Discovery Drafts

It seems to me the sky is born anew each day--and each of us with it. Skywatch Friday

A friend who is from Canada recently asked a group of American-born friends why it is that Americans fly their flag everywhere and all the time.  Implicit in the question was the point that this behavior makes us different from citizens of other countries and that it is kind of weird.    I immediately thought of all the vacationers on Topsail who plant the flag on their crossovers:  "Oh good; they're here," I think as I pass the Stars and Stripes or some banner of an armed American force.   The overlarge flags embarrass me because they seem to be asserting something that need not be asserted but lived.    I got my friend's question.  Why do we do this?  Are we prone to forgetting where we are, after all? All this thinking about the question this weekend took me to one of Bill Murray's lines in Hyde Park on Hudson .  Murray has the role of FDR (and he's great in this role).  Addressing the King of England's questions about why he--FDR--will serve hot d

Today's Flowers

They know what they're doing.  I love watching birds move from a chaotic dog pile in the sky to this ordered division of labor that is not only functional but also decorative.  While the cormorants are a work of art in action, I have to say I prefer the pelicans.  They line up for a while and then a bird will decide, heck, maybe not, and off he veers, and then another pelly will go a different way and then there's two off to gate-crash the party of fisherman trying to earn his bread and butter and then they're back together again, even if they're not the same birds in line.  They make it work, they work it, and then again, whatever.  This is where evolution will take us if we can stick it here as long as these guys have. Skywatch Friday

Wordless Wednesday

Back in February, my cousin brought her boss's Havanese puppy to visit in North Carolina--along with her three well-behaved, very beautiful Doberman pinschers.  I fell in love with Beau, the Havanese, as I watched him shepherd the Dobies and my parents' elderly and wandering Heinz 57 up and down the beech.  When the dogs slept on the couches, he poked them in the snout with his wet little nose as if to say, "Let's go, dogs.  Time for the beach!"  I fell in love. Also, he thoroughly enjoyed the ocean and could keep up with the big guys. So I told my cousin if she came across a Havanese to let me know. In April, she did just that.  Enter Queen Maeve onto our family landscape: My cousin picked her up from the breeder for me and has been taking care of her until I can pick her up next month.  I named her for Queen Maeve of Connacht,  a mighty warrior with a considerable place in Irish mythology.  Her story is long and complicated (the way stories usually

Today's Flowers

Skywatch Friday

Wordless Wednesday

I love that this guy doesn't take that tumbling wall of water under his notice.  Just doing his seagull thing, thank you very much. These guys actually know exactly what they're doing.  Just looks a little messy from time to time. They're actually trying to figure out where to go for breakfast. They landed here: Some don't fly with the usual bunch.  They make going solo an exquisite sight. Which part of the wave knows to go first? There are moments that say "yes" and teach you to fly. Our World Tuesday

I love violets.  They are sweet and beautiful and close to the ground and humble and bright.  It's a nice surprise when the grass turns purple in spring.  They don't  last long enough. Today's Flowers

Rain has at long last come....and it's great.  Grey days can be so quiet and peaceful.  Happy day! Skywatch Friday

Wordless Wednesday

Snead's Ferry is the shrimp capitol of North Carolina and an interesting little village.  The locals resent the heck out of the tourists who come in and reshape things to suit themselves, but they don't mind the tourist dollar at the seafood shacks.  Shrimping is big business and hard work.  Still, we found our share of shrimpers sitting back and taking in the day when we took a ride around the village a few weeks ago. As the Marine Corps expands its presence in the area, new subdivisions are appearing left and right.  Still, life goes on the old way in the Ferry. I love it. There is a meeting house in the village that is surrounded by burying grounds full of all kinds of grave markers. Some are poured concrete with the names and dates drawn in.  Here is Debrid, who was loved by Jesus.  The figurine is part of the statement. Here's a baby who lived a day 43 years ago who has not been forgotten.  This stuff breaks your heart. Here's another life that ha

Orange and fuschia--tropical colors and the colors of Dunkin Donuts--dominate the landscape these spring days.  The colors were prolific at Airlie Gardens, and we drank them up.   Today's Flowers

The sky leaves me speechless these days.  I can't--and don't want to--add a syllable. Each day is a deep breath, and the final exhalation, the peace that comes with the realization of a dream. Skywatch Friday

Wordless Wednesday