I have a very humble garden, it grows us food, some flowers and too many weeds but not worth writing home about. One year a bird decided to plant this annoying crabapple tree. This darn thing would not die. I tried digging it up, clipping it off at the root, even the neighbor girl came over to dig it up for me. I did love it’s pretty little pink flowers though. Finally I took one of those annoying starts and planted it by the chicken coop thinking one day maybe it will give them shade and some snacks and as as added bonus, I could enjoy those pretty flowers. Fast forward a few years and we have it! A little shade tree and lovely flowers…not sure the chickens are into crabapples but whatever. And It didn’t ever grow back in the garden after that. Now these flowers, they are worth writing home about.

Lately my walks have been few and my photography has been sparse. But when sunshine and droplets make an appearance I have a magnetic pull to go see. My muse. Taking that time and energy, which are both in short supply, is rewarded with these pictures I share. This one was something special. I was trying every angle to get the droplets just right in the light. As I am wrestling with it I somehow fog up the lens, probably with my hot air. I think nothing of it at the time, but oh my, I love how it turned out! I didn’t have to edit this to glow, it just was. Gifts.

Sword ferns in spring. I love the whimsy of those swirls. I am often taking far too many photos of these guys trying to get the picture just right. So perfectly organized for their complete unveiling.

Have you ever stopped to consider overwhelming magnificence of the things around you? I was sitting in the woods trying to take a picture of a little caterpillar with a tiny flower petal stuck on its back. While I was there on the ground I stopped to appreciate one of our rare sunny moments of spring in western Oregon. As I sat there a flash of bright color caught my eyes. There, up on an old snag, beautiful little bird perched. I prayed I’d get a clear shot with my 300mm lens. And there he sat patiently waiting for me it seemed. Oh I revel in these precious moments. The beauty stuns me to happy tears of wonder. Then I went home to make sure I identified the bird correctly. A Western Tanager. Have you ever taken a moment to look up a bird in a bird book? There are so many colors, so many different varieties. Why? The simple answer is that God loves to create beauty, beauty that you and I will love to see. In birds, in flowers, in trees, mushrooms, insects…. The list could go on forever. Not only is it beautiful and amazing but there is purpose in every aspect of each flora and fauna. Please, take a moment to consider a love so vast, beyond words.

They days are longer and the sun keeps trying to warm the earth. The trees know it. The green is coming back. This has been a tough season for me, wading through winter has taken its toll. Usually I just push through getting out rain or shine, freezing or not. Not this year. Maybe it was just a time to rest like the trees do every winter. Getting my momentum up again has been hard. But I am envisioning success…it will just take some time and patience. For now I prep our garden with many wheelbarrows full of new dirt. We are getting ready to plant for the summer of growth and harvest of our own food. Praying for blessings of the harvest we hope to have. I pray the same over my life and yours as we move on each day. Growth, blooming, plentiful fruits of the labors.

A beautiful winter day brought us out to enjoy our countryside. We got to visit a local wildlife reserve and the elk that live there. We just sat and soaked it in. So very beautiful. These moments away are a respite from our normal busy, tech filled lives. Simple beauty and tangible blessings. I want to fill our days and months with these moments.

How is something so small and insignificant become meaningful? It is useless even, especially to the spider that made it, and yet so beautiful. How in this dangling web with dew drops on it make a difference in my life? Something that is here one moment and gone in the next. Knowing how fleeting it is, how delicate, yet intricate makes me want to sit in that moment soaking it in. Being completely present and just appreciate the simple wonder of it. It makes me dwell in gratitude for where I am. It is one of the very best ways to have peace in this life.

Sometimes things just fall into place. The right light, the right scene, the perfect details. And usually I don’t know it happens until I get home and start looking at the pictures in detail. I love this photo! The details of the snow on that bridge are beautiful. It is the perfect snowscape I think. Peaceful on this side of the photo, in the comfort of our home. Boy that was a cold walk…we had pink cheeks and noses by the time we left there. Makes you feel alive! I hope you enjoy this snowscape too. It brings me joy to share these things with you.

I love the flowers that linger through fall and winter. I am always taken in by the close up details of droplets hanging on things, especially flowers. The fingerprints of God.

How do you weather the storms of this life? How do you keep your joy from being smothered? This right here is one of my ways to push aside the difficulties that are just a part of being alive. Seeing the beautiful details in the common place things. A weed growing by the trail covered in droplets that defy gravity. Getting outside when I don’t really feel like it or don’t have time is another. Also the use of my camera comes into play. To focus completely on these small details. Shutting out the noise around me and being able to capture the clarity as I see it, to share with others hoping a small part of what I know and feel comes through into someone else’s hectic life. Sometimes I can’t make it outside, like in the middle of the night, and then I have to rely on other resources to keep me on the level. It is a work in progress for me every single day. Being grateful, helping others, giving my anxieties to the Lord in prayer. Faith, hope, truth, praise…