Peaceful Journey on the Pond~Updated 7/10/2026

Today is Friday, July 10, 2026, almost exactly 6 years after this post was originally written.  Today, being Friday, I normally post some kind of photos for the day, but I just couldn't come up with anything new! And also, I've been trying to keep up with a Photo-a-Day challenge for July, and I'm starting to fall behind.  The challenge for yesterday, July 9th, was supposed to be "calm", and today would be "busy".  

We were busy this morning going to Walmart to do our weekly big shopping, but I didn't try to take any pictures of that. Who wants to see busy people at Walmart??? LOL.  So I decided to try and focus on the one for yesterday that I missed, "calm".  And since I didn't have anything new to share, I went back into the archives and found this post, which was written during Covid, and when our beloved Still Waters Pond still had plenty of water in it. Because we couldn't go too many places back then or do too much with people, I enjoyed spending some peaceful time in my kayak, paddling around Still Waters Pond. So I decided that this very "calm" post would be perfect for today, to make up for not having any pictures of anything "calm" for yesterday.  I will try to get caught up on the others perhaps this weekend.  

So without further adieu, here is my very calming post written in July of 2020 from Still Waters Pond. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did writing it back then and reflecting on it once again today. I pray that it will have a very calming effect on you and give you some peace in your life today. Be blessed my friends...

Original Post written July 24, 2020

Are you ready for a little trip around Still Water Pond with me?  I think it is about time, don't you? I haven't been out on the pond in over a week, and this morning I decided I didn't care how warm and muggy it is out there, a little voyage around the pond was just what I needed.

So come along with me and enjoy the ride. I will caution you, however, the rowing was rather difficult today. The water lilies are so thick in the pond that it is almost impossible to work our way through them.  But once out there on the water, there was no turning back. It was a kind of spiritual challenge to keep going until I found a sense of peace and calm enveloping my soul.

Philippians 3:13-14

13.  "Brethren (sisters!), I do not count myself to have apprehended;

but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind 

and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

14.  I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

I am not sure what that is in the picture above...some kind of egg sack for some kind of insect perhaps? Anyone have any ideas? I may have to look it up.  Whatever it was, I let it stay right there. Didn't look like something that I wanted to bring home with me. So I kept paddling onward...

Ah, this is more like it!! This lovely lily was turning her face toward me as if to say, "Here I am, take my picture please! I am posing just for you!"    One of the little "prizes" of this journey today...

I was surprised to discover this blackberry bush growing up through this old post from a long ago forgotten dock in the middle of the pond.  Talk about perseverance!  How is it growing there? Perhaps some bird left the seed while sitting on that perch eating some blackberries?

Reminds me of this verse also in Philippians 4:13~~

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

While I was laboring in my efforts to paddle around the pond today, I was praying for a sense of peace from the stresses of the world. And I also asked the Lord for something extra special to see today...and all of a sudden a duck flew up and away over on the other side by the bank. Of course I was too slow to get a picture of him, but then I looked again, and this lovely female wood duck swam into view:

She lingered a little while, contemplating her next move. I could tell she was anxious to join her mate who had flown away, but she seemed to be reluctant to join him too quickly. I wonder if they are nesting in that area and perhaps she was distraught about leaving her nest? I don't know, and I didn't want to get too close to disturb her. So I sat quietly in my kayak and thanked the Lord for allowing me to see her and that she sat still long enough for me to get a few pictures...

However, she could see me out of the corner of her eye and right after this picture she flew up up and away to join her mate.  

So I rounded the bend in the pond and started my homeward stretch. The reflections were lovely here in the shadow of the trees of the little island, so I sat and reflected upon their beauty for another moment.

Philippians 4:4-7

4.  "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say rejoice!

5.  Let your gentleness be known to all men.

The Lord is at hand.

6.  Be anxious for nothing,

but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving,

let your requests be made known to God;

7.  And the peace of God,

which surpasses all understanding,

will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

I hope you enjoyed this little trip around the pond with me today. I must say that even though my arm muscles are tired from rowing against those lilies, the sense of peace and joy that I feel in my heart now is well worth the effort.   And that is how it is in our journey through this life.  We will face many challenges and struggles throughout our days, but when we reach  that "goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 3:14), it will be worth it all.  We will forget those things that were behind us, and we will rejoice in the Lord carrying us through to victory.

Have a blessed and peaceful day my friends.

Wednesday Treasures and Blessings

Greetings Friends!

This was the scene this morning when I woke up! Another beautiful way to start the day!

1 Chronicles 16:23-27

23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth;

Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.

24 Declare His glory among the nations,

His wonders among all peoples.

25 For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised;

He is also to be feared above all gods.

26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,

But the Lord made the heavens.

27 Honor and majesty are before Him;

Strength and gladness are in His place.

Amen!

And we started out the morning with our little friend Blackie.  Actually it was a little warmer last night, warm enough for him to stay outside, but he was quite ready to come inside this morning and have his breakfast and spend some time warming up before going back out for the day.  One of his favorite places to explore is anywhere around "Daddy's Chair", especially under his feet. LOL.  

I've noticed that if "Daddy" isn't in his chair when Blackie comes inside, that is the first place he runs to look for him, and then he heads for the bedroom to look for him.  He knows already who's the soft touch for the treats. LOL.  Yeah, Daddy was the one who kept saying we didn't need to have any stray neighborhood cats around...but when he doesn't know I'm listening I hear him talking "baby cat talk" to him. LOL.  But he's still not ready to make him a full time indoor cat...and I'm not sure that Blackie ever will be, but he's sure working hard to become one.  He's definitely made some changes in our routine! 

I had mentioned that we had to travel to Gainesville yesterday for a Doctor's appointment for hubby. It was for a follow up check up for a condition that had been discovered via an MRI earlier in the year, and the doctor wanted to keep a watch on it to make sure there were no significant changes.

(These murals are on the wall of the waiting area in the hospital where we had to go for the appointment)

Thankfully, after a CT Scan and review by the doctor, it was determined that there was no change and he was happy to say that he didn't need to see him again for a year! So that was very good news and an answer to prayer!

So very happily we went out to lunch at the local Cracker Barrel...for which we had a gift card that was a Christmas present...so that made it even better!

I was happy to see that everything still looks the same in this Cracker Barrel. This was the first time we'd been since the near "disaster" of a marketing scheme that went sour real fast with their corporate headquarters last year.  

We were relieved and happy to sit there and enjoy the country atmosphere and good food, including some fried apples.   

(That's grilled catfish and hushpuppies, in case you didn't know. It was good!)

I took this picture below because my mother's grandmother's maiden name was Johnston. HERE is a link to a post that tells an interesting story about that discovery.  So there were "Johnstons" in my ancestry, and who knows but that they made really good cookies! I know my mother was certainly a good cookie baker (and pies too), so perhaps she inherited that ability from her ancestors too!  

 

So that was our adventure yesterday, and we came home rejoicing in the good report, and very very thankful.  

This exhortation and promise from God's Word is one to remember in all circumstances...even when things look bleak or worrisome...

Philippians 4:4-7 NKJV

"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, 

with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 

7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Amen!

And with that I will leave you for tonight.  For those of you who may be facing a severe winter storm warning this weekend, my thoughts and prayers are with you.  You may want to remember those verses above as you face an uncertain situation.  May the Lord be with you and give you comfort and peace. Amen.

Wednesday This and That...

 Tea Time with the Cardinals...

This afternoon Mr.  and Mrs. Cardinal were quite active at the bird feeder, preparing for the cold weather that is coming up tomorrow night.  

As Mrs. Cardinal flew down to the "Tea Time" feeder, I decided it was time for me to have a cup of tea as well, to take the chill off of the afternoon.  

I enjoyed watching the birds flying back and forth to the feeder while I sipped my tea and relaxed a bit from my labors.

 

Mr. Cardinal wanted to see what Mrs. Cardinal was finding so interesting...

They were certainly a beautiful bright spot of color against the drab backdrop of the wintry landscape and DRY Still Waters Pond.  Hopefully the rain that is scheduled to usher in the cold front will bring us some much needed rain. We keep hoping and praying!

So what kind of exciting things do You do on a dreary winter day when it's too chilly/windy to go outside and "play"?  

Well...some people play with soldiers and have battles...

It's been a long standing tradition that my hubby's brother would give him a bag full of soldiers for Christmas...and at some point there would be a major battlefield set up and "Daddy and the boys" would play "war".  However, we forgot to do it while they were here the other day, so someone was anxious to try out his new soldiers, but he needed someone to be the "enemy', so I was elected.

Nerf "dart" guns serve very well for the purpose.  And for a few wild and crazy moments, we shot our weapons across the battlefield at each other and then tallied up our losses.  I think in the long run, hubby won this battle, but I'm still getting used to the rules of the game. We may have to have another round soon.

This very very short video doesn't really show much because I was trying to aim my weapon and shoot my camera , or was it the other way around...oh yeah, aim my camera and shoot my weapon at the same time! Either way, it was fun.  But we are looking forward to the kids coming back over so they can have a real battle! Stay tuned...

Oops, I just checked and the video didn't work after all, so nevermind! It was too short to show much anyway!

Oh, and why does his brother give him these soldiers every year? Because he remembers his big brother playing with soldiers and setting up battlefields for all of his young childhood years, and it's one of those fun brother memories that brings back thoughts of happy times as kids.  Actually, I think his brother needs to come over and play!!! It's too bad they live 2 hours away!! We have to remember that for the next time they are together!

Now, on another note, with the colder weather coming this weekend, getting down below freezing they say, I am getting more concerned about Blackie being outside all night, even though he seems to be fine, but this is going to be colder than we've seen yet...and so because he isn't really ready to become a full time inside cat and roam freely throughout the house at night, we thought we might try something else. I saw this at Walmart today and decided to buy it and give it a try:

 

I set it up on the back porch for a few minutes so he could see it and to see what he would do with it. He went right inside and explored for a minute, but of course I did not zip it shut, so he didn't feel trapped inside.

He had fun exploring his new "tent".

I also brought it back inside and he did come inside and look at it again, but I don't want to scare him off from it so right now we are just letting him come inside occasionally and look it over, and then tomorrow night I will attempt to get him to come inside and then zip it up for the night. One question I have...do cats need to use the litter box during the night?  I'm thinking not. I don't want to put a litter box inside this with him...what do you think, those of you who have more experience than I do with cats? I would appreciate your thoughts on this, especially if you have dealt with outside cats coming inside. Thank you. You all have been such good helpers with good ideas. 

Meanwhile, I've been wanting some really good fresh juicy Florida grapefruit for a while. You'd think living in Florida it would be easy to find, but no it isn't.  Florida really doesn't grow as much citrus as it used to when I was growing up here, and it's getting harder and harder to find, especially as far north in the state as we live.  But I did manage to find some at Walmart, and yes! It had a sticker on it saying it was from Ft. Pierce, FL., so I know it's got to be good! (We actually used to live in Ft. Pierce, and that is where my husband first served as a Pastor of a small church many many many years ago!!)

Normally I usually only eat one half of a grapefruit at a time, and save the other half for the next day. But this tasted SO good to me, I ate the whole thing at one sitting! LOL.

And yes, I am on a statin drug, and I know it says not to eat grapefruit with statins, but that means don't eat it at the same time as when you take your medicine, at least that's what I have heard and believe. So I ate the grapefruit in the evening and I take my meds in the morning. I have not suffered any ill effects and if had to choose between the two, I'd much prefer the grapefruit!! LOL.

Tomorrow I will be at the dentist for several hours, having the other side of my mouth deep cleaned and then the root canal done and a temporary crown put on. They said I will be there for at least 3 hours. And I doubt I will feel any too perky when I come home and the numbness wears off, so I don't expect to do much tomorrow.  Hopefully I will be back to normal on Friday...and on Saturday I am looking forward to seeing "Your Friend from Florida", Terri Dorsaneo, as she comes passing through here on her way back home from a whirlwind trip to Georgia and back! We will have lunch and a nice little visit before she has to head on down the road another two or three hours to her home.  

I am borrowing this photo from her recent post, which I think I have a copy of already but can't find it now so I am copying it from her blog. This was when she and her dear hubby Joe came by to visit us way back in 2017, when we lived in our previous home...and obviously it was right around Christmas! We have met a few times since then in person as well, but this was the first time, and I am so thankful that we got to meet her dear Joe. He was truly a very sweet and friendly man, and he and my hubby enjoyed visiting with one another.  He is greatly missed.

Well, folks, that's all for now. I will update you on everything that happens in the next few days in my next post. 

Now here is some good food for thought for today from Philippians 4:4-7, 19.

"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, 

with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 

7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, 

will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

"19 And my God shall supply all your need 

according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

Be Blessed, my friends!!

Saturday Wanderings...Come Along for a Nature Walk with Me...

Happy Saturday!  I thought you might enjoy something a little different this evening. Why don't you come along on a nature walk with me?  There are so many different things to see!

This morning we took a walk at our usual walking place in the woods, and this lovely butterfly was accompanying us along the way. I loved how he flew beside us and before us, and all around us. I literally asked him to please stop long enough for me to take his picture, and so he did! He stayed on the ground like this for about a minute, allowing me to enjoy his magnificent colors and markings! And then he flew back up into the air and continued on his journey, leading the way for us along the road. Sometimes I do wonder about butterflies, don't you?  If anything, he was God's special little gift to us this morning to brighten our path and bring smiles of joy to our faces!  What a blessing!

Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly  (Click that link for more information about him)

The next thing I wanted to see was this Hawthorn tree, to see if its berries are developing, and yes, they certainly are!

Florida Hawthorn Tree Berries

These are the Hawthorn Tree flowers, back in early March! I thought I had already shared these with you, but I can't find a record of it.  That was about the same time that my computer died, and so I was limited on what I was able to post for while, so I guess these photos were left out. Glad I still had them in my phone so I could share them now!

This information below is from the Florida Native Plant Society Blog

"Hawthorns belong to the Rose Family, along with the plums, cherries, serviceberries, and crabapples. Roses are revered for their beautiful 5-petal flowers, which are often present in the spring, and the production of nutritious fruit, generally high in vitamin C. Florida’s hawthorns all produce white blooms; either solitary, in small clusters, or in large masses across the canopy. 

 The fruit are variable in color, size, and time of year that they ripen. Like true roses (Rosa spp.), hawthorn fruit are often called “hips”. Most are rather bland in taste, but an entire industry has been built in the South around the hips of the mayhaw (C. aestivalis) and its close relatives (C. opaca and C. rufula). Hawthorn hips are also frequently available in natural food stores for use in teas and as nutritional supplements."

Also along the way we are starting to see these Pricklypear Cactus flowers starting to bloom! They are so beautiful, but please don't get pricked by the thorns! That would not be very pleasant!

Pricklypear Cactus  (click on that link to the Florida Wildflower Foundation for more information)

Now, back in our neighborhood I have been enjoying the discovery of these amazing huge Live Oak trees on the property next door.

Live Oak Tree (click link for more information from the University of Florida Gardening Solutions website)

This Live Oak tree above is on the lot beside the lot that was just cleared next to us, and the pictures below I have already shown you, but they are also Live Oaks that are on the lot that was cleared. I do hope they won't have to cut down too many of these trees in order to build the house on the lot. They provide such beautiful shade and many of the trees on this property appear to be quite old.  

Here is another picture of Mother Goose, sitting on her nest, patiently waiting for the arrival of her babies. Doesn't she look peaceful and calm sitting there? A perfect example of what a mother's love looks like.  According to what I've been reading, the mother goose does NOT leave the nest at all during this month of waiting, nor does she eat. Apparently the goose who comes begging for bird seed at our door is the father, not the mother! And he is always in a bit of a hurry because he has to get back to his station in the water nearby her nest.   

We have become a bit more lenient in this regard. He literally stands there and it looks like he is trying to speak to us. He doesn't make any sound or hiss, he just opens his mouth and it looks like he is saying food please?  So we have given in and have been tossing him a little bit of birdseed when he comes begging so politely.  It's only for a short period of time, and then they will be off to their further adventures. We decided it's the least we can do to help out a young father in distress...LOL.  

Speaking of birds in distress...Since so much of the habitat was cut down on the lot, the birds have been rather noisy and active.  I fear there may have been some nests destroyed in the process or at least their favorite hiding places.  

This male Cardinal was hopping around this morning on the ground where there used to be more bushes.  I just happened to be out for an early morning stroll over to see what was going on with the goose nest and saw this fellow too.  Hopefully the birds will all get back to some kind of normalcy soon.

Speaking of hungry critters...LOL. Today was really sweet. Our kids were all here for a grilled BBQ chicken lunch.  Scott came home and Benton and Rose and the grandpups came over, and Scott grilled the chicken for us. We had salad,  deviled eggs, and boiled new potatoes with sour cream and cheese, and also some coleslaw.   There was no special occasion...just a happy and thankful family to all be together.  I baked a blueberry pie, using some of the blueberries I had frozen a little while ago after getting them fresh from the blueberry farm.  I didn't take any pictures of us all together, but here's what's left of the pie:  

Yes, it was delicious, eaten when it was still warm with vanilla ice cream! 

I think I will close on that note!

Here's a good thought for today:

Philippians 4:4-7

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 

7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

One more thought, please keep the people in the paths of those horrific tornadoes in your thoughts and prayers. I know of one of our blogging friends in particular, Betsy, from "The Simple Life of a Queen", who lives in Omaha, NE, and the storms were very close to her and her family. Thankfullly, they are all safe and no damage to their homes, but the severe damage is all around them, so their lives will be greatly affected by all of the storm aftermath.  There may be others that we don't know about, so let us keep them in our prayers.