I do not need to check the fig tree to see when the figs are ripe.
The crow lets everybody know.
He sits on an oak branch high above the fig tree, bobbing up and down,
as he loudly caws all to the feast.
I do not mind sharing. He takes the high figs and I take the low figs.
There are other fig lovers.
Giant hornets.
They do mind sharing.
Follow the Figs… Carefully.
I sit quietly as darkness falls, waiting near the Four O’clocks.
It circles above, then swoops down to feed on the flowers.
Its flight is similar to a hummingbird’s, but silent.
It methodically probes each flower,
then disappears into the darkness.
Follow the Four O’clocks.
Follow the Fliers!
It’s butterfly time in the garden.
I especially like this colorful fellow, the Red Admiral/ Vanessa atalonta.
He must have stopped by on his way somewhere else.
Rested and drank from some garlic flowers.
Before moving on.
We enjoyed the brief visit.
The FLOWER loves fliers.
Words are not enough for me.
We make up words. We translate words from other languages.
We misinterpret words. We twist words or give them a spin.
When I want to know the truth about something; I consult my mother, Nature.
Life here ends in death. All things that live on Earth die.
I wondered about what is next for all living things. Not just we people.
I had another friend go to the other side. Too fast and too soon.
I have a lot of loved ones on the other side.
The longer we live, the more there will be crossing over without us.
Life is so much more than atoms and cells and energy.
I stumbled upon a stump during my wanderings and wonderings.
There on the dead relic of a tree were many types of fungi.
Taking what was left of the tree, now gone, and recycling it into molecules.
Using the stump to grow, decomposing the remnants into raw materials
to return to the soil, to nurture another life.
If our world has a process to recycle a tree stump using fungi and bacteria,
there must be a re-purposing for something as precious as a spirit.
Peace People.
It has been a hard week for the FLOWER.
It was my plan to remove every weed
from every garden and then to re-mulch all the flower beds.
So this has been “Weed Week.”
I couldn’t have more weeds if I had planted and tended them.
So my focus this week has been on the weeds.
This morning I forced myself, the FLOWER, to go out to my garden and
focus on the FLOWERS!
You see, when you look for bad, you see bad.
When you look for beauty, you will find beauty.
You may even find a bunny or two as well.
ALL these photos were taken this morning. No weeds allowed.
Enjoy!
What weeds?
When the Dogwood berries start to turn, I get anxious.
No calendar needed. August is ending.
It is almost time to start back to school.
For a teacher this means wrap up loose ends.
There will be no more free time until June.
This is my second year of not teaching, but I still get anxious.
It is a sort of “nesting” behavior, like during pregnancy.
Get it done NOW.
Clean out that closet, write those Thank You notes…
Get ready, finish up, get ready, finish up…
Unlike last year, there are no trips planned. No getting ready.
My page is empty. Totally blank.
I must choose what to do next? Where will I go? Where will I land?
Do not envy this freedom. It is intimidating. It is lonely. I have no tribe.
I am afraid of this clean slate. The canvas is blank.
I must reinvent myself again.
Another era has ended.
A new day is dawning.
The FLOWER is free and full of fear.
My husband has a large cactus. (Ritterocereus pruinosis)
I am not wild about this plant. It is big, tall, ugly and spiny.
He loves it, so I have tolerated its presence for the duration of our marriage.
It has to be moved inside every winter. It is quite a big production.
In and out, in and out, in and out, over and over.
After thirty years of caring for this plant, a small bud formed about midway up.
Finally, his cactus was going to do something exciting!
We have checked its progress daily.
I have photographed the bud’s enlargement.
When will it open? What color will it be?
I was hesitant to leave town for fear of missing the big event.
Alas. When I checked on it this morning, the bud was going limp and shriveling.
I hate it when that happens.
Such disappointment.
I am considering cutting the top off to root it.
Any suggestions?
floweralley 