In the Eye of the Beholder

A Time to Think

Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature–the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.

 –Rachel Carson

That was a message from an email devotional I saved awhile back. I thought about it again as I looked through photos I've taken in the past couple of weeks.

There is beauty to be found far off the beaten path ...

Down a dirt road in Central Kansas

 

... and in carefully-cultivated gardens.

Ted Ensley Gardens, Topeka, KS

 

Lake Shawnee - Topeka

It's just a matter of taking time to appreciate them - whether a man-made lake ...

... or a lazy tributary to a Kansas river in the middle of nowhere.

 

One recent evening, we drove to the Ninnescah pasture to check cattle and fences. That mission accomplished, I asked to stop at the bridge to watch the water gently ruffle the grasses along the banks.

A closer look revealed that other creatures also enjoy a water view!

Then I asked for the drive home to include a road nestled between century-old trees.

The light wiggled its way through the green canopy of trees, leaving a lackadaisical pattern of light and shadows. 

 

There was no one around except for an overflow crowd of mosquitoes. 

But as much as I enjoy the simply beauty of a Kansas country road, I can appreciate well-cultivated gardens. (Not that I find those at home!)

Maybe my pleasure in being at the Ted Ensley Gardens in Topeka had just as much to do with the company I was keeping!

It's getting easier to capture good photos of the girls.

Brooke - almost 6

 

Kinley - 8 1/2

This time, I was more interested in photographing people than flowers. (See another flower-forward visit to Ted Ensley Gardens at this link.)

 These three had to stop at every map to make a plan.

I wasn't the only one being inspired by the setting. Kinley carefully arranged her little sister for a snapshot. 

And she snapped plenty of photos on her mom's phone so she could show her dad, who stayed behind to mow.

 

But she also borrowed my camera for a few shots. I'm thinking 4-H photography may be in her future!

I did manage to find a couple of non-human creatures in the gardens. A butterfly didn't seem to care that I wanted it to alight on the flowers for a still shot. Most of my efforts captured the blur of its wings. But I did manage to get one in focus - though it certainly wouldn't win any prizes. 

     

The squirrel was too busy eating to worry about what I was doing.

While we enjoyed the sidetrip to the gardens, our trip to Topeka was mainly a mission to deliver desks for the girls. The girls' school will begin with a combination of in-person and online learning. Brooke and the next door neighbor will begin kindergarten in the playroom on their stay-at-home days. They have plans to add a colorful border of letters above their desks.

And, by the time we left, Kinley already had some items on the desk she'll use at home to begin third grade.

Bonus? The desks were free. You can't beat that - especially since it seems that desks are the new "toilet paper" of the pandemic, as Jill says. 

Maybe that devotional would come in handy for students, parents and teachers trying to navigate this new way of doing things. It's worth looking for beauty everywhere - from unmanicured roads to tended gardens to the people in our path.