The Beauty of Nature
Once in a while my heart swells with gratitude for the beauty I see in nature. The other night, I was making dinner when David and I both noticed the gorgeous sunset. I quickly ran for my camera and took several shots, first from the porch, and then from the attic window.
Sunset from my front porch
© Saloma Furlong 2016
Sunset and Sugarloaf Mountain from my attic window
© Saloma Furlong 2016
Yesterday I had a friend here who was lying on the sofa in my living room, when she looked out the window and said, “What a gorgeous birch tree!” I told her how much I love that tree. She was also impressed by the bright leaves on the neighbors’ tree in the background of the birch tree’s bare branches. This morning I took photos of that, and several more from my viewpoint of the world from my house in our little New England town.
Our birch tree, then neighbors’ tree, and Mt. Tom in the background
© Saloma Furlong 2016
This morning I sipped my cup of tea on my front porch and thought about how there will be the changing of the guard in our government come January. I keep asking myself how the outcome of this particular election can turn out well, given I don’t feel we have a good choice in either major party. So I pray that God will be with our leaders, and that peace and love will be shared among the people all over this world. I remind myself that the sun will continue to rise and set, that the seasons will continue to come and go, and that we as humans can still show compassion to our fellow humans and help spread peace and goodwill. I will continue to find solace in the beauty of nature in whatever little piece of the world I inhabit and I will be glad in it.
From my front porch this morning
© Saloma Furlong 2016
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Beautiful!!
Thank you, Mary Ellen.
Tonight I am sad and frightened. If I had more faith in the power of prayer I would urge everyone to their knees.
On the other hand, I shall honor the office of President and wish him the best. I dearly hope that he has better judgment than I think he has and that he will grow in wisdom. Not to mention, self-control.
Elva, you are not alone. Your hope is for all of us. I like to think that the nasty campaign brought out the worst in both of them. If I go by Hillary’s concession speech, I would say that was true of her. She spoke with such grace and poise, and for once she wasn’t shouting. This is the Hillary many of us would have gladly voted for, but we didn’t really get to know her like this.
Also, I have never seen Trump so humble as he was in his acceptance speech. Perhaps now that he doesn’t have to convince people anymore, he will ACTUALLY reach out for the help he needs to lead this country… and he will need a lot of it. He seemed genuine when he thanked all the people (including the secret service) who’ve supported him. Let’s hope we’ll get to know a part of Donald that couldn’t emerge during this whole, long, nasty campaign.
Breathtaking photos, beautiful post, and much-needed words of encouragement regarding the election and impending changes in our political arena. Thank you, Saloma!
Cathy, we have to help one another through this. You are welcome for any encouragement you derived from this post.
Beautiful!! Thank you for sharing them with us. I love this time of year. You and David are so blessed to live in such a lovely area. I’m so jealous! Your attitude about this election is one we should all share. On Sunday our pastor said that no matter the outcome of this election God is still in control. That He is bigger then all of this. Amen to that! Like you said, the sun will continue to shine. It’s a brand new day, let us rejoice and be glad in it!!
Amen,….and Amen!
I always so enjoy your writings. I also appreciate seeing photos from your part of our country.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and your life with us!
Blessings to you ~
CJ, blessings to you also. I get this image of the whole country huddled in a corner, too afraid to come out to find out what happens next. Leaders come and leaders go… but nature is still there to enjoy if we dare come out of our corners to enjoy it.
Beautiful pictures Saloma! I agree with you about nature’s beauty. Fall is when I really like visiting New England. We get on route 88 in Binghamton NY to 149 in NY to route 22a in Vt. We do have to get on 89 for a bit and get off exit 18 for Georgia, Fairfax. I always think of you then. Is that a school across the street from you? Love the picture of the birch tree with the color in the tree behind it.
Michele, we used to live in Fairfax, Vermont. We used to live on Fletcher Road, right across the street from Spartan Industries. They were making Scrabble tiles at the time. David and his brother had their toy shop in the basement of our duplex.
Oh, that gives me such a longing to drive the very roads you mention. I know them well.
That building you see in the photo houses the town offices, but used to be the school. That is actually our driveway, so our land is adjacent to the town’s.
Always good to see you here, Michele.
Lovely, Saloma!
We obviously looked for inspiration in some of the same places.
We can only hope and work and pray.
Yes. Let’s hope many of his fighting words during the campaign were a lot of bluster. I honestly think he and Hillary were bringing out the worst in one another and keeping each other on the defensive. Let’s hope anyway.
I believe that people will hold Trump accountable. He will not get away with implementing his hairbrained policies. Even the people in his own party won’t want to cooperate with those.
Perhaps we should have listened to Bernie Sanders when he pointed out months ago, that he had the best chance of defeating Donald Trump. Let’s hope the leaders of the Democratic Party learned from this.
AND we should all give thanks that we DON’T live under an absolute monarchy. Time passes, people can grow (although they sometimes have to be dragged kicking and screaming), and hope springs eternal.
You’re right Joan, being grateful for our freedom is essential, even though it is so easy to take such things for granted until we no longer have it. The same goes with good health and a host of other aspects of our lives.
Thank you for your sharing your thoughts.