Summer Mornings

Shadowed peonies in the kitchen window

Things start getting so busy this time of year, with bunnies in the nest boxes and coats that need to come off to keep everyone comfortable. I'm much more aware of the need for cleaning the bunny house with warmer weather and flies buzzing around. The craft tent gears up and the store that I do paperwork for all get busy, so I hurry around tackling each chore as it comes, enjoying the hectic times as much as I enjoy the quiet of winter.


Morning mist over the fields and pond

Sometimes, though, I just get stopped in my tracks. Rescuing a pair of beautiful peonies from a rain shower, stopping to pet a lively litter of beautifully soft bunnies, or pausing to enjoy the rising mist over the cool fields in early morning. Quiet moments on the living room sofa, watching the rain through the ivy as thunder rumbles and a nervous spaniel nestles against my side, and an intriguing book lies open on the coffee table, ready to entertain me as the rain falls. And feeding time in the bunny house, rain rattling on the roof and rabbits cheerful with the cool breezes, nibbling their carrots and perking ears toward the soft whisper of feed poured into their bowls.


Quarry Overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway

Even on a long trip yesterday, there was time to enjoy the beauty of the mountains. We traveled to see my ailing great-aunt and uncle, along the heights on the Blue Ridge Parkway and enjoyed the blazing bloom of flame azalea. Mountain laurel peeked out shyly from the deep green at the edges of the woods, and a few rhododendron bloomed proudly. We paused to look out over a deep gorge at an overlook, and drove easily back under cloudy skies. The storm broke just as we reached Meadows of Dan, and settled in for an evening of rain and coolness.