Another school quarter ends. I now have three weeks to rest, reflect, recuperate, and do some fun stuff! I’ll be checking on your blogs, too. I apologize for not making the rounds. I’ve discovered however, that as my coursework progresses, the demands increase and blogging becomes a back-seat priority (except for posting photos now and then…I can’t completely give up blogging!)
Unfortunately this quarter ended on a rocky note; Richard was rushed to the hospital during my finals week. He is now home and back to his usual schedule, but he did give me a scare. The first thing we did when my school break finally began was pack the camera and head out to the woods. Nature is the best therapy in the world for both of us. At one point we ventured onto a wooden platform jutting over the edge of a lily pond and stood in silence as we took in the view. It was late afternoon and the animals were feeding or sitting on logs sunning themselves. Late in the afternoon, even as birds flitted from one spot to another, a lazy quietness permeated the place. It was a mellow time for us both.
A Black-Capped Chickadee wings past in a blur, the summer/autumn colors of the foliage in the background offering a contrast to the blue-gray/black of blurred feathers that formed fluid lines of a bird in flight.
In fact birds filled our day with delight as we watched them feed in different ways!!
Red Winged Black Bird
Then we watched as the Blue Heron caught its meal for the night!
Not only did we watch birds, but fall colors painted the landscape providing a hint of what is to come in the weeks ahead!
By now we were ready to pack it in! Thanks for joining us on our walk in the woods. 
Related articles
- The Black Capped Chickadee And Me (docdavis15.wordpress.com)
- You lookin’ at me? (rhudginsadventrues.wordpress.com)
- Blue Heron by Susan Garren Publicist © (susangarrenpublicist.wordpress.com)
Lovely Cecelia. Your bird photos are superior to anything I’ve taken! I hope Richard is feeling better.
BTW, I had stopped reading your blog for awhile because it was coming up so slowly – much better now. I think maybe the photo background took too much space to load.
Thanks Huffygirl. Glad you like the photos, and Richard is feeling much better.
Many folks began making comments about how slow my page loaded, so I went in and made some necessary changes. Glad you found your way back. To be honest, I have found it impossible to visit blogs when school is in session so I assume that when I stop popping in at other blogs, bloggers eventually stop visiting mine. PERFECTLY understandable. But it is nice to catch up with folks during the breaks. One year and one quarter to go with this program (hopefully) then I will be on to the next leg of my journey toward becoming a licensed professional clinical counselor! (Wow, is this ever a LONG journey!!!)
Good luck Cecelia sounds like you are almost there.
Maybe some people do stop following blogs of those who aren’t following theirs, but I usually stick with them, at least part of the time anyway. Glad you made the changes though and glad it wasn’t just me.
Love your pictures. Nice post!!
Thanks docdavis! Glad you like the photos.
Beautiful shots. Enjoy your break!
Thanks Naomi. Glad you like the shots. It was a glorious day.
enjoy your rest, relax and soak up some sun…Bulgarian sun has now gone and we have much needed rain.
Love to Richard and hope that he stays well. Thank you for all those lovely photos
Thank you Patrecia. Thankfully Richard is doing well now. And I am spending as much time outdoors as I possibly can before the next quarter begins again! Thanks for stopping by.
The heron reminds me of when my family and I took our only trip to the Everglades. We were at this stop, or something – can’t recall exactly what we were supposed to do there, and there was this big ditch between the road and the parking lot. There was a large amount of water in the ditch and alligators were all over. But what caught out attention was a cormorant who had caught a fish and was busy beating the little fish to death/unconsciousness against a rock. The fish would slip away and then the cormorant would dive back in and retrieve it. I don’t remember how that epic saga ended but it was funny watched the two of them.
That must have been a sight! I find that nature always has something amazing to watch or experience. (Too bad you didn’t have a camera! I would love to have seen that.)
I actually did take pictures, and even filmed some of it… however they are all on an external hard-drive that needs fixing.
At one point we ventured onto a wooden platform jutting over the edge of a lily pond and stood in silence as we took in the view.
My mother passed Monday and this is exactly the kind of place my father and I will very privately cast her ashes
Oh Carl, please accept my condolences. These kinds of places are so perfect for our loved ones. And hopefully as the days pass into months and years, you and your father will be able to visit the spot and experience peace and comfort. Blessings to you.
Enjoy your break and nature.
Thanks NN. I’m off to a good start!
A break for you, a return to good health for Richard and stunning photos.
Thank you, Barbara. We are well and Richard is definitely on the mend. Glad you like the photos.
lovely
Yes, it is nice to be on break. It gives me a window of time to do stuff I enjoy. Thanks for stopping by.
So glad that Richard is doing better. Not fun… I liked the blurry picture of the chickadees wings the best. Magic!
Thanks Kathy. You are the first to mention the Chickadee. My favorite shot of them all! Thanks for stopping by. I’ll try to get over your way, too, before courses start up again! Have a great week.
Awesome shots!
thanks Elizabeth. Glad you like them.