A Prairie Song

"I am standing in the summer sun,
where the rabbits hide and the small quails run.
I listen to the prairie's song
in every breeze that comes along."
~Betty Lou Hebert, "Prairie Gentian"

I love living in the country ~

where bright prairie meets shaded woods...

shaded woods embrace emerald green swamps...

and cornflower blue chicory hugs gravel roads.

Where Queen Anne's Lace reach for azure skies...

quaint little veggie stands greet the morning sun...

and gentle hills roll into deep valleys.

Where old gates beckon you to explore...

vegetable gardens dot the hillsides...

and small ponds are home to ducks and geese.

Where towering trees dance with their own shadows...

tiny lakes sparkle beyond prairies...

and rows of cornstalks stand tall to the horizon.

Where wildflowers blanket hills...

statuesque trunks guard fenced fields...

rolling hills sigh beneath the bright morning sun...

and tiny white flowers hide in the shadows of trees.

I love living where

sunshine and shadows play hide and seek,
and serenity sings a prairie song.

"I speak to you continually.  My nature is to communicate though not always in words. I caress you with a gentle breeze that refreshes and delights you.  I speak softly in the depths of your spirit, where I have taken up residence.  You can find me in each moment, when you have eyes that see and ears that hear.  Ask My Spirit to sharpen your spiritual eyesight and hearing. I rejoice each time you discover My Presence."

~author unknown

~  Blessings  ~

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A Bend in the Road

What a beautiful morning!

Welcome to Heaven's Walk today!

I decided this morning that a bend in the road can be a really good thing.

 I laced on my fav workout shoes after hopping out of bed to take advantage of this warm, sunshiny morning and grabbed my camera on the way out the door.  I wanted to share a little more of my world with you.

The dogwoods were in full bloom. Beautiful, little puffs of pure,clean, white in the dark green woods. (I tried planting some in our yard last year. Pretty pink Katsuras. But the oh-so-hungry deer ate them right down to the ground. I replaced them with crabapples planted much closer to the house. We'll see how that goes.)

Heading down the first hill brings me to where I hear all the grand old bullfrogs calling to each other (and where I always, for some odd reason, have to sidestep a racoon roadkill...yeah, that's pleasant...and no, I won't share pics with you regarding that issue.)

Heading up the other side of the hill, a pair of Canadian geese were honking and looking for the perfect spot to nest their eggs, leaving a small, steady wake behind them as they made their way across the pond.

I pass by wide open fields surrounded by old, broken fences and forgotten grapevines...

...newly planted wheat fields and far off lakes...

...and big, statuesque trees hugging green meadows.

Beautiful rolling farmland...

...that seemed to go on forever.

When I see 'the glen', as I call it, I know I'm close to my most favorite view along the way.

I can see the lake through the trees and huff and puff my way up the big hill to the top.  My calf muscles burning as they carry me up to where the wind catches my breath and my whips my hair...

where tidy little lakeside cottages are tucked in among the trees.

And there.....Shimmer Lake greets me.  

Beautiful, isn't it?  That's not the true name of this lake, but when I saw it for the first time, I knew it deserved a much more appropriate name. I always love how the morning sun shimmers and sparkles in the breeze. The deep blue sky reflecting in it's depth. Mesmerizing. I'm in love with it. Total eye candy for this country gal pining to see water outside her windows once again. It's a peaceful, quiet lake. I never see anyone out on it. Someday, I'd love to build a quaint little summer cottage on it's shore...

...nestled along the trees somewhere with a grand view of the peaceful, sparkling bay.

I know I've lingered long enough when drivers passing by crane their necks to stare at the crazy woman with the wild hair standing in the field, staring off in the distance. "Crazy as a jaybird!" I'm sure they're thinking.

So I turn to head back home - but grab one more photo of my little lake, promising to return tomorrow morning to gaze and dream some more...

So at the bend in my road, there is my lake.

Shimmer Lake.  

A little piece of heaven that holds a special place in my heart.

I pray that there is a Shimmer Lake in the bend in your road today....

~ laurie