Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “After The Rain 41120″and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.
The steady droning of the rain on the roof slowly fades as the breaks through the gaps in the window treatments. When I open the window the cool air spills into the room filling the house with the wonderful fresh smell outside air. The songbirds begin to gather and celibate the sunshine.
My big blue truck has been feeling neglected over the past several weeks so I jump in and take a short hop to the other side of the mountain. The Redbud was still in bloom as I passed by the the little stream that runs to Peter’s Creek. One of the advantages of living in a remote area is the freedom to simply stop in the middle of the road and and enjoy the scenery. I queued up a little Jamie Dupuis and let him play his amazing harp guitar in the background.
As music played softly I just took in all the fresh air and allowed the tranquility of the moment to soak deeply into my spirit.
After a few minutes it was time to clear the road and return home to finish up the days tasks. I turned the big blue truck and headed back, carrying a spirit full of peace with me.
Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!
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Tobook me simply reach out using theContact Pageand we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.
Hello Friends and thank you for your support of my page. If you have enjoyed the photos or the writings please let me know by commenting and sharing my work on your social media. I also want to invite you to Follow Lloyds Lens Photography on Facebook
If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is
Did you know that I also do portraits by appointment? If you’re interested in a portrait session either message me on Facebook or Use the Contact form. The YouTube link below takes you one of my slideshows.
I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.
Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer.
Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “The Keys To Spring 41820” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.
The cold wind and rain eases up and gives me a chance to run some errands. The landscape here in the shelter of my little hollow near the foot of my mountain is bursting with life. Most of the trees are sporting their emerald cloaks and the lawn is starting to look like a hay field. However, as I make the egress up the highway that wind it’s way towards the land of my birth the green leaves fade thinner with each twist in the road. Near the top of the mountain it still looks like March in a few places. The two locations are so different that I not only forgot to wear a jacket but I almost wore shorts.
Throughout the hills there are spots of bright red. At a casual glance a person might be convinced that they had slept through Summer and woken up in Fall. The red maple is a tree that yields it’s beautiful red tones twice per year. We get the red leaves in the Fall but we also get red buds, flowers and keys in the Spring.
In my imagination I can almost hear an elder passing down a legend about the fire locked up in the tree and how it has to come out before the leaves can return. To my knowledge no such tale actually exists but if it did it would be a good one. For now, I can appreciate the crimson speckles that accent my mountain as time grows ever greener.
Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Tobook me simply reach out using theContact Pageand we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.
Hello Friends and thank you for your support of my page. If you have enjoyed the photos or the writings please let me know by commenting and sharing my work on your social media. I also want to invite you to Follow Lloyds Lens Photography on Facebook
If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is
Did you know that I also do portraits by appointment? If you’re interested in a portrait session either message me on Facebook or Use the Contact form. The YouTube link below takes you one of my slideshows.
I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.
Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer.
Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “New Life 41820a” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.
The big blue truck takes me along the stretch of road that had so much influence on my life. I remember when the road was about 2/3 The width it is today. Because most of roads in my life at the time were either gravel roads or jeep trails we called this section of road “The Hard Top”. It runs past the front field that now belongs to my uncle. I can’t really remember a time when it wasn’t full of cattle or standing hay. Even with the old one room schoolhouse that we used for a barn I relive my childhood every time I pass through. But today was special. Today as I slowly drifted by a band new calf came sprinting up to investigate the truck. The baby is only a few hours old and already able to run and play. She’s in love with life!
Image Titled “New Life 41820b”. This is the Carl’s second approach to my truck.
The calf is still wet and testing out her legs. She runs a few zig-zag patterns and figure eights through the pasture and slows to a trot before walking back to the truck.
Image Titled “New Life 41820c”
The new calf will feed on mother’s milk for about 2 months but already she seems to be investigating the taste of the fresh grass in the field of her birth. The world is full of new scents and sounds for her. She licks the grass a little and then in a sudden burst of energy she starts running her figure eights through the pasture again.
Image Titled “New Life 41820d”.
I got the distinct impression that she was thinking “Look how fast I can run!” Her Jack Rabbit take off throws small bits of grass into the air as she kicks up her heels.
The rest of herd looks on. The looks on their faces say “There she goes again!” As she zooms through the middle of the herd.
There she goes again!
She makes a dash for the other newborn and cuts away at the last second as her mother steps forward trying to get control of her runaway child.
Finally, the new calf circles around and presents herself to me once more.
Image Titled “New Life 41820e”.
By now her mother is looking frustrated and I decided it was time to remove the big blue truck a little farther down the road. As I pulled away I could see the calf return to her mother’s side in the rear view mirror.
I was energized by the calf’s antics and there’s something very satisfying about seeing new life finding a new would to explore and play in.
Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that graduation will be here before you know it. Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Tobook me simply reach out using theContact Pageand we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.
Hello Friends and thank you for your support of my page. If you have enjoyed the photos or the writings please let me know by commenting and sharing my work on your social media. I also want to invite you to Follow Lloyds Lens Photography on Facebook
If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is
Did you know that I also do portraits by appointment? If you’re interested in a portrait session either message me on Facebook or Use the Contact form. The YouTube link below takes you one of my slideshows.
I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.
Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer.
Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Regeneration 41320” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.
The floods came and the river raged. The huge maple tree withstand the force of the water because it’s roots were strong but it’s trunk was hammered with debris. When the storm finally broke and the Kanawha River returned to her banks ut was revealed that the tree had lost a branch. The clouds parted and the sun caressed the wounded tree until the first bud formed. The new leaves opened to receive the healing light needed for the branch to regenerate.
The world is full of disparaging news and we have suffered a loss but the storms don’t last forever. Eventually the flood recedes, the sun shines and healing begins. The new branches won’t look like the old ones because they’ll grow to need the needs of the moment but they will come back.
I want to close tonight’s post by asking you to be of good cheer and have faith. Our roots are strong enough to keep us grounded and when the sun shines we will regenerate. Disruption precedes regeneration! 💪
Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that graduation will be here before you know it. Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Tobook me simply reach out using theContact Pageand we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.
Hello Friends and thank you for your support of my page. If you have enjoyed the photos or the writings please let me know by commenting and sharing my work on your social media. I also want to invite you to Follow Lloyds Lens Photography on Facebook
If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is
Did you know that I also do portraits by appointment? If you’re interested in a portrait session either message me on Facebook or Use the Contact form. The YouTube link below takes you one of my slideshows.
I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.
Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer.
Hello Friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Spicebush Flowers 32420a” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.
Cold air spills over my mountain as I brave the rain and gloom that threatens to chill me to the bone. Desperate for a sign that the gloomy season will be over soon my eyes scan the wilderness for subtle changes in the color of the twigs and buds. I Am not disappointed as my gaze lands on the sunny colored tufts on the fringes of my forest. The Spicebush is in bloom! That was actually a month ago. I was so thrilled to see them that I ran straight up the steep grade to get closer.
Image Titled Spicebush Flowers 32420b.
The flowers are similar to Witch Hazel but the easiest way to tell the difference between them at,a distance is that witch hazel blooms in late fall and they are more frilly. For comparison, I covered witch hazel on December 14th 2019 in Forage Friday post #37.
While witch hazel yields a terrific astringent Spicebush yields a sweet lemony tea. The flavor is in the leaves and inner bark and is available all year. However, the inner bark is easiest to harvest in Spring when the sap is up. Otherwise, just prune off the smaller twigs and rinse them well to remove any debris. The flavor isn’t really like lemonade. It’s more like lemon candy.
The tree itself is in laurel family and was a sign of good agricultural land in the settlement days. I have only tried it as a tea but I imagine that the leaves were probably used by Native Americans in preparing fish. A lot of things that I’ve read about the way primitive cultures worldwide cook fish is by first wrapping the fish in ” aromatic leaves”, then sealing it up in wild clay so that it has it’s own little terracotta style oven and it’s dropped right in the coals or even buried in the ground with hot coals. I don’t know for a fact that Spicebush leaves were used but once you crush a handful of the fresh leaves and inhale the scent it makes perfect sense that it would be a prime choice.
It’s also said that Native Americans used the tea medicinally for a variety of health issues.
The berries were made into a tea for coughs, cramps and to induce the menstrual cycle. And an oil from the berries was made into an ointment for rheumatism.
The bark was used for a “blood purifier”, rheumatism, colds and to induce sweating.
I should mention that when I was introduced to Spicebush it was under the name of Carolina allspice. The flavor of the berries is more like allspice from the store and not lemony at all. One of the group’s members when told that the berries were edible yanked several off of a nearby branch and popped them into his mouth. It wasn’t nearly as pleasant as he expected. The face contorted and before anyone could say anything he spit the berries a good 20 feet into the forest. Here’s the trick. In order to get the allspice flavor only the flesh of the fruit is used. The seed is discarded and the flesh is dried, ground into a powder and sweetened before adding to a dish.
Image Titled “Spicebush Leaves 42420a”
One of the “field uses” if Spicebush is that the lemon scent helps hide you from biting insects like mosquitoes. Especially if you have some wild mint to mix them with.
Image Titled Spicebush Leaves 42420b
The tree itself is also used in landscapes. It seems to be disease resistant and doesn’t seem to mind being pruned at all. The one in tonight’s feature image is too surrounded by other trees that are in leafing out so I wasn’t able to get a good shot of the whole tree but it’s growing almost sideways out of the mountain with interesting twists in the branches and trunk. I think it would take well to being planted in partial shade and shaped like a Bonsai tree.
Do you have any use ideas for such a Bush? If so let me know in the comments below.
Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that graduation will be here before you know it. Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Tobook me simply reach out using theContact Pageand we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.
Hello Friends and thank you for your support of my page. If you have enjoyed the photos or the writings please let me know by commenting and sharing my work on your social media. I also want to invite you to Follow Lloyds Lens Photography on Facebook
If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is
Did you know that I also do portraits by appointment? If you’re interested in a portrait session either message me on Facebook or Use the Contact form. The YouTube link below takes you one of my slideshows.
I’m now using Zazzle to fulfil orders. What this means for you is a secure way to place an order, discount codes & a broader product selection! Simplymessage me on Facebookoruse the contact form on my websiteand tell me which image you want and I’ll reply with a direct link to where you can place the order.
Lastly, all of the photos and writings are my original work unless otherwise specified and are not to be copied or reproduced without expressed written permission from the photographer.
LLOYD'S LENS PHOTOGRAPHY LLC 