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.

How Can You Not See God?

 

I don't have to travel 2,150 miles to find beauty. It is literally in my own backyard.

After a month's worth of blog posts from our trip that took us to Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky and Indiana, it may seem that I can't find anything noteworthy in my own backyard. Nothing could be further from the truth. For the past 13-plus years, I've been taking photos and writing at Kim's County Line. 

The majority of those thousands of photos and millions of words have celebrated my little corner of the world on the Stafford/Reno County line in south central Kansas. This Friday, my photography will be featured at the Nora's Gathering at the Nora Larabee Memorial Library in Stafford.

The library will be open from 6 to 8 PM for viewing the photos, listening to piano music by Anita Meschberger and eating goodies from the Wheatland Cafe. Kids can make a Father's Day card. If you're local, ride your bike to the library for a chance to enter a prize drawing. (I will not be riding a bike 15 miles to town.)

The photo display will stay in place at the library all day on Monday, June 12, when Stafford hosts Bike Across Kansas. That day, come and enjoy the air-conditioning, view the photos and eat homemade pies and Johnny-Pop ice cream.

None of the photos I'm featuring in this particular blog post are in the library show. But a whole lot more are. (I had more than enough without adding these!) But they represent the philosophy I've taken as I've photographed our life here in south Central Kansas. Here's my artist statement for the show:

Seasons - Photos by Kim Fritzemeier

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.

Ecclesiastes 3:1

 

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 at sunrise 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 a blog called Kim's County Line in 2010. My tagline for the blog 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 farming along 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

As I worked on matting photos and preparing for the show, I've sometimes listened to Sirius radio's The Message.

One of the songs that has captured my attention lately is "How Can You Not See?" sung by Leanna Crawford.

After I heard it a few times, I looked up all the lyrics. It says, in part:

I see the sun rise in the morning
And a million stars at night
I hear the birds: They can't stop singing hallelujah
I see His goodness when I fall down
And His grace that picks me up
Every day, I can't stop singing hallelujah.

How can you not see God
In every little thing, in every little moment?
How can you not feel loved?
How can you not? How can you not?
'Cause He's in the middle of
Every little thing and every little moment
How can you not see God?
How can you not? How can you not?

I see the sunset and I wonder
If He paints it just for me
Nobody else could make a world so beautiful
How could I question His love when it's everywhere I go
Wherever I look, I find another miracle ...

There are miracles all around us. They may not come with tongues of fire or a holy wind like we just heard about at Pentecost. Instead, they arrive in the miracle of everyday things like irises and bird nests. It's just a matter of opening our eyes to see.

Give the song a listen, if you'd like. 

I'd love to have you come and view my photos at the Nora Larabee Memorial Library. The stained glass window featuring the library's namesake is at its most beautiful in the evening as the setting sun enhances the colors.

The library board and committees, along with library staff Gerry Ann Hildebrand, Denise Dickson and Sandy Gere, are working hard to make the library one of THE places to be in Stafford! Check it out. (Pun intended!) Click HERE for a link to a blog post with lots more photos and information about our amazing library!

Daniel Boone Was A Man. So Were Donald Ross and Larry Bird

 

I'm just a little surprised we didn't come home with a coonskin cap. 

"Do you think the girls would like one?" Randy said, as he stood in the gift shop at Fort Boonesborough. I may have rolled my eyes. OK, you know I did.

Randy was the one who loved the television show, Daniel Boone. Fess Parker starred as Daniel Boone in the TV series that aired from September 1965 to May 1970 for 165 episodes. The show was broadcast in "living color." I haven't tested the theory, but I'm guessing the girls haven't heard a lot about Daniel Boone in school.

However, Randy's love of the show likely fueled our visit to Fort Boonesborough.  And even I remember some of the television series' song:

Daniel Boone was a man,
Yes, a big man!
With an eye like an eagle
And as tall as a mountain was he!

Boonesborough, Capital of the Colony of Transylvania, was settled in April 1775 by Daniel Boone as the first fortified settlement in Kentucky.  Daniel Boone is the preeminent symbol for America's westward movement across the frontier. Hundreds of thousands of settlers of European descent poured into America's heartland along Boone's Trace, passing through the Cumberland Gap. Boone and 30 axmen, along with two women camp keepers, set about clearing a path for others to follow into and through the knobby hills of eastern Kentucky to the edge of the Bluegrass region. Although attacked by the Shawnee along the way, Boone and the survivors arrived at the Kentucky River and began to build Fort Boonesborough. 

The current fort was reconstructed as a working fort with cabins, blockhouses and furnishings. Resident artisans perform craft demonstrations and give modern-day visitors a sense of what life was like for pioneers in Kentucky. It's now a state park located near Richmond, Ky.

That included a blacksmith. (What little boy doesn't think playing with fire might be fun?)

There was also a woodworker, shaping wood the old-fashioned way.

A carver made horns into works of art.

But there were also re-enactors celebrating "women's work."

The Daniel Boone stop fed Randy's childhood obsession. A stop in French Lick, Indiana, was more attuned to his current interest - golf. 

The Donald Ross Course at French Lick was built in 1917 by architect Donald Ross. 

 

Among the trademark Ross features are 80 bunkers, 35 of which are original to the course. 

 

The par-70 course has been rated the No. 2 public course in Indiana by GolfWeek every year since 2011.

It was originally called The Hill Course. After a $5 million restoration in 2005, it was renamed The Donald Ross Course at French Lick.

I didn't even get my book out all that much while Randy played.

Donald Ross wasn't the only famous name in French Lick. It's the hometown of NBA star Larry Bird. While there, we ate at 33 Brick Street, which had an extensive collection of Bird's memorabilia. There are also signed jerseys from stars like Emmitt Smith, Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretsky, Lou Brock, Magic Johnson, Joe Montana and Walt Frasier.

If you've stuck with me through all the posts from our trip, you should win a gold star. As it is, I'll just extend my thanks for reading. We will now return to regular programming.
 

Two by Two: The Ark Encounter

 

I couldn't help but think of the children's Bible song about Noah's Ark as we approached the Ark Encounter. 

It's kind of a silly song, but catchy nonsense songs appeal to kids. And they get stuck on repeat in adults' brains if given a chance, too. It says, in part:

The Lord said to Noah
there's gonna be a floody floody
Lord said to Noah
there's gonna be a floody floody
Get my children (clap)
out of the muddy muddy
Children of the Lord.

The animals, they came on
they came on by twosies twosies
Animals, they came on
they came on by twosies twosies
Elephants and (clap)
kangaroozies roozies
Children of the Lord.

Chorus:
So rise and shine
and give God the glory glory
Rise and shine
and give God the glory glory
Rise and shine and (clap)
give God the glory glory
Children of the Lord.

The Ark Encounter is located in Grant County, Kentucky, near Williamstown, halfway between Cincinnati and Lexington off I-75.

It wasn't originally on our travel itinerary. But two Master Farmer couples suggested it after they heard that our next trip was to the Bluegrass State. So we added it.

It is BIG. The full-size Noah’s Ark is built according to the dimensions given in the Bible. It is 510 feet long, 85 feet wide, and 51 feet high.

Taking a photo from the end helps give perspective in just how big it is. Can you see the itty-bitty human near the fence in the photo below? That gives some indication as to the mammoth size.

The Ark Encounter used a "royal cubit" since major construction projects in the ancient world were often based on them. The Ark's volume is approximately 1.88 million cubic feet, large enough to contain nearly 450 semi-truck trailers. It includes 3.3 million board feet of lumber and is the largest timber-frame structure in the world. Several different woods were used, including Engelmann spruce, Douglas fir, radiata pine and bamboo.

The Ark's door also gives some perspective as to its size. There are three "decks" of exhibits.

This shows some of the central structure.

The Ark Encounter creators admit that the Bible doesn't provide a lot of details about how the ark was constructed or how the inside of the Ark would have been configured to house and care for animals. 

They say:

Our Ark is based on the Biblical data and shipbuilding research, but we used artistic license in many areas, including the design of the ship's interior and exterior structure, as well as the mechanisms for animal feeding and waste removal.

We didn't tour the attraction's zoo or some of its other features. (We were tired of walking and we were going on down the road to our next destination.) It is definitely not inexpensive. You pay $15 for parking and even with a senior citizen discount, admission was pricey. Still, we were glad we'd added it to our travel itinerary. 

Bravo to you if you've stayed with me through all these blog posts. I'll wrap up our trip in the next blog post.