Sunset In The Blue Ridge Mountains

On our way home this evening.

"You have a saying that goes, 'Red sky at night, sailor's delight; red sky at morning, sailors take warning.' You find it easy enough to forecast the weather—why can't you read the signs of the times?"

Matthew 16

Side Of The Road Saturday - The Dome

People around here put all kinds of things out on the side of the road. They are surprising, amazing, or just weird.  Poor people drive around town in pickup trucks and often take the things before the junk man comes. So this is the beginning of a series on side of the road things; every once in awhile I will post something on the street. This yellow dome sits across the street in a pile of trash, and it has been there for about two weeks or more. No one wants it, even the roaming trucks won't take it. What do you think it is? There are a few straps attached and it says "Body Dome". Phil thinks you stand on it and pull the straps for exercise, but that makes no sense, how could you stand on such a dome? A better idea is that it is small crashed flying saucer, so I'm keeping my eyes on it for tiny men to come out any day. I hope they don't get hit crossing the road. Perhaps I'd better bring it inside, after all, nobody else wants it...

“And then, as they stood with folded wings, there was a voice from above the dome over their heads. Above the dome there was something that looked like a throne, sky-blue like a sapphire, with a human-like figure towering above the throne. From what I could see, from the waist up he looked like burnished bronze and from the waist down like a blazing fire. Brightness everywhere! The way a rainbow springs out of the sky on a rainy day—that's what it was like. It turned out to be the Glory of God! When I saw all this, I fell to my knees, my face to the ground.”

Ezekiel 1

Giants In The Land

“This was back in the days (and also later) when there were giants in the land. ..These were the mighty men of ancient lore, the famous ones.”

Genesis 6

Recently, I have been suspecting that there have been giants living around here. And now I have found some evidence!!! The other day, I spotted their giant milk bottle!

Shortly later, I spotted some giant shoes, so I snapped pictures of the front and the back with the treads.

There must be female giants, too! Because I then found these ballet slippers hanging up.

Shortly later, I saw this globe thing. I'm not sure what they use this for, it will take further investigation.

And it only figures that where there are male and female giants, there will be children, because here is a giant pinwheel!

And I think I found their workshop, where they make all their giant needs. It was at about this point that we got discovered and had to run for our lives from giant land. This is your intrepid reporter, again risking my life for my blog friends!! Now I am on the lookout for some tiny people, I hear there are some not far from here...

“Everybody we saw was huge. Why, we even saw the Nephilim giants…. Alongside them we felt like grasshoppers. And they looked down on us as if we were grasshoppers."

Numbers 13

Showers Of Blessings

Welcome to my afternoon of nothing being what it seems! This weekend, I went to a bridal shower, come along with me and see the fun. I hope you have a good time. Isn't the cake beautiful? Well, it is not really a cake, it is made from bath towels!! My friend Susie made it for the table centerpiece. And the guests beautiful white gowns are all made from toilet paper. We had a contest to see whose looked the best. Who do you think should have won? I think the girl on the left looks a bit like a mummy bride! The lady in the middle with the flowers was the winner. She grabbed the flowers from our table to use as a makeshift bouquet. One thing that WAS real was the fun and friendship between us all, it was a great afternoon.

“The Man said, "Finally! Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh! Name her Woman for she was made from Man." Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife. They become one flesh. The two of them, the Man and his Wife, were naked, but they felt no shame.”

Genesis 2

Tulips & Crowns

The other day, I showed you blooming Magnolia trees. And now I want to show you another kind of Magnolia tree, the Tulip, or Saucer Magnolia. It is called tulip because that is what the blooms look like, and they are also as big as saucers. And this magnolia is not only white, either! The flowers can be pink or purple, though all the ones around here seem to be pink. They are a real sight to behold, they look like a tree full of tulips! The tree also grows in the form of a symmetrical crown!! I wish I would have thought to snap a tree from a distance to show you.

• “He crowns you with love and mercy—a paradise crown. He wraps you in goodness—beauty eternal. He renews your youth—you're always young in his presence.”
• Psalm 103

Some Strawberries For You

One must ask children and birds how cherries and strawberries taste. ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Tonight is the strawberry moon, so named because this month is the very short season for harvesting strawberries. There were no clouds, so I got a clear shot of it. My granddaughter Anne Marie goes to the strawberry patch every year. As you can see, on her first trip she hadn't quite got the hang of it yet. I think her shrieks were causing a bit of ear damage to her friend, who looks quite pained, though trying to continue eating her berry. The last shot is about five years later, I believe in the same strawberry patch, and what a difference!

“But what happens when we live God's way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity.”

Galatians 5

A few things have come up, so I will be off the computer for the next two days. I will miss you all, but hopefully see you on Wednesday!

The Ancient Ones

The majestic Magnolia trees are blooming now, and they are a sight to behold. The blooms alone are bigger than a dinner plate. There are over 80 different kinds of Magnolia, which were named after the  French botanist Pierre Magnol. They don't have nectar, instead they emit huge amounts of pollen, which is super rich in protein for the insects. Magnolias are the most ancient of all flowering plants. They actually grew during the time of dinosaurs, and fossils of them have been found in rocks that are 100 million years old. A 2,000 year old seed was found in Japan and planted. It grew. An ancient plant in a modern world. I would love to see it.

“But you, Bethlehem, David's country, the runt of the litter— From you will come the leader who will shepherd-rule Israel. He'll be no upstart, no pretender. His family tree is ancient and distinguished.”

Micah 5