I Grow Sad

when the butterflies wear out.

It's all part of the cycle of life.

Somewhere butterfly eggs wait for spring.

Sometimes They Pose

Boredom

always has surprised me.  Why would anyone on God's green earth ever be bored?!  I know I'm blessed with a beautiful spot here but even in a padded room I like to think I'd entertain myself by discovering the thread count on the walls.

Once I made the mistake of telling my mother I was bored...a newly heard word.  I was quickly trained never to say that again.  I believe I emptied the entire bedroom, cleaned it from top to bottom and then was sent to the barn to clean the chicken house and the milking stall.  Through the course of the day I was asked if I was bored.  I learned to appreciate where ever I was and learned how to entertain myself with no complaints.

I understand all are not as fortunate

but unless we've lost all our senses

there's no excuse for boredom.

We must learn to "bloom where we are planted"

and maybe take a little time to soak up the sun's love.

And The Beat Goes On

as does the work.  One tiny project seems to last longer than I expect.  This is the old smokehouse over a dirt cellar.  Both are still usable.  The dirt cellar actually is just holding our empty jars. Our houses hold the full ones.  The smoke house is mostly storage but makes a great drying place for herbs.  This is on my winter project list to organize again.

 During the high temperatures the shade dictates my job for the day.

Cutting out the bird poop trees freeing the Sweet Williams to grow.

Time has a way of wearing things down.

Pieces of siding and fence will be reused.

 My cow bone guarding the entrance got a new coat of paint.

Just for fun I added Welcome as you enter the yard.

I believe it's safe to say no one has a yard like mine.

I'm always armed with a camera.

Revelation! 

That may be why jobs take me so long.

Being easily distracted is a blessing.

The front of the smoke house before

and after.

All by hand looking for rocks and stumps.

I'm tired.

Art Does Not The Camera Make

Your camera

and your pictures

are only as good as the operator,

I intended for them to look exactly like this.

That's my story...

The Conductor

The butterfly conducts
Nature's symphony
With multi-color wings
And perfect timing.

For Open Link Monday at Imaginary Garden With Real Toads

For Alex...

I first met Alex a hundred years ago when he became my good-natured adversary.  I would post a picture of a bird, a butterfly or a plant.  Alex would jokingly ask, "But what KIND is it?"  I think he knew I was a person who had to answer any question.  I worked hard identifying what creature or plant was going to be in my post. We bantered back and forth.  I discovered he is author of at least three books and is a well-rounded happy family man with a similar sense of humor.  We both like to play with words.

This post is for you, dear Alex.  Bet you would've had to look them up too!

A Mormon Metalmark or Apodemia mormo

enjoying a meal of pollen on purple cone flower

or Echinacea purpurea  .

Rose of Sharon bush or Hibiscus syriacus.

Photinus Coleoptera

or Lightning Bug or Firefly.

Their light is used to attract mates or meals.

Pterophylla camellifolia  or Katydid 

sitting on Plantago major or Plantian

Leopard frog or Lithobates sphenocephalus

sitting on tire (Good Year)

with Johnson Grass and Virginia Creeper.

Happy Friday, Alex!!!

I am open to correction if I've named anything wrong.

Looking Spring In The Eye

Marcy's many tulips were nodding their pretty heads

as the wind blew the bees away.

The family lilac survived.

For a time I had my doubts.

The flowering almond has crowded the Bridal's Wreath

while the second butterfly of the year

tasted the Money plant.

Purely For Your Viewing Pleasure...

Wordless This N That

In My Sisters' Garden

Peppers and egg plant,

sunflower,

watermelon,

pumpkin,

chives,

okra,

and marigolds.

The end of season is near,

for the garden

and for the butterfly.

Drying Her Wings

Freshly emerged

from this tiny chrysalis,

she patiently waited as her wings air-dried for flight.