This morning I went over to nearby French Regional Park for my morning walk. I took my camera along with my 100 – 400 mm lens and 1.4 extender attached. It was a workout simply carrying the heavy camera and lens. But it was worth it.
I was delighted to see the prairie meadows there in bloom and lots of gold finches snacking on the seeds of spent flowers.
Gold Finches and Flowers
When I first arrived the gold finches allowed me to get close enough to photograph them on the various dried up flowers they were feeding on. But soon they became shy and moved away whenever I approached.
I had hoped to use my long lens to photograph water lilies in the marshes along the path to Medicine Lake but discovered that with the unusual summer heat all of the water lily flowers were long gone. Still, when I saw all of the gold finches feeding on the prairie flower seeds, I was happy that I had brought my long lens.
The air was still pleasant and cool at 8:00 AM when I began my walk but by the time I had finished walking, it had warmed up significantly and I was glad to head back home.
Lots of people were taking advantage of the cool morning air to walk, run, and bike on the park trails. I am guessing that the beach and the lovely playground at the park will be very busy today.
The Beauty of the Morning
The beauty of the morning reminded me of Mary Oliver’s poem, The Summer Day. So I’ll share it with you here today.
The Summer DayWho made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean–
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down–
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?— Mary Oliver
This was the first photograph I made at the park today. I loved seeing the tree against the sky
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