Today’s guest blogger and Connection Messenger* Esther Miller shares from her travelogue about return visits to the Grand Canyon. If you haven’t yet read the post that launched our series celebrating the 100th birthday of the U.S. National Park System, go to “The National Park System: 100 Years of Nature, History, and America’s Stories.” I hope the series will get you […]
Nature (Connect with the natural world)
When Is A Rock More Than Just A Rock?
Today’s guest blogger and Connection Messenger* Esther Miller reminisces about her first visit to the Petrified Forest and Grand Canyon many years ago. If you haven’t yet read the post that launched our series celebrating the 100th birthday of the U.S. National Park System, go to “The National Park System: 100 Years of Nature, History, and America’s Stories.” I hope […]
Nature’s Magic Night Lights
JUNE 2016: I enjoyed a fascinating article by Melissa Breyer (at Treehugger.com) about why firefly populations are diminishing in some areas (“What’s Happening To The Fireflies?”). It prompted me to republish the post below from 2013 and to read up on these fascinating little creatures. Fireflies are a bioluminescent species because they can produce their own light. A chemical reaction within the firefly’s light […]
Retirement Gave Me Back The Out-of-Doors
More time in retirement gave this author an unexpected gift. My guest, Kathleen Stinehart, was one of a group of professional women who supported and learned from each other here in the northern Shenandoah Valley. Sadly, she died from cancer in August, 2017. We miss her light and kindness so much. I enjoyed this post so […]
The Road To Yosemite
Today’s guest blogger and Connection Messenger* Esther Miller reminisces about her first visit to Yosemite National Park many years ago, with several other special stops along the way. If you haven’t yet read the post that launched our series celebrating the 100th birthday of the U.S. National Park System, go to “The National Park System: 100 Years of […]
The National Park System: 100 Years Of Nature, History, and America’s Stories
This article has been significantly updated. Please click to this article instead: “The National Park System: America’s Hidden Treasure.” Happy 100th Birthday, NPS! In 1916, when the National Park Service (NPS) was created (through the National Park Service Organic Act, during President Woodrow Wilson’s administration) to manage America’s parks and historic sites, there were […]
Antidote For Despair
May this imagery and poem feed your soul, as it does mine: The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be, I go and lie down […]
Want To Be Happier And Healthier? Try Natural Décor
I’m pleased to welcome Megan Wild as my guest blogger this week. I’ve written so much about the joy of connecting with nature outdoors, but I thought Megan’s approach to bringing nature indoors and incorporating plants into our décor was worth sharing. I love that she included links to studies that support the reasons we […]