Shield of Favor
Lake Steinhagen is dotted with Cypress trees. While they ring the shallow waters adjacent to the shoreline in congested stands, my favorites are the ones that survive all alone mid lake. It is as...
Author: listwithpaula
Careful Snipping
Asparagus ferns have much to offer. Their thick bottle brush shape and vibrant green color add a pop to flower beds when used as a border plant. Since they are hardy, they require less...
Unproductive Soil
Have you ever noticed how the soil reacts when ignored? It becomes dry, hard, pale, unproductive… In fact, unmaintained soil often won’t even support the growth of weeds. It doesn’t get much worse than...
Mother
My mother touching up photographs by hand. Wasn’t she lovely! Her pulse was weak and thready. My hand lay in the center of her chest. With my eyes closed, my sense of touch was...
Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus
My husband often surprises me with a beautiful bouquet of cut spring flowers on my birthday. Trial and error have taught me that fresh water is the key to longevity where cut flowers are...
First Snow
With his legs crossed at the ankles, Papaw leaned against the door jamb of the bedroom. His blue eyes shone with the gleam of anticipation. It was a cold morning. My sister and I...
You May Only Come This Far
Since our property borders a creek, it isn’t easy to mow. It seems you are constantly claiming hills or racing towards valleys that were formed by nature to funnel rainfall into the creek. I’m...
A Foot in the Door
The gas stations of my childhood no longer exist. Gone are the days when you pulled up to a facility, rolled the window down, and received a warm welcome from the gas station attendant....
His Shadow
We are blessed to have a cabin on the river. During construction we decided to leave a small buffer between the cabin and the riverfront for privacy. We came to appreciate the buffer even...
Broken to Beautiful
Birthed from his desire to bring beauty back to the streets of his hometown of Lagos Nigeria, sculptor Nkwocha Ernest gathers old remnants of tires and meticulously arranges the pieces into artwork. His choice...