Tag Archives: nature

Magical Places

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“Magical places are always beautiful and deserve to be contemplated.
Always stay on the bridge between the invisible and the visible.”
Paolo Coelho

Found on Pinterest

This is heavenly…no phones, no social media, no distractions; simply a butterfly-filled meadow alongside a sunshiny, babbling brook.

This pic reminds me of one of my favorite songs by (who else) Leon Russell, Down On Deep River. It evokes the perfect, serene mood…

“Hear the crickets singing for a mile
And the sound of the bullfrogs make you smile
So lead me beside the still waters
Let me love you down on deep river.

Won’t you sit by my side
And hold to my hand and love me all the way?

And we’ll leave all the highways far behind
And just take a little blanket with the wine.”

The Process of Abscission

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“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Lao Tzu

Leaf Loss / Bare Bones / Blue Sky

This ash tree started out forty years ago in a five-gallon pot as a housewarming gift. As soon as the leaves begin to drop–in just a day or two– the branches will become bare and I’ll have a LOT of raking to do.

“Simplicity is the final achievement.
Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.” Coco Chanel

Abscission is the reason why leaves fall. Scientists believe that a reduction in sunlight leads to the reduction of chlorophyll in the leaf due to a reduction in photosynthesis and this may trigger the abscission of leaves. The actual process occurs when the weaker cells near the petiole are pushed off by the stronger cells beneath them.

That’s a lot for my brain to process and right now all I want to do is quietly savor the stark, elegantly naked branches.

It reminds me of my little vase of twigs and another example of ma https://enchantedseashells.com/2020/10/25/ma-the-space-between-things

“Nature is pleased with simplicity.” Frederic Chopin:

As pretty as it is all dressed in green, the artistry of bare bone branches are stunning in their strength of simplicity,

I see the graceful arms of a dancer against a backdrop of the bluest sky of the year.

“I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion.
These three are your greatest treasure.” Isaac Newton

Around the Coastal Neighborhood: Ocean and Lagoon

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The waves weren’t great, more of a shore break, but there’s still a lineup of hopeful surfers. No whales, though, so that was a disappointment.

I peeked through the trees and thought I saw a swan in the artificial pond near the lagoon, but…

…it was a lovely white egret.

I’m not sure why he’s there, as the actual saltwater lagoon is steps away, but maybe he knows something I don’t.

I wish they’d return for another visit to Casa de Enchanted Seashells. That was so cool!

World Animal Day – Remembering Jane Goodall

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Save Animals, Save the Planet

This year marks the 100th anniversary of this global celebration of animals.

For a century, people have come together to show kindness, compassion, and care for the creatures we share our planet with. The mission of World Animal Day is to raise the status of animals in order to improve welfare standards around the globe.

World Animal Day started in 1925 when German writer and activist Heinrich Zimmermann organized the first event in Berlin on March 24. The date was officially moved to October 4, the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, in 1931, becoming an international celebration of animal welfare. 

This seems like a perfect day to honor the life and legacy of Jane Goodall, who died this week of natural causes. We can aspire to follow in her footsteps and speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves.

“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” Jane Goodall

Jane Goodall was an English primatologist and anthropologist. Regarded as a pioneer in primate ethology, she was best known for more than six decades of field research on the social and family life of wild chimpanzees at Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania.

“The least I can do is speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves.” Jane Goodall

Animals are our teachers. They show us how to live in harmony with the rhythms of nature, how to trust our instincts, and how to be fully present in each moment.

“The greatest danger to our future is apathy.” Jane Goodall

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

The Bluebird Promise

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As long as there are bluebirds, there will be miracles and a way to find happiness.

Quote curated from Pinterest: Credit to the writer.
Art by Ida Rentoul Outwaite

Beautiful Love

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Things are beautiful if you love them. Jean Anouilh

If I could hug my crow family, I would be so happy. The love of an animal is pure and sweet.

Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh was a French dramatist and screenwriter 1910-1987.
Curated from Rivers in the Ocean / Craft Kreatively

Midsummer Dreams: What Brings Joy?

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“Here, beneath this tree, she had lain on her back in the sun and watched the butterflies. Part of her would linger there for ever: a footstep running tip-toe to the creek, the touch of her hand on a tree, the imprint of her body in the long grass. And perhaps one day, in after years, someone would wander there and listen to the silence, as she had done, and catch the whisper of the dreams that she had dreamt there, in midsummer, under the hot sun and the white sky.”
— Daphne du Maurier, Frenchman’s Creek.

Art by Lucy Campbell

Three of my favorites in one painting: a wolf, a raven, and trees. I’d love to curl up and hibernate in a mighty oak guarded by my beloved animal family — to dream of butterflies and seashells and other simple but profound bearers of joy.

The Circle of Life and Death

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In the corner of the garden close to the back gate, I found a wing that belonged to a Monarch butterfly. Poor tattered little one, colors dull and listless; I carefully picked her up to bring inside the house to spend eternity resting in a pretty box of similar treasures.

Photo by Enchanted Seashells

When I went back outside to finish a yard clean-up project, I had a visitor — this magnificent Monarch who stayed still long enough to spread her wings for a picture, vibrant and alive:

Photo by Enchanted Seashells

It’s a blueblue sky circle of life day here in SoCal.

enchanted places

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If you look, this is where you’ll find me...

They be the Enchanted places.
That whisper our name.
And no one shall know.
These places we go.

A Little Poem by Athey Thompson.
Credit to the artist, curated via Pinterest

Life Imitates Art

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It’s been an insane couple of days here on Earth, hasn’t it? A lunar occultation, double meteor showers, giant earthquakes, tsunamis — in addition to retrograde Mercury and the Lion’s Gate portal — and we are definitely in the midst of a massive amount of cosmic energy. I’m not sure what it all means, but I’m on high alert, that’s for sure.

There were no earthquakes or tsunami damage around here, but check out this crazy photo! I was in the garden near a brick patio cleaning fallen leaves from the eucalyptus tree. It’s a really annoying job because my stupid city planted the wrong sort of street trees decades ago and not only do eucs make a giant mess, they’re also a fire hazard. I have to constantly pick up the leaves and the incredibly painful-to-bare-feet seed pods (known as gum nuts). No matter how many times neighbors and I lobby the city to get the tree removed, we are always turned down; another stupidstupid city decision.

In and around the bricks and rocks, I had positioned a few random tiles to add some color when a friendly real lizard stopped by for a visit. I’m glad my camera was close by to memorialize the meeting between art and reality.

Does art imitate life or is life imitating art?

Yes, you are beautiful!

You can see some of the offending euc leaves that fell right after I had cleaned up this area. It’s SO annoying!

Photo by Enchanted Seashells
#WordlessWednesday