Simple + Southern Sunday No. 545

“The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭19‬:‭7‬ ‭ESV‬‬

We experienced a warm, humid week with rain and scattered thunderstorms occurring on several days. The moisture was needed and the unsettled days also brought picturesque skies and unusual light, especially early and late in the day. It is race weekend a few miles to our south at Talladega Super Speedway, but the race here at our place has already been decided…the weeds have won!

A nearby plant nursery always finds an interesting way to combine the new and the old. We visited several places looking for annuals to complete this season’s garden planting, but still need a few more things to finish the job! The clouds you see were typical for most of last week.

Our city has done a good job bringing new ideas and activities to the community. There are a number of strawberry growers in the area and we now have a strawberry festival. This is only the second year so it is in infant stages. I liked this cute display by a vendor and took a photo. I knew this was a take on a song and it brought back memories of…

…this gate in Liverpool, England. Pam and I had a very knowledgeable local guide who gave us a wonderful tour in 2015. This was the entrance to Strawberry Field (no “s”), where a Salvation Army orphanage once stood. John Lennon grew up just around the corner and often played on the grounds in a wooded garden. It is sad that there are those who wallow in the gutter of graffiti. If you’d like to take a throwback look at the post on Liverpool, click here!

Meanwhile, back at the strawberry festival, this farmer had many tables filled with pretty berries. I think people were educated as to the quality of this growers crop. I wanted to buy some but you all know I am always in a hurry, and could not bring myself to…

…stand in this line! Pam informed me when I returned home empty handed that being in a hurry cost me a strawberry pie. I must learn to slow down and wait in line if necessary!

Again, the skies last week offered so much and I found myself outside taking photos often. I made this with the idea of a beautiful background, but the clematis stole the show. I had not realized the clematis was even blooming until I stepped behind the Sunshine Cottage to get a better view of the clouds!

This scraggly vine produced beautiful star-shaped blooms almost overnight. It honestly looks dead most of the year, but somehow keeps coming back to life. Our summer heat will take toll on this survivor, but hopefully we can enjoy it for a while!

EK and her siblings know we prioritize the real reason Easter exists, that being the resurrection of Christ, but we do let the grands have fun with a search for eggs. All the eggs have prizes in them and I guess I get carried away by hiding quite a large number. I’d say this is a sweet happy hunter!

We made extra effort to not hide eggs in spots that would be too difficult. The purpose was to be certain that I not find eggs later in the summer or even next autumn when I begin to clean things up at season’s end. While mowing mid-week, I spotted this hold out. Do you think this hiding place was unreasonable or extremely difficult? I sent the grands this photo, and with this as a hint, they came up Friday and found it within 30 seconds. The quarter was fine but the chocolate goodie was…as you might guess, a sticky blob!

I took advantage of sun and light breezes yesterday and flew the drone. The garden is taking shape but there are still quite a few empty pots sitting around. Hopefully we can finish this week. This is the “outback” and cottage garden. I’ve always wanted to visit Australia, so I go back here, return to the house, and pretend I’ve been! It takes an enormous amount of imagination.

I’m always anticipating the blooming of the bristly locust. I ran across a black locust week before last and the blooms were amazing. If you saw SSS No. 544 you may remember that one. This bristly locust near our house blooms about a week later than those only 10 or 12 miles away near the wildlife park and bird sanctuary where I often walk.

“Bristly” is quite an appropriate name for this guy. It is one name for which I have no argument!

You may recall the gall wasp that lays eggs on hardwoods from a previous post. I have found these “galls” on leaves and limbs in the past but never one quite as interesting and colorful as this one. I spotted this on a white oak, so it makes sense that the “gall” is the result of a visit by an oak gall wasp. The gall wasp is a plant parasite that tricks plants into forming these tumor-like growths that provide a home, food, and protection for their larvae. 

Late one afternoon along the roadside I noticed the pink evening primroses were open and making a scene. It is interesting to note that the seeds of this plant are protein-rich. The root system makes it very useful in preventing soil erosion. There is also a white variety along the roadside, but these “pinkladies”, as they are often called, seem to be the dominant color!

Blackberries will be on the vines soon, evidenced by these blooms. With the briers, ticks, chiggers, and snakes that can be part of a blackberry patch, it’s not looking favorable that I will be picking enough for a cobbler. I definitely should’ve bought those strawberries!

To get an unobstructed view of this rainbow required a fast walk for about a 1/4 mile. I believe it was worth it, however you can get very wet when caught away from the house on a rainy afternoon. Two positive things though, the view, and it wasn’t cold!

We had a week filled with rainbows, reminders of God’s promises. There was no danger of getting wet with this one, but I discovered that such a sight can draw attention completely away from everything around. This includes unknowingly standing on the edge of a fire ant mound. Ants quickly covered my shoes, but I happened to notice just in time…no bites!  The two rainbow pics were taken from the same spot!

Have a great week!!

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13‬:‭8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Linking with:
 Pieced Pastimes,  Between Naps on the Porch, Katherines Corner, Follow The Yellow Brick Home,
 Life and Linda