Singing with the Frogs

 

There is so much to be grateful for that words are poor things.

Marilynne Robinson

Our yard is usually filled with bird song. Even when I'm in my basement office, I can hear the trill of birds conversing outside my tiny window. 

Not long ago, I was talking on the phone to my sister who lives in Chicago. The conversation had started in the car, but when I got home, I sat on the back steps to enjoy the pretty afternoon. (And my cell phone doesn't work well inside my house out here in Timbuktu.) It wasn't long before she commented on the background "music" of bird song.

Like so many things we experience every day, I often take it for granted. But when something is gone or different and it suddenly returns, there's a new appreciation. That was the case when I heard the frogs' chorus as the sun was setting one evening. It was an audible sign of wonderful rains we got during late May and early June. 

Last week, I went out to take photos of the sunset. I couldn't remember the last time that the sunset's colors were captured in mirror image in puddles in fields. And I was thankful.

The 3.20 inches of rain didn't take us out of the extreme drought designation on the Kansas Drought Monitor. It did take us out of the Exceptional Drought we'd been in for weeks. And it definitely perked up spirits in farm country. 

June 8 Kansas Drought Monitor

As a reference, this was the April 27 drought monitor:

Spirits weren't the only things perked up: Our neighbor's corn across the road looked like it grew overnight. It's grown more since then.

The rain was too late to help the 2023 wheat crop much. But spring-planted crops and the pastures are enjoying their Big Gulp of water. It does wonders as an attitude adjustment for people, too. 

Just like the singing frogs, we're thankful, too!

***

Taking photos of my surroundings helps me appreciate the beauty of God's world. Last Friday evening, my photography was part of Stafford's Nora Larabee Memorial Library's Nora's Gathering for June. Nora's Gatherings are a celebration of art, music and creativity, held once a month at our library.

Then, on Monday, Bike Across Kansas had an overnight stay in Stafford. 

Our little town welcomed about 500 extra people to the community. The library again opened its doors and sponsored a pie and ice cream fundraiser. Monies raised will go toward blinds at the library, another project in efforts to revitalize our unique library.

Our guests were amazed at the library's stained glass window, leaded glass, pressed tin ceiling and other unique architecture.

I called my show, Seasons, based on Ecclesiastes 3:1: To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven. My show summary included:

Those who don't live in Kansas may think we live in a so-called "flyover state." Kansas is just that place to travel through to get to the mountains, right? But it's my contention that beauty is all around us  whether it's as big as a Kansas sky or as small as a butterfly sipping nectar from a flower.

While I've always been interested in photography, I've been more committed to capturing the beauty around me since beginning my blog, Kim's County Line in 2010. My tagline is Camera Clicks and Commentary from a Kansas Farm Wife. It gives me the opportunity to share some of the photos I take while living and working with my husband, Randy, on the Stafford/Reno County line.

Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.

Dorothea Lange 

I also displayed the books I've written - most after adventures with our granddaughters. 

Thanks to the library for including me in these events. It was an honor! And, by the way, the town of Stafford came together in big ways to welcome our guests. At the library, we heard comment after comment about how Stafford had rolled out the red carpet.