Tough Craftsman

161.00 bill to repair my sisters mower, we hauled the old Craftsman over to our house. Figure if we pay the bill, we may as well get some use out of it. Nathaniel had his first encounter with a rider, at least I think. He seemed to instinctively know where all the gears and stuff were located. He will enjoy riding with me soon as we mow.

Bee in Lantern

Nathaniel and I made an odd discovery today, a bumblebee stuck in a lantern globe. We could not figure how he managed to find his way into the glass. We watched him for awhile, then opened the globe and set him free.

Dogwood time

 

Passing Encounters

Lately, I have been photographing street walkers and such as I ride about. I am beginning to specialize in the cyclists. Today I got a little interaction from one of my subjects along Baya Avenue.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail visits today....

 

He made an appearance for but a brief moment.

Santa Fe

by john clare

I shall take my canoe and paddle up your narrow spine
The bent shaft stabbing time after time
Into your sluiced apart shallow ribs,
Scraping your underbelly upon the rocks hid.

And when your gurgling mouth is found,
I shall then turn around,
And repeat again the skinning,
Until you surrender in the place of my beginning.

Watertown Lake

Big Shoals of Suwannee River

If I should offer

If I should offer
light to you
If you could know
its not a cave
wall to which
you cling
not a black
place with only
touch your
sight
but an ever expanding
illumination
leading ever
upward beyond
the first glimmer
of night light
I offer you.

The Night Leap

After several days this week of attempting to capture the bees and butterflies, the toil was rewarded at dusk with a visitation from the
mysterious Hummingbird Clear-wing Moth. Like the butterfly and the bumblebee, he too proved much too quick and elusive for the most part. I did manage to snap three or four before he disappeared into the night.

Eternity Pull

And to which direction are you pulled? The daily struggle, the daily, moment by moment tug of war. The flesh pulling fast toward the darkness, the spirit pulling hard toward the light. Days when we cross the line into the darkness, the strong opponent dragging us through the dirt. Days when we plant the feet against the rock and hold, our bleeding hands straining for the light.
There will come the day, the strong opponent shall be vanquished, we shall let go the rope and cross the line toward the light. Then, there are those who, having spent a life pulling toward the darkness, shall grab the limp rope, yearning for a pull, but gone from the
struggle will be those who would have pulled them from the terrible fall.

Never Ceasing

In the time the laptop was down, I have accumulated several hundred shots of the bumblebees in the azalea bushes. I have spent several hours attempting to capture these fast moving pollen foragers, in different light combinations, shutter settings, deleting far more than I keep. Most are an easy delete as no bee in seen at all in the frame, having escaped capture. Never ceasing in their tireless gathering, never ceasing in my attempt to get the right shot.