Extraordinary things are always hiding in places people never think to look.
You don’t need water to feel like you’re drowning, do you?
Jodi Picoult (born 1966) is an American writer, who has published over two dozen novels as well as short stories.
Have you ever visited any of America’s western badlands? Some of my travels have allowed me the privilege to experience these wonders of nature.
A panoramic view of the Painted Canyon Overlook off of Interstate 94 near Medora, North Dakota and Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
Hidden beauty, waiting to be found
Western badlands, ready to be crowned
Nature proclaims its rugged features
Wildlife views from its austere bleachers
Kaleidoscope of creatures around
Falcons, eagles, deer, bison abound
Barren environment, a wasteland
Native tribes nicknaming this “bad land”
Slippery clay gumbo, sinking sand
Fur trappers evade these harsh badlands
Timely erosion unearths treasures
Fossil beds offering up pleasures
Late spring rains transform the quiet view
Green velvet covers buttes, right on cue
Sleeping landscape erupts with color
Prairie flowers dazzle and holler
Brilliant colors reflect morning’s light
Ravines, gullies paint prismatic sights
Another view of the North Dakota badlands. If one looks closely, there is an American Bison in the center of this photo.
My journeys out West have offered opportunities to visit three of America’s treasured badlands: Makoshika State Park (near Glendive, Montana), Theodore Roosevelt National Park (near Medora, North Dakota), and Badlands National Park (near Rapid City, South Dakota).
Originally published May, 2020.
Past links with today
Learning fills each tomorrow—
Venturing forward
Day’s epiphany
Outside one’s kitchen window—
Another clue waits
Preparing to share
Crafting yet another verse—
Soul opening up
Reasons to finish
Overcoming challenges—
Never giving in
Time’s quiet moments
Opening each memory—
Never forgotten
In searching life’s depths
Finding intended nuggets—
Few others shall see
Deepest emotions
Hidden in life’s tallest grass—
Embrace heartfelt love
Asked to explain love
Filled with honest reflections—
Sharing sweetest thoughts
Marriage joins as one
Love’s odyssey of blessings—
Always one more dance
Why does God lead us through desert places? That He might humble us, that He might test us, and that the true condition of our hearts might be revealed. There’s nothing like the desert to help you discover the real you.
From Ephesians 4:21-24: “For surely you have heard about Him and were taught in Him, as truth is in Jesus, to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”
You don’t find love, it finds you. It’s got a little bit to do with destiny, fate, and what’s written in the stars.
Do not seek the because–in love there is no because, no reason, no explanation, no solutions.
Anais Nin (1903-1977) was a French-born American writer of novels and short stories. Much of her published works came from her diaries.
And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places.
A little nonsense now and then, is cherished by the wisest man.
Roald Dahl (1916-1990) was a British author, poet, and screenwriter. He was a prolific storyteller and writer of children’s books.
The world is a possibility if only you’ll discover it.
The end is in the beginning and lies far ahead.
Ralph Ellison (1914-1994) was an American author who is best known for INVISIBLE MAN, which earned a National Book Award in 1953.
Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.
If the path is beautiful, let us ask where it leads.
Anatole France (1844-1924) was a renowned French poet, journalist, and novelist. In 1921, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature for his lifetime of achievements.
Big Sky Buckeye 