Yellow-bellied Slider

 “It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” 

– Confucius

Snapping Turtle

“Everything has beauty, 

but not everyone sees it.”

 ― Confucius

A snapping turtle seen on our visit to Hethwood Pond

Blacksburg, Virginia 

June 9, 2024

They really do look prehistoric! 

Painted Turtle on the Climb

“Now and then it's good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.” 

― Guillaume Apollinaire

Print Available - HERE 

Everyone Came Out To Play In the Sun

My childhood may be over, but that doesn’t mean playtime is. 

 - Ron Olson

Snapping Turtle

Judge nothing, you will be happy. Forgive everything, you will be happier. 

Love everything, you will be happiest.

 ~ Sri Chinmoy

Snapping Turtle from our visit to the Western NC Nature Center

The Power of Friendship

Don't underestimate the power of friendship. Those bonds are tight stitches that close up the holes you might otherwise fall through.

~  Richelle E. Goodrich

Artsy Print Available - HERE 

 

Experience Every Good Thing

This is my life. It is my one time to be me. 
I want to experience every good thing.

~ Maya Angelou 

Print Available - HERE 

Fill It With Wonderful Thoughts

Turtles always make me smile :) 

If you fill your mind with wonderful thoughts, there can be no room left for doubt.

~ Silvia Hartmann

 

Happiness Is - Eye To Eye with a Turtle

Happiness starts within. Be real, appreciate what you have, enjoy every moment, spread the love. If everything comes back, consider it as a miracle. 

 ~ Cherryl Anne Lintag

Available - HERE 

A Single Step

A journey of a thousand miles 
must begin with a single step.

~ Lao Tzu

Take a Deep Breath

Smile, breathe and go slowly. 

~Thich Nhat Hanh

  Heritage Park Pond - Blacksburg Virginia 

Steady and Constant

It's the steady, constant driving to the goal for which you're striving, not the speed with which you travel, that will make your victory sure.

~Unknown

Visit Lisa HERE for more Macro Monday images!

Heritage Park

We lived here about 5 years before I discovered this wonderful park just minutes away from where I live.  These are shots from that first visit.  As you walk down one side of the the trail there is a pond to the right.

Immediately upon arriving, I saw a Green Heron take flight.

Unfortunately, I wasn't prepared...so my shots didn't turn out.

But I liked this one of the cattails growing on the edge of the pond.

There were buildings that were overgrown. I think they

left them overgrown on purpose - These are "ruins" of the "Old Brown Farm"

There is a shed behind all of this greenery.

And as we walked out, we passed the pond again and
this guy decided to make an appearance.
My pics really don't do him justice...he is BIG!
This park has about 170 acres so we didn't even hit the tip of it on our first visit. I have been back many times and it is one of my FAVORITE places!

farm art

A Pond and It's Treasure

(click on the pic to get the extra large view)

This is Hethwood Pond. A nice little pond

within a 7 minute drive of where I live.

On this day it was a HOT 96 degrees, so there

weren't many people out walking the path around

the pond. If you look closely you can see some

lovely benches around the pond, too.

This was one of the treasures I found --  a BIG Turtle!

One of my favorite Turtle Images - HERE 

MONSTER TURTLE

Ok, maybe not a monster, but really big! I think this is a snapping turtle but not sure. There was also one right beside this one. You can just see the snout of the 2nd one(if that is what it is called) coming up out of the water on the right. (click on the picture to enlarge).