Away from life’s busyness and noise, I relish my time of solitude in nature. The day’s stress resides as birds return to their nests and evening’s peaceful quiet settles over the little pond. Thank you, Lord, for your blessings.
passing clouds… the damselflies like me need a rest
quivering sawgrass focused on the same spot we wait, the hawk and i
Al W Gallia
Sunrise
How gorgeous the red-shouldered hawk looks in the morning sun, so intent and alert to its environment! Yet it allows me to stare and marvel at its uniqueness and beauty without any apprehension. I am so thankful whenever Serendipity chooses to expose her hidden secrets to me as she did at this moment.
“A taste for the beautiful is most cultivated out of doors”
a withering leaf…/ remnants of nature’s beauty/ litter the forest
Al W Gallia
Some things are timeless… not related to human manipulation and degradation. The beauty of unspoiled Nature in her virgin glory, a gift from our loving God, is at the top of my list:
A golden leaf swirling in a stream’s eddy; mottled sunlight on a blossom; a cardinal sitting on a limb; a sand-fall down a canyon wall; even a new dandelion rising through a cracked rock. Whether a fading leaf or a wizened old woman, innate beauty never changes and remains locked in time, unblemished forever.
a circling butterfly touches down on her finger tip breeze blown wildflowers
Al W Gallia
True beauty has no need of mankind’s touch, but only to be left alone to radiate and be appreciated.
Today, I was privileged to witness another of my wife’s animal whispering encounters! A dragonfly flitting about our blooming gardenia found a rest stop which Bobbie quickly spotted. As she always does, she started a conversation and, for a few moments, they shared some special connection and message. I never stop being amazed!
resting dragonfly her fingertip senses a tentative touch
Nymph, angel or spirit? Walking through untouched nature in a autumn wonderland this morning, I feel an exceptional closeness to God… actually I always feel this way in the woods. But since our loving God, ‘I am’, is an indescribable presence to us dust mote humans, I find myself looking for signs of God’s presence in Mother Nature usually as a mysterious, fleeting nymph called Serendipity.
As I meander along the trail, I recognize Serendipity (God’s presence!) in the murmuring tree tops, dancing shadows, fluttering leaves, bird songs, and burbling brooks. Through them, I hear Him gently say to me, “Be not afraid…My peace I give to you,” and I smile. A squirrel chatters overhead.
They say she is a ‘whisperer’ and that she can ‘talk’ to God’s smallest creatures. I saw her today while wandering a nearby woodlands trail with my camera as I looked for that elusive nymph, Serendipity. She was picking wildflowers in a field, wearing a blue and white gingham dress, and carrying a half filled basket. A late summer breeze frolicked across the field and the flowers bobbed their heads at her as if asking to be picked too! Dragonflies and butterflies flitted about her while a pair of doves watched from an old wooden fence. She saw me and smiled sweetly as I walked past on my search for Serendipity.