Sunday Afternoon Drive

(Les Calanche di Piana and Scandola, Corsica)

There's nothing quite like a Sunday afternoon drive.  Get out there and enjoy creation. 

 

Home sweet home.

Island Road

Wait till you see what's around the bend...

Birds in Flight

 (all photos taken during a week in Kenya - Lake Naivasha, Masai Mara, Samburu, Mt. Kenya)

                      The Windhover by Gerard Manley Hopkins

                      To Christ our Lord

I CAUGHT this morning morning’s minion, king-
dom of daylight’s dauphin, dapple-dawn-drawn Falcon, in his riding
Of the rolling level underneath him steady air, and striding
High there, how he rung upon the rein of a wimpling wing
In his ecstasy! then off, off forth on swing,
As a skate’s heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend: the hurl and gliding
Rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding
Stirred for a bird,—the achieve of; the mastery of the thing!
Brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
Buckle! AND the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!
No wonder of it: shéer plód makes plough down sillion
Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear,
Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermillion.

Lunchtime Dance Party

Sometimes you just gotta dance.  What started off as a rainy day lunch turned into an all-out dance party thanks to the inspirational and truly pioneering moves of Silas.  Enjoy. 

  Then a song came on that instructed to take off one's shoe.

The Flower Girls

Last weekend we were invited to the wedding of a good friend from work.  The bride and groom were beautiful, but I couldn't stop taking pictures of the flower girls and ring bearers (stay tuned for upcoming post).  It was illuminating to see their emotions change throughout the ceremony, from the nervousness of walking in, the anxious anticipation during the vows,  ending with the joyous exit (above).  It definitely brought back memories of when I was a rather shy ring bearer myself (though for years I thought I had been a ring bear).  Enjoy!

Leopard Mom and Cub

 

Dear Faithful Readers, islanders and landlubbers alike, after a little hiatus we're back!  It has been a roller-coaster couple of months on the island, starting with a lovely visit from friends and family but more recently a bout with acute schistosomiasis (Katayama Fever) that had me in the hospital for a couple days because they thought I might have bacterial meningitis.  Oh and there was some malaria and other stuff mixed in there as well.  Anyhow, I'm feeling great now, can move my head and neck again, and I basically feel like a really blessed owl.  Someday soon I will write a few reflections down, but in short,  I've come away from all of the recent events loving God and loving Kenya even more, and extremely thankful for the friends and family in my life. 

To reward you for your patience (I hope to be posting more now!), I'd like to share a moment that graced our island at dusk a few weeks ago -- a leopard mom and cub hangin out and playing with each other.  This is island life.  It's good to be back. 

 

 

MacGyver

 (photo by GC)

We will miss you, Mac.  All you wanted was to be petted.