The Serenity of the Nature

John James Audubon

John James Audobon was born in what is now Haiti in 1785 on his father' s sugar plantation.  He was raised in France and the family immegrated in 1805.  From his earliest days he an affinity for birds.  His major worof color plates was titled The Birds of America .  

 John James Audobon State Park is located in Henderson, Kentucky.  It's just south of the Ohio River.  It is inspired by John James Audobon, who resided there from 1810-1819.  It has a wonderful museum with some of Audobon's wonderful works. 

 It is said that this state park will be in the path of totality of the 2024 total solar eclipse.  It is a quiet place of reflection.  A place of beauty and serentiy.  I'm grateful that I live so close to the park.  

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please join me for image-in-ing  and Mosaic Monday  It's great fun! 

 

Walk After Dark

Derry, Northern Ireland

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A walk after dark

Offers quiet and repose

Oh, tranquility

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We were in Derry overnight and it was grand.  It was just a short walk to the City Walls from our hotel.  The wall were built in the 17th century around the city center as fortification.  It was quiet and serene.  I suspect it was not always like that, but it was a wonderful time for us.  

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please visit recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!!

 

Saint Patrick's Church, Armagh

Saint Patrick's Cathedral

Armagh, Northern Ireland

Saint Patrick's Cathedral in Armagh was build in various phases between 1840 and 1904 to server as the Roman Catholic Cathedral.  The original Medieval Cathedral of Saint Patrick had been transferred to the Protestan Church of Ireland at the time of the Irish Reformation.  It was built in various stages between 1840 and 1904 to serve as the Catholic Cathedral of theArchdiocese of Armagh. 

This was the first stop of a wonderful tour of the Emerald Isle.  For me it was the beginning of a pilgrimage that I had dreamed of ever since I was a child.  The McGlone family would celebrate Saint Patrick's Day and I would hope to celebrate it there one day.  It was such a treasure I would hold in my heart for ever to her my great grandfather tell me stories in his beautiful Irish brogue.  

Then John Wayne and Maureen O'Sullvan appeared in "The Quiet Man." I was sure that one day I could go and walk those beautiful fields.  I cannot tell you how grand it was to set foot in that cathedral and know I had finally come to the "promised land."

~~~^j^~~~

Thankds be to God!!

Cathy 

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Please join me for image-in-ing  and Mosaic Monday  It's great fun! 

 

Feather In The Grass

 Feather in the grass

Lost on the wing in the air

Floating to the ground

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Spring and Fall are times that allow us to find  so many treasures.  Summer is to hot and Winter is too cold.  Have you guessed which seasons are my favorite?  Have a wonderful weekend!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please visit recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!!

Spring at The Woods

Church of the Immaculate Conception

    

Saint Mother Theodore Guerin arrived here in October 1840.  She and three other sister traveled her from France at the request of Bishop Brute, the bishop of Vincenned, IN.  That was the beginning of a missionary journey that continues today.  

It's a wonderful place to reflect on the beauty of creation in so many ways.  There is  a walk on The Avenue, walking on the campus of Staint Mary-of-the-Woods College campus, and then there are the places along the way for prayer.  

 I graduated form the college in 1994 and I take a great deal of pleasure returning home to The Woods.  If for any reason you will be traveling to Indiana add Saint Mary-of-the-Woods to your itinerary.  

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please join me for image-in-ing  and Mosaic Monday  It's great fun! 

 

Fog On the Ohio

 As the sun rises

The fog on the Ohio

Acts as its curtain

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On those glorious walks along the Ohio River, the morning is by far the most beautiful.  She offers so many surprises.  I just have to be open to them. 

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please visit recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!!

Lady Peony

The beauty of Spring continues with the arrival of Lady Peony.

One of my fondest memories growing up in Colorado was the arrival of the peonies my mother nurtured every Spring.  She had the most beautiful range of colors in white, pink and a gorgeous burgundy.  Well, I can say I have not the variety of my childhood, but just having them bloom in my garden each Spring is just invigorating.  

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!!

Cathy

Please join me for image-in-ing  and Mosaic Monday  It's great fun!

 

Spring With the Dogwood

A dogwood's blossom

Wonderful and beautiful

She announces Spring

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Having been raised in Colorado, the dogwood was a rare sight.  I'd really not experienced her beauty until we moved to Indiana.  And here, when spring arrives, the whole of the state blossoms.  She is in my neighbor's yard, along the highway, and on every hillside.  Spring becomes a joyful season for me when I see her blossoms!  

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please visit recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!!

Beauty In Pink

We've lived here for nine years now and every spring this lovely tree blooms.  It's kind of funny.  Before it blooms it looks half dead and I wonder (every Spring) if, indeed, it is dead.  And then near the end of April she blooms.  The thing is, I have no idea what the name of the this tree/bush is and would love to know that.  Please help me.  

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I do love this beauty.  I just wish she had a name.

 ~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please join me for image-in-ing  and Mosaic Monday  It's great fun!

Glorious Pansies

Glorious pansies

Happiness, beauty of spring

Hardy in the sun

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When you are blessed with a weekend on retreat, time for reflection is offered in many ways.  For me the pansy is a gorgeous and hardy plant.  It survives in cold and heat and yet it maintains its beauty!  For that I am truly grateful.  Lasting through the summer and fall the pansy is a lesson in perserverence.

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God!

Cathy

Please visit recuerda mi corazon for Haiku My Heart. There is always more beautiful words  there to enchant and encourage!!!