Therefore am I still A lover of the meadows and the woods, And mountains; and of all that we behold From this green earth; of all the mighty world Of eye and ear, — both what they half-create, And what perceive; well pleased to recognize In nature and the language of the sense, The anchor of my purest thoughts, the nurse, The guide, the guardian of my heart, and soul Of all my moral being.
— from Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey, On Revisiting the Banks of the Wye during a Tour by William Wordsworth
I like writing about where I am, where I happen to be sitting, the humidity or the clouds, the scene outside the window— a pink tree in bloom, a neighbor walking his small, nervous dog. And if I am drinking a cup of tea at the time or a small glass of whiskey, I will find a line to put it on.
— from In the Room of a Thousand Miles by Billy Collins
Looking Forward to Hiking Soon In The Catalina Mountains
Affective September 21, 2020 some of the trails are now open in the Santa Catalina Mountains after closure after the Bighorn Fire. These trails remain closed at the burn scar boundary due to hazards that can cause injuries.
On Friday, September 18, 2020, District Ranger conducted a guided tour for Partner members ahead of the Scheduled Reopening of Sabino Canyon Recreational Area on September 21, 2020. Fifteen Partner members, five each from:
Friends of Sabino Canyon Sabino Canyon Volunteer Nationalists Santa Catalina Volunteer Patrol
In addition to the following video, images of the Drive-thru are in this Flickr Album.
It’s up to us to keep moving her values forward and not take this country back to the 1950s. If you know your history, then you know what I mean. So many people have benefited from this woman being on the Supreme Court, especially women. We have lost a giant of a woman!
Storm Clouds Over The Santa Catalina Mountains (09/06/14) — Image by kenne
“And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine—and before we know it our lives are gone. What does a man need—really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in— and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That’s all—in the material sense, and we know it.”
“I hold a beast, an angel, and a madman in me, and my enquiry is as to their working, and my problem is their subjugation and victory, down throw and upheaval, and my effort is their self-expression.”
Amaranthus palmeri – Carelessweed (Near the Tanque Verde Wash in Tucson) — Image by kenne
These plants are often found growing in fields, along roadsides, in drainage areas, and along desert washes. The spine-tipped flower bracts are prickly (especially when dry) and can scratch bare skin. Do not walk through a dense patch of dried Carelessweed while wearing shorts.
The Gila monster is a large, heavy- bodied lizard reaching a little over 1¼ feet in length. The head is large, with small, beady eyes; the tail is short and fat. The family name Helodermatidae means warty skin, referring to the beaded look of the dorsal scales, due to the presence of osteoderms (small bones) under the scales. The lizard is bright pink and black, usually in a reticulated pattern, but in a banded pattern in some populations.
“What if our religion was each other. If our practice was our life. If prayer, our words. What if the temple was the Earth. If forests were our church. If holy water–the rivers, lakes, and ocean. What if meditation was our relationships. If the teacher was life. If wisdom was self-knowledge. If love was the center of our being.”
Sunset Near Tanque Verde Wash (09/15/11) — Image by kenne
Such a beautiful tree — so representative of life. Yet, we often see beauty only in the foliage and blossoms nature provides in one of life’s stages. Why?
Beauty is everywhere — there is beauty in death, marking the stage so important in the cycles of life.
This tree (image of) is amazing, a sculpture in the face of the sun, containing the shapes we use to design our places in this world.
What image do you present in the face of the sun? Does it add? Does it subtract?
