June 11th - June 18th: The Week It Finally Stopped Raining

But I wish it hadn't...

Hello dear friends! It’s hard to believe it’s been a week since I last posted…where did the time go?! I’ve had so many adventures this week, but it’s been the time spent outside that has brought those special little things that make the day better, and that is no easy feat this time of year here in Central Texas. The rains have finally stopped, but the heat and humidity unfortunately remain! It’s hard to see the little things that make the day better when you’re miserably hot and sweaty, but it makes them all the more special when you do.

Many of those moments came as I was out on the patio tending to my little garden. Now that the rains have stopped, I am having to make sure I am out there daily to water. Being that the temperatures are only dipping into the mid-seventies overnight, the best time for me to get out and water is early in the morning before the temperatures begin to rise as the sun begins its journey across the sky. It would seem I am not alone in thinking that the cooler morning hours are the best time to do whatever is needing to be done before finding someplace cooler to spend the rest of the day. I have been blessed to encounter some truly remarkable creatures, found some unusual new life amongst my plants, and have even had the joy of being serenaded.

My first encounter was a teeny little ladybug who had decided to make herself at home in one of my plumeria trees. I spent several minutes trying to capture a picture of her, only to learn that apparently ladybugs are extremely camera shy. Each time I was about to snap her picture, she would either crawl to the underside of a leaf or simply fly off, only to return just as I gave up any hope of her doing so, but with a little patience and a lot of luck, I was finally able to catch a picture of the elusive little creature. My next encounter was also with a member of the insect family who, luckily for me, was unable to fly nor a particularly fast mover. As I went to water my hosta, I found a tiny caterpillar slowly inching its way up a flower stem, and while I did admire its tenacity in making the arduous journey all the way up the planter, across the plant itself, and finally climbing the majority of the flower stem, I was not a fan of the holes it had decided to eat in the leaves of my hosta along the way. Not wanting to harm the tiny caterpillar, yet wanting to spare my hosta any further damage, I decided to gently relocate it to the lawn where it could chew away to its heart’s content…my reward for this kindness, to be pooped on by said caterpillar! Thank goodness I was wearing my gardening gloves! It would seem it was seen as less of a kindness, and more of an imposition apparently. I was also graced with the presence of two of my favorite winged creatures this week, the swift and graceful hummingbird who happily flitted amongst the blooms in the garden before alighting on the feeder for a quick snack, and a beautifully iridescent and delicate baby dragonfly who seemed to rather enjoy stopping to smell the roses. I am always in awe when seeing either of those beautiful creatures, their iridescent colors and erratic yet graceful movements simply captivate me. My encounters were not limited to discovering new and captivating creatures in my little garden. I was also delighted to find something growing I had not planted: three delicate brittlestem mushrooms. I know it may seem strange to be excited by fungi, but the way the tall, slender stems support the wide, umbrella-like tops is truly remarkable. It’s almost as if you would expect them to simply fall over at any moment without cause, yet they do not...amazing! As exciting and amusing as those encounters were, I think my favorite encounter was the one someone did not even realize they were a part of. As I moved from plant to plant watering, I was delighted to hear a wonderful sound: the sound of my neighbor singing his morning prayers. It filled my heart with joy to hear the soft tones of his voice as he worshipped and gave thanks to God for yet another wonderful day.

While many of this week’s encounters took place on the patio, two of them were right outside my front door. We have a few stray cats that roam our neighborhood, and being an animal lover, I just can’t stand the thought of them going hungry, so I do what most people say you should never do…I put out a bowl of food and water for them. I have learned that most nights it is not the cats enjoying the yummy morsels I put out for them, but instead it seems an appreciative possum and a rather ravenous trash panda (a creature most people refer to as a raccoon) have decided it’s quite convenient to simply partake of the kibble I have so kindly provided. Thanks to Pogo’s rather heightened prey drive, it is not often that either creature goes undetected whilst munching on the kibble, yet neither one seems inclined to leave before having eaten their fill, regardless of how loudly Pogo barks from the other side of the door. I have been lucky enough on a few occasions now to be able to open the front door just a tiny bit and catch sight of each of the creatures as they eat. The possum seems absolutely unbothered by anything and has even glanced up at me whilst eating, almost as if to say “thank you for providing such yummy kibble”, the trash panda on the other hand is really rather wary of the door being opened, as a matter of fact, the first time I did so both the trash panda and myself stood absolutely still staring at each other as if thinking to ourselves “if I don’t move it won’t see me” which of course was not the case, causing the trash panda to eventually scamper away. Don’t worry about the kitties though, they have figured out they simply need to come a bit earlier in the evening in order to have their fill of kibble before the possum or trash panda come and finish off the bowl.

Well, I thank you dear friends for taking time to read my humble little blog. It makes me happy knowing I can share the quirky little things that have made my day better. Just the simple things like seeing your cat and your neighbor’s cat crouched, seemingly chatting like two little old biddies, on either side of the fence, or discovering a family of snails huddled together on a log. It’s not only the big things that make a lasting impact on our lives, it’s the little things we discover each day that make all the difference. I hope you have a wonderful week!

Blessings,

Candi 💕

Photo credit: Myself