My New Backyard…

Winter is fast losing its grip.

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White patches of snow still nest on shaded hillsides.  But the sun is warm and I’ve been out to inspect the slope out back.

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It’s not exactly a yard, really more of a mecca for elk and deer. Their frequent passing has forged a narrow way for me to go along the slope in search of signs of spring.

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Being drier here than the coast, pines are quite at home,

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providing ample supplies of cones and needles—

 

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—nice long needles that are perfect for the  weaving of handy little baskets.

 

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(I have yet to attempt this art; this one was created by my dad-in-law.)

The slope is dry and warm (no wonder the elk like it!) and in a protected ravine I find what I was looking for–

 

Lo, green is springing up!

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As I turn back to the house, these dear little handprints in the rockwork by the door remind me of long by-gone family visits to Grandad and Nani’s house.

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Who’d have guessed then that one day when kids had flown and Nani had moved on to Heaven we’d move in to keep Grandad company!

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And so we have, for now.

–LS

Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Ps.90:1