(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Old Trees

"It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men's hearts, 

as for the subtle something, that quality of air that emendates from old trees, 

that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit."

 ~Robert Louis Stevenson 

(Some shots of fungus on old trees that I captured on a recent fall hike.)

Linked to: And Then She Snapped, Through A Photographer's Eyes

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Nature is Imagination Itself

"The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity... and some scarce see nature at all.  But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself." ~William Blake

Linked to: Through A Photographer's Eyes, And Then She Snapped

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Recognizing Him

People see God every day, they just don't recognize Him. ~Pearl Bailey

Linked to: Live and Love Out Loud, And Then She Snapped, Through A Photographer's Eyes

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Bittersweet October: Red

"Bittersweet October. 

The mellow, messy, leaf-kicking, 

perfect pause between the opposing 

miseries of summer and winter."  

~Carol Bishop Hipps

Linked to:

Through A Photographer's Eyes,

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Butterfly Confession

I captured these images on a recent fall hike. 

All I have to say is, thank goodness for a good zoom lens.  

I felt like it was time to come clean with something...

Butterflies 

freak

me

  out.  

I know I'm crazy.

People get beautiful butterfly tattoos permanently placed on their bodies.

Other brave souls go into enclosed butterfly conservatories and gardens. To me, this is the thing horror films are made of.

I'm not sure what it is that bothers me about butterflies.

Perhaps it's the fact that they lure you in with their beautiful wings, but when you get a good close look at their bodies and long antenna,  ((shudder)) they are downright creepy.

I know I'm being irrational, especially when creatures like this exist...

But for now my silly phobia and I will continue hiding behind a zoom lens and enjoying these beautiful (hideous) creatures from afar. 

Linked to: Naptime Momtog, Better in Bulk

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Yellow

A woodland in full color is awesome as a forest fire, in magnitude at least, but a single tree is like a dancing tongue of flame to warm the heart. ~Hal Borland

Linked to: Naptime Momtog

Through A Photographer's Eyes

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Green

"To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else." 

Emily Dickinson

Linked to:

and

  Blogging From Bolivia,
Deb Duty Photography,
Through A Photographer's Eyes

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Fall

A hike in "our woods" from last fall.  

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower." ~Albert Camus

Linked to: Live and Love Out Loud, And Then She Snapped

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Gnarly Tomatoes

When I teach drawing to kids I always ask them what faces would be more interesting to draw: a beautiful young face or an older person covered in wrinkles.  They always say the young face with no wrinkles.

But then I ask... what face has more character?

Which face has more interest?

Which tells more of a story?

That's when the kids "get it."

Now, I never turn down tomatoes from a friend's garden. A few containers of basil is about all my shady yard will allow me to grow, so I depend on the love and donation of friends to get me through the late summer.

These "gnarly" tomatoes were so beautiful, despite their imperfections... I just had to photograph them.

Linked to: And Then She Snapped, Project Alicia, Live and Love Out Loud , Today's Creative Blog, Blogging from Bolivia

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Artichokes

Artichokes, how I love thee, let me count the ways.  You are not only delicious to eat, I have now discovered how beautiful you are to look at.

I fell in love with these artichokes in various stages of bloom on a recent trip to the Chicago Botanic Gardens.

Tell me I'm not the only one who didn't know how beautiful these perennial thistles were when in bloom?!

Linked to: Project Alicia, Live and Love Out Loud, And Then She Snapped, Today's Creative Blog, Shades of Autumn Photo Challenge

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Hair... In Motion

"Gimme head with hair. Long beautiful hair. Shining, gleaming, streaming, flaxen, waxen...."

When I first laid eyes on my future husband years ago, I was drawn to his "grunge" flannel shirt and his long brown hair flowing down his back.  He looked like an artist.  He looked like a musician. As it turns out, the quick assumptions I made based off of his looks were dead-on.

Eighteen years since I first saw him, his hair has gone from short to long to every length in between and back to long, again.

Here's a shot of his 'gleaming, streaming' hair.... in motion.

Linked to: And Then She Snapped, My 3 Boybarians, Live and Love Out Loud, 5 Minutes for Mom, Lazy Crazy Days of Summer Photo Challenge 

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Beautiful Radicchio

I had a photo shoot with a head of radicchio the other day...

I find them quite easy to work with...

Very unpretentious...

And delicious...

But we all know...

True beauty lies within...

Linked to: Live and Love Out Loud, My 3 Boybarians, And Then She Snapped, Better in Bulk, Project Alicia

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Our Woods

Our family is often out hiking in the woods.  Our favorite forest preserve we have affectionately called: 'Our Woods'.

We will hike there every season and have even trudged through 4+ feet of snow to enjoy Our Woods and the beautiful river hidden within it.

On every hike, in every season, I can take hundreds of photos and come up empty handed.

That would have been the case on this most recent hike had it not been for my son saying, "Hey mom, look at the water droplets on this plant.  I think this would make a great photo!"

I think he was right.

For more photography, stop by my page.

Linked to: Live and Love Out Loud, Super Mom

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Refreshing!

Nothing says "refreshing" like kids playing unabashedly in a fountain on a hot summer day.

These were taken at Crown Fountain, a.k.a. Millennium Fountain in downtown Chicago. As you can see, the kids are having a blast keeping cool. ...

Linked to: Project Alicia, Live and Love Out Loud, Love that Shot

(Not Quite Wordless) Wednesday: Earth, Green Up!

And God said: Let there be color.  Okay, so those weren't exactly his words.

God spoke: "Earth, green up! Grow all varieties of seed-bearing plants, 
Every sort of fruit-bearing tree."  And there it was.        
Earth produced green seed-bearing plants, all varieties, 
And fruit-bearing trees of all sorts. 
God saw that it was good. Genesis 1:11-13 (from The Message)


I loved the words, "Earth, green up!" in this 'contemporary language' version of this verse.

What a gift spring is with new color breaking through....

The flowerers....

The wetlands....

The conifers....

Even with the absence of color, God's artistic hand is there....

Now get outside and enjoy it.

Linked to: Live and Love Out Loud, Alli N Son, Project Alicia

                 Mrs. Mama Hen, Love that Shot