June is a month that explodes into a rainbow of berries, colorful amaranth greens and medicinal herbs beginning to produce in our garden. The nourishment we are offered through our actions to cultivate perennial and/or self sowing garden beds has been a massive blessing in our lives this year when busy schedules did not allow for much time tending annuals. However, the purpose of this post is less about garden crops and more about nourishing the spirit through appreciation of poetry provided both in the wilderness and the garden in the fleeting, finite and ephemeral moments that are gifted to us when we give our attention to the art Creator and Mother Earth shares with each of us.
This June my heart was moved most by the alpine flowers of the Cascade mountains in BC, the graceful Tamarack (Larch), Balsam Fir and Pine trees that watch over the lakes up there and the budding delphiniums and unfurling leaves of infinite diversity which make both our garden and the high alpine, sanctuaries that rejuvenate my spirit and remind me why I chose to come and live another life on this beautiful Earth (despite the horrors humans inflict on each other and our fellow non-human beings.)
I will now invite you to join me to view some moments I captured through my lens in the month of June which I found to be particularly nourishing to my heart, mind and spirit.
I do not know what these purple/blue flowers are called, but I love them dearly. The picture below includes by very favorite shade of blue.
While hiking through the gorgeous alpine flower fields, larch filled lake shores and balsam fir covered mountain sides of the Cathedral Lakes in BC I foraged for some mountain medicine (practicing the tenets of The Honorable Harvestand spreading the seeds of each plant I harvested from)and collected this for making tea so that I and the mountain forest could become one.
For more info on the many medicinal benefits of Yarrow, check out this post:
Thanks for checking out my photos I hope you all have a beautiful remainder of July filled with berries, flowers, homegrown veggies, and moments that serve to nurture your spirit in nature and in the garden.
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Each and everyone of us is capable of choosing (as our ancestors did) to develop an intimate and reciprocal relationship with the wild plants, trees and fungi in our local region. Taking the time to appreciate a flower, a leaf or a tree and giving our attention to that being, is the first step towards using our skills of observation to learn from our elder species.
May each of us find our footing and hope through embarking on the soft and green path described in The Prophecy Of The Seventh Fire.
The wonderous jubilant blossoms, fragrances, textures, sounds and tastes of June make me feel like anything is possible and that if we align our efforts we can overcome any challenges standing in the way of manifesting the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible… in short, the essence of June makes me feel like dancing and so in closing I will share this with you in the hopes you will dance along side me in spirit so that we may align our focus, our joy, our love and our jubilance to align our movements to make what may seem impossible become possible, probable and inevitable:
Hello, my friend! I could just feel my heart swelling and beating with excitement looking at your photos. Oh, how I wish I could be wandering on the land here intimately inspecting every flower but, alas, the biting flies are relentless this year. I have to completely suit up to go outside and it's hot and humid so I feel a bit like a human sauna. I know it's good to sweat, but... And yet, I know how important bugs are to our environment so I'm keeping my complaining to a minimum. In mid-August I will be free to roam again un-assaulted. This morning I was up to greet the sun and took my binoculars and was taking in the beauty all around me. I pinch myself every day. Seeing the magnification of Nature (like in your photos) takes us to a whole other level, doesn't it?
Those closeups of Yarrow had me swooning. I just picked some yesterday along with Mugwort and Willow to hang on my kitchen door. They are all wonderfully protective plants. Thank you, again, for sharing my Yarrow post on your Yarrow post. :)
I have a Turkey family of five who come by every day. First, they eat the seeds I've left for them and then they do tick management for me. :) A young black Bear has discovered their leftovers and has come a few times to nibble on the seeds and the Clover that blankets the grass. The name Buddy flew into my head when I saw him, splayed out on Turkey Rock, nibbling away. So Buddy he is. I stood in my doorway just twenty feet from him. No fear, just awe. He looked at me with curiosity - my friend says he's probably three or four - and then hobbled away down the hill and into the woods. I never thought I'd be living somewhere where the only reason I have to lock my doors is because of the Bears. They are very clever and I'm pretty sure Buddy would love the Wild Alaskan Salmon I eat. :)
Gavin, I'm reading the book "Rooted" per your recommendation and loving it. Although I'm way more interested in the Nature and Spirit part of it than the Science. :)
Thank you for sharing your beautiful photos. Wish I could smell them. The Milkweed is in full bloom here and the Monarchs have arrived! The first time I smelled Milkweed was in a meadow in Upstate NY. I will never forget it. One of the best scents on Earth. Well, there's Pine.
Ok, I'll stop. This is turning into one of those comments that's more like a post! Much Love to you, my Nature-loving friend! 🌸🌳💚
Somewhere I wanted to yell, stop it! I just can't take anymore beauty! One after the other more glorious than the first. That magenta and blue against the green--I want a silk cape in those colors. And there can be no favorites among perfection but that painted tongue was gasp-worthy.
Hello, my friend! I could just feel my heart swelling and beating with excitement looking at your photos. Oh, how I wish I could be wandering on the land here intimately inspecting every flower but, alas, the biting flies are relentless this year. I have to completely suit up to go outside and it's hot and humid so I feel a bit like a human sauna. I know it's good to sweat, but... And yet, I know how important bugs are to our environment so I'm keeping my complaining to a minimum. In mid-August I will be free to roam again un-assaulted. This morning I was up to greet the sun and took my binoculars and was taking in the beauty all around me. I pinch myself every day. Seeing the magnification of Nature (like in your photos) takes us to a whole other level, doesn't it?
Those closeups of Yarrow had me swooning. I just picked some yesterday along with Mugwort and Willow to hang on my kitchen door. They are all wonderfully protective plants. Thank you, again, for sharing my Yarrow post on your Yarrow post. :)
I have a Turkey family of five who come by every day. First, they eat the seeds I've left for them and then they do tick management for me. :) A young black Bear has discovered their leftovers and has come a few times to nibble on the seeds and the Clover that blankets the grass. The name Buddy flew into my head when I saw him, splayed out on Turkey Rock, nibbling away. So Buddy he is. I stood in my doorway just twenty feet from him. No fear, just awe. He looked at me with curiosity - my friend says he's probably three or four - and then hobbled away down the hill and into the woods. I never thought I'd be living somewhere where the only reason I have to lock my doors is because of the Bears. They are very clever and I'm pretty sure Buddy would love the Wild Alaskan Salmon I eat. :)
Gavin, I'm reading the book "Rooted" per your recommendation and loving it. Although I'm way more interested in the Nature and Spirit part of it than the Science. :)
Thank you for sharing your beautiful photos. Wish I could smell them. The Milkweed is in full bloom here and the Monarchs have arrived! The first time I smelled Milkweed was in a meadow in Upstate NY. I will never forget it. One of the best scents on Earth. Well, there's Pine.
Ok, I'll stop. This is turning into one of those comments that's more like a post! Much Love to you, my Nature-loving friend! 🌸🌳💚
Somewhere I wanted to yell, stop it! I just can't take anymore beauty! One after the other more glorious than the first. That magenta and blue against the green--I want a silk cape in those colors. And there can be no favorites among perfection but that painted tongue was gasp-worthy.