Our adventures in nature this week led us through a wide variety of sights, sounds, and lessons. Thought the week started out with sightings of similar things, it quickly changed to sights of objects that were opposite in some way to what we had seen in the days prior. The broad spectrum set us to thinking about small and large things in life (and nature), and how they intertwine at times to bring us an entirely different perspective or outcome than anticipated or expected. Our meandering of thoughts and our faith had us start with one title that we thought would fit well for this week’s blog post, but slowly morphed through the week and the events to provide what we are presenting in this post.
“No matter the religion or denomination in which we are raised, our spirituality still comes through the first filter of our own life experience.” –Richard Rohr
Theme of the Week: Small, Large, and Everything in Between
On a morning run early in the week, I noticed many of the flowers coming into bloom were very small in size. Though the leaves, stalks, and other parts of the plants coming into bloom were medium to large in size, the flowers themselves were small. The first example was Deptford pink, a tiny, bright pink flower with five petals. The flower is not uncommon in our area, often seen growing in fields from June through August.
A little farther into my run, I came across some water speedwell. The flowers on this plant grow in clusters like wands, with each tiny flower adding to the length of the wand. Just a few hundred yards away, I found the first wild lettuce coming into bloom. Wild lettuce grows very tall, but has a small white or yellow flower. On the opposite side of the road, St. Johnswort with five tiny yellow petals stood out from an array of green stems and leaves. Toward the end of my run, I passed some Canada thistle, with hairy pink flowers sitting atop tall green spiked stems and leaves.
Seeing all the tiny flowers set me to thinking about how so many little things in life are actually large.
Two nights later, we watched the full moon fill the skies with light. The moon appeared larger than in months prior, possibly given the angle and location of where it rose in the sky. The full moon of June is known as the full strawberry moon since June is the month when many varieties of strawberries are in season. Other names for the full June moon include: birth moon, blooming moon, egg laying moon, hatching moon, green corn moon, hot moon, and hoer moon.
So now we had a broad spectrum to contemplate, and a bit of a quandary, for we thought we’d focus our blog post on the little or small things. Here we were literally facing one of the largest appearing moons of the year thus far, definitely worth mentioning, but how did that fit into our theme?
The next day, we saw turkey, deer, rabbits, squirrels, and a plethora of birds. All of these offerings by nature were of sizes in between the tiny flowers and the large full moon. Gosh, where is this week’s theme going?
Our readings for the week put it all in perspective (which usually happens if we are patient and open-minded enough), giving us a big eureka moment on Thursday—the theme was not just small things, but all of nature’s things!
“Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.” –Rainer Maria Rilke
Lesson of the week: Never Too Late or Too Early
Our lesson of the week came as we tried to start writing up our post. We had a number of events and circumstances stacked against us, and our first and second attempts were fruitless. This was frustrating for us, as we are trying to get back to our historical normal posting on Thursday nights, but have not had much luck.
On Friday, I went for a run and a bike ride later in the evening after work. While pedaling along, I spotted a bright orange patch among the neighbor’s tree farm rows. Could it be?
Circling back and jumping off my bike, I headed toward the orange glow. Yes, it was!
Life experiences told me what I spotted was butterfly weed. Closer examination confirmed this to be true. Butterfly weed is a prized possession in our area as like milk weed, it offers food and shelter for butterflies and pollinators. Recent environmental events led to the demise of these plants, along with the pollinators, which in turn has affected crops and food supply in certain parts of the country. So, long story short, finding butterfly weed is like finding gold to the eight-year-old in me.
As I mounted my bike to continue my ride, I realized not being able to get our post done this week was a blessing, for now I could include the story and some facts about the butterfly weed. As fate and nature often unfold, butterfly weed has a very tiny, orange flower, which kind of brought things back full circle to our original theme of small or tiny things.
As I pedaled along, I realized butterfly weed typically does not bloom this early in our area, so this put an exclamation point on how life unfolds as it will, and it is never too late or too early for certain events to occur, and one of these events is to accept life as it is, for what it is, the way it unfolds.
“Not to know is bad. Not to want to know is worse. Not to hope is unthinkable. Not to care is unforgivable.” –Nigerian saying
Question of the Week: What Small or Large Really Means
Our question of the week is another one of those deeper, more profound ponderings that leaves you wondering about the answer you find. It comes from the butterfly weed experience, which also coincided with a number of life decisions and events this week.
Some background to the question: butterfly weed has a very small flower, but the flowers grow in clusters, which make them appear larger. Though the flowers are small, the plant itself grows twelve inches or more high. Add to this stature fact the history of near extinction and high demand. Now ask the question: Is butterfly weed small or large? Is it so small that it is big? What else in life is similar?
OK, so now we have multiple questions, but still no answer. Or do we have multiple answers that are in question form? Well, really we have all the above, not to mention a great brain teaser and mental exercise.
We came to the conclusion that butterfly weed is so small that its smallness (or perhaps its rareness) makes it big, but this big is not big in physical stature, but rather big in physical impact. This in turn reminds us of the story of David and Goliath, and how the simple wisdom of David outsmarted and overpowered the large stature of Goliath.
So, being who we are in our household, we challenged ourselves to think more in simpler, smaller terms to help us overcome some rather large issues in our lives. Our experience thus far indicates simplicity is the way to go, and simplicity does not equate to easy, common, standard, straight, direct, or orthodox. AND there is nothing wrong with this approach or the fact it typically takes one on the most circuitous path to the destination. The neat thing about the “long way around” is the experience gained along the way. So, in pursuing the simple answer, one finds the profound answer, along with wisdom to be used throughout life. This is a lesson only nature and God can provide. As such, nature offers us the small, the large, and everything in between. In other words, nature offers us all it has and all we need.
“A practice of slowing down, of reflection, of asking ‘big questions’ about our desires, our wounds, our values, and our relationships helps us to discover and trust in the truth and authority that lies within us.” –Attributed to Thomas Keating and Richard Rohr (actual origin unclear)
Sight of the Week: Oh, Gee!
Several nights this week while riding my bike, I came upon deer. There is one area along my riding route that is historically great for seeing deer in every season. This area is also historically a mecca for young and old male deer. The area is a natural funnel with the road running in the low valley of the landscape and banks that rise six to eight feet on both sides. At the crest of each bank on both sides of the road are pine trees. Behind the pine trees sit an orchard, fields, and ponds. The wildlife in this area tend to move on a schedule, so if an observer can pick up on the patterns of the activity, the observer is in for a real treat.
This year, I noticed a young buck, which we wrote about in last week’s post, in the same area. Each night, I tried to go for a ride at the same time, and sure enough, the buck was feeding in the same spot. Each time I tried to get a picture, a car would come by along the road and the buck would take off running leaving me with a blurred shot or no picture at all. This happened several nights in a row and to say I was frustrated would be an understatement.
However, on the same night I found the butterfly weed, I spotted the buck tucked into the wood line at the fields’ edge. I was heading north, and given the location of the buck and historical references, I had just enough time to ride to my turn-around point on my route and still catch him before he either crossed the road or withdrew into the woods.
Of course, the butterfly weed delayed me, so I was trucking along to get back to the buck and realized I really needed to be prepared if I was going to get a picture. I slowed down, pulled out my camera, and cautiously pedaled to where I thought I had the best chance of getting a picture. Sure enough, there was the buck in the high weeds. He was staring right at me, so I had to really be careful and calculated to get a picture. Ever so slowly, I raised the camera so I could focus the lens. He stared intently at me, his face stating he was ready at any given second to bolt. I prayed a car would not come along as I started taking pictures.
The buck continued to stare at me, almost smiling slyly as if he was getting away with some mysterious ploy. The camera was not cooperating very well, which was not helping matters. In the distance, I heard a car coming. Oh, darn it!
Despite the lack of cooperation by the camera, I got a few shots taken. The car turned off the road before reaching us, so the buck just stood there. Thank you, Jesus!
“To understand is hard. Once one understands, action is easy.” –Sun Yat-sen
Song of the Week: Remember Me
Our song of the week is one we have mentioned before, but worth mentioning again, especially as we emerge on the other side of the pandemic in our area, and in our case, try to find our way onward after some rather difficult situations and events. This song was written by Paul Overstreet and Don Schlitz and made a hit by Keith Whitley, who was no stranger to the small and large things in life. Other artists have recorded and performed the song, and the one we like best is by Alison Krauss.
When You Say Nothing At All
It’s amazing how you can speak right to my heart
Without saying a word, you can light up the dark
Try as I may I could never explain
What I hear when you don’t say a thing
The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There’s a truth in your eyes saying you’ll never leave me
A touch of your hand says you’ll catch me if ever I fall
Now you say it best when you say nothing at all
All day long I can hear people talking out loud
But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd
Old Mr. Webster could never define
What’s being said between your heart and mine
The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There’s a truth in your eyes saying you’ll never leave me
A touch of your hand says you’ll catch me if ever I fall
Yeah you say it best when you say nothing at all
The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There’s a truth in your eyes saying you’ll never leave me
A touch of your hand says you’ll catch me if ever I fall
Yeah you say it best when you say nothing at all
(Written by Paul Overstreet, Don Schlitz)
“A little thorn may cause much suffering. A little cloud may hide the sun. Little foxes spoil the vines; and little sins do mischief to the tender heart.” C.H. Spurgeon
May we come to find the answers to our questions through life’s offerings, be they small or large. May our discoveries lead us to knowledge and growth, and may we come to be thankful and grateful for nature’s all.
Nature’s All
Sun in the sky, deer in the field,
Birds flying by, crops with their yield,
Little flower on the stalk,
Large tower of the sunflower’s walk,
Little shoot in the dirt,
Larger root living in the earth,
Whether large or small,
Nature is part of it all.
Dove calling on the wire,
God’s love spreading above in the sun’s fire,
Antler of the buck,
Canter of the doe in the brush,
Little fawn with spots in tow,
Large dawn with the skies all aglow,
Little star at day’s end,
Large moon in the art of the heavens,
Whether in the dark or the light’s call
Nature is part of it all.
Flower and bush and tree and vine
That shower us with good in life,
Second, minute, day, and week,
Sent to sever, mend, save, and seek,
Little moment of silence upon the wind
Large river flowing that quiets the sins
Whether in the heart or the mind’s fall,
Nature is part of it all.
-Lisa A. Wisniewski
A Note of Thanks
Our thanks this week is to our late canine friend, Nikki, who continues to watch over us from her place in heaven. Nikki grew ill in late June and passed away on July 2, 2009. Our friend Sadie was one year old the day Nikki passed, and we had the smallness of Sadie’s stature in contrast to Nikki’s larger frame and even greater wisdom. We learned in time that we needed both the small and the large both Nikki and Sadie had to offer, and we continue to be grateful to nature and God for seeing us through life’s circumstances through the eyes of our canine friends.
-Lisa and Leo
Natural Deltas 