Love in the afternoon

It was April 24, 2010, a warm and sunny day. Suz and I walked the dogs down the trail, as we do most days. We rounded a jog in the trail, headed for the waterfall. I glanced up and couldn't believe what I saw. It was a snake curled up on an ironwood tree branch extending out near the trail, about 15 feet above ground. As I looked closer, there were so many loops of snake that it must be a huge snake. Or, was it two snakes interlocked? I walked around the tree and finally saw the head of the second snake.

Apparently they were mating, in broad daylight for all to see. We coaxed the dogs out of the way - they never even noticed the snakes draped above us. I ran to get the camera. Click click. Pretty amazing. We would probably never see anything like that again. But we did. For the next week, we saw these snakes 2 more times in the same place, in the same pose, at about the same time. Then they disappeared, except we saw two snake skins hanging from the branches of that ironwood tree several days later.

Somewhere in Bittersweet Woods there are black rat snake youths roaming around, along with the parents. I'm sure we'll see some of them again - at home in Bittersweet Woods.

Emily the Explorer

Emily, on left, with sister Catrina.

It was Easter weekend 2010. Sunday capped off a beautiful week of unseasonably warm weather. Granddaughter Emily (age 8)asked me if we could explore the creek after church. Sure, I added enthusiastically, figuring I might not hear any more about it.

She and her brother Connor had a wonderful time exploring the creek last summer. But the novelty wore off because we were doing some brush and logjam clearing. He had no interest this time. The exploring terminology reminded me of one of her favorite TV shows for preschoolers - Dora the Explorer. After church she asked again. So, we pulled on rubber boots, and went exploring for real.

This time we kept the work part more manageable - mainly picking up large branches, clipping off intrusive multiflora rose, and clearing small log jams. It's fun to explore the creek. We get to walk through the water and mud while hopping over occasional logs. The stream has several nice rivulets and small waterfalls. I pointed out deer and racoon tracks. Several birds chirped in the background, flitting around in the canopy above us, carefully monitoring our intrusion into their space. Some wildflowers were out. Two frogs and a crawdad roiled the water briefly as we sloshed by them. Water striders roamed the still pools, defying gravity with their knack for using surface tension to walk on water.

We approached the waterfall, the highlight of any trip down the creek. First we had to check out a suspicious object on the hill above the falls. Suz had observed a white patch and an old lawn chair up on the hill. For months, we commented on it every time we hiked by it, but had never actually gone up to see it. She wanted to know what it was, but was fearful the object would be a decayed corpse, abandoned still, or other sinister object.

We bushwacked bravely up the hill. We came upon the remains of a former camp, most likely that of neighborhood teens. There was a chair, collapsed table, and the dreaded white object - which we could definitively indentify as an old sleeping bag with the insulation exposed. We could now report that these items were harmless. The area is secure. Law enforcement need not be called in.

We next explored the falls itself. I kept expecting Emily to say that she'd had enough exploring and could we go back home. Nope. And my subtle hints that we might be missed at home went unheeded. We needed to keep going. The area below the falls is pretty - very wide open, free of blockages, and has several fairly deep pools. We explored that area and could see and hear traffic on the Interstate.



Finally, I had to declare the exploration over. "Why?" she asked. "Because they'll wonder where we are," I answered. We hiked back. A chipmunk skittered across the trail. It was a magical grandkid experience for me - a special time that could easily be overlooked in the hubbub. She may forget about it, but our brief Bittersweet Woods creek expedition will stay with me forever.

Spring on steroids

April has been incredible so far. After a harsh winter, spring has exploded into a wonderland of color and new life. I call it spring on steroids. I look out any window and see flowers and blooming trees in every direction. The amazing thing is that many of these flowering plants almost never are out at the same time. Now they are all out in a frenzied blaze of color.

Usually, there is a predictable sequence. First daffodils in late February, then forsythia, then red bud trees, then flowering crabapple trees. Then in late April and May, we start to see dogwood trees and then in early may Azalea blooms. This year, the first week April greeted us with an uninterrupted string of 80 degree days. That gave the new growth a boost. We are seeing azaleas in bloom, along with the last of daffodils and forsythia.

Here are a few shots showing the unlikely combinations of bloomers. It's beautiful; enjoy your version of spring in Bittersweet Woods while you can.

March madness?

So many things compete for our attention these days - healthcare reform and March madness - NCAA basketball tournament, among others. I will settle for just being outside on these beautiful 70 degree days. We are clearing away some monstrous multiflora rose bushes. I played golf yesterday. The mud along the hiking trail is mostly dried up (for now).

I saw the first bluet and spring beauty wildflowers today. Toothwart is just starting to appear. There is a gnarly black-looking algae in the stream; hope it goes away soon. Heard the first rufous-sided towhee today. A small garter snake slithered along the stepping stone at the start of the trail. We saw several tick-size orange bugs today on elm trees and nearby ground ivy - any idea what those are? Some kind of mite, maybe. We have never seen those before.

Bittersweet Woods is coming alive again. Life is good.

Today

About now winter starts to drag. It's been more harsh than usual this year. No golf since early December; colder and a little more snow than usual. It becomes a waiting game - waiting for warm weather, for snow cover to leave so we can cut up some firewood piled up higher than normal, for the next day warm enough for golf (high temps in the 40's will be sufficient for desperate golfers), and until we head to Florida in a couple of weeks.

But constantly looking ahead robs me of today, of right now. Today will never come this was again, according to some song lyrics I remember. So make the best of every day. Actually, there is plenty to enjoy if I merely pay attention. Most of it I take for granted....like my faith, family, and friends.

And there is so much more. There is classical music, news from the BBC, and my digital picture frame. Our dogs are a constant source of amusement. Outside in Bittersweet Woods, deer and turkey have been active, creating energy-dissipating entertainment for Gabbie and Tess. Tufted titmice and Chickadees flit around in the tree canopy along the trail. And there is so much going on behind the outdoor scene. Beneath the heavy snow cover, snow bell flowers (left below) are getting ready to bloom; ditto for lenten rose (right). Soon we'll see daffodil shoots



Then there is the weather - often the archenemy in winter time. Yesterday's snowfall was beautiful. It was even better because our neighbor Dan plowed our driveway.


So, stop being impatient for the next big (or better) thing. Focus on the journey as well as the destination. Yesterday's gone; "...do not worry about tomorrow...(Matthew 6:34). Today's the day. The dogs would agree.