Reelfoot National Wildlife Refuge

A chosen spot

/ Rebecca / 7 Comments

When I first arrived at the boardwalk, I could see this heron at a distance out past the trees.  I thought that my presence might spook him and cause him to fly away.  Instead, to my amazement, I saw him take flight, settling in a spot closer to where I was standing.  As I watched, he casually snatched a couple of tiny fish out of the water.  Then he remained in his chosen spot, watching me as I walked up and down the board walk.

“Happiness is the settling of the soul into its most appropriate spot.”  ~Aristotle

Standing among the duckweed

/ Rebecca / 4 Comments

This spot at the Reelfoot National Wildlife Refugee is one of my favorite places to stand and listen to silence, intertwined with the occasional sweet sounds of nature.

“In mid-wood silence, thus, how sweet to be,
Where all the noises, that on peace intrude
Come from the chittering cricket, bird, and bee,
Whose songs have charms to sweeten solitude.”
~John Clare

Frogs on a log

/ Rebecca / Leave a comment

While visiting the Reelfoot National Wildlife Refuge, I was able to spot a couple of  frogs — a Green Frog and a Gray Treefrog.  They were both sitting on logs, soaking up some sun.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well,
if I were a belly-floppin’ frog
I’d sit in the sun on a little old log,

and I’d doze
doze
doze…

with my eyes closed
closed
closed…

if I were a belly-floppin’ frog      

Ribbit!
~Unknown

Wading through the cypress swamp

/ Rebecca / 8 Comments

A Great Blue Heron wading through swampy water near Reelfoot Lake.

 

“Have you noticed how children never bypass a puddle of water, but jump, splash, and slosh right through it?  That’s because they know an important truth:  Life was meant to be lived; puddles were meant to be experienced.”  ~Richelle E. Goodrich

 

A good day for a hike

/ Rebecca / 9 Comments

 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The sky was a little overcast, but the temperature was perfect for a hike in the Reelfoot Wildlife Refuge.  Along the way, signs of spring were intermingled with the leaves of the past autumn.  The sound of birds chirping and an owl hooting could be heard in the distance.  As we passed a stranger on the path, his greeting summed up my feelings perfectly — “It doesn’t get much better than this!”  No, it certainly doesn’t.  🙂

“And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.”  ~Unknown

Look up!

/ Rebecca / 12 Comments

As I was standing and looking out over the lake, I felt a little disappointed at the apparent lack of wildlife in the immediate area.  Then I heard a passing kayaker tell one of his companions to “look up”.  As I lifted my eyes, I was amazed to see a large flock of white pelicans quietly soaring right above my head.  Such a beautiful and graceful sight that I would have otherwise missed if I hadn’t overheard the suggestion to look up.

“… How often we miss God’s treasures
Just because we don’t raise our eyes.
By keeping our narrow focus
We blunder and miss the prize …”
~Joyce Johnson