Daddy Long-Legs

During a quiet paddle on a warm July evening I came upon this Great Blue Heron wading through the reeds.

The Great Blue Heron is a mysterious bird. It stand quietly for hours along the shoreline stalking its prey of small fish with precision and skill. The Great Blue Heron has the ability to swallow fish many times wider than its narrow neck. When it comes to hunting, the heron has a definite advantage over other birds. Because of its long legs it can wade deep into the water in search of food.
Another unique feature of the Great Blue Heron is that it has special feathers that crumble and make a powder. The heron uses the powder to clear slime off of fish by rubbing its head and neck feathers through the "powder making feathers". The slime clumps with the powder and is extracted with one claw on each foot.

God's creation never never ceases to amaze me. In this one bird, God created beauty, skill, and other unique abilities that are found in just this species of bird. Only God could even conceive of such a creature, let alone create it.

Psa 69:34 Let the heaven and earth praise him, the seas, and every thing that moves therein.

Lunar Gazer

I arrived at the Duluth waterfront at sunset to photograph the full moonrise. The boardwalk was busy with tourists and locals alike enjoying the unusually warm July Evening. I set up my tripod and relaxed on a nearby bench waiting for the moon to appear on the distant horizon.


Right on schedule the orange ball broke through the haze of Lake Superior and caught the attention of everyone along the beach. The orange light of the moon mixed with the twilight blues to flood the sky with a mixture of colors only God could create. I never get tired of photographing the full moonrise each month because of the stunning beauty of the event.

In this image, Lunar Gazers catch the breathtaking view of a Lake Superior Moonrise as the moon makes it journey across the heavens.

God placed the moon and stars in place to remind us of the passing months, seasons, and years and to reveal His Glory through the beauty of creation.

And God said, Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to divide between the day and the night. And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years.
And let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth. And it was so. Gen 1:15

Motherly Patience

It's been three weeks now since I started watching the mother loon sit patiently on her two eggs. Often times as I go on my daily paddle over to the nest, I pass by the other parent out in the middle of the lake fishing for the family.

This pair of loons has built their nest in the same location for the past six years. Early in May the loons built up a pile of muck from the boggy waters and waited a month before actually carving out a nest. Both the male and female help with nest building and with incubation, which usually lasts 26-31 days. If the eggs are lost, the pair may re-nest, often in the same general location.
Since it's been at least 21 day so far, I expect the new babies this week.

I think I'm more impatient for the little ones than the mother loon pictured here. She is an example to me of perseverance and dedication, after all, that's what God made her for, to recreate and give glory to Him. The bird was an example to me of what true patience is, and how God's timing is the right timing. The Bible uses another term for patience called long-suffering. I think that term describes it better, since this loon has been baking in the hot sun, enduring thunderstorms, frost, and the ever present Bald Eagles patrolling overhead, waiting for a chance to have eggs for breakfast. Nature reveals many attributes of God, and patience is one that I admire most.

Psa 86:15 But You, O God, are God full of pity, and gracious, long-suffering, and rich in mercy and truth.

The Beauty of One

Late June always displays the highlight of summer wildflowers. A cool day with light drizzle is a wonderful time to photograph flowers. Jay Cooke State Park was beautiful in the 6AM morning mist and the sound of the distant St. Louis River tumbling through the valley drifted through the forest like a welcoming voice.

I trekked into the woods to locate my favorite patch of Pink Showy Lady Slippers, the Minnesota State flower, and one of the most beautiful wildflowers on earth. I arrived to find that there were no blossoms to be found, the cool spring this year had delayed the blossoms beyond their usual flowering time.


As my eyes scanned the unbroken green forest floor, I found one flower that had blossomed. For as far as the eye could see, this was the only Lady Slipper that had bloomed. As I looked closer, the perfect beauty of this one flower was breathtaking. Why had God allowed just this one flower to stand and display it's glory?

God uses nature to show us something of Himself, and he used this one little flower to reveal His glory in a giant way. When I first saw the blossom, I suspected that since it stood alone, it would be rather wind beaten and bug bitten, but, it was perfect. When I focused closer, it revealed more beauty and perfection. Much like when we take time to focus on Christ.

Like this "ONE" flower, sometimes we must stand alone to really be what God made us to be.

Gen 2:9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight...