Simple + Southern Sunday No. 610

“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭118‬:‭29‬ ‭ESV‬‬

I finished watering a little before dark Thursday, and while putting things away and locking up the workshop, I heard thunder. That hasn’t meant anything lately except noise, but this was different. We did get just over one half inch of rain and for that we were thankful. It’s amazing how quickly a little rain rejuvenates and brings a fresh look to everything! More was predicted too.

Pam calls this the bowling alley. I have another bench and a couple of other items that I originally planned to add in order to hopefully rid the space of the name. So far the name has not bothered me enough however, to take on all the additional labor. In fact, when I think on it more, “bowling alley” has a nice ring to it!

We had a variety of skies last week with very pretty afternoons for most days. I tell WL that the cows come to the fence and speak to me, but never talk except privately when no one else is around. He knows better but always wants to know “what do they say”? I tell him and the girls that they always say the exact same thing…”eat more chicken”. They love the story even after 100 times, except Daniel, who doesn’t care what cows say just yet!

I have no idea what happened to this plant. Maybe you would immediately say it looks like nothing has happened to this plant. The plant died back, shriveled up, had only a few leaves with any green, and went weeks without blooming. I watered and fertilized and that changed nothing. We couldn’t find anything to replace it so I didn’t pull it up. This is how it looked mid-week, and I truly don’t know what happened to cause such a comeback, especially this time of year. July and August can be very hard on gardens!

I hired a crew from the neighborhood to clean up some brush and trimmings I had piled in the yard. I didn’t know I would have to pay 3 operators! If there is a John Deere, (or any tractor for that matter) found working nearby, we have some boys who get excited and insist they need to ride, or at least sit on it, as an essential part of the operation!

We had another sweet time at a grand opening last week. This will likely be our final opening and ribbon cutting to attend. I named this one after Seth. He was unable to attend but maybe he and I can stop by sometime. It is a residence for Seniors and they all want to meet him!

The Mayor did the honors of cutting the ribbon. There was a lot of food and goodies and all the residents were invited to come. A couple of ladies who reside there spoke briefly and shared very meaningful and touching stories. Pam and I met a number of the residents and we were invited into their homes. We did visit with several. I learned that many of the 48 units are occupied by widows. Since this was about 90 miles from our house and only 25 minutes from the Peach Park, we thought the best thing to do before returning home would be to visit peach country!

With our freezer filled with blueberries and plenty still on the bushes, I told Pam maybe I didn’t want to pay $25 for a small basket of peaches…

…but I had no problem paying that much for fried peach pies and peach ice cream. At least the drink was sugar free. You have to cut back somewhere!

Signs of the times. I like to get out on the trails and see what new things I can spot for the first time each growing season. Although it is a long (and hot) way until autumn, there are signs along the way that indicate things are moving right along. I wondered if I could bring home this spurred butterfly pea and convince PJ that I brought her orchids? I didn’t attempt it. This is a legume, pea family native to our area.

One of our native wild sunflowers has begun blooming. The hairy sunflower gets its name from the hairy stems and leaf undersides. You can probably see that on the stems in this photo!

A hidden gem, the Pale Meadow Beauty is a graceful easily overlooked little native wildflower. It grows under and among a lot of other vines, flowers and weeds, and is such a pale color it can go unnoticed. I actually found a lot of it by taking my time and looking closely, something I don’t do often enough!

And, my first sighting of the season of one of my favorites, the majestic Goldenrod! Amazingly it can show up in a lot of months, but the main month is a bit down the road…October!

Mountain Mint has been growing, but has now begun to take on the white-washed leaf changes and blooms that make it a standout in the open undisturbed areas. Pollinators and other winged creatures have discovered it, butterflies especially! A native to our area, it is in the mint family. You can even purchase Mountain Mint Tea.

Meet Jose, a regular at the gym where I go. I tell him what an inspiration he is, and although he mostly nods, he understands that his consistency and hard work is surely an encouragement to others. Jose cannot stand, and must rely on family and/or friends to bring him to workout, which they do. Sometimes he is accompanied by others who workout alongside him. At other times he works out himself and someone picks him up when he is finished. He stays a long time and is serious about what he is able to do! I have attempted to explain our SSS blog posts, and while I am not sure he understood all I shared, he was happy to allow me to include him today!

The peanut butter tree we displayed a couple of weeks ago is now blooming at a level that has gotten the attention of the hummingbirds and butterflies. Pam says the way it blooms reminds her of honeysuckle. I think so too!

On the last mile of my walk at the wildlife park, I saw a helicopter coming in and realized when it went below the trees and there was silence that it had landed. There was no emergency on the wildlife trail that I was aware of, but the fact that someone needs to be airlifted brings thoughts to me that causes me to pray for somebody I don’t know, or have any idea what might be wrong. I learned, that because of construction, this spot in a mall parking lot is now the landing place used by the helicopters serving the regional medical center that is nearby. While I have no memory of it, I am much aware of a ride I took in one of these almost 20 years ago, and I have feelings I cannot describe every time I see this happening! They departed just after I completed my walk.