THINGS ABOVE THE EARTH

Spring may be all about the birds in the sky...but summer is about every other flying creature!! I have never been so bombarded, tactily irritated, or gleefully amazed, as I have this August watching their aerial displays and landings. They are absolutely everywhere, traversing the air right in front of my face, bashing loudly into windows, and crawling on my ankles...or my food.

Starting with the 17-year brood of cicadas, which are all but back in the soil until 2025, to the many wasps who have recently settled in on both porches to raise nice, wholesome families of their own. I don't have the heart to knock down the nests, so we co-exist ever so gently. I just tell myself (and them) what great predators and pollinators they are, as I skulk by their papery homes hanging near the doors.

Standing in the prairie is a treat... The butterflies lilt through the air, some haggered, some still crisp and vibrant. The dragonflies charge each other like WWF combatants. The wasps coast with legs dangling, as if being air-lifted by some invisible force. And the flies...don't get me started.

All these creatures have their place and purpose, their niche, in the ecosystems of the world, no matter how much we swat, spray, or duck. The web of life continues on because of them, and for that I am grateful. I welcome their presence and reproduction at Prairie Pond Woods.

Just remember...
you may come to Prairie Pond Woods to experience solitude...
but you are never alone...!!!!