WHO DOESN’T LOVE FLOWERS? (Dorothy in poppies; Wizard of Oz)

Sandra Neily here:  Sharing a wildflower fiesta with readers. I’m sharing many (but not all) of the flowers I found in a one hour walk in uncut fields at the ski area north of Greenville.

Reven just thinks anything that grows under her belly and butt is comfy.

The last week of July seems to be the moment when some early flowers are still here, and new ones are just coming along. Everywhere I turned there were blooms and blossoms. (Names: black-eyed Susan, vetch, bladder campion, golden rod, queen Anne’s lace, yarrow, butter cups, yellow primrose, St. Johns wort, mountain ash, blueberry, purple loosestrife (do not plant this; very invasive), clover, crown vetch)

And of course, Many Oliver comes to us with her message of attending to the world in small quiet ways. Maybe flower by flower, stone by stone.

Praying by Mary Oliver

It doesn’t have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch

a few words together and don’t try
to make them elaborate, this isn’t
a contest but the doorway

into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak.
— from Thirst

I haven’t identified these. Know them? (A North Carolina stream ate some of my ID programs when my phone slipped into it.)

Sandy’s debut novel, “Deadly Trespass, A Mystery in Maine” won a national Mystery Writers of America award, was a finalist in the Women’s Fiction Writers Association “Rising Star” contest, and was a finalist for a Maine Literary Award. The second Mystery in Maine, “Deadly Turn,” was published in 2021. Her third “Deadly” is due out in 2023. Find her novels at all Shermans Books (Maine) and on Amazon. Find more info on Sandy’s website.

pearly everlastings announce summers last days