Dogs, Dirt Roads, and Dandelions
A Delightful Depository of D Photos
A new year begins and the A to Z Challenge continues. Before moving on to the next letter, a quick look at some standouts from A, B, and C:
Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles shared some of her favorite A photos from alligators to ants. I was particularly impressed by the archer, and by Vidya’s creativity.
Meanwhile, arun arranged an adrenaline packed adventure!
Jerry Dwyer led us on a trip from Bryce Canyon to Bar Harbor —
Rhonda Carrier managed to photograph a bat, which I thought was pretty amazing!
As we arrived at C, Adrienne Beaumont collected a lovely series of snaps featuring some of my favorite things: castles, churches and cathedrals.
And Anne Bonfert treated us to a beautiful tour of her amazing candlelit Christmas tree.
There were so many more wonderful posts, too — from Dr. Preeti Singh, Stephanie Tolk and more. It’s worth revisiting each of them.
A New Letter, a New Dog
I thought I’d be posting all dog photos to introduce the letter D, as my family just rescued a young stray from south Texas.
He’s a photogenic young man and I can’t seem to take enough pictures.
Our Benny boy has a heck of a backstory. He was chased down the highway by three police cruisers before an animal control officer was able to capture him. He lived happily in a foster setting for almost three months until we adopted him.
In early December, Benny boarded a transport van headed for New England with a big group of dogs and cats along for the ride. Unfortunately, unexpectedly, terribly, tragedy struck and the van was hit by a tractor trailer before it even managed to leave Texas. Both drivers were injured and are still recovering. One dog and one cat didn’t make it.
The surviving animals fled, in various states of wellbeing, and a team of volunteers and trappers spent days and weeks apprehending them. At this point, I believe most animals are accounted for, though one or two cats may still be on the loose.
We were fortunate that Benny escaped with only a scratch on his ear and was found and returned to his fosters the very next day.
On the winter solstice, we were immensely relieved, grateful, and overjoyed when Benny finally completed a 30+ hours long journey to arrive safely in the northeast. He is still very nervous about other people, but he instantly took to our little family. He gives us endless kisses and cuddles.
And so I truly believed that my assortment of D photos would be all dog, dog, dog! But a quick glance through my files unearthed a few more things worth mentioning.
Dirt Road
I live on the corner of a dirt farm road and regular, paved street. Dirt roads make for beautiful walking paths in all seasons.
The mud puddle times are some of our favorites.
In addition to multiple corn fields and an open field of wildflowers and milkweed, our dirt road is also home to a vineyard. My husband and I don’t drink, but we think the grapes are lovely to look at.
The quiet, unmaintained road is lovely to visit at night, although you’ll frequently hear coyotes yipping and howling (especially if a train goes by). Other regular guests include turkeys, deer, and black bears.
Dandelions
Dandelions are just something that I take lots of pictures of. They’re happy. They’re prolific. They’re some of the first flowers we greet amidst the spring thaw. And they feed our beloved bees.
Here’s a little rhyming poem that I once wrote about dandelions:
Glowing yellow, petals splayed in triumph of the winter stayed, your face reminds my heart of spring, when sunrise calls the birds to sing, and puddles swirl with glorious mud, and sugar maples and lilacs bud, you are among the first to shine, a drop of sun in a shade of pine. Mistaken weed, a golden treasure — a dandelion, the bee’s first pleasure.
They’re even beautiful when the petals fade and they become a delicate sphere of gossamer seeds (we call these “ghost dandelions”).
Our guinea pigs also love them.
What are some of your favorite things (or favorite pictures) that begin with the letter D?
Tagging some people who may want to participate:
Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles, Rhonda Carrier, Stephanie Tolk, Anne Bonfert, Dr. Preeti Singh, Sharing Words, pockett dessert, Barb Dalton, B.R. Shenoy, Jillian Amatt - Artistic Voyages, Carol Labuzzetta, Akemi Sagawa, Adrienne Beaumont, Aarti Tailor, Mark Tulin, Erika Burkhalter, D.J. Hopkins
Please use the tag “Writing Challenge” for these stories. Thanks!
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