Category: God’s Creation

Monday, July 6, 2026 What I Saw At Camp

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I brought my “big” camera, the Nikon with the zoom lens, and walked around with my camera eyes on. Here are a few things I saw.

You should know by now that a good reflection is always going to catch my eye.

Who knew that gas cans could present such a lovely, colorful image?

If you look at this with a bit of whimsy, it looks like the skull is all agog with its mouth hanging open, saying “Wow!” Can you see it?

This doe came around while I was sitting outside the camper reading. She came again the next morning while I was still inside the camper, two fawns in tow. Sadly, I couldn’t get a photo from inside. I know they’re mangy, I know they eat up my flowers, I know all that… but they’re still beautiful, aren’t they? It was a hushed and holy moment, she and I just looking at each other. Then she crashed through the greenery and disappeared.

Summer vibes, right there, with a camper relaxing on an inner tube and all the life jackets in the foreground. It’s a happy photo all around.

Break time for one of the cooks.

Break time for one of the birds.

Lakeside vessels, waiting to be boarded.

A rather distressingly bad photo of the regal bald eagle. That eagle deserved better, but my camera’s not THAT great. I would’ve needed a much longer zoom lens. And the eagle steadfastly refused to come and perch closer to me.

This butterfly posed for me quite nicely. The eagle could take some lessons from it.

Black squirrels! I saw one that was inky black, but that little buffer didn’t stick around long enough for a photo. How can I enjoy the plain old gray squirrels that inhabit our yard anymore when I know that this exotic breed exists? I suppose they make just as much mischief as ours do.

The sign we pass on our way out of camp. “Be strong and show thyself a man.” That’s the kind of camp you want to send your boys to.

I’ll probably feed this to a black squirrel in the morning.

Monday, June 8, 2026 The World and They That Dwell Therein

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The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof;

The world, and they that dwell therein.

Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.

Who is this King of glory? The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle.

Lift up your heads, O ye gates..and the King of glory shall come in.

Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah.

When your garden and the creatures who pass through it speak the psalms to you.

I think it’s bedtime; I shall dream of deleting this in the morning.

Wednesday, March 4, 2026 The Workshop: Boat and Bunny

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Greetings, my good and faithful readers. Sometimes I wonder why you stick with me; I often dole out very meager fare. But here you are, once again, making your way through another of my meandering blog posts. If there was a medal that I could give out to you, I would.

Let’s meander over to the workshop now. I wanted to paint a lake scene with a canoe in it for my husband for his birthday. Secondly (which I can say, even though I neglected to say “firstly”), I wanted to paint from a photo, rather than copying someone else’s watercolor painting. I went to the internet and called for aid, and the internet answered. Thank you, Mr. Internet. And of course, ultimately, thanks be to God for making this beautiful world in which we find lakes, forests, mountains and red canoes.

Meanwhile, I’m still working on the first painting from my Great Idea of last week: Albrecht Durer’s rabbit. The Great Idea

I’ve learned from watching the portrait show how important the first sketch is for settling the outline and getting the right proportions. I still need practice doing that, obviously, but I’m not one to start all over. Press on and all that.

As I said, in progress! Hopefully it will be done by next week.

Forgetting what lies behind and pressing on toward what lies ahead, I will delete this in the morning.

Thursday, January 15, 2026 The Woodlands

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I got another new set of paints entitled “Woodlands.”

Even the name “Woodlands” felt poetical, so naturally, poetry ensued. The first one isn’t so much a poem as it is a bunch of phrases using the names of the paints in the palette (in bold). The second one had me reaching further for the images I wanted.

Woodlands I
I walk the sand ridge
Till I see a cavern in the mist,
And a bear in its shadows.
Looking for daylight,
I cross the stream,
Stepping on gray stones.
Suddenly, I’m in the thick of redwoods
And deep moss
And foxberry bushes.
At last I see the blue-green glitter
Of sunlight on the pond.

I was a bit perplexed by the color “foxberry,” but decided that if there is a foxberry, there must be a foxberry bush.

Woodlands II
The woodlands call –
Pine-scented voice,
Checkered sunlight,
Scattered bird song,
Skittering critters,
Whispering leaves,
Glitter-green pond,
Fallen acorns,
And the deep
dense
presence
Of the LORD God Almighty.

I might write out the second one in the blue space at the top of the painting. Thoughts? Opinions? Critiques?

I sense that a squirrel will gnaw on this post with its strong jaws and teeth in the morning.

May 30, 2018 Scepter

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You never know what enchanting things are lurking down in the ankle region unless you are looking down and willing to lower yourself. I love these watchamacallits! They’re like tiny green scepters. I’ve seen them before and when they are backlit with sunshine, it’s as if they have gobbled up the light and are aglow with it. I don’t know their proper name, but beg you to allow me the Adamic privilege of naming them “Glowing Scepters.” (I feel certain that Anne of Green Gables would have come up with something far more fanciful and interesting.)

When a ruler wields his scepter, his subjects must bow in humble submission. It seems only fitting, then, that I had to bow low before these scepters in the grass. The God who made them wields them in the wilderness and I am happy to be one of His grateful subjects.

I’ll probably delete this in the morning.

May 21, 2018 Do It Again

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The 23-hour drive was nearly over, but like labor pains, our stops were becoming more frequent as my husband attempted to overcome lower back pain with stretching and walking. Meanwhile, I was also on the injured list and not driving at all because of a flare-up of tendinitis. We were limping our way to the finish line, but generally in good spirits. At the last stop about an hour north of our destination, I took a hurried photo, seeking to capture and tame this wild tulip with my magic box. I know that the world does not lack for photos of tulips. One tulip is probably pretty much like another. But all the same, I cannot, I simply cannot, feel ho-hum about this one. I am reminded of GK Chesterton’s thoughts about what we might call “monotony.”

Perhaps God is strong enough to exult in monotony. It is possible that God says every morning, ‘Do it again’ to the sun; and every evening ‘Do it again’ to the moon. It may not be automatic necessity that makes all daisies alike; it may be that God makes every daisy separately, but has never got tired of making them.

Oh, may He never grow tired of making tulips. This one is a dandy. Do it again!

I’ll probably delete this in the morning.