Stop. Look. Listen.

One of the things I love about our WV place is the quiet. It’s REALLY quiet in the winter when all the insects are hibernating, most birds have flown south, and all the hunters have finished killing stuff for the season.

When I go out walking with the girls, all I hear are their feet crunching through the leaves. Plus the occasional yips from K when she spots a critter. And Belle’s squeaky toy (assuming she was in the mood to bring it along). There’s also the thundering of feet as one or another of the dogs buzzes me (runs past me very closely at full gallop).

It’s amazing to me how much you can hear if you just stop for a second and listen. And the things you’ll see if you really look.

The dogs are like little kids at a swimming pool. The ones who say, “Mom, watch this. Mom, look at me. Mom, see what I can do?” They get super-excited when I walk with them. We have to do it at least once a day. Usually more. Not that I am complaining. It’s just odd. Most dogs get excited when their person picks up a leash. Mine get excited when I break out the camera.

The many different textures in nature intrigue me.

As does the morning light shining through the trees.

If I were in Maryland, this would’ve just been another piece of trash. At the WV place, it’s a real oddity. How did this balloon get here? The closest Red Robin restaurant is about 100 miles away.

What happened to that tree? Is it alive? That’s not a fresh bend, but the tree doesn’t appear to be dead. I’ll have to try to remember and check it again once the leaves start emerging.

I’m fairly certain these holes were made by one of the many Pileated Woodpeckers that inhabit our woods. Those birds are about 17 inches tall. They look like small pterodactyls flying through the woods. And when they peck away on snags like this one, the hollow hammering reverberates loudly through the trees.

I couldn’t help but stop and look closely at this shell. It seemed completely undisturbed. Yet there was no turtle inside. What happened? Did it just shrivel up? Or did something extract it?

I hope you enjoyed your virtual walk with me.

Do you like walking through the woods, experiencing nature? Or would you rather stick to city streets. There’s a certain allure to both. But I sure enjoy the peace and quiet.