Friday Foto Friends~"Cool, Calm, and Collected?"

 So here it is Friday already, and I seriously didn't have anything new to share with you.  Thankfully it's been a more peaceful and pleasant week and we have mostly just stayed at home and tried to stay "cool, calm and collected".  (Wasn't that the old Secret deodorant commercial slogan some years ago? Seems like that's how it has stuck with me.)   Well, here's the commercial from the 1960's, and it actually says "Cool, Calm and Dry".  Somewhere I connected the term "collected" to this in my mind, but I must be combining different thoughts.  That happens when you get to be this old. LOL.

So while we are so "cool, calm, and collected", we went out for a little walk this morning before it got too hot, humid, and sweaty! And yes, I am wearing my Secret  deodorant...which in later years I think they said it is "Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman."  LOL. I use the unscented variety, because that way there are no perfumy scents mixing with sweat and creating something that smells like perfumy sweat. LOL.  Well, enough of this rather personal discussion and on to something more interesting.  

The only photos I have are more or less just photos of interesting texture found in nature today. And yet, if you read on, you will see there's a lot more to it than that.

The area where we walk tends to be a dumping ground for people's yard waste (and sadly, sometimes other trash, which really distresses me, but I won't take a picture of it).  This particular tree stump was dumped there, and every time I walk by it I think about how unique it is.  I think it is an Eastern Cedar tree, judging by the bark, but isn't that cut pattern on the bottom so interesting? That along with the dry deer moss and sprigs of wild "Rosemary Scrub" on the side, along with a piece of some kind of black foam rubber trash, makes for an interesting study in texture and contrasts.  

Then a little farther down the trail there has been this pile of discarded grass sod, which, when it was first dumped was still nice and green and looked like fresh cut sod. I told my hubby back then we should just scoop it up and take it home and plant it in our yard in some of our bare spaces, (which are many).  But, not having a shovel with us and also not wanting to get the back of the car all dirty, we never did it.  Anyway, as time went by, I noticed this green plant growing out of the crevices in the sod:

and eventually it started developing little yellow blossoms all over it!  Isn't it lovely?

I looked it up online, and the link to the info is below. Some might call it a weed, but it really isn't.

It is Purslane, or Portulaca oleracea, According to Wikipedia it is edible! 

"All parts of purslane are edible raw or cooked. The seeds can be eaten raw or used to make flour.[22]The plant may be eaten as a leaf vegetable.[23] William Cobbett noted that it was "eaten by Frenchmen and pigs when they can get nothing else. Both use it in salad, that is to say, raw".[24] It has a slightly sour and salty taste and is eaten throughout much of Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and Mexico.[7][25] The stems, leaves, and flower buds are all edible raw or cooked.[26] Purslane may be used fresh as a salad,[27] stir-fried, or cooked as spinach is, and because of its mucilaginous quality it also is suitable for soups and stews."

And in a blog post by Yvonne Florian, an author at University of Florida/IFAS Extension,, 

"Purslane is highly nutritious and even contains Omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants. The flavor is much milder than many greens in summer. All parts of the plant are edible. I use Purslane leaves as I would use fresh spinach in salads, smoothies, stir-fries, and omelets.

To add Purslane to an omelet, sautee a few mushrooms (if you like them) or chopped onions in a bit of coconut oil. Add the washed fresh purslane leaves to the pan once the mushrooms/onions are golden, right before adding the beaten eggs to the pan. When the eggs are just about ready, lightly sprinkle with sea salt and ground black pepper and serve. It is my favorite breakfast on a July Saturday morning." https://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/indianriverco/2022/07/25/purslane-in-the-summer-garden/

Maybe I should go back and dig this up and bring it home!  It just might be an interesting thing to add to my daily spinach/lettuce salad! Have any of you ever eaten Purslane?  What do you think? Should I, or shouldn't I?  I'm just afraid that if I dig it up and bring it home it will just die here. So maybe it is better off where it is and I can admire it when we go for our walks.

Walking through this wooded "waste-land" (I say "waste-land" because it is like an abandoned platted neighborhood of house lots that were never developed. There are dirt streets and overgrown empty lots that are now all woods, where homes were supposed to be built, but never were, and now lazy people think it's a good place to dump their trash when no one is looking), I compare it to these verses found in the book of Isaiah in the Old Testament.  Someday perhaps people will come and build new homes there and the neighborhood will blossom abundantly and rejoice, but in a way all of nature is doing that now.  So many of my nature photos have been taken on our walks in that neighborhood, and God causes the beauty to grow even in and around that which has been laid waste.  In some ways, I hope it just stays that way...but I do wish people would take their trash to the real dump down the road instead of being so lazy. (And I also wish the town officials would patrol the area more frequently and enforce the laws!!)

These are also some good verses for us here in America these days, especially the last two... 

Isaiah 35:1-4

"The Future Glory of Zion"

"The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them,

And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;

2 It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice,

Even with joy and singing.

The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,

The excellence of Carmel and Sharon.

They shall see the glory of the Lord,

The excellency of our God.

3 Strengthen the weak hands,

And make firm the feeble knees.

4 Say to those who are fearful-hearted,

“Be strong, do not fear!

Behold, your God will come with vengeance,

With the recompense of God;

He will come and save you.”

With that I will close this post for today. I hope you have a lovely weekend, and may you stay "cool, calm and collected" in every way...