What would you do if you came across speckled turquoise bird eggs in a nest on the ground? And what if you could easily fit into this nest because it was ginormous? Perhaps, like me, you would feel a sense of childhood awe.
That feeling is what I like to capture every day. The wonder of seeing of a mullein plant twisting itself into a circle.
Hairy purple and green seed heads that look as if they are out of a sci-fi novel.
Even a common foxglove looks particularly striking when one bends down to toddler level to view it.
Almost anything can amaze us when we let down our adult guard and embrace the world around us with freshness and glee.
All photos © Sondra Sula.
Note: Nest is situated in the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens.
Today is Good Friday, a day I normally spend hours upon hours in various churches. I thought about my recent visit to the Mendocino Presbyterian Church, which hosts many cultural events in its adjacent building, Preston Hall. I was there to hear a trio of musicians and walked outside during intermission.
The small area around the church was festooned with flowers—large and small. Purple buds flung themselves wildly about on wiry stalks looking alien-esque against a whitewashed wall.
Tiny clumps of flowers beckoned me closer to see their detailed petals and smell their subtle fragrance.
I heard the shuffle of feet, the rustle of clothing rubbing against limbs. Intermission was almost over. I looked down to see a fiery orange blossom dying on the pavement. Although its life was short, its striking death brought undue pleasure.
Hurrying back, I almost tripped over a geranium whose hairy stem had reached beyond its garden boundary to caress my ankle. I stopped and noticed how the emerald leaves had ruffled red edges. The entire plant seemed to glow from within.
Before I reentered the hall, a pot of pink and yellow tulips shouted: Easter! I suddenly realized that Good Friday was just the intermission.
Sondra Sula's Blog: The Nature of Spirituality 