Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Monday, June 26, 2017

Sunday Stroll - Last Stroll in June


The weekend was a whirlwind of activity at the farm.  
We hosted the wedding reception for my younger daughter
 and her husband at the farm on Saturday.
Many families camped in the meadow as the music 
and celebration continued far into the night.

  By early Sunday afternoon, 
only  my mother and one of my brothers were still at the farm, 
so we took them to our favorite stretch of  Michigan beach.

The waves were eager to reach the shore,
wetting our feet
as we stepped over rocks and around colorful wildflowers.

Sedum acre (Goldmoss Stonecrop)

Potentilla anserina (Silverweed)

Geranium robertianum (Herb Robert)




Aquilegia (Wild Columbine)

Anemone (Windflower)



Blue Eyed Grass (a tiny iris!)

Me and my mom


Wherever you are, whatever the weather, I wish you peace and good company.



Monday, June 19, 2017

Daisy Landing Pads


On a day like this,
you can wander through a meadow
where 10,000 daisies reach for heaven.


If you hurry, you will see only sunshine and flowers,
but if you look closely,
you will see that 
the yellow disks
and the white rays
are landing pads for many tiny travelers.









The meadow is alive with

wings and petals
color and light,
moving in the grace 

of a summer afternoon.



Wherever you are, whatever the weather, I wish you joy.

Sunday Stroll - Evening in the Meadow


Late in the evening, 
Micah and I head out for our last walk of the day.


An easy breeze rocks the wildflowers to sleep 
in the long South Meadow.




The sun settles in the for the night,


as we linger outdoors,
walking slowly up to to the North Meadow,


where a gentle hill slopes upward toward the setting sun.



The air is gentle,
and the skies are soft.

We breath more easily,
with our  lungs full of fresh air and evening light
as we circle back toward the farmhouse.



Wherever you are, whatever the weather, I wish you peace.

Saturday, June 17, 2017

Saturday Snapshot - Summer on the Window Sill




Summer is opening, lush and fragrant like an old fashioned peony in an exuberant garden.

As I take a few moments to appreciate the beauty of June,

I see golden sunlight easing through green leaves, through a large freshly washed window.

I hear birds outside the window, and indoors, I hear the shuffling and scuffling of five dogs; our own two, and the three belonging to our weekend guests.

I smell the mingled aromas of the peonies on the window sill and of lemon and garlic as dinner is prepared.

I taste tea, just simple English Breakfast Black tea, unsweetened.  I'm sipping a cup as I wait for our guests to return from their boating adventure out on one of our beautiful inland seas.

I feel relaxed.  I picked strawberries while our guests were away and tended the gardens.  I hung a little laundry on the line and took care of a large crew of dogs.  I am ready for the family to return.

Dogs are barking like mad.  Our guests must have pulled up the driveway!

Wherever you are, whatever the weather, I wish you good company.


Sunday, June 11, 2017

Sunday Stroll - June in Bloom


The iris in my garden are blooming,
in many colors.  


All are fragrant, the orange like a child's creamsicle,
and the others like so many scrumptious flavors of cake.
The air in the garden is heady and wild.


It is nearly impossible to walk past
without slowing your pace,
then leaning down to take a long, deep, breath.

 
The garden is alive with busy pollinators,
knee deep in pollen.
The honeybees especially appreciate 
the purples and blues of chive blossoms
and the plentiful catmint.


Meanwhile, 
the wild blackberry bramble has burst into bloom,
and tiny white bouquets are scattered throughout the woods.



Wherever you are, whatever the weather, I wish you joy.


If you have a moment, please go visit Steve Out on the Prairie 
to see all the pretty things that he found on his stroll!



Sunday, June 04, 2017

Sunday Stroll - Gathering at a Friend's Homestead


We spent a lovely afternoon at a friend's little homestead nearby.


Free range chickens, pensive goats, lazy dogs, and happy, chatty people 
shared a sunny afternoon celebrating our friend's 80th birthday.
Her birthday is in the winter, but she wanted to enjoy a summer celebration for a change.


She is a friend with whom I have shared some fun and memorable road trips.
Some were close to home, such as the trip a few years ago to an
Iris Farm an hour away.  We went when the iris were in full bloom,
and each bought just one variety.
We have also been known to dig up and divide our perennial plants and share, 
so many things in my home garden had their start in her's.

Some of our road trips were to far away places,
such as our trip to Pennsylvania 
through the Blue Ridge Mountains two years ago in autumn.



It is always fun to visit this friend's home,
but is especially wonderful when the flowers are in bloom.
She is knowledgeable about the cultivars she grows,
and shares her folk lore and common sense wisdom generously,
about flowers and about life.


This friend has been present at many of my local
speaking engagements, even bringing along new listeners
in support of my endeavors.



What a beautiful afternoon!
Aside from a brazen chicken stealing 
someone's half-eaten sandwich, 
there wasn't any undue drama at this event.

We listened to the chickadees chatter,
and laughed and reminisced 
about silly old songs from the 1970s,
such as Sneaky Snake and The Streak.
Oh my goodness!  Hadn't thought of that in years.

We also broke into Bobby McGee several times,
because the word Freedom crept into the conversation at one point.


Feelin' good is good enough for me!

Wherever you are, whatever the weather, I wish you good company.



If you have time to pop on over to Steve's Out on the Prairie Blog,
you can catch a little bit of Prairie Love!

Anyone else stroll today?