Happy 1st Saturday of the New Year! It's a beautiful day here...breezy and sunny, with the hope of some rain tonight!! Keep Praying! Speaking of rain and our "Still NO Waters Pond", this was the scene that greeted us early this morning:
It was quite unusual to see all these different species of water birds out on the dry pond together this morning! From left to right there were Canadian Geese, a Great White Egret, Sand Hill Crane, a Little Blue Heron that I almost didn't see because he's so small, another Canadian Goose and a Great Blue Heron, and the other Sand Hill Crane! Normally they are rivals for any space on the pond, but today they are sharing what little bits of water rivulets they can find among the grasses and mud!
It really was quite a scene!! We haven't seen any Canadian Geese all fall, which is unusual, but because the pond is so dry they haven't been landing here. So it was a surprise to see three of them out there today. They didn't stay a long time, but it was a joy to see them at all!
You can see how pathetically dry the pond is. It really is heart breaking.
But still they came and stayed a while and must've found something interesting out there to eat...and they weren't fighting over it either!
In this picture below, if you look way back in the back on that fallen tree, there are actually two of those pesky Muscovy Ducks sitting back there! They didn't try to join the party of the other birds, however. Maybe they know they aren't welcome...
Hi Mr. Goose! I'm sorry there's no water for you to swim in right now.
Still, I think these pictures are interesting as they foraged for whatever food they could find...
Looks like something must've gotten their attention! They are all facing the same way!
Except for Mr. Goose...something else has his attention:
I think these are his two lady friends...
Well, everyone is back to doing their own thing again...but wasn't it nice to see them all being cooperative with each other for a while? Gives us hope for our world in 2026...
Well, we took a little ride down there this morning, and THIS is what it looks like now!
I don't think they need to worry about hitting any manatees in that water now...
However, don't be alarmed. This is NOT because of the drought! This waterway is connected to a large dam and reservoir, and they do a "drawdown" of the water every few years to help restore the waters. Here is a link to more information:
Rodman Reservoir Drawdown 2025Even though we knew this was happening, it was still quite a shock to us to see it like this...
This is a close up of the area at the end of that canal above, which was a big lake before and a great place for fishing before the drawdown:
If you really want to know more about the controversy surrounding this place, here is an interesting article that gives you more information than you probably really want to know, but for some you may find it interesting:
https://floridaphoenix.com/2025/12/11/rodman-drawdown-exposes-the-beauty-of-floridas-lost-springs/ That particular article doesn't paint our Governor in a very favorable light, and I must say on this subject I tend to agree with them, but in everything else he's been a remarkable Governor. Of course, I don't know all the ins and outs of this whole subject, but I would like to see the Ocklawaha River restored to its original beauty and place. When man starts messing with nature, a lot of natural beauty is destroyed. But that's all I will say on that subject. It will be interesting to see what develops on this subject in the future.
I will close this post with this Psalm...I was going to just quote a few verses, but they are all so good I decided to include the whole thing. It just seems appropriate for all we are facing in this day and time.
Psalm 33
"1 Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous;
it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
2 Praise the Lord with the harp;
make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.
3 Sing to him a new song;
play skillfully, and shout for joy.
4 For the word of the Lord is right and true;
he is faithful in all he does.
5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of his unfailing love.
6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
their starry host by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea into jars;
he puts the deep into storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the people of the world revere him.
9 For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
10 The Lord foils the plans of the nations;
he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever,
the purposes of his heart through all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people he chose for his inheritance.
13 From heaven the Lord looks down
and sees all mankind;
14 from his dwelling place he watches
all who live on earth—
15 he who forms the hearts of all,
who considers everything they do.
16 No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
18 But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
19 to deliver them from death
and keep them alive in famine.
20 We wait in hope for the Lord;
he is our help and our shield.
21 In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.
22 May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
even as we put our hope in you."
Amen!
Oh, one more thing...thank you to all who commented on my previous post HERE. Some wondered about the Black Eyed Peas that we ate, and I should've said that what I made was called "Hoppin' John", which is a recipe that adds a few things to the black eyed peas to make them more tasty. Here is a recipe I found online that is pretty similar to how I made mine, except I cheated and used canned Blackeyed Peas, so I didn't have to soak them and cook them all day. Other than that, I did add the onions, green peppers and celery and some smoked ham, plus some seasonings to give it a little more flavor. We don't eat a lot of hot spicy foods, so my seasonings were pretty mild (not cajun, like this recipe). Just a little garlic and a slight bit of cayenne pepper along with salt and black pepper. Everyone's tastes are different, so some make like it with a bit more "heat" than we do. And we served it over white rice, but any other rice is fine too. It was very good!
Hoppin' John Recipe for New Year's
Happy New Year's again dear friends!!
I really enjoyed seeing your birds all standing there in unity - as if they were discussing the dry pond crisis. Really cool. All you southerners have peaked my taste buds to try this recipe. Do you only eat it once a year?
ReplyDeleteI do usually only make the "Hoppin' John" once a year, but we do eat just plain old (canned) black eye peas throughout the year, usually with ham or pork dishes, and they are good with rice. John likes it as a side dish anytime. I'm not quite as crazy about them as he is, but he was raised with a southern mom cook. My mom was a "yankee" cook, and she NEVER cooked blackeyed peas EVER!! I had to learn to eat them when I got married. That, and greens. LOL.
DeleteAs always, the bird photos are wonderful to see. They all seem to be getting along very well. The dry pond and lake are sad to see. It makes you wonder about all of the animals and waterline in and around the pond and lake.
ReplyDeleteBlessings and hugs,
Betsy
Ugh...this is very disturbing (regarding the reservoir etc.). We still don't have rain, will you send some down, please? smiles
ReplyDeleteI could cry at how dry it is here lately and the loss of so much beauty with so many waterways and lakes dried up. The wildlife suffer from it too. It is nice to see your usual visitors still stopping by for what they can find. We got a little rain this evening, but not enough, for sure. That's a great Psalm. xo
ReplyDeleteHi Pam! I really love the pictures you have in this post! I think you governor is pretty good - especially compared to some other Democratic governors who shall remain nameless! Glad your new year is off to a good start. See you again soon!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year Pam,
ReplyDeleteWelcome back! Nature is beautiful and soothing! You found a great spot to watch the birds. I love the Herons, Egrets and Cranes, ducks and the geese. Nature is beautiful. Our lake gets low when they open the dam more to let water out, but we had a drought here too. I enjoyed your post and photos. I wish you all the best in 2026. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, enjoy your day and the week ahead. PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.
Interesting photos, birds be like "WTF have you humans done with our water?" Sweetallysum
ReplyDeleteSeeing your precious pond so dry makes me so sad, Pamela. Still, it's great to see that your bird visitors are seeming to say not to give up on the rain. Do they know something we don't? We have a lake nearby that is "drained" in the winter time, too. Thanks for the wonderful photos, my friend. Blessings!
ReplyDeletePraying for you for rain. Sending love your way. Hugs.
ReplyDeletersrue.blogspot.com
the sad thing about your pond and the drawdown of the damn, all the creatures that depend on that for their water have no other to choose from. it beats me why they would do that damn drawdown in the middle of the drought we have been in for 5 years. we did get 1/2 of rain last night. hope you got rain and a lot more than that. we are happy with anything we can get. even butterflies and bees and spiders and snakes and all living creatures need water sources...
ReplyDeleteWonderful images, Pam! Oh, what lessons we might learn from the animal kingdom. I'd never heard of a draw-down until we moved here and rented a lake-side cabin -- only to discover when Tom wanted to fish, the water level was not what he expected.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your mention of Hoppin' John. I think Garlic and cayenne pepper makes everything taste better!
I've had Hoppin John before and it's really very good. I did cook black eyed peas though. Such beautiful pictures of all the nature around you. We did have a bald eagle at our lake this past week which was interesting to see.. and a few geese.. In past years there have been a lot more of the geese but not sure why so few this year. Our weather is warm around here and we actually saw the gator 🐊 which was a surprise. Hope y'all have a great full week of this 2026.
ReplyDeleteWe did end up with a little rain last night but not enough to make a marked difference! Hope you enjoyed some also. I struggle with the Rodman Dam situation--they messed it up by building the dam in the first place so now they want to make more people unhappy by 'fixing' their first mistake. Impossible to do that.
ReplyDeleteWrong + Wrongs doesn't = a Right
Gorgeous photos, Pamela! Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful way to start the year, thank you for sharing these moments in nature. It’s amazing how even a dry pond can host such harmony among the birds; I love how you noticed all their little personalities. The Psalm you shared is perfect for reflection, too.
ReplyDeleteI just shared a new post and would be delighted if you stopped by to take a look.