Texas Memories - Sunset Storm of May

 

Beyond the sunset’s radiant glow
There is a brighter world, I know,
Where golden glories ever shine,
Beyond the thought of day’s decline.

Josephine Pollard

Tennessee Memories - Frosting

Texas Memories - Bright Berries

 

China Berry

Nandina
(Heavenly Bamboo)

Tennessee Memories - Into the Smokey Mt. Woods

 

Isaiah 52:7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! 

The Thousand Word Project - Winter Evening Lace

 

Evening Hymn

Daylight is fading, twilight is shading

Meadow and hill with a deepening gray;

Heavenly Father, now as we gather,

Let us give thanks for the beautiful day.

Light of the morning, bright in the dawning,

Blessings that come to us all the day long;

’Tis of Thy giving, God of the living,

That we can offer this evening song.

But in its splendor, gracious and tender,

Wondrous Thy love that can cast away fear;

Dearer and rarer, richer and fairer,

Best of all gifts that Thou givest us here.

Elizabeth W. Denison

The Thousand Word Project - Morsels of Cold

 

Psalm 147:17-18 He casteth forth his ice like morsels: who can stand before his cold? He sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow. 

Texas Memories - Elm of Gold

 

Merry Autumn - A Poem

Merry Autumn

by Laurance Dunbar

It's all a farce, — these tales they tell

About the breezes sighing,

And moans astir o'er field and dell,

Because the year is dying.

Such principles are most absurd, —

I care not who first taught 'em;

There's nothing known to beast or bird

To make a solemn autumn.

In solemn times, when grief holds sway

With countenance distressing,

You'll note the more of black and gray

Will then be used in dressing.

Now purple tints are all around;

The sky is blue and mellow;

And e'en the grasses turn the ground

From modest green to yellow.

The seed burrs all with laughter crack

On featherweed and jimson;

And leaves that should be dressed in black

Are all decked out in crimson.

A butterfly goes winging by;

A singing bird comes after;

And Nature, all from earth to sky,

Is bubbling o'er with laughter.

The ripples wimple on the rills,

Like sparkling little lasses;

The sunlight runs along the hills,

And laughs among the grasses.

The earth is just so full of fun

It really can't contain it;

And streams of mirth so freely run

The heavens seem to rain it.

Don't talk to me of solemn days

In autumn's time of splendor,

Because the sun shows fewer rays,

And these grow slant and slender.

Why, it's the climax of the year,—

The highest time of living!—

Till naturally its bursting cheer

Just melts into thanksgiving.

The Thousand Word Project - Winter's Day Moon

Psalm 104:19 He appointed the moon for seasons: the sun knoweth his going down. 

Photo taken in Central Texas.

The Thousand Word Project - Crispy Cold

1 Peter 1:24-25 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

Photos taken near Kingston, Tennessee.

The Thousand Word Project - Winter Polka Dots

Job 38:29 Out of whose womb came the ice? and the hoary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it? 

The Thousand Word Project - China Berries

The Wall and the Hedge - by Annie Johnson Flint

The Wall and the Hedge

Hast not thou made an hedge about him...on every side?...
Job 1:10

"The devil may wall you around, but he cannot roof you in."
Dan Crawford

The devil may wall you round
But he cannot roof you in;
He may fetter your feet and tie your hands
And strive to hamper your soul with bands
As his way has always been;
But he cannot hide the face of God,
And the Lord shall be your Light,
And your eyes and your thoughts can rise to the sky,
Where His clouds and His winds and His birds go by,
And His stars shine out at night.

The devil may wall you round;
He may rob you of all things dear...

Continue Reading

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First published here in 2017.

Tennessee Memories - Color Tour

Isaiah 30:15 For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength...

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All these photos were taken in or near Kingston, Tenn.

The Thousand Word Project - Liquid Jewels

Proverbs 3:19-20 The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew. 

Visiting the Michigan Woods In Spring

Trillium photo property of "Plants Amaze Me."

Michigan is my home state and it is the state my mother considered her home state in the U.S, although she was born in Tanzania, East Africa. Western Michigan, where we lived at various times, is a beautiful place. This blog offers some occasional walks in the woods there. Enjoy!

Aman Park in Ottawa County, Michigan - May 7 2019

Dowagiac Woods April 8 2019

Another Ramble through the Michigan Woods

Photo property of Plants Amaze Me.

I posted a link to this page some weeks back explaining that I lived part of my youth in this area - Western Michigan. Here is another ramble in the Michigan woods from a year ago around this time. I enjoy these photos so much.

A Fun Find On the First Day of November 2018

When through the woods and forest glades I wander

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees,

When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur,

And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze:

Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee:

How great thou art! How great thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee:

How great thou art! How great thou art!

Carl G. Boberg [Translated by Henry K. Hine]

Beautiful Michigan Woodlands

Psalm 104:24 O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.

Photo property of Plants Amaze Me

This is a page I enjoy visiting from time to time because the person who does it lives in the area where I was born and lived for a number of years of my life. She is in Western Michigan. This is the kind of landscape I sometimes enjoyed in my youth. :-) Please go over and enjoy the woodland ramble.

Plants Amaze Me - Ross Coastal Plain Marsh

Tennessee Memories - Winter Trees

Chill airs and wintry winds! my ear
  Has grown familiar with your song;
I hear it in the opening year,
  I listen, and it cheers me long.

- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Excerpt from "Woods In Winter"

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Photos taken near Kingston, Tennessee.

Painting with Leaves Tutorial

Here is a tutorial from Jay Lee showing how to paint using leaves. This technique is obviously more difficult and may not be suitable for young children as it looks like it would be a challenge to keep one's fingers from leaving smudges. You could use tweezers to lift the leaves to help with that. Also, I'd probably wipe off the aluminum foil periodically in order to reduce the amount that gets on the backs of the leaves and could then be smudged on to the paper more easily. He says to use washable paints. I think you could use craft acrylic paints or poster paints for this. It looks like fun. I might try it with watercolors just for fun. These would be great for greeting cards as well as Fall or Thanksgiving decor.