Sunny Pathway

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Our Month of August

Welcome. Because I haven't posted during all of August, I thought I'd just share a few pictures from our month.

Ken and I went on several trips and, for the most part, took a vacation. We spent time at The Gathering, a spiritual event put on by a group we participated in when we lived at the lake. We attended a Holy Spirit Conference in the greater Twin Cities area. We gathered with Ken’s family for a reunion that lasted several days in Spokane. And on the way home we vacationed in Glacier National Park.

I’ll probably write about aspects of some of these events eventually. And perhaps even of a few sidetrips I didn't mention yet. But today, I want to take it easy and tell you I love road trips. Although I often fall asleep while Ken keeps a steady course—and this has been my pattern for years—I thrill to road trips. They may be inefficient use of energy when the car carries only two people, but what a joy to travel across God’s creation.

When we take major trips, we usually travel west—which means we cross North Dakota—and maybe that’s part of the joy. We have no mountains. Most of our lakes (perhaps all) are artificial. Our trees pale when compared to southern states. But oh, we have vistas. Truly, on a clear day you could see forever. And a glorious sky. Eastern Montana is more of the same.

Unlike Ken and most people, I’m less fond of the mountains—feel hemmed in. And I miss sunsets (usually not up early enough for sunrises). But I marvel at the infinite variety of God’s creation. Here are a few pictures taken during our August. To represent the entire month, I'll start in the Twin Cities area.




Water lilies in Como Park in St. Paul, Minnesota. I thought them breathtaking.








Ken waiting in background while I take pictures in the observatory of Como Park. My focus was the flowers, but I couldn't resist including the entire picture here.






Wild sunflowers near a scenic view overlooking Teddy Rosevelt National Monument. I think this is a fantastic picture, but must admit it's an accident. I simply wanted to isolate individual flowers and could only do so by moving the camera down. That means we can enjoy the glorious sky.




A sampler from Lois's delicate woodland flowers. Across the way, in an area with a full sun exposure, Byron grew the best corn, tomatoes, and zucchini we've ever tasted. I didn't think to take a picture of that. What a shame.




Family members in the pool. The most precious view of all.







Looking through the cedar forest. I'm especially proud of this picture becuase I've captured the lighting. Perhaps I am learning something about photography.








Me in front of an unusual giant cedar.



Ken overlooking the rapids of Avalanche Creek in Glacier Park.




A view of McDonald Valley on the way to Logan Pass in Glacier Park.


On the way home, we stopped at a city park in Havre, Montana. Green grass had just been mowed and a rose garden graced one corner.

Yes, the old cliché, God is good rings true when we spend time wandering around in His creation—whether on a walk in the local park or whether driving across the miles. Man has corrupted much, but God’s grace shines through. He—our living God—is good, indeed.

2 comments:

Nancy said...

As a transplanted Kansan, gotta say, love the sunflowers. And I agree about the sky, its good to be able to see alot of sky.

Solveig said...

Yes. God speaks through all of His creation, but it sometimes it seems His sky is especially expressive.