What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?

What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?
Remember: "When God closes a door, He always opens a window!" You never know what might be out there waiting for you!

Friday, August 26, 2016

Friday Foto Friends - Signs of Seasons

Friday Foto Friends Signs of Seasons

Spotted Horsemint, also known as Bee-Balm
 Hello to all my Friday Foto Friends!  I look forward to this time each week...an opportunity to share some photos from whatever has been going on in our lives.  These are some of the pictures I captured on our walks each day...subtle signs of the changing of the seasons.  The summer flowers are fading and now the late summer/early fall flowers and berries are appearing...preparing for the "cooler days"  of fall ahead. Where I live, in Florida, a cooler day might be when the temperature stays in the low 80's instead of the 90's...but we will be happy to have it.  We get especially happy when the temps drop down in the 70's in the daytime and the humidity drops as well.
God's Bouquet:  Beautyberry  and Spotted Horsemint with a trail of wild grapevine surrounding it.

Ever hear about "paw-paws"?  These are wild paw-paw fruits...almost ripe and ready for the wild animals to enjoy. They are edible for humans too, but these aren't really big enough to get much out of.  They have large seeds.


Close up of the Beauty Berries.  The birds, deer, and bears will enjoy these soon. It is also an edible weed, but very tart, and not recommended.  It can be made into a natural insect repellent!

Not a weed!  This is one of my beautiful Don Juan Roses blooming in our Memorial Garden. It smells divine.Click HERE for more about the significance of the Memorial Garden

Goldenrod is starting to bloom everywhere I look...

This is wild sumac...the blossom will turn into red berries that the birds love.  We have a lot of this growing around us here in the forest. I consider it to be a natural bird feeder! The Cardinals and Catbirds seems to love the berries.

Here is a red-bellied woodpecker pecking away at this old dead tree. Last year the woodpeckers had built quite a nice nest in this tree and then a storm came along and blew the top off, leaving them exposed to the elements! So they just moved to another tree the same day!For more about THAT story, click HERE

This is one of our beautiful mama deer in our neighborhood. She was looking at her fawn, to make sure she was safe since I was hanging around.   For more about THIS story, click HERE



She was just fine...
Listen to the words of King Solomon, written in the 10th century, B.C.

"To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
and a time to pluck what is planted;
A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace."
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Yes, the seasons are preparing for change...all of nature testifies to this.  We ourselves are changing day by day.  We grow, we mature, we get older...and hopefully wiser.  If we look around in our world, we see many other signs of change...change in our culture, our environment, and in our society. Many changes we wish we could stop...some changes are not good...and we oftentimes become anxious about our future.  

But there is one thing we can be sure of:
  
"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." 
 (Hebrews 13:8)
So, 
"Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have.  For He Himself (God) has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you"

So we may boldly say:
"The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?"
Hebrews 13:5-6

 As we approach this season of change, whether it be seasonal, personal, or things of the world,  let us put our trust in the Lord and not fear.  He has promised to be there for us, no matter WHAT the changes of life.

Now, jump on over to see what others are sharing on Friday Foto Friends (Click HERE)!

22 comments:

  1. Such beautiful photos of nature! Love the scripture too. I've had paw-paw jam/jelly before, but it's been a long time ago. I seem to remember it was good! :) Wishing you a lovely weekend ahead!

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    1. I never thought about making it into jam...but I would have to gather quite a few paw paws to do that. Most of them are out in the woods where I can't get to them w/o dealing with ticks and other things...this little bush just happens to be right alongside the road where I can watch its progress. I did pick some a couple of years ago and tasted it...sort of like a cross between banana and mango or something weird flavor like that. Not a big fan. But at least I tried! Hope your weekend is filled with joy as well.

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  2. Loving your photos of nature and that beautiful scripture ♥

    summerdaisycottage.blogspot.com

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    1. Thank you Summer, and welcome to my blog today! I must pop over to see you and your place..."summer daisy cottage" sounds very inviting. Thank you for visiting! Have a blessed day and happy Friday!

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  3. Love the Scripture and the photos. No, never seen paw-paws

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    1. There are some that are cultivated and grow quite large. But these are just the wild kind...and they say the critters love them. Thank you for stopping by the "paw-paw patch".

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  4. Pam, I love all your beautiful pictures. I have never seen those first four. Very unusual and the berries are interesting the way they wrap around the branch. That we are always changing is truly the one constant in our lives. Thank God He never changes.

    I think I would be worried about snakes in those woods a little more than ticks. Although ticks are awful.

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    1. We do have snakes...several poisonous varieties, so yes, I am very careful and that is another reason I don't venture very far into the woods. Although I must tell you that the snakes love to visit our front yard frequently...so there really is no escaping them when you live in the middle of the national forest. We do remove the bad ones, but leave the good ones who eat rodents and other bad snakes. The Beauty Berries (that wrap around the branch) start out with a very delicate little pink lacy flower all around the branch. I will try to find a picture and share it somehow. Yes, God never changes...and He is always with us when we go through the changes of the seasons of our lives. So thankful.

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    2. Nonnie, go to this link to see a picture of the beauty berry in spring...
      http://pamelasopenwindow.blogspot.com/2012/05/after-rainnew-signs-of-growth.html

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  5. Beautiful photos! I love how God gives us all the changes and varieties of the seasons.

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    1. No matter where we live, God gives us such beauty to behold all throughout the year. And no matter we are in life, He continues to bless us with His beauty and grace throughout all the seasons of our lives as well. What a mighty God we serve.

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  6. Pam, I always enjoy pictures of life around you, especially the flowers and deer. I went over and read about your Memorial Garden. A very special place for very special memories. Ecc 1:1-8 is one of my favorites, I remember going to that scripture when my Daddy passed in 2000. btw, I've heard of paw-paw jelly too. There's an old song that goes, "picking up paw-paws put 'em in a basket" I can't remember the rest.

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    1. I vaguely remember singing that song, probably in elementary school. The only part I could think of was "way down yonder in the paw paw patch". Thank you for reading about our Memorial Garden. It is a very special little spot in our yard where I can go and reflect, meditate, and pray...and sometimes I think our son Matthew is smiling and whispering words of love back at me when I am there. Who knows? He may just think I'm being a silly old mama. I probably am. But it sound like you understand.

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  7. I found the words...
    Where oh where is dear little Nellie?
    Where oh where is dear little Nellie?
    Where oh where is dear little Nellie?
    Way down yonder in the paw paw patch
    Come on, kids, let’s go find her
    Come on, kids, let’s go find her
    Come on, kids, let’s go find her
    Way down yonder in the paw paw patch
    Pickin’ up paw paws,
    Put ‘em in your pocket
    Pickin’ up paw paws,
    Put ‘em in your pocket
    Pickin’ up paw paws,
    Put ‘em in your pocket
    Way down yonder in the paw paw patch

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    1. I'm so glad you found the words and printed them here. I do remember hearing and possibly singing that in elementary school. But I never knew what a paw paw was until we moved here. I may try to gather enough next year to make jelly...well...maybe not...but it's a good thought anyway! LOL

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  8. Oh, my, your pictures are all awesome. I had to smile when I saw the picture of the paw paws. The church I was brought up in and attended until about 15 years ago was called Paw Paw Hollow Baptist Church. 😊 and I remember Mary's little song, too! Thank you for linking up. Sorry I'm late in visiting. Hope you have a great weekend!

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    1. Oh my goodness! Where on earth is "Paw Paw Hollow Baptist Church"? What a comfy country name for a church! Did you have real honest to goodness paw paws there? Did you have special church dinners or events that carried out the Paw Paw theme? I can just imagine it all. Must've been a friendly place. Thank you for stopping by my neck of the woods...and thank you for making the Friday Foto Friends a reality.

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  9. Pam, your pictures capture the beauty of God's creation so well. It's fun to watch the seasons change--probably why I like living where I can experience all four seasons (sometimes all in the same week!).

    Blessings!

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    1. Yes, I can imagine that you DO get to experience the 4 seasons all at once at times...I do miss the real changing of the seasons. In Florida we just have to capture the little bits of fall and winter that we can and make the most of it. I miss seeing snow, but not trying to drive in the ice/etc....been there and done that and am thankful I don't have to. But it is so pretty and fun to watch. Thanks for stopping by Kim! Have a blessed and happy weekend.

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  10. Beautiful photos of the season graced with lovey Scripture verses.
    I have never seen beauty berries and wow are they ever beautiful! Quite interesting how they wrap around the branch.

    Thank you for sharing your beauty with~

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    1. I am glad that you enjoyed the pictures, especially the beauty berries. I love them as well, even though they are considered a wild-flower/weed...they are quite prolific here thanks to the birds scattering their seeds around. But I am thankful for God's provision of natural food for our critters. It is fun to watch them enjoy snacking on all the different kinds of berries that abound. Our God is an awesome God! He thought of everything!

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  11. Such beautiful photos and wonderful thoughts.

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Thank you for visiting here today. I would love for you to sign my guestbook and let me know you stopped by. I always enjoy reading your comments and words of encouragement! May you be blessed as you go on your way. Please come back and visit again soon.