Himalayan Nightscape, courtesy of NASA

To see this photo much bigger (and truly experience the WOW factor), go here.

(This is from a NASA site - astronomy photo of the day.... PLENTY of "wow" photos here, that all speak to God's creative masterpiece that we humans are lucky enough to live in the middle of...)

The above is the photo from 12-5-09.

Fall Fotos From my 'Hood

A lovely red maple starts our tour of the 'hood..... Then we're on to a Bradford pear (it's half green and half red right now - really pretty - the picture doesn't do it justice), and the bottom one is a GORGEOUS yellow maple that looks like it's on fire when the sun hits it "just so" in the afternoon.

LOVE Autumn....

Milky Way Over Ontario (a/k/a More Amazing Natural Beauty)

This is a real picture... it's not retouched. It's from a NASA website that has absolutely amazing photos.

My second choice of a photo from this site to post for today was of an eclipse over the Great Wall of China. Another really cool photo. (Click on the link above - go to Archives, and it was on 8/31/08...)

I'm in daily awe of God's amazing creation.

Just think: He created all THIS and yet, the Word tells us that each hair upon our head is numbered.... how's THAT for mind-boggling?

So cool.....

Breathtaking Visuals (Rocky Mountains, B.C.)

Stumbled upon this AMAZING photo-blog (once again, I'm astounded by the people I'm "meeting" in the blogosphere!!) and I was blown away by these photos!

Just looking at these I feel so serene and peaceful.

What a magnificent creation God blessed us with..... I'm constantly in awe when I see photos of places such as this!

(Thank you, Michele!) :-)

Golden Georgia Sky

We've been getting some amazing evening storms here the past several days.

I actually LOVE watching a good thunderstorm roll in. Our house is up on a bit of a hill and we also have a front porch with rocking chairs, so I'll sit on the porch (as long as I feel safe) and watch the clouds roll and boil, and watch the lightning strike.

Hubster loves it too and (believe it or not) when we were dating, we used to go for WALKS during thunderstorms. (Yes, we were idiots in our early 20's and we now realize this....)

Anyway, last night's storm brought lots of wind, lots of thunder and lightning, and some much needed rain. Then, after it blew through, the sky turned a beautiful shade of golden orange. The photo doesn't really capture how beautiful it was, but this is the best I could do.

This was taken from my front porch, facing West.

My "Peace Place"

Gustav over at 9Worlds (who always has THE most thought-provoking posts) asked, not long ago, what places are special to us, as far as giving us peace/tranquility.

I have a few that are special to me, but one of my very favorite places is any deserted beach at sunrise. I prefer sunrise to sunset because 1) you usually have the beach to yourself (or close to it) and 2) the day ahead stretches out before you like a plain white canvas, and it's up to YOU what you're going to do with it. I love that.

The above photo was taken by me, in April 2006, on the Georgia coast, just as the sun was coming up over the horizon. A flock of birds was passing overhead and it was a completely perfect, grace-infused, peace-filled morning.

Some people only take communion in church.... that morning I had my communion on the beach. And it rocked.

A Fine Feathered Visitor at Nuestra Casa

This beautiful little creature has come to visit my backyard fairly regularly over the past week or so. Isn't he (she?) gorgeous? Look at those colors! Absolute magnificence.

(Still amazing to me how people believe that THIS creature, that a human, that a leopard, that a giraffe, that a dolphin, and that ALL living creatures just happened to evolve from a Big Bang... and that no Creative Designer was involved).

Huh????

Here's a great quote to muse:

"The probability of life originating from an accident is comparable to the probability of an unabridged dictionary resulting from an explosion in a printing shop."

-Professor Edwin Conklin, Princeton University

Snow Dusted Peaks, Yosemite National Park

WOW. No need to really write much about THIS, is there?

I think WOW sums it up quite nicely.

(And to think God gave us this planet's amazing natural wonders for our enjoyment.....)

As nature photographer John MacMurray says.... 'nature's outrageously unnecessary beauty points directly to a benevolent Creator...'

WOW.

Early Morning Peace

Found this photo on my hard drive... it's a couple of years old now (pre-drought....).

I took this shot at sunrise, up on Lake Hartwell, which is on the GA/SC border. It was a really beautiful, really still morning; the sun was just coming up and there was no one out yet.... just me and some early morning ducks and geese.

I love early mornings. It's the best "God time" for me. The day is fresh, full of promise.... stretched out in front of me like a plain white canvas. Brand new and totally up to ME what I'm going to do with it.

And it's nice to start it with the Creator of all things....

A Poetic Thought from Ms. Browning

Earth's crammed with heaven,

And every common bush afire with God,

But only he who sees takes off his shoes;

The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries.

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning

le printemps est retournee

I'm sure I butchered that phrase. I was trying to say, en francais, that Springtime has returned, at last.

Spring in Atlanta is normally not so fickle as it has been this year. Lately it has been extremely chilly, gray, and rainy (not that I'm complaining about the rain, mind you.... the North Georgia area is still in the throes of the worst drought in All Recorded History, so rain is a most welcome guest...)

However, today I was literally awakened by birds chirping in the trees right outside my bedroom window. I looked outside and was greeted by that lovely Spring-Blue sky (soft and warm), and the day was completely perfect. The cherry trees are still blooming (the blossoms have turned from white to a lovely shell pink), and the dogwoods are starting to come out and so are the azaleas.

It's almost like God has reached down, taken my still partially frozen soul from my body, warmed it gently between his palms and breathed softly on it, and then put it back into my body. I just feel so happy and peaceful. Happy, peaceful, and extremely thankful to have such a magnificent creation to enjoy.

As John MacMurray (one of my favorite nature photographers) put it, nature's beauty is wildly unnecessary (meaning, of course, that nature's beauty serves absolutely NO functional purpose and is designed only for the pleasure of the one who views and inhabits it.)

Angel Oak

This tree, just outside Charleston, SC, is estimated to be about 1,400 years old. I used to visit it fairly regularly when I lived in Charleston and have always been in awe of its beauty, even more so than its size.

Think about its age for a second. 1,400 years. Think of all the people (and all the cultures of peoples) who have passed by it.... and of all the children who have played on its branches..... and of all the rulers who have been in power while this tree has been alive.

Pretty amazing, huh?

Too bad trees can't talk. We might be able to learn a lot from them.

Tulips

This is the view of my backyard, off my porch.

Believe me?

Naaa.... I'm lying.

It's awfully pretty though, isn't it?

I have dreams of one day gazing out onto my backyard and having it look something like this.

Perhaps if I put on some wooden clogs and click the heels together and really believe.....?

Warm Weather & Waterfalls

I'm REALLY tired of Winter. It has been unusually cold for the South - in fact, it's supposed to be 17 degrees tomorrow morning when I wake up. Bummer.
Therefore, since warm weather and Spring flowers are still a good 2 months away, I thought I'd post a video that would help clear out "mental icicles".... so watch the below, enjoy the sights and sounds, and relax. Spring will return; it always does. :-)

Outrageous Beauty

To me, one of the irrefutable "proofs" of a Benevolent Creator is the outrageous natural beauty that our planet is replete with. (And, come to think of it, this beauty is wholly unneccessary from a functional perspective..... yet another arrow pointing towards a Creator?).

So, to that end, I thought I would attach just a few photos.
Enjoy.

November Light

So yesterday afternoon I was with my kids, driving home. It was a gorgeous Fall day, late in the afternoon. The sun was just beginning its slow descent towards the horizon and the clouds in the sky were tinged orange and pink. The sinking sun made the Fall leaves incredibly brilliant. I glanced over to my left and suddenly had the whole palette of Fall colors right in front of me. Everything from a dazzling red maple to some unknown tree which had the most fiery orange leaves I had ever seen. And then on to a beautiful golden maple, and countless other shades in between. Even the simple tall stalks of grass were bathed in the warm afternoon light. And then, as if on cue, 5 geese flew above the treetops, towards the setting sun, their feathers soft and golden in the November sky.

It was just a moment, mind you. The whole scene unfolded in 10, maybe 15 seconds, tops. No one else on the little two lane road seemed to notice or even care. Certainly not my children, who were bickering in the backseat. But, in that moment, the beauty of the creation that is God’s gift to us, day after day, was so profound and amazing; so graceful and good; that I was left with a deep serene thankfulness in my heart and in my soul to the Creator-Artist who made it so.

Beauty and Benevolence

"The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands." -Psalms 19:1