Blessed
25/08/14 05:04
We seem to have the ability to live in a beautiful place without always taking time to look at the beauty that surrounds us. We get swept up in the busy activities of our lives and sometimes fail to stop and take a look at what is right around us. One of the gifts that guests bring to us is the opportunity to show them the hills and the place where we live. In the process we slow down enough to take a look ourselves. It is always a joy.
Yesterday afternoon we took a short drive through Custer State Park, stopping at Legion Lake for a cup of coffee and then driving the game loop with a dinner stop at Blue Bell Lodge and returning home. This isn’t the season of the thundering herds of buffalo that we see at some times of the year. We can count on seeing one or two old bulls, but the main herd wasn’t along the game loop road. Of course there are plenty of other animals to see. You can count on pronghorn antelope, wild burros and prairie dogs all year round.
I like to watch the swallows at Legion Lake. They nest under the eves and in the cupola of the lodge and they like to sweep over the lake to gather insects. Swallows are natural aerobats, with lots of sudden turns, dives, and areal maneuvers.
The potted petunias near the outdoor table where we sat sipping our coffee attracted a hummingbird moth and gave us a chance marvel at the intricacies of the world of insects. I know that hummingbird moths are common in the hills, but we haven’t had the flowers that attract the deep pollinators in our yard for the simple fact that they require some protection from the deer and so the things most common to our yard are things that seem less appealing to the deer to eat. Seeing the moth yesterday, however, reminded me that a pot of petunias on the deck might be an easy and joyful addition to our home.
When I was growing up, we liked to show the wild animals to our visitors and although deer, elk and moose were more occasional and more difficult to show off, we knew where we could find antelope. The herd that lived just off the end of the airport in my home town was usually visible from the road. These magnificent animals can run at 50 to 60 mph for long distances and are a challenge to hunt, but yesterday wasn’t a day for chasing. The bucks were lying down in the afternoon sun and posting for pictures for the passing tourists. We saw a few females as well, but they chose a hillside a bit farther from the car and all of the cameras of the tourists.
The donkeys and prairie dogs are used to the tourists and make sure that they stay close to the road. It doesn’t take any effort to get a begging burro to put his nose up to the window of the car and there is usually at least one praire dog that will sit up for pictures.
When we visited Australia, looking at the unique animals of that continent was part of the joy of our visit. And when our Australian guests come to visit us, showing of our neighborhood and the animals with whom we share the hills seems to be a natural activity.
We are so fortunate to live in a place of such incredible beauty and we are doubly fortunate to have good friends with whom to share that beauty.
Each week we sing a doxology and praise God from whom all blessings flow. In addition to the song, it is good for us to pause once in a while to look closely and appreciate those blessings.
Indeed we are blessed.
Yesterday afternoon we took a short drive through Custer State Park, stopping at Legion Lake for a cup of coffee and then driving the game loop with a dinner stop at Blue Bell Lodge and returning home. This isn’t the season of the thundering herds of buffalo that we see at some times of the year. We can count on seeing one or two old bulls, but the main herd wasn’t along the game loop road. Of course there are plenty of other animals to see. You can count on pronghorn antelope, wild burros and prairie dogs all year round.
I like to watch the swallows at Legion Lake. They nest under the eves and in the cupola of the lodge and they like to sweep over the lake to gather insects. Swallows are natural aerobats, with lots of sudden turns, dives, and areal maneuvers.
The potted petunias near the outdoor table where we sat sipping our coffee attracted a hummingbird moth and gave us a chance marvel at the intricacies of the world of insects. I know that hummingbird moths are common in the hills, but we haven’t had the flowers that attract the deep pollinators in our yard for the simple fact that they require some protection from the deer and so the things most common to our yard are things that seem less appealing to the deer to eat. Seeing the moth yesterday, however, reminded me that a pot of petunias on the deck might be an easy and joyful addition to our home.
When I was growing up, we liked to show the wild animals to our visitors and although deer, elk and moose were more occasional and more difficult to show off, we knew where we could find antelope. The herd that lived just off the end of the airport in my home town was usually visible from the road. These magnificent animals can run at 50 to 60 mph for long distances and are a challenge to hunt, but yesterday wasn’t a day for chasing. The bucks were lying down in the afternoon sun and posting for pictures for the passing tourists. We saw a few females as well, but they chose a hillside a bit farther from the car and all of the cameras of the tourists.
The donkeys and prairie dogs are used to the tourists and make sure that they stay close to the road. It doesn’t take any effort to get a begging burro to put his nose up to the window of the car and there is usually at least one praire dog that will sit up for pictures.
When we visited Australia, looking at the unique animals of that continent was part of the joy of our visit. And when our Australian guests come to visit us, showing of our neighborhood and the animals with whom we share the hills seems to be a natural activity.
We are so fortunate to live in a place of such incredible beauty and we are doubly fortunate to have good friends with whom to share that beauty.
Each week we sing a doxology and praise God from whom all blessings flow. In addition to the song, it is good for us to pause once in a while to look closely and appreciate those blessings.
Indeed we are blessed.