Today’s a hot one. Enjoyed the porch today with the breeze keeping it cool, pinging the wind chimes softly. The wind chimes’ notes were muted by the songbirds. The fighting finches and their fighting fledglings are drowning out the songbird symphony. It’s a beautiful day, the sun is bright and hot, the sky is beautifully blue. I’m watching the wind travel across the street, the tree tops bending, undulating like ocean waves. Vera Nazarian says, “Listen to the trees as they sway in the wind. Their leaves are telling secrets. Their bark sings of olden days as it grows around the trunks.” I know the old water oaks and magnolia trees on my street are full of stories of the years gone by. Some of these trees have stood with my family for four generations. Wish we could hear them talk.

Oldest brother came over and we sat on the porch swings and talked about our gardens, our birds, and our raccoons. He’s worried about raccoons raiding his garden. They stole all his corn last year. I told him Grandpaw raccoon stopped by the other night and carried a ten pound plastic container of cat food all the way across to the other side of the porch. He must have rolled it over there. Thank goodness he didn’t get the top off. Several days ago he knocked the plastic container of cat food off the table and broke the lid and cracked the box. Made a lovely mess! This new box has a better lid but I’m keeping it in the house for now. I caught four raccoons last year in my critter trap. Thought the raccoons were gone so hopefully, if he doesn’t find any snacks on the porch, he’ll move on.

Broke down and turned on my window air conditioner in my bedroom. I must be getting old. Usually make it till the end of June before I turn it on. I hated to shut the windows in my bedroom, gonna miss my songbirds in the early morning hours but Penelope and I will enjoy the cool. The windows are open in the rest of the house so I can hear nature’s symphonies from them. I love this quote from Alexander Pope, “Hear how the birds on every blooming spray, with joyous music wake the dawning day.” I have that little squirrel screaming “Frank, Frank” waking me each morning. My backyard is the cut through for all the neighborhood cats so that little squirrel stands guard and loves sounding the alarm.

I’m back perched in the porch swing after supper enjoying the day’s demise. I just saw one of the neighborhood hoot owls fly across my yard to perch in an old magnolia tree. The sun has begun rolling down the horizon like a newly minted silver dollar, blindingly bright, dressed in a strapless gown of moonlight mist, long white gloves on her slender arms. Father Sky dressed in his silver linen suit took the sun’s gloved hand and walked her down the horizon, dragging the day’s dusk down with them.

Mother Nature painted the sunset’s backdrop in colors to complement the sun’s gown. She dipped her watercolor brushes in blue and mauve and purple and stroked the colors across the horizon right before darkness fell over the landscape. As the last ray of light faded from the horizon, Mother Nature painted the clouds champagne pink, a kiss goodnight to the day. Father Sky hangs the moon with his starry hosts and the day is done and night has begun.

Frank Loyd Wright said, “The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes.” As we age we’re more aware of how fleeting time is so we take time to savor the simple moments because we know how quickly they pass. When we’re young and stressed from the chaos of raising our children, we think those days will never end. If we’re fortunate enough to retire from the working world, we have time to slow our life down, time to enjoy life’s simple pleasures, time to see the beauty of God’s creation. I might have slowed my life down too much. I can’t keep up with the days of the week. Someone told me lately, “In retirement there are six Saturdays and one Sunday.” I concur with that!

If you have a belief in God that guides your day, you’ll have pleasures and joy in God’s presence. Psalm 16:11 reads, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Our true happiness is experienced with a close communion with God.

“I find joy in every day, not because life is always good but because God is.” — BibleGodQuotes.com