Because of the persistence of grass

Because of the persistence of grass, life goes on

Season to season, generation to generation.

Stubborn grass roots cling to the earth,

Their generations trampled and eaten down by cattle. 

With the relentless persistence of grazing animals,

We humans seek wisdom, our driving desire

As persistent as the growth and regrowth of grass.

The human quest for wisdom is as perennial as the grass.

Earth Abides

A pink supermoon rises over the Serptentine River, with Mount Baker visible on the horizon.

Walking on the dike last night, I remembered a poem that came to me more than ten years ago as I walked home in the quiet dusk from Bear Creek Park.

Today I felt moved to revise it, but only slightly.

Earth Abides

As the sun sets here to bring heat and light to the far side of our planet

the moon rises pink and enormous.

What does it portend?

Growing brighter as I walk,

it clears the gap between trees as dusk deepens.

In the midst of mystery, we have lived careless,  

forgetful beneath the glare of streetlights,

of the nightly blessing of the moon’s faithful lantern

illuminating our earthly path.

Careless, we’ve forgotten the many gifts of our mother,

on whose bosom we yet walk and live.

Yet still, in mysterious munificence,

our earth abides.

Great Barrier Reef unlike a breakwater or garden wall

Far from being a barrier, the world's most famous reef is an enormous ecosystem comprised of living coral. The aerial view reveals its overall nature best.

Approached by boat, the reef is visible first as islets with waves breaking against them. Seen from below the waterline, the variety of coral of every conceivable shape and size is part of a teeming city of sea life, including enormous schools of fish. Below left, tiny fish swim along a sandy highway between coral cliffs.

  

A well-travelled Boab tree

Now growing happily in King's Park, this boab tree, called Gija Jumulu for the Gija people, has not always lived in Perth, Australia. Ten years ago, it made a journey of 32,000 km from the East Kimberly, dropping two tons of water on the way. About 750 years old, it could double that age. Uprooted to make way for roadbuilders, this venerable tree is now cared for by arborists, and attracts many visitors to the botancial gardens.

The giant boab tree is the source of one of Ian White's Australian Bush Flower Essences. Boab essence sweeps out the energy of prejudice and negative family patterns, clearing the way for healthier and more positive habits of thought.

Queensland's Green Island strewn with bits of coral

Green Island lies off the Cairns coast near the Great Barrier Reef. A cay is a large sandpile that protrudes above the sea to become an island, and eventually growing vegetation. The water is pristine, the sand sugar soft and littered with bits of coral from the nearby reef.
 

Phillips screwdriver inspired by eucalyptus seed?

 The unusual seed of the eucalyptus: could this have inspired the Phillips screwdriver?

Himalayan Blue Poppy

A friend spotted this poppy as we walked through the Van Dusen gardens. Seeing the Himalayan Blue reminded me of my attempt to grow one. I sent away for a root of this rare flower and planted it according to the fussy directions on the package, being careful to give it neither direct sun nor full shade. This flower prefers "mottled light."

In due course, the plant grew and came into bud. The blue was already visible and the petals ready to burst from the bud when I made a tragic mistake: I moved the pot.

I had mistakenly thought the new position was an improvement. Evidently the poppy disagreed. The single bud dropped off without opening, and the plant never developed another. Though I haven't tried to grow this type of poppy again, I still think they're beautiful.

Whimsically named plants seen in Van Dusen Garden

The name Caucasian Leopard's Bane raises questions. Does it banish all leopards or only Caucasian ones?

And I wonder how the plants below merited their names -- Pig Squeak (left) and Stinking Benjamin (right).

The ice, the ice

At dusk, people approach Edmonton's amazing Ice Castle. This structure is made by hand with farmed icicles born of water from the North Saskatchewan River that flows through the city. The fresh water used in construction will be returned to the river when the season ends. The city of Edmonton hosted Canada's first Ice Castle; this is its third year in Hawrelak Park.

Ice Castles began when Brent Christensen, an artistic American dad, built a small one in his midwest front yard for his daughter.

The castle has a fountain, slides for kids, a real fireplace, and a gorgeous throne, sculpted of clear ice and flanked by leaf- shaped side tables. It's all sheer magic. But the ice in the river is softening, the weather warming. The castle will only be open for another few days.

A light dusting of snow clings to the roots

The tree remembers the lightest dusting of snow, just as we humans retain faint but accessible memory traces of all we have experienced in our lives.

Wintry White Rock views of East Beach

 

Muted light creates autumnal atmosphere in Bear Creek Park

Crow and gull add themselves to artistic composition

In the autumn sunshine at White Rock, a crow and a gull vied for the elegance stakes. They took turns posing on top of this sculpture on West Beach.

The far end of Lake Louise

 A few weeks ago, I hiked with a friend to the far end of Lake Louise. As we walked, the glacier hid behind a mountain shoulder. Beyond an expanse of mud and glacial till, it reappeared, looking not much closer. The Chateau Lake Louise looked very distant.


This view across the lake shows the impossibility of building a trail on the far side.

From mummies to mums

We know that ancient Egyptians went in for mummies and pyramids.

It seems that mums are still important in Egyptian culture. These delightful Egyptian ones are on display at the Muttart Gardens in Edmonton, in a show called the Curse of the Chrysantemummies.

photos by Yasemin Tulpar

Thick smoke blots out the sun

That tiny pink ball between the trees is the sun seen from the back porch yesterday afternoon.

With the whole of our region now bathed in forest fire smoke, the people of metro Vancouver are getting a taste of what folk in the interior have been going through all summer.

The faint pinkish light and poor air quality are constant reminders of the forest fires burning all over BC.

Total eclipse of the sun and the heart?

Solar eclipses are hard to miss even if, like yesterday, they aren't total. Among nature's most spectacular phenomena, they're rarely seen, and all the more impressive for that.

We sat out on the back porch after breakfast while morning dusk came on, followed by another dawn. This view seen through the skylight at the height of the eclipse shows how much light even 15% of the sun casts on earth.

The speed with which the shadow passed across the sun (it took only about two hours) made me think about how fast our planet is moving, all the time.

It also reminded me of a Bonnie Tyler song popular in the eighties: Total Eclipse of the Heart. May this solar eclipse cleanse us, refreshing our energy and bringing new light.

Mt. Baker rediscovered through plane window; smoke casts weird glow on walls

Camera compensates for red coloration of the Super moon

Last night, the heavy forest fire smoke in the air made the Super moon glow deep red. However, my cell phone camera, thinking it knew better than to photograph a red moon, decided to filter out the coloration.

A super moon is a full moon that makes its appearance at the time the moon's orbit brings it closest to the earth; hence, it looks larger than usual.

Yesterday's super moon was coloured by a thick layer of the smoke that's drifting over us from interior wildfires.

Super news follows the super moon. Here in hot, dry Surrey, we're expecting some rain by Monday. How welcome that will be, and how great to see the mountains again.  Even better, Williams Lake is expecting rainfall next Tuesday, and so is should Cache Creek. How they need it!

Forest fire smoke and dry weather create August autumn

 

 

Midsummer looks like autumn here, but we're lucky. BC's interior has been burning for a month, causing massive disruption to occupants, including loads of livestock. The people of Williams Lake were on evacuation alert for weeks before having to go. They've just recently returned. The airport reopened on Tuesday. Now Clinton is under severe threat from the fires. Over sixty BC parks are closed due to the extreme fire hazard. We need lots of rain, and we need it now!