Simple Gifts

I've always loved the old Shaker hymn,

"Simple Gifts."  God has lovingly surrounded us

 with simple wonders for our comfort and delight.

This is surely an angel wing.  Or a heavenly logo.

No artist's pallet can match God's display.

And the rainbow trumps the most beautiful

sunset because of the promise of hope it holds.

Here in our own quiet little woods I find our

humble waterfall (4 inches after a good rain)

inspirational and calming.  On the near side

of this tiny island are a couple of potential

swimming holes.  A bridge of cedar logs is

in the works.

This short video pans the serene spot.

The path to the stream cuts through a vast

expanse of alder bushes in full bloom.  The

sweet smells fill the air.

In this video you can't see what Judy and I

saw: an abundance of bees, butterflies and

various other insects.

Smack dab in the center is one of our dragonflies.

Downstream from the waterfall is this simple

bridge.  You can see how much higher the

water has been with recent rains, but a few

dry days lowers it quickly.

Every time Judy and I venture down there

we see numerous damselflies (smaller than

dragonflies) of green and iridescent turquoise.

In this final video, one cooperative Tiger

Swallowtail Butterfly allows me to intrude

on his feeding time.  You may not see him

at first, but every time he moves to a new

plant you can follow him.

A day after I took these pictures, young

Brianna asked me if we could go "see the

water."  We tramped down there in spite of

the heat.  She never slowed up.  And to see 

the wonder on her face as we went back and 

forth from the bridge to the waterfall time

after time was a simple but precious gift to me.

I think it will be a special spot to all the 

grandchildren in the years ahead. 

 Thank you, God.