A Fawn in Cades Cove

There is just not much that is more innocent than a

new born fawn. I caught this one on the side of the

road in Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains.

They are very curious critters and are always alert

with eyes, ears and nose. When not alarmed, their

curiosity of things around them is really amazing 

to watch.

"Curiosity is lying in wait for every secret."

Ralph Waldo Emerson(1803-1882): American Essayist, Lecturer,  Poet

Ole Man in the Mountains

Every once in a while in nature, you happen upon something that just brings a smile to your face. I think God has a great sense of humor or why else would he have given us one and we are supposed to be made in His image. Well on a recent mountain hike in the smokies with my brother Chris and sister-n-law Donna, we were strolling along enjoying the beautiful scenery and Donna points out the "Ole Man in the Mountains" tree slightly off the trail. Now, if you have visited any of the craftsmens and tourist shops in the mountains, you have undoubtedly seen the fine carvings and whittlins of the "Ole Man in the Mountains". Well I belive this is the real thing! Can't you just hear him blowing a cool wind through the trees? Or just maybe, He has something He wants to tell those who would stop by for just a moment!

"The oaks and the pines, and their bretheren of the woods, have seen so many suns rise and set, so many seasons come and go, and so many generations pass into silence, that we may well wonder what "the story of the trees" would be to us if they had tounges to tell it, or we ears fine enough to understand."

     Author Unknown

A Walk in the Woods

"My father considered a walk among the mountains the equivalent of churchgoing."

   Aldous Huxley (1894-1863): English writer and novelist

On this quite trail in the Smoky Mountain National Park, I dropped behind my brother and sister-in-law and snapped this shot of a quiet "Walk in the Woods." One cannot help but feel a little small when walking a quiet mountain trail through a forest of giants.

Just Singing a Song!

Caught this shot of a male Red Winged Blackbird perched on the flower stalk of a American Nelumbo plant. He was singing the prettest tune and flexing his wings and tail feathers in what appeared to be trying to attract a member of the female persuasion. Funny how the guys always flex their muscles(or feathers) when the ladies are around. Isn't love just grand. Ha Ha! 

"You don't love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear."
      Oscar Wilde (1854-1900): Irish Playwright, Poet, Author

The Honeymooners!

Does anybody out there remember a show on T.V. called the Honeymooners staring Jackie Gleason as Ralph Kramden with his wife Alice back in the 50's or 60's? Well when I shot the following series of pictures it reminded me of that show I watched as a kid. Ralph and Alice were always at it with each other and Ralph ruled the house(so he thought). He was always coming up with something off the wall or his big mouth would always get him in trouble. When ever Alice would give him a hard time, he always threatened to "give her one right in the ole kisser."  As I watched the two Mocking Birds in the bird bath, I couldn't help but think of what would Ralph say to Alice if he came home from work and found her in the pool.  I think it would go something like this:

Alice-      Oh it's a nice day for a swim!

Alice-    Oh the water is just lovely!

Alice-     La De Da! La De Da! This is fun!

Alice-    Oh! Nothing like a little afternoon dip in the pool!

Ralph-   Hi honey, I'm home!

Ralph-  Alice, what are you doing swimming in the pool?

 Ralph-  Have you lost you marbles, Alice, where is supper?

Ralph-    I mean it Alice, where is supper? I've worked hard today and I'm hungry!

 Ralph-   Are you just gonna ingore me, Alice? Come on lets eat!

Ralph-   Alice, one of these days, I'm gonna, pow! right in the kisser, and it's off to the moon Alice!!!!!

 Ralph-   Now come on and lets go!!!! I'm straving!

 Ralph-    Well I got that straight, show her whose boss around here. Who ever heard of swimming this time of the day and no supper ready when I get home from a hard days work!!!!! I believe I'll soak my feet a minute or two!

Ralph-   Hey this ain't half bad, the water actually feels pretty good!

Ralph-   You know, ole Alice might have been on to something here.

 Ralph-   I believe I'll try this swimming thing out for myself!

 Ralph-   Awe, this feels good!

 Ralph-   Awe, this feels real gooooood!

Oh man, I can't believe I haven't been doing this before!

Ralph-   Boy, I better not let Alice catch me doing this after I ran her to the kitchen!

Ralph-   Awe yes the coast is clear! Man I just about broke my neck on that one!

 Ralph-   I believe I'll try snorkeling. This head under water ain't too hard!

 Alice-     Ralphhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Is that you in the pool???? One of these days, Ralph, POW! I'm gonna give you one right in the ole kisser and it's off to the moon for you Ralph!!!!!!!!

Ha Ha Ha! LOL!  I took 74 shots of these two over a matter of several minutes and I just had to show you these 21 shots so you could get a good idea of the antics these two played out. These shots are as they were taken, I just left out a bunch all through the sequence. It has been really hot here lately with the temps in the mid to upper 90's and even the birds have enjoyed an afternoon frolic in the bird bath. Isn't nature just dandy and all of God's creation a blessing to behold.

"Don't marry the person you think you can live with; marry only the individual you think you can't live without."

James Dobson(1936-       ): American Christian author and founder of Focus on the Family

Tenderness!

After a swim in the lake, this brood of ducks hit the bank and immediately decided it was siesta time. The mother mallard duck stood over her brood until they were all sound asleep and then she decided to lay down also. But when she sat right down on one of her babies, she immediately tried to nudge the little one out from under her body. It didn't seem to mind as it continued to sleep through the whole ordeal.

                                                     Nikon D90 75mm at 1/500s    f5.3   ISO 400      (Click for a larger view)                                   

"A mother's arms are made of tenderness and children sleep soundly in them."

Victor Hugo(1802-1885):  A French Poet, Playwright, Novelist, Essayist, Statesman      

Beauty Created!

No matter what your passions may be, you can't look at this baby mallard duckling and not see a thing of beauty. Don't you just want to pick up this little fuzz ball and just cuddle it for a while?

                                        Nikon D90   300mm at 1/500s   f5.6      ISO 1400     (Click for a larger view) 

"Love of beauty is taste. The creation of beauty is art."

         Ralph Waldo Emerson(1803-1882): American lecturer, essayist and poet.

Bachelor Party!

Earlier this spring, I caught this group of all male wild turkeys or gobblers in a field after a rain preaning and showing off their stuff. They better beware come Thanksgiving and Christmas!!!!

"A Turkey never voted for an early Christmas."

         An Irish Proverb

Trust!

This pair of Canada Geese have been nesting around my office and they brought out their newest edition to the bird family this past Tuesday. Little geese or goslings as they are known are just the cutest things in the world when they are first born. But they soon grow to awkward and somewhat ugly looking teenagers before they develop their adult plumage. Mom and dad brought these four( one is out of the picture) out for a foraging expedition right by my office window. When I moved to grab the camera and their picture, the parents quickly led them back to the lake for safety. The goslings rely and trust their parents fully until they are grown and able to take care of themselves.

"Relationships of trust depend on our willingness to look not only to our own interests, but also the interest of others."
                         Peter Farquharson

Getting Attention!

We all need a certain amount of attention, some of us more than others. But sometimes it doesn't pay to draw attention to ones self unless you can handle the consequences! When this Cougar looked directly at me, I wasn't sure I wanted the attention! For some reason, I suddenly felt like dinner. Ha Ha!

I took this shot at the wildlife habitat at Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina.

"To get the attention of a large animal, be it an elephant or a bureaucracy, it helps to know what part of it feels pain. Be very sure, though, that you want its full attention."

Kelvin Throop-Fictional charactor and pseudonym for R.A.J. Phillips(1922-2003): Canadian Author

A Cup of Blessing!

 Well I had a little fog on my lens when I snapped this shot but I thought it was still worthy of sharing just because it looked so lovely.

But when I looked away and turned back to the flower a few seconds later, look who paid a visit! A Sulphur Butterfly decided to adorn an already beautiful flower and make it even more worthy of sharing. How awesome to witness first hand a relationship in God's natural world as it was meant to be. The butterfly seeks the flower for its nectar; we seek it for its beauty. I think God must smile when two of His own come together at the same time and recognize our seperate need for His wonderful creation!

"Never lose and opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful; for beauty is God's handwriting-a wayside sacrament. Welcome it in every fair face, in every fair sky, in every fair flower, and thank God for it as a cup of blessing."
     Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882): American Philosopher, Essayist and Poet

Dawning of a New Day

"For what human ill does not dawn seem to be an alleviation?"

    Thornton Wilder (1897-1975):  American Playwright and Novelist

Gray Squirrel

I stopped by a local park today to eat a quick lunch and this little gal came by acting a bit curious, so I threw a few sunflower seeds on the ground and she wasted no time joining me for lunch. This is a gray squirrel but her tail is more red and white than what is the norm for gray squirrels. That being said, it reminded of a squirrel I watched several years ago while sitting in a deer stand about 20 feet up a tree. That squirrel was also very unique and I wrote the following poem while watching him.

The Fox Squirrel

I saw a fox squirrel
So different and unique
It was not head nor body 
Nor was it his feet.

Of people who are different
We label them a thing
But of this fox squirrel
I believe him a king.

Was it age that changed
Him ever so much?
No I believe it was God
Who granted this touch.

No he was not normal
In our sense of the word
But to me he was beautiful
And just then I heard

The scuffling of feet
In leaves down below
He was looking for food
And how did he know

There was acorn under leaves
Fell from a tree
And as he ate it swiftly
He looked happy to me.

He was neither large nor small
And not very strong
But because he was different
Was surely not wrong.

To his enemies he stood out
Like a beacon light,
But to his kind
He was surely a knight.

To ever be cautious
He must not fail
This beautiful fox squirrel
With the solid white tail.
        Randy J. Schultz

Miracle of a Flower!

What a difference a few months makes. Picture above is of the same flower that I took a picture of late last summer. What was so beautiful in full bloom now stands as a withered and dead stalk caught in the grips of ole man winter. Not even a small resemblence to the beauty it once possessed. But not to worry. For as sure as God made the spring, this beautiful lotus will sprout from the roots and bloom again, willing to bless those who may take a minute and look its way.

 "If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change."

       Buddha-Spritual Teacher from ancient India-Founder of Buddhism



Winter's Embrace

"And finally Winter, with its bitin', whinin' wind, and all the land will be mantled with snow."

         Roy Bean (1825-1903): Saloon-Keeper, Justice of the Peace

More Swallowtails!

Black Swallowtail  (Papilio polyxenes)

"Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it."
                   Confucius ( 551BC - 479BC): Chinese thinker and social philosopher.

Setting Evening Sun

Snapped this shot near Red Bay, AL just before sun set. I was using a point and shoot with no lense or filter, just natural light and composition. Is God not the most awesome artist you have ever seen? One day several years ago, I was in a favorite spot and trying to do some writing but my mind would not focus and I was having trouble generating anything worthwhile to put to paper. Frustrated, I looked down at my paper and noticed it had a golden glow as the setting sun cast it evening rays on me. In a matter of minutes I had wrote the  poem below. Thank you Father, you always show us a way when we seem to have trouble finding our own.

Writers Block
As I take pen in hand
The words won't seem to flow
But as I stare at this paper
It has a warm and gentle glow

For what is the reason
There can only be but one
There's nothing quite as splendid
As the setting evening sun

I have sat all day long
And nothing has gone well
I scratched and I scribbled
And there is nothing I can tell

And as I sit here and struggle
To find the words to write
I am constantly reminded
By this precious golden light

My mind may draw a blank
And I'm the weary one
But there's nothing quite a splendid
As the setting evening sun.

               Randy J. Schultz:  November 22, 2003