“Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them and try to follow them.” ~Louisa May Alcott
nature
Storm’s a comin’
“Serenity is not freedom from the storm, but peace amid the storm.” ~Unknown
Spider web
“Will you walk into my parlor?” said the spider to the fly;
“‘Tis the prettiest little parlor that ever you did spy.
The way into my parlor is up a winding stair,
And I have many pretty things to show when you are there.” ~Mary Howitt
Katydid
Little friend among the tree-tops,
Chanting low your vesper hymns,
Never tiring,
Me inspiring,
Seated ‘neath the swaying limbs
Do you know your plaintive calling,
When the summer dew is falling,
Echoes sweeter through my brain
Than any soft, harmonic strain?
~Mrs. J. I. McKinney (“Katydid”), 1887
Bird’s-eye view
“Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others.” ~Jonathan Swift
Safety in numbers
“If one bird foraging in a flock on the ground suddenly takes off, all other birds will take off immediately after, before they even know what’s going on. The one who stays behind may be prey.” ~Frans de Waal
Wonder
“With regard to the horror which some children show of beetle, spider, worm, that is usually a trick picked up from grown-up people.” ~Charlotte Mason
Under the catalpa tree
“To sit in the shade on a fine day and look upon verdure is the most perfect refreshment.” ~Jane Austen
Blue jay
“Everyone likes birds. What wild creature is more accessible to our eyes and ears, as close to us and everyone in the world, as universal as a bird?” ~David Attenborough
Lurking in the grass
Black rat snakes are beneficial to farmers because they help control the rodent population. This was one long snake!
walking on a country road 