Thankful Sunday--August 9, 2020

 I am thankful for insects.

According to National Geographic, there are 1.4 billion insects for each one us and we couldn't survive without them. So for insects big and small and parts they play in nature from everything from pollination to decay, I am thankful.

Here are a few of them that I've seen recently.

A Linear Park

On the weekends, Ward and I have been trying to take early morning walks before it gets too hot and explore the local area. Recently we have hiked a nature trail and another weekend we walked the historic district of a nearby little town. This weekend, we visited Carroll Creek Linear Park in Frederick, MD. We had gone there years ago and had been meaning to go back. On Sunday, we finally made that happen.

The park was first conceived in the 1970's as flood control to protect historic downtown Frederick. All of the engineering for flood control was built underground and the above ground part was developed into a 1 1/2 long walkway. 

There are many restaurants and business developed along the walkway but none of them were open during our walk-partly because it was Sunday morning and partly because of COVID-19 concerns. That also meant that the crowds were sparse and it was easy to maintain social distancing. Here are a few things we saw along the way.

This is the base of one of the bridges. The unique thing about it is that all of this "stonework" is painting on a flat surface. You have to get very close before you realize this, as it matches other real stonework in other places along the way.

Thankful Sunday, August 2, 2020

I am thankful for rain.

We got measurable rain last night--a whole 1/2 inch! I'm so happy. I've never lived in an dry climate and don't know if I could. There is something so refreshing about rain--especially when it's been scarce (no measurable rain for weeks here). And to top it all off, we got our new rain barrel installed just in time to get it filled up with the latest rain. The barrel is located close to our vegetable beds, so this should make watering them easier. So for rain along with a full rain barrel, I am thankful.

Day lily

Chrysanthemum 

Caladiums 

Iris leaf with Creeping Sedum

Fig tree

Cucumber

Pool of water in squash blossom. There was a very disappointed bee that couldn't get to the pollen here.

While the rain was going on, baby house wrens were hatching in their dry nest box.

The rain barrel was made from an old olive barrel.

A Study in Yellow

or an Early Morning Walk Around the Yard

Thankful Monday, July 20, 2020

I am thankful that I had a patient mother.

Today is my birthday which has me thinking about when I was a baby. Of course, I don't remember anything about my first year, but I have the stories I've been told.

Apparently, I was late in arriving. Very late. My mother had to wait three weeks past her due date for me to be born.  My parents sent my older sisters to stay with my grandmother in the next town when the event was eminent or so they thought. My sisters were there so long that my parents visited them on the weekends. My mother had made them a box of surprises for their stay with ribbons attached to a trinket that they got to choose everyday. However, the box emptied before they were back home. During what must have been a very miserable extra three weeks, I am thankful for my mother's patience for my arrival.

Me at 4 months. True to form, I had a cold in
one eye for this appointment.

My mother said that before I came she had time to clean the entire house and she even waxed the kitchen floor. She thought things would go smoothly with me. The house was in order and this was her third child, so she knew what she was doing. But then I came. And I cried. And cried. And cried. For the first six months, I cried so much that I burst a tear duct and herniated my naval. The neighbors used to take me in the car with them while they were delivering groceries to try to calm me. I am thankful for my mother's patience during the very noisy, exhausting time of when I was trying to settle into the world.

Soon after there was finally some quiet in the house (as much as you can have with a baby and two small children), I got pneumonia and was in the hospital for two weeks. The hospital was in another town and my mother spent all of her time with me while the rest managed somehow at home. Once I was back home, my oldest sister remembers the extra care that I still required. For my mother's patience while taking care of a sick baby, I am thankful.

Throughout the years, I have heard various stories about when I was a baby, but never did the stories come with any guilt or resentment. Just another story from my mother like the one when they had to call the fire department to get my sister's foot out of a drain. So for having had a very patient mother who gave me a great start to life despite how hard I made it for her, I am very thankful.