Father Sky and Mother Nature collaborated together today and created another glorious fall day, warm bright sunshine, cotton boll clouds floating around the azure blue sky canvas, melding together and crowding each other. Some of the clouds were softly brushed on their bellies with light gray but not colored dark enough to spill some rain. Thought the butterflies had flown away but I watched a big yellow cloudless sulfur fly around the neighborhood, coming to rest on a pristine white pansy bloom on my bannister, performing a tap dancing routine just for my pleasure. I clapped for her and scared her off. While I marveled at the contrasting colors of the yellow and white together a large monarch flitted around the mums but didn’t stop long enough to perform a dance routine. Was hoping she’d pick a purple bloom to tickle with her tiny black legs. I love watching these butterflies light on different colored flowers throughout the yard. Makes me thankful for all the wondrous colors in Mother Nature’s watercolor set.

Ate brunch on the porch, perched in the swing watching all the chipmunks frolic. I’ve never seen so many in my yard. Don’t know how my yard a got to be the host yard but I counted eight of them today. Maybe they are after the seeds the birds drop from the feeders. Unfortunately, I saw a big rat sitting on the bird feeder closest to the bannisters. Don’t think he’ll be back after I chunked a rock at him. A little cooking spray on the pole and he won’t get any more snacks. They hate cinnamon and clove oil too, might spray the bottom of the feeder, too.

Watched the sun set this afternoon on the horizonbrushed and blushed with pale peach watercolors, softly melting into the powder blue sky above. Mother Nature color washed the sun’s setting in a muscadine gold as the sun slid down to bed and turned off the day’s light. Father Sky tucked her in and kissed her goodnight promising to wake the moon and stars, to pin them high in the inky darkness, to light the way of the night travelers.

Went to the farm this afternoon and visited oldest sister-in-law. She and vet brother have a beautiful dirt road driveway that winds through the woods to their home and I watched the sun filter through the fall foliage as I drove down their road. Most of the trees have been dropping their brown leaves but I noticed this one little black oak surrounded by large mature trees, standing tall like a soldier at attention, saluting the early afternoon sun, magnificently dressed in its cloak of red and purple and orange and yellow. This beautiful little tree, dwarfed by all the surrounding forest, was so proud of itself, branches stretched out, warming its leaves, getting ready to donate its colorful cloak to the forest floor. So proud of its beauty, not intimidated by the other towering pines and oaks.

While I was stopped on their road and pondering on that beautiful little tree, I thought of how we could be like a tree in God’s forest. We could be a refuge for family and friends, making them feel safe, protected with our love, like the birds of the sky must feel when they light on the limbs of trees, high up and safe from the predators on the earth below. We should always grow toward God’s light and love like the trees reaching for Mother Nature’s sunshine.

Just as the trees share their fruits and nuts with wildlife we should share our faith in God with others and through our actions help them see the fruits of God’s love. We can live righteously and grow tall and strong with prayers and thanksgiving. We are constantly growing in our faith, spreading our branches with love and kindness. Like the trees giving their seeds and their leaves to nurture Mother Earth, we should give our time and share our talents with the world, enriching the lives of others by sharing God’s gifts.

We need to learn to bend in the storms and to straighten ourselves back up through our faith. The Lord will always show us we are stronger than we think we are. Like the little black oak proudly standing in the forest, sure of God’s love in his beauty, waiting to give his leaves back to nurture the earth, we need to leave the earth a better place than we found it. Like the trees that lift their branches in praise to God, we need to lift up our hearts to God through prayers and thanksgiving. We need to be rooted deep in our faith and strong in our beliefs when the storm winds blow.

“Trees give peace to the souls of men.” ― Nora Waln