. It was the most enjoyable thing I did all day and I had a good day. The day started out cloudy, overcast and cold. By noon the clouds cleared up and we were blessed with blue skies the rest of the day. Have a wonderful October!

  • clouds,  landscape,  natural areas,  quotes,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area,  sunsets

    Peace Within

    “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

    Ralph Waldo Emerson

    This is the time of the year when mornings begin to get cooler and afternoons stay hot. We call it fall. Met with a friend this morning at Pineridge Natural Area to watch the sunrise and sip on our chai lattes. We wore jackets. Made a crockpot of vegetable soup this morning before I left the condo and shared that with another friend at noon. When it reached 92 I decide it was time to visit Reservoir Ridge Natural Area. Without a jacket. As I took it all in, nature provided a nice wind to bring relief from the heat and provided some soothing sounds and sights for me to enjoy. A blue jay squawks from the cottonwoods behind me. A starburst shoots through the trees. I’m noticing leaves beginning to change colors. A hawk circles above. Clouds lazily drift overhead. Soon the sun dropped behind the mountains and I felt the coolness of the air. As this busy day comes to a close I reflect on both the good choices and poor choices I made today. And, I smile because there is a peace within. ❤️

  • natural areas,  Reservoir Ridge Natural Area

    Topsy-turvy

    My time in Phoenix with my mother and then the 8 hour drive to Texas and back, was far more sedentary than I realized. I did not get in the steps like I needed so need to get back into a routine again. I’m sure more walking will increase also with the coming of cooler fall temperatures.

    After a burst of lightning in Colorado over the past 48 hours aircraft from Colorado Fire Prevention and Control have spotted 37 small fires. We only have a couple that are of concern but the smoke is having a negative impact on our air quality. We will be dry and warm today with moisture arriving on Wednesday.

    I received word yesterday afternoon that my dad and brother-in-law have tested positive for COVID-19. Both are tired and have little energy. My sister Marcee tested negative and my sister Sheree will test today. I’m scheduled for testing Thursday morning. Life is topsy-turvy right now. 😍

  • Mary Oliver,  Plants

    Details

    ““Keep some room in your heart for the Unimaginable.”

    Mary Oliver, Evidence: Poems

    An image from an afternoon walk at Reservoir Ridge Natural Area. I like the details in this image because I relied on a tripod rather than my image stabilized lenses. After, carrying the tripod over my shoulders for awhile I remembered why I normally leave it in the car. Also, this was not a planned image but one I accidently framed. Another image given to me, with details. Unimaginable.

    I hadn’t visited this natural area in a few days. Loved that the grass was still tall along the trail and the grass they cut and bayled has begun to grow back and turn green again. I was surrounded by dragonflies and grasshoppers along the trail.