A Morning's Delight

A caterpillar I saw last month

I decided to go outside to read my Bible this morning. No early riser today, but the temperature was still only 80, which is much better than the later, predicted 94.

So there I sat 'neath our porch in the shade, my feet propped up on our little green stool, a glass of ice water on the table next to me, and the Bible on my lap.

All around me the birds were singing--various songs both short and long, mourning dove and cardinal. I could almost imagine myself in a rain forest, under a deep canopy of green. (There are some trees overhanging our back yard.) I spotted the cardinal, a perched dab of scarlet in the branches, warbling away. Yesterday I had been inside in Mom's room, and a blue jay had smashed against the large window. Then he'd sat, tilting his head to and fro, looking up at me as if to say, "Who are you, and why can't I come in?"

And now, here was a blue jay's feather among the pebbles. Feathers are amazing things, but that's another topic that could fill a book.

As I sat, looking about, I noticed the leaves, which had fallen across the walkway and amid the flowers. Why do people think of dead leaves as ugly things to be discarded? They almost looked like rose petals strewn there. Oh, yes, I know dead leaves are not meant to last, but for now I smiled at their random cacophony, with their various shades of green and brown and yellow. Is it summer or autumn?

And then I saw one little leaf spinning wildly on its stem, hanging from a branch. Soon to fall, no doubt, but hanging on and having a merry-go-round ride.

Yes, I eventually read my Bible, but it was a delight to pause for a few minutes and admire the handiwork of the Author of that Book. . . . I try to see with fresh eyes the beauty of it all, whether it be our same old back yard, or a rock cliff at a National park. Jehovah made everything, and made it well.

Blue jay feather

Our walkway strewn with leaves