And Then I Smiled.....

     My husband and I made a quick trip home to Tennessee. We visited our family in Nashville and then went on to Sewanee where my comfort zone remains.  After completing a dental visit I raced to the house to ready my cameras and venture out to the lake behind our home. As I proceeded down the trail I saw my husband coming home from a five miles jog, after his early morning meeting. I told him that I was heading to see what was at the lake. He invited me to lunch with his friend, a past colleague, and I thought that I would join them since they weren't going until afternoon. This gave me some time to putter about. But once I got to the lake it was buzzing with raw beauty, the nature and experiences that were part of my life for twelve years and luckily still are! 
       I ventured all over the 15,000 acres that The University Of The South owns, while in Sewanee full-time over those twelve years. And once I took up the hobby of photography I seemed to never be without my camera. Today I was thrilled to have my cameras with me as I approached the first bridge crossing a small finger of the lake; I was engrossed and in awe over the multitude of dragonflies flitting about as they do this time of year. Finally.... I pulled away from the dragonflies and proceeded to the next bridge. When I started to check out what was stirring, a female hummingbird whizzed past my head and began to feed on the wild flowers,( Lobelia cardinalis) Cardinal Flower that had filled the spillway. Excited, I hurried around the edge of the bridge and down the embankment to get a closer look. I could not wait to get some photos! Several other species of dragonflies were hunting here and even challenging the hummingbirds to leave their territory. They would chase the hummingbirds off but after a short rest and perch on a nearby pine tree they would buzz back through for another sip of nectar!
     The butterflies and hummingbirds fed together on different sides of the plants and I was not able to get a clear photo.  Several times they appeared to be dancing in the air together and I would have loved to have gotten that on video! I had to bog down in the mud up to my ankles and hide in the reeds to get these photos because the growth was so high that I could not photograph above it.  I stood for probably an hour, hardly moving while the hummingbirds, dragonflies and butterflies went from plant to plant.
      I enjoyed my hike and my hour or more of stillness, getting sidetracked so long that I had to pass on my lunch invitation. A few folks strolled pass the bridge, two boys that never noticed me, as they looked for a good fishing spot, a women that simply smiled, an older gentleman asked, “What are you photographing?", as he clutched his binoculars and I whispered, “hummingbirds...nature”!  And then I smiled.

These two contortionist are attempting to mate right?

Excuse me....coming through...(fly by peeping Tom)

Dragonfly...blue dasher I think.

Female hummingbird feeding on Cardinal Flower.

 

 

 

She spotted me and it took her several minutes to return.  I believe there were two hummingbirds feeding in the area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting Ready To Plant

Each Spring I get excited to see what is available for the planting season. There are always the "tried and trues" and then sometimes you see something hybrid or something new. I was excited to see a new perennial Columbine that I had not seen. It was double petal and had a full appearance. Of course, I had to have some. I am in West Virginia now but I will be taking these home to Tennessee to be planted in our yard. And I found some beautiful lilies like I had planted last year. They are lovely too!

 

 

 

I took a cool stroll around the Little Beaver State Park lake. This broke my heart, a duck had gotten it's foot tangled in fishing line and I tried to get some people to help me catch it but we were not able to do anything about it.  It was too frightened of us.  And the it's foot was so swollen and damaged that it had trouble walking.  I am sure the pain was horrible.  I hope that the State park folks found him.  I could not locate anyone from the park service.  So we need to be careful with fishing line, trash and etc. for our wildlife.

 

Remembering Sam

After a nice romp through the woods!

Stored in my memory bank are many vivid images of fun times spent on the trails in West Virginia and in Tennessee with Sam and then Carly too. By my calculations we walked thousands of miles together.  Sam was our first Golden Retriever, our buddy and we are thankful that God sent him to us.  He was a great and loyal companion, a friend to all, a "snuggler", protector, jokester and "cheerer-upper". You could read his eyes.  He showed his emotions loud and clear. It was one of those odd connections between man and beast.  And no one will ever convince me that he didn't love us as much as we loved him!  I'm pretty sure he and my horse, Montana Moon, are hanging out, out there in the wild yonder; somewhere beautiful, more beautiful than words can describe.  Maybe heaven has golden trails! (BIG grin) I think...surely God didn't just put them (all of our loving pets) here on earth for such a short visit with us then forever gone…surely not?  I would like to think/hope that he/they will meet me at heaven's gates someday with a big ole' sloppy kiss and I'll jump on Montana's back and we’ll take off, full throttle!   And we will find the nearest field, stream or patch of woods to meander and poke around in! Until then I'll keep meandering about, hold those sweet memories close, and continue to enjoy each and every precious moment that I am gifted to have and enjoy every beautiful sight I see. 




Sam was always right by my side while tending to the flowers and gardening.

Overlooking the 13 thousand acre woods.

Many a day they spent looking out the window.

Jerry and our buddy Sam.

Checking out the back forty...a watchful eye.

Going for a little dip in the Lake.

Making sure that Jackson didn't fall.

Making sure that Jackson didn't loose control.

It's okay Carly....

 

I find comfort in many verses in the bible…a few of my favorites on animals and living creatures:

Genesis 9:14-17

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁴ When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds, ¹⁵ and I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures. Never again will the floodwaters destroy all life. ¹⁶ When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth.” ¹⁷ Then God said to Noah, “Yes, this rainbow is the sign of the covenant I am confirming with all the creatures on earth.”

Job 12:7-10

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁷ “Just ask the animals, and they will teach you.
    Ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you.
⁸ Speak to the earth, and it will instruct you.
    Let the fish in the sea speak to you.
⁹ For they all know
    that my disaster has come from the hand of the Lord.
¹⁰ For the life of every living thing is in his hand,
    and the breath of every human being.

Isaiah 11:6-9

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁶ In that day the wolf and the lamb will live together;
    the leopard will lie down with the baby goat.
The calf and the yearling will be safe with the lion,
    and a little child will lead them all.
⁷ The cow will graze near the bear.
    The cub and the calf will lie down together.
    The lion will eat hay like a cow.
⁸ The baby will play safely near the hole of a cobra.
    Yes, a little child will put its hand in a nest of deadly snakes without harm.
⁹ Nothing will hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,
    for as the waters fill the sea,
    so the earth will be filled with people who know the Lord.

Proverbs 12:10

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁰ The godly care for their animals,
    but the wicked are always cruel.

Ecclesiastes 3:19-21

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁹ For people and animals share the same fate—both breathe and both must die. So people have no real advantage over the animals. How meaningless! ²⁰ Both go to the same place—they came from dust and they return to dust. ²¹ For who can prove that the human spirit goes up and the spirit of animals goes down into the earth?

So…I believe that there is hope! An older blog post:  http://gaylesgardengate.blogspot.com/2012/02/heaven-sent.html

 

A Morning Heavy With Dew

This morning was filled with moisture and as I ventured down a new path I notice an over grown trail.  It lead me to a field and it glistened with dew.  It was a gloriously cool and sunny morning.  I trudged though the tall weeds and grasses, taking in all of the beauty with lots of excitement.  And I prayed that the bugs that I have experience in Tennessee would not be as bad here in West Virginia and thankfully they weren't!  I had failed to spray myself with any protection, I had not planned to get off the cleared path.  I should have known better!!! 

Yellow Swallowtail

A skipper...

Common bluet...

I only took pictures today of these apples that I spotted.  My mind filled with a recipe that I want to try with these apples!  And it made my mouth water!

I traveled to Charleston, WV later this day and spotted this fawn resting with it's mother close by.

 

I could not get a clear shot of this odd bug as it landed for a moment on this blade of grass and crossed my path.

Heavy with morning dew...

Daisies, Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, or Oxeyed  Daisy.  Check out the crab spider's legs under the left side petals.

The morning dew was so beaded up on this sassafras plant that it looked like glitter.

By the end of my morning walk the air had begun to dry out a bit and this tiny bee was making his rounds.