East and West Meet in Colorado

After a quick trip west to Colorado Springs today, for a friend’s birthday party, I started home, full of plans to arrive before evening and get a few remaining trees and perennials nestled into the ground.

The first Emergency Broadcast warning signal hit radio waves before I arrived at party – for the southeastern portion of the state.

Two hours later, as I headed the opposite direction, the tones rang again, this time for heavy rain, wind, hail and lightening for regions just south of me, from a storm moving in from the west/southwest.

As I drove ever eastward towards home, the beauty of Mother Nature’s canvas captivated me.

Amazingly, the camera was packed in the truck, and I made the command decision to engage in play, instead of hurrying home to work on Ye Olde Projects To-Do List.

Taking the ‘long way home’, I stopped here and there, to capture the skies and landscape.

I hope you enjoy this taste of the Plains of Colorado – for ya know, I think it is Heaven’s Place on Earth….

(Please forgive the little shares regarding my mind chatter as I moved through space and time, attempting to capture my love of where I live.  The beauty without reminded me of my  frustration within, over modern accepted norms that insist, 

This is What IS!

I can only reply

Nope, not Really – THIS – Over Here! Is What it is really about….

Eastbound and Down…

Thank goodness it is the holiday weekend – and most travelers already at their western mountain destinations.

I confess to purely enjoying the relaxation from Intense Defensive Driving practices to avoid those speed demons, who quickly become impatient with campers pulling trailers full of toys, motor homes, farm or ranching equipment, making their way, slower than wished for, by so many.

I have often taken to the shoulder (and sometimes, the ditch) to avoid a head-on while the demons race around the slower paced folks in the years since I returned here.

I’m asked why I still gripe about this – it is how things are…and my reply is always the same –

But what IF the Hurry to Get There means, One Never Lives Long Enough to Arrive!?

And just how did we come to accept this racing from Point A to B as example of fine living?

Yes, yes, you’re right – I’m becoming an old fart.

One of the many little queries of Life I have that drives others insane over me and my view of all the possible answers –

But today, I was blessed with light traffic.

I could take my meandering time, without risking Life & Limb,  to pull over and snap some pics of the amazing cloud formation of the storm moving in from the southeast…Overshadowed by the storm arriving from the west.

(The upper dark cloud layer is the first wave of the storm moving in from the west – the Towering white clouds with gray base is the storm from the southeast.)

Every Silver Lining of hope is held aloft by the dark clouds of disappointment.

Racing Against the Storm

As I moved ever eastward, I stopped to capture moments as the dark fury, lightening and rain nipped at my heels and the fluffy white & silver lining of hope morphed into the storm I was moseying over to meet –

Every single wind tower was turning – How I caught them, in still form, without a blur, is a miracle and mystery to newbie-digital-camera, me. 🙂

From ridge far east of Colorado Springs, the western storm had moved far enough east enough for me to capture the profile of Pikes Peak.  A view that was, a mere 15 miles earlier in the journey, veiled in the dark mist of moisture from the sky.

Gazing over the green landscape, and the view of the Peak, I thought of my farmer brother, who says,

It always rains – Usually two seconds before it’s too late.

Take Me Home, Country Roads

Tired of highway travel, I turned off onto the dirt roads of home, to meander my way through the landscape I grew up with and love.

A landscape that holds the new wind towers, still in controversy in our neck of the woods, along side the wind power innovations of the past.

I’ve often been surprised to view on computer screen, later, how many pictures I captured during a day of following those I serve, the innovations of the Past bumping up against the creations of Now.

Perhaps my Love of History heart rules where I choose to point the camera, without me knowing about it. It could and does, often happen – for us all.

Alas, the auto-settings camera usually focuses on one – making the other, blurry –

Just as if, digital cameras, too, can’t yet decide which time in space they want to live in, either…

Which makes me feel better about  the whole conversation…

Here, I must pause in beauty and say, I was sorely disappointed in the many bloggers and pals I follow in the arenas of PermaCulture, Environment, Politics and such conversations.

For, in wake of the Paris Accord news item and U.S.A. leader choices, weeks ago….

Ever SO many of you Chose to list Cattle Ranchers as one of your Top 10 Bad Guys contributing to problems – many of which, have not chosen to publicly niche themselves as Vegans/Vegetarians – therefore, I was rather disappointed…

(Yes, I immediately wrote my spiel, it sits in ‘draft’ status, right now…but, thought I maybe ought to let it sit until I got cooled down over the points made by the commentators…)

“Disappointed” is not entirely true…

I was, in fact…

Mad enough to spit nails.

Here’s a glimpse of what Cattle Ranching looks like, here – true, I only need drive north towards the other great metropolis on the Front Range to see examples of feedlots where cattle eat from concrete trenchers and growing calves play King of the Hill on piles of feces, but I don’t count those things as end-all-reality – for, out here, they don’t exist .

(Don’t try to count from the road, while checking on the herd – they may be resting in sandy creek bed, or hiding in the grass of properly cared for land,  all hidden from your roadside view – 

Park the truck, get out on foot to walk the acres and make sure ya don’t have a mama or child in distress.   That’s how it’s really done.)

Did you, seriously, just include my Neighbors in your “Top 10 Evils / In face of Paris Accord” post?

Okey-Dokey – If ever you make your way to my neighborhood, let me know –

You and I will take a drive and you can get a taste of some of the fine folks that earn a living, care about their herds, depend upon Mother Nature and give her a helping hand whenever they are called upon to care for and protect her creations.

They who run the gamut each season from Joy of New Life to Heartbreak over those times when Life is Hard –

But also know full well –

Should they break any of the ‘Universal Rules’ in order to turn a fast buck?

They will lose all they love,

…in a heart beat.

If You Persist in….

Lumping my neighbors in with Robber Baron types…

Well…

You and I will just step outside and discuss it – I may not win, to your mind, but you are sure as hell gonna know you was in a fight.

That’s all I have to say about that.

One more pic, taken a day or so, here, after the I had time to hear about the breaking news of the Paris Accord media blitz, and my temper was on a firestorm anger, while logically trying to understand any of it – proponents and detractors…

June 7th -my oldest son’s b-day –  the last ‘Time Off” I took – before Today – Location – appx. 15 miles as the crow flies, northeast of today’s (above and July 1st) cattle pics.  We had a hot, windy, fire warning, dry spell in between the two moments in time, but somehow got blessed with green prairies, despite it all…)

I shall now move back from my own demons of the mind,  to the graciousness of the heavens and all they view on the ground, as they swiftly move over lesser mortals… 🙂

Sunset on the Plains

The blues, greens and purples were highlighted by the yellows, oranges and reds as the Sun gave her last fiery kiss goodnight.

Leaving us all with such hope and beauty, our journey through the dark is taken in trust – Trust we will once more be greeted and kissed Good Morning, in a moment.

Albeit, from the opposite horizon.

I think of these things as darkness envelopes the land.  I travel not far in feeling from the time of my ancestors who waited for the promise of tomorrow, via the gift of light.

Sun kissing clouds in the east goodnight

Happy Independence Day

I may not be self-sufficient or independent – I’m blessed to have neighbors who know my name and show up with what’s needed, when it’s needed as long as I’m attempting to pull me own weight.

I may sell hours of my being to earn my daily bread, and I may, when overwhelmed, chafe, against the chains that bind me to the expectations of our modern world and ‘stealing time’ to just be and enjoy.

Not certain when, if ever, this lifetime, I will reconcile in my soul, these two realities who live side by side.

But today, for a moment, I lived Free – free of the clock, free of demands, free of anything but enjoying the moment –

A moment in time, to truly embrace the abundance, grace, wealth and beauty of all that surrounds me.

No matter when you celebrate your Independence, I wish these things, for you, too.