Tag Archives: trees

Weeds or treasure

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I spent the last week and a half in California on a whirlwind vacation with my husband, where we tried to pack in lots of different activities and destinations during our time there. One of my favorite stops was Yosemite, a place neither of us had visited before, mercifully still open despite threats of an impending government shutdown.

Talk about huge trees and waterfalls beyond my comprehension! If you have never been, go (and I say this to you no matter where you live in the world). Yosemite surpasses all of its hype. April means early spring there, and the waterfalls are competing to outdo one another with their flow of snow melt. The massive sequoias and grand boulders made me feel smaller than I’ve ever felt.

While at Yosemite, I found a quote from John Muir, conservationist and national parks champion, that I wanted to share with you:

Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.
Nature’s peace will flow into you as the sunshine flows
into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness
into you, and the storms their energy, while cares
will drop off like autumn leaves.

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High stakes

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I wasn’t planning to blog about trees this week, but then we had a storm come through overnight with lots of wind and rain, and this morning, a cherry tree we planted just a couple of years ago was leaning over far enough that I was afraid it would fall over and die.

This has already been a rough Spring for plants in my garden. Varmints (chipmunks, moles, voles … take your pick) claimed a camellia bush – one that had been fairly young but thriving – and yet another butterfly bush. It’s enough to discourage this gardener. And truth be told, I have been channeling my inner Bill-Murray-in-Caddyshack, wondering just exactly where I might find squirrel- and bunny-shaped putty explosives.

So when I saw the cherry tree atilt, I headed straight to the store, not for explosives but for something to use as a stake for the tree. I also called my dad for help. I figured this would be a four-hand project, and his calm demeanor rubbing off on me wouldn’t hurt, either.  Continue reading →

Standing still

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I haven’t had much time lately to be still, which may be why I am really loving yoga lately. It’s a time to be still (more or less) and stretch and breathe deeply. As a runner, I’ve found yoga to be an indispensable way to keep my muscles flexible. As a Christian, I’ve found it to be a time that I can spend in prayer with God.

I took a yoga class a few years ago at my church, and the instructor (a Christian friend of mine) always closed our sessions with the first part of this verse:

“‘Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.'” – Psalm 46:10 (NIV)

I love the way she broke it down:  Continue reading →

"It’s a question of discipline."

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I was at a Borders bookstore yesterday, wandering through what remained of its store closing sale and fighting off the blues as I mourned the loss of a decent chain bookstore and wondered what would happen to all the store’s employees.

I was surprised – because the store was so picked over already – to find a 60th anniversary copy of Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s The Little Prince, one of my all-time favorite books, and I simply couldn’t resist bringing it home.

If you haven’t read it, you should. It’ll take you one sitting to get through the whole book, but its messages will stay with you far longer. I don’t really think it’s a children’s book, although that is typically how bookstores categorize it. For those of you who have read it, what do you think: more for children or for those of us who were once children and have perhaps forgotten it? (You gotta read the book’s dedication to get that reference.)  Continue reading →

Springing forward

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The expression “Spring forward” has always bemused me. I’m not a person who leaps from bed each morning ready to greet the day with enthusiasm and energy. So I always find this first week after we change our clocks to be a troubling one. On the one hand, I’m thrilled that it stays light later. But I definitely don’t enjoy having lost the light in the morning or the feeling that it’s going to take me another month to catch up on that lost hour of sleep. “Spring forward” no doubt is supposed to connote cheerfulness and pep and maybe even dancing through meadows of wild flowers, none of which I want to do at what my body feels like is an hour earlier than my eyes should be open.

What does energize me about this week, though, are the flowers and trees that are blooming. Check out the view I get to see these days as I go about my day:

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