Friday, October 03, 2014

what I saw, when I looked ...


Some days look bleak. . . .


. . . until I slow down,
lean in,
peer closer,
and 
really
look.


The more closely I look, the more beauty I see.


God lavishly "wastes" his creative design 
on weeds,
inside trees,
even in the midst
of decay.

All over the ordinary,
he hides
beauty.

All it takes to see it
is 
a seeker.


Come,
have a look!


(I started inside the house)

Sugar's eye.
Is there anything like the human eye to stir wonder?!
The colors it can see...
The emotions it can communicate...



The zipper!!  The colors!! 
(No, God didn't make it, but he tucked it away in a thrift store for me to find,
knowing that its bright design and pockets galore would delight me.)



Glass.  Water.  Mums.



Glossy kernels of Indian corn & popcorn.
Think of the explosion of popcorn!
The transformation of Indian corn into meal, and again into bread.
Edible art.


(I headed outside)

 Raspberries!  Giant ones, too, glowing in the sun.
He could have made us to live on mere grass, you know.
Berries are pure gift.

And speaking of grass - have you ever seen anything
so ALIVE
as the green, green grass of summer?
Emeralds don't even come close.



This purple-mauve gem of a weed is called Pennsylvania smartweed.
Like the indiscriminate rain,
flowers spring from the earth for the just and the unjust alike,
free for the looking.



Humble tansy, holding its world of yellow blossoms,
and the humble ant in his gleaming everyday suit.



The sepals on this flamboyant pokeweed!
Almost plastic perfection.
Did you ever see such fuchsia?!



 Who would ever suspect this powdery unassuming plant of a powerful fragrance
used to calm everything from digestion to anxiety?



Asiatic dayflower.
Just a delicate, frilly little weed.



Even in fall - season of death and decay - beauty is tucked away . . .

 Dogwood fruits amongst dying leaves, beside next year's blossoms-to-be.



Fallen leaf, caught in the sunlit angles of decaying poplar wood.



Lil' Spice's loud cries brought me running, sure he was hurt.
He held out his best, favorite leaf:
"It broke!!"



Between two sheets of wax paper,
we mended it.



Translucent fish scales, like delicate miniature seashells!
(Even fish scales are touched with beauty!)


Every seed pod, unique to its species.
Does He never run out of ideas?!
To tuck hard, dry, withered little kernels of life
inside fibrously whiskered cavities 

where just weeks ago
tissue-thin petals of palest pink had been?




Intricate network of veins on a poplar leaf - a study in fractal art.



Crabapple among clover.



 Leaf lace



Dried echinacea "pincushion"



 Star Magnolia flowerbuds
forming spring's lavish creamy blossoms
undercover
like a caterpillar in chrysallis
unfolding into
butterfly.



Chrysanthemum bud, blushing into blooms
to brighten autumn.


And God's greatest handiwork of all
is us,
of course.

No flower
or common creature
could have a sense of humor
like 
a boy!







May God bless you
with opened eyes
to see
what He lays

expectantly

before you!












1 comment:

  1. I think the tansy was my favorite, closely followed by the leaf on the log. A lovely reminder to look closely for God's gifts!

    ReplyDelete

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