Well, it’s not really a bat cave but this section of road, my daughter and I call the Bat Cave because it reminds us of the road to the Bat Cave in the Batman movies. And now that the leaves are just starting to change color, it’s beauty is really beginning to shine. Cee reminds us that leaves are acceptable for Flower of the Day as well.
This road cuts through the edge of Black Hawk Forest and you can see the entrance to where the trees fully overlap the road which we call the Bat cave.
When the colors get full and it is a pretty day. I will shoot out further pictures. For now enjoy the beauty of fall as it surrounds your area.
And remember to be kind as the season of plants prepares for winter naps, and we as people, prepare for the holidays or in my case, more football games.
Cee’s Flower of the Day is always inspiring regardless of the season. I still have flowers that refuse to give up, even though the weather has cooled way down. So, I am honoring them today with all their many faces.
This is a flower planted by the birds in my area. I started to mow it down but decided to wait and see what it would be…and it’s quite lovely. I think it is in the Coreopsis family of flowers. The plant is in various levels of blooming, so I shall share the different faces of this plant.
While the fall flowers are still trying to smile at us, it’s a reminder for us to smile as well. Smiling is a great and easy way to share kindness.
Cee reminds us with her Flower of the Day challenge that flowers are indeed worth having their own challenge as they challenge each day with their beauty and grace.
While I have shared my sunflowers several times, the early morning sun shining through the trees and this particular sunflower “tree”, it seemed that it needed to be shared again.
It really is a single stalk and it is now in full bloom where some of the older blooms are dying and going to seed, but still, it remains eye-catching. I have neighbors who come by on their walks to stand there for a few moments to look at it.
Nature is amazing even in bad weather but this morning is beautiful with the first feeling of this year’s cool autumn air. It will get warm again but at least this is a start. In all that you do, remember to always be kind. It can warm a much-needed heart on a cool autumn day.
Portulaca grandiflora, are more commonly known to those of us who can’t pronounce scientific names as Moss Roses. They are marvelous small succulent plants with flowers of many colors within the same grouping.
But this mixture of beauty reminds me of the beauty people can be if they try. We live together in clusters called cities, we all look different, we wear different colors, are different heights, and we have different ways to share our beauty of life.
Maybe you are a rich red beauty looking like a miniature rose…
Or maybe you are the soft gentle soul of light yellow rose…
Which is vastly different than the bright yellow which reflects the brightness of the sunshine.
Or maybe you are the neutral power of strength for all colors having no color at all.
My favorite of these lovely flowers is the mauvy pinkish-red which to me shares the kindness that we should all share with all people regardless of the brightness of the colors we wear.
As flowers gracefully move into the fall season, let us not forget the beauty that they have shared with us all summer. This is how they shared their love and kindness with us. We should take a cue from them and always remember to be kind to others in our “cluster of flowers”, especially to those who may need a little extra kindness.
We know there are many professions out there that require education and training that many of us rely on, like doctors, lawyers, or professors. But there are many amazing jobs that require training and a skill set that many of us don’t have. Jobs that require you to stand on a platform hundreds of feet in the air to wash a window. This past week while I was in Georgia, I watched the tree trimming guys take down an 80’+ tall pine tree. A guy had spikes on his shoes as he climbed up the tall tree, then he had a belt around his waist to secure him to the tree.
I didn’t get the very top shots of him when he started but he dropped down about 10′ below each time before he cut.
After the tree was down, they cleaned up all the shavings, and then the crane truck came in to pick up the logs.
This shot gives you a good idea of how big this tree was. The piece he was trying to roll toward the crane had easily been 40′ up in the air. It was a big pine. It will make some good lumber.
I asked him if he knew how much each piece weighed and he said between 400 and 500 pounds. Knowing this information, it makes more sense of the damage these big trees make if they fall on your house. From inside the house, we could feel the pounding vibration each section made as it fell to the earth.
We need to remember to never look down on one person’s profession as inferior …could you do this? I couldn’t. I am grateful for all the tree trimmers, the window washers, the janitors, and all the professionals who clean up after the rest of us, and of course, the professions that take care of us like firefighters and police. They all deserve the same respect as those who keep our bodies alive, our teeth clean, and our children educated.
So treat each other with respect and kindness and let’s quit judging certain professions as more important than others. Maybe if we can do that, then kindness will be the norm instead of the surprise. There is no job that is not important…if it is not important then it is not needed.
While I was in Georgia, I took pictures of flowers still blooming in my brother’s year. He has a type of Azalea that blooms twice a year. So I was able to get pictures of the fall blooms.
They were so lovely but I also took pictures of other things blooming in his yard, mostly tiny blooms but in my book a flower is a flower is a flower. 😊
And of course, Roses are always beautiful to see.
Remember flowers bloom to share their beauty and kindness with us, so we should share our beauty and kindness with others. That was everybody gets to smile.
Each person has their own perspective on how life moves through our lives but when we are faced with a dramatic shift in the perspective, we review life from yet a different perspective.
As many of you know, my brother has ALS, a most debilitating disease that steals your life one muscle at a time. So I drove again last week(12 plus hours one way) to see him since I know there is not a long time left. While I was there, there was a tree that had died that was being taken down. The analogy of that act I thought was ironic. Let me explain my weird thoughts.
The state of Georgia is home to various types of pine trees and some of these guys get huge. My brother lives in an older section of Atlanta with a beautiful home and grounds. His house was probably built in the 30s, so the trees are probably well over 100 years in age. The cluster of pine trees that held the dead tree were each well over 80 feet tall with a diameter of 4+ feet. The particular tree had disease which caused rot of that over time slowly killed it completely.
I felt the irony of the death of this tree, diseased from the inside, with my brother’s life. At one time they both stood strong sharing their life with the world.
We must never take any part of our lives for granted for we don’t know what disease, accident, or twist of life may change our perspective in how we view it.
And regardless of how we view life, we can ALWAYS…ALWAYS share kindness to help those who are in great need of that extra smile or kind word, maybe even a hug. Sometimes when we share kindness with others, a feeling of peace comes to us allowing us to reflect on the value and perspective of being kind.
We are still in the last throws of summer so we are not seeing much color change yet. But I love the colors of Fall, so I am sharing some colors from last year. My neighborhood has a lot of yellow.
But the reds, ah, they are my favorite. They usually start first and we are just beginning to see a tiny bit of change. Here is a beauty from last year.
Each season has its life purpose and its remarkable beauty. They remind us of our own seasons of life and how we should embrace each season with its unique beauty, sharing that beauty with others…and to always be kind.
Cee’s fun Flower of the Day challenge has really made me conscious of the fun you can have with macro photography. I am not an expert photographer, but I do enjoy playing with my camera.
As things begin to change for the season, you get some odd color changes and amazing details that only macro and close photography will show you.
This flower, normally a rich red, is fading for fall showing beautiful yellows and orange centers.
These cluster flowers I have shared before but you don’t really see the details except up close. look at the black center of each flower. This entire cluster is less than 1″ long.
I love the concept of flowers within flowers. The sunflower seeds are maturing and you can see the tiny yellow flower of each seed.
Here you see early sunflower seeds when the inner flowers are just being formed. They are primed with pollen for the bees to do their part.
Blue mouse ears, yellow eyes with pupil dots, a yellow smiling mouth, and two front legs.
Yes, my imagination gets out there sometimes with flower shapes, but this small weed flower of only two petals looks like a tiny big-eared mouse.
I end with two small cluster flowers that show some delicate beauty still to be had in the garden. There are so many different aspects of beauty in a garden…or even the side of the road in some cases. They are each a gift from God that He shares with us showing beauty and love. It is our response to slow down enough to appreciate each delicate one.
And as you slow down to enjoy, remember to share kindness as well. That has a beauty that is stronger and more lasting than any flower.
For the Love of 