On Thursday, October 1, I was determined to work on the grounds of our church.
My friends, the weeds had been quite busy when I was away.
A small border, at the base of a wooden fence that hides two big air conditioning chillers looked shabby. This area is across from the playground used by our Preschool. That shabbiness needed to go away. It sees lots of foot traffic.
Some weeds were intruding beyond the fence line.
I grabbed a few hand tools and the weedeater. I started my attack.
I made good progress. Eventually, I needed to enter the area where the chillers live.
I unlocked the padlock. Once inside, I noted that weeds were trying to take hold in any open concrete seam.
Against one wall, we have a long, heavy duty extension ladder. This ladder is used to access the Trinity Hall roof. The roof is home to two more large pieces of HVAC equipment.
To be able to remove the troublesome weeds behind the ladder, I needed to lift it up and move it away from the wall.
When I lifted up the ladder, I saw a snakeskin. I was thankful that the snake was long gone. I would have died if the snake was still present.
I thought that the Preschool students and teachers might like to see the snakeskin. So, I draped it across the top of a boxwood shrub.
Yes, there was some interest. But the main thing I heard from the teachers was this question— where did you find it? They were relieved when I told them not on the playground.
The thing that amazed me with the snakeskin is I could see where the snake’s eye had been.
On the morning of Saturday, October 3, we were in Summerfield, North Carolina. I was returning from putting gas into our car.
As I was driving back into the neighborhood where our daughter and her family reside, a couple of deer passed in front of my car.
Further down the hill, I paused in front of a house. On the front lawn, looking calm and unassuming were six deer. I rolled down my window and took a picture.
One deer continued to munch on the lawn. A couple kept their eyes on me. The others stared into the distance. It was if they were saying— ok, old guy, hurry up and take your pictures, we are late for our second course of breakfast in another yard.
Once back at the house, I shared the deer photo. Our two grandchildren, Caroline and Hudson, couldn’t believe that there were six deer in one yard. That might be a neighborhood record.
After breakfast, our grandson asked if we could go fishing. My answer was yes.
Hudson presented his fishing rod to me. A new hook needed to be tied on to the line. Inside his tackle box, he found a hook. We worked to tie it on the end of the line.
Next we added a couple of on-line weights, and re-positioned the bright colored bobber(indicator).
Then we grabbed a shovel and an empty Gatorade bottle from the recycling bin and started digging for earthworms. Being that it was Saturday morning, the earthworms were sleeping late. It took us several minutes before we found a few.
With gray skies and rain in the forecast, we found our rain coats, changed our shoes, and started the walk to the neighborhood lake.
As we made the final turn toward the lake, we could hear the yakking of ducks. Sure enough, there was a small gathering along the bank closest to the road. They were collectively marching in a disorderly single file.
Our grandson, Hudson, is a lefty. When his timing is correct, his cast is a sight to behold. The line streams out in a natural arch with the baited hook, weights, and bobber gently land on the lake’s surface.
He had a couple of early hits, but the fish twisted off the hook. After a few minutes, Hudson relocated toward the center of the lake. That turned out to be a wise move.
Within minutes, he caught three fish in a row. A fourth fish, a fighter, managed to free the hook in the shallows of the shoreline.
With our last worm gone and our time limit up, we walked back to the house.
On the way back, we talked about catching three in a row, a record for Hudson. We both comment about the yellow coloring along the belly of one of the fish.
I wonder if Crayola or Sherwin Williams could replicate Mother Nature’s work? Maybe they could name the color fish belly yellow.
Try as they might, there is nothing like the touch and colors of Mother Nature.
I could see this touch in the intricacies of the snake skin, the human sensory systems of the deer and their seasonal tan coats, and of course, the yellow in that fish.
On the evening of Wednesday, September 30, my wife and I attended the 39th annual Weinstein-Rosenthal Forum at the University of Richmond. The forum is grounded in “faith, ethics, and a global society.”
The keynote speaker this year was Dr. Francis Collins. Dr. Collins is a physician-geneticist. He led the Human Genome Project. Additionally, Dr. Collins was the Director of the National Institutes of Health.
For forty-five non-stop minutes, Dr. Collins talked about his life, education, career, and science. Then, he took presubmitted questions from University of Richmond students.
Raised in Staunton, Virginia, Dr. Collins attributed his affection for science to a tenth grade chemistry teacher.
While I’m not going to be able to quote Dr. Collins directly from his comments, he did reference taking the time to pay attention to the beauty of the nature around us. I agree. All around us nature is present.
To tell you the truth, October is my favorite month. I love nature’s presence in October.
I think the sky is more blue.
The air seems fresher.
Tree leaves shift from summer green into a palette of autumn colors.
I’m not into the commercial trapping of Halloween. I’m drawn to the vivid richness in the colors of pumpkins and gourds on the steps and front porches throughout our neighborhood.
Had he not been tragically shot and murdered in December 1980, John Lennon would turn 86 on October 9.
I love the Beatles’ song, “And Your Bird Can Sing.” This is a Lennon driven song.
The repetitive guitar riff is memorable. Subtle handclaps are buried in the mix. The drums and bass frame a steady drive from start to finish, and on key verses there is the unmistakable harmony of John and Paul.
A lot is packed into this two minutes and one second burst of toe tapping energy.
Yet, I’m drawn to this line in the lyrics: “When your prized possessions start to weigh you down, look in my direction, I’ll be around, I’ll be around.”
My guess is that we all have many prized possessions.
Here’s my question to me, and you—do those prized possessions ever weigh us down?
Do they keep you, me, we, us from really seeing life and nature?
When is the last time that you, me, we, us slowed down and took the time to really see the intricate beauty of nature?
Dr. Collins is 76. He shared with the audience that he is undergoing radiation treatments for prostrate cancer.
Dr. Collins understands the speed of life.
Time zooms by me everyday.
I need to slow that zooming of time.
I think slowing that zooming of time is impossible.
However, in that zooming, we need to find those moments because nature has more for us to see.
Those prized possessions can weigh me down, and I see less of what surrounds me.
With every day I have left on this earth, I shouldn’t be weighed down admiring my prized possessions.
How about you?
Nature, take the time.
