Sun Up, Shore Bright - Peterson Lake, near Big Fork, Montana

“ …Am I no longer young, and still not half-perfect? Let me 

keep my mind on what matters,
which is my work,

which is mostly standing still and learning to be 
astonished.…”

— Mary Oliver (1935-2019), from “Messenger,” found in Mary Oliver’s collection Thirst

Vanilla Smell (but don’t taste…) - Ponderosa Pine - Kootenai Creek, Stevensville, Montana

“…a smell … likened to vanilla or butterscotch exudes from the cracks between slabs of bark on the tree, creating a unique type of Rocky Mountain aromatherapy.” - Katherine Court in Field Notes: Ponderosa Pine Bark. (Learn a LOT more from the Montana Natural History Centre!)

Shadow Study - Missoula, Montana

Similarly interesting shadow thoughts to ponder from two beloved authors (because I couldn't decide on just one!): 

"So don't be frightened, dear friend, if a sadness confronts you larger than any you have ever known, casting its shadow over all you do. You must think that something is happening within you, and remember that life has not forgotten you; it holds you in its hand and will not let you fall. Why would you want to exclude from your life any uneasiness, any pain, any depression, since you don't know what work they are accomplishing within you."

 - Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet

"I am quite likely to re-act to the opposite extreme - to feel rapturously that the world is beautiful and mere existence something to thank God for. I suppose our 'blues' are the price we have to pay for our temperament. 'The gods don't allow us to be in their debt.' They give us sensitiveness to beauty in all its forms but the shadow of the gift goes with it."

 - L.M. Montgomery, My Dear Mr. M: Letters to G.B. Macmillan from L.M. Montgomery

Blooming Phenomena - Missoula, Montana

"A poet must be a psychologist, but a secret one: he should know and feel the roots of phenomena but present only the phenomena themselves in full bloom or as they fade away."

- Ivan Turgenev (1818-1883)

Not-So-Still Life - Missoula, Montana

"The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance." Alan W. Watts

Sunlit Leaf - Missoula, Montana

"Ô, Sunlight! The most precious gold to be found on Earth." - Roman Payne

(Oh, so especially true on these grey winter days!)

Guest Post 2 by Jeff Cox: Turtle Rock - West Glacier, Montana

"Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out." - James Bryant Conant (1893-1978)

Another cool, blue Belton Bridge view courtesy of Jeff Cox; the rock reminded of a snowy turtle.

Solid Foundation - Greenough Park, Missoula, Montana

"A grateful heart is a beginning of greatness. It is an expression of humility. It is a foundation for the development of such virtues as prayer, faith, courage, contentment, happiness, love, and well-being." -James E. Faust (1920-2007)

Moon-ish Rainbow - Missoula, Montana

"...the moon with 
its rainbow crown 
smiles down ..."

- from Rainbow Around The Moon by David Harris

Fallen Leaves Floating - Near Drummond, Montana

"Reverie is when ideas float in our mind without reflection or regard of the understanding." - John Locke (1632-1704)

Slow Traveling Snail - Missoula, Montana

“…James gave a huffle of a snail in danger

And nobody heard him at all…” 

– from The Four Friends by A.A. Milne

Click here to read the whole poem about James' travels and his three friends, plus a bonus Christmas poem by A. A. Milne.

Mossy Rockness - Superior, Montana

Happy Canada Day!  
(Just a freebie - nothing to do with today's photo.)

In case yesterday's hammock deliciousness didn't paint you green as this river rock moss (or maybe it's river weed?), here's a post-hammock view that required my feet to be in the cool, clear water - and almost my phone for the camera angle! (Did I mention that western Montana is a great summer vacation destination?)

Creek Greens & Sunlight - Missoula, Montana

“Love is like seaweed; even if you have pushed it away, you will not prevent it from coming back." -Nigerian Proverb quotes 

I rather like this mental image - that love keeps wafting our way in the ebb and flow of life's current - which is not always as gentle as this low-water stream!

Charging Upward - Near Drummond, Montana

"Summit after summit bladed up thousands of feet as if charging into the air to strike first at storm and lightning, valleys and clefts chasmed wide as if split and hollowed by thunderblast upon thunderblast." - Ivan Doig (1939-2015), 'This House of Sky', p. 180

Beneath - Missoula, Montana

“The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet.” -James Oppenheim (1882-1932)

From The River - Missoula, Montana

""Oh, Eeyore, you are wet!” said Piglet, feeling him. 

Eeyore shook himself, and asked somebody to explain to Piglet what happened when you had been inside a river for quite a long time." - A. A. Milne

Long View - Adel Mountains, Montana

The Adel Mountains present a 40 mile long swath of upstanding volcanic rock. While its geography doesn’t allow much in the way of recreational opportunity, there is a short walking trail at the Scenic Viewpoint pullout, where the view draws your eye off to the restful space of distant mountains and endless blue sky.

According to the observant blogging folks at the Montana Natural History Center, this formation is comprised of “…a rare type of intrusive igneous rock known as shonkinite, which is found only in Montana, British Columbia, Ontario, and the Indonesian island of Timor. It’s similar to basalt but more brittle, and principally contains augite and a type of feldspar.”

There you have it.

Looking Up - I-15 Corridor North of Helena, Montana

“So look up…

Take in your surroundings, 

make the most of today…”

 -from poem “Look Up” by Gary Turk