An Eye Is Meant To See Things

 "An eye is meant to see things. 

The soul is here for its own joy..." 

- Rumi

Winter Walk Around the Pond

 The sun came out for a bit and it turned into a lovely day for a

walk around the pond.

The Simple Blade of Grass

 "In the world's audience hall, the simple blade of grass sits on the same carpet with the sunbeams, and the stars of midnight"

~ Rabindranath Tagore

Focus on the Light

 "It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light." 

— Aristotle

Checkered Skipper - not a butterfly I see very often.

Female Cardinal Snow Day

"He who marvels at the beauty of the world in summer will find equal cause for wonder and admiration in winter." 

~ John Burroughs

(from a prior winter - no measurable snow here yet this winter)

Claytor Lake Christmas

 “When you love what you have, 

you have everything you need." 

—Unknown

We spent several days before Christmas at Claytor Lake State Park with

extended family.  What a wonderful time!

Pause, Reflect and Renew

 “Winter is a time to pause, reflect, and renew.” 

– Unknown

Blue Jay

 “Never regret anything that made you smile.” 

— Mark Twain

Full of Blessings

 "All that we behold is full of blessings." 

~ William Wordsworth

The Life That Is In The Woods

 “But if they were to stop, and sit on a fallen log or with their back up against a tree and close their eyes, they could hear the life that is in the woods:”

― Holly Worton

Icy Droplets

  "Enjoy the present moment, enjoy the simple things in life, enjoy now!”

― Rohit Sharma

The World Needs Dreamers Who Do

 "The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers. But above all, the world needs dreamers who do." 

-Sarah Ban Breathnach

Grackle as the snow falls.

Winter Is the Time for Home

 "Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home." 

— Edith Sitwell

House Finch Pair

 “Take my hand, take my whole life too. 

For I can’t help falling in love with you.” 

– Elvis Presley

Male (left) Female (right) 

Praying Mantis Egg Case

 "It is through living that we discover ourselves, at the same time as we discover the world around us."

 ― Henri Cartier-Bresson

From my research - I believe this to be a praying mantis egg case.

Male House Finch

 "Manifest plainness, Embrace simplicity, 

Reduce selfishness, Have few desires." 

~ Lao Tzu

Up Close with a Thistle

 "My life is a brief, brief thing, I am here for a little space. 

And while I stay I would like, if I may, 

To brighten and better the place." 

— Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Yellow Tulip

 "Do good, 

live in the most positive and joyful way possible every day." 

— Roy T. Bennett

How Right It Is To Love Flowers

 

"How right it is to love flowers and the greenery of pines and ivy and hawthorn hedges; they have been with us from the very beginning." 

― Vincent van Gogh

A Fragile Dewdrop

"Life is but a day: A fragile dewdrop on its perilious way 

From a trees summit" 

~ John Keats

Monarch Butterfly

 "If you have a mind at peace, and a heart that cannot harden, Go find a door that opens wide upon a lovely garden." 

- Unknown

Among the Thorns - Goldfinch

 

"Life is precious, fragile, fleeting." 

- Jim Butcher

Yellow Rose

 “To err on the side of kindness is seldom an error.” 

—Liz Armbruster

Mockingbird

 "Presence is the gift of life." 

- Stephen Levine

Breathe In the World

 "Take a step, breathe in the world, 

give it out again in story, poem, song, art." 

~ Jane Yolen

Strange and Beautiful

 

“Life’s stranger and more beautiful than I ever thought possible.”

― William Kent Krueger

Widow Skimmer Dragonfly 

In The Shadows

 "Hope is not a prediction of the future; 

it's a declaration of what's possible." 

- Yogi Bhajan

White-crowned Sparrow 

Tufted Titmouse Takes Off with a Peanut

 "Wherever life takes us, there are always moments of wonder." 

~ Jimmy Carter 

Delicate Awareness

 "Art is a form of supremely delicate awareness..." 

- D. H. Lawrence

When the Spirit of Nature Touches Us

 “When the spirit of nature touches us, our hearts turn into a butterfly!” 

 — Mehmet Murat Ildan

Macro Photography - Droplets

 I've been working with some of my older pictures

This is a macro of a droplet from several years ago.

“I reach and have reached the timeless moment, the pure suspension within time, only through love.” 

― May Sarton

Hidden

 "....the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places." 

~ Roald Dahl

Painted Lady Butterfly 

The Ways of Nature

 “In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they’re still beautiful.” 

— Alice Walker

Nature's Beauty Is a Gift

 "Nature’s beauty is a gift that cultivates appreciation and gratitude." 

—Louie Schwartzberg

Dracunculus Vulgaris - A Really Cool Plant

 "Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it." 

~ Confucius

As I was looking through some older images I had captured, I found this that was

taken at our local Horticulture Garden.