God’s Provisions – LLOYD'S LENS PHOTOGRAPHY LLC

The Sparrow’s Song

Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “A Day For Blankets 120220” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.

The deep cold of the polar vortex pulls North America back to the Pleistocene. Each tiny snowflake glistens like a gemstone in the odd sunbeam that breaks through the low clouds. I watch from the window and listen to the tiny song sparrow that huddles somewhere in the deep cover of a hemlock thicket. He doesn’t complain. In spite of his tiny size he doesn’t seem to be bothered by cold. If the weather is nice he thanks God in song for the sunshine. When the rain comes he thanks God for worms that come up from the ground. And when it’s cold he thanks God for the shelter of the thick branches. His heart seems to made of fire and he warms himself from within. He is unseen by man but God doesn’t blink. God knows his every need and has provided it ahead of time. A few strips of bark and twigs along with down that the breeze brings in and the little sparrows are warm and cozy the cold north wind breaks through the mountains. And here am I in my own home nested beneath the quilts and pillows hiding from the frosty gale. And still my own heart is warmed by the sparrow’s song of gratitude. It is clear to me that my needs are met as well.

Good night friends and be blessed throughout your days.

Announcement:

I am adding additional social media to my network. Eventually, I’ll be leaving Facebook behind for a multitude of reasons. Even though the Lloyd’s Lens Photography page is strictly non-political I have been restricted from interacting with followers with no explanation for why. But it’s not just that. For years now Facebook has throttled content providers in general. They encourage us to grow our audience and then want to sell us back the access to them. In addition, they collect and sell the data from our interaction. So Facebook has become an entanglement of thorns. In response I have created the Lloyd’s Lens Photography Discussion Group on MeWe. We can still interact directly on the blog but starting today I’ll be looking for more platforms that respect the privacy of my followers and don’t limit who gets to see the post.

I want you to join my group on MeWe: https://mewe.com/join/lloydslensphotographydiscussiongroup

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

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Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251

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

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October’s Smile

Color Photography, wildlife

The cool October breeze flows across the spillway at Battle Run. Illuminated by the sun, the airborn seed of wild lettuce, cattails and milkweed pass through resembling stars in broad daylight. I close my eyes and listen to breeze as it whispers stories of the landscape it touches. Across the field near the pine trees a pair of blue jays patrol their domain squawking a warning to those who wander too close to their sacred territory. The wind speaks of the horse that raced the front across the open pasture and nearly won the race. Then the breeze invites me to follow along as it shakes the remanent wildflowers to strengthen their stems. As we approach the the thin patch of wildflowers the wind playfully tosses my cap into the field causing me to rush in after it. The hat came to rest at the base of a small cluster of Spanish Needles which I wouldn’t have noticed had the breeze not brought me there. After securing my favorite topper I knelt down for a closer look at God’s creation. The plant was a simple Spanish Needles bloom. What some might call a common weed. But God made nothing without a purpose. Even though we may not recognize the functions that any part of creation serves it’s not a wasted effort by God. Even if that purpose is to grow in a windy field and represent a smile from the creator himself it’s a noble purpose.

And tonight friends, let me pass this smile to you as well and pray that you are blessed throughout your days.

Hey Friends! Just a quick reminder that Lloyds Lens Photography is available for portraits!

To book me simply reach out using the Contact Page and we’ll set a date. If you’re within a 50 mile radius of Summersville West Virginia all travel fees are waived.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

https://www.facebook.com/aviewfromthelens/

If you’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.

https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

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.

Succession and Success

Color Photography

Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Succession” and is available for purchase by the instructions at the bottom of the article.

The cold rain continues to drizzle on a late November morning as I search for a muse on the Kanawha River. The rain collects on the twigs and swells into large drops the drip rhythmically to the ground. Somewhere in the background I can hear the laughter of a wood-hen but the shy bird stays well away from anything that signals a human is near. A big red squirrel clings deftly to the side of a large oak. He occasionally pokes his head out from the back of the tree in way that makes me think he’s playing peek-a-boo. I turned my attention to the stump on the edge of the river and noticed the smaller tree that had sprouted from it. When I was a child there were no trees in this spot except for a few. The shore was kept clear so that you could admire the falls and hydroelectric dam. But the river was eroding the land to the point that there would be no park today. Large trucks came and heavy equipment was used to place large rocks and new sand on the banks in an effort to save the park but the river was relentless and the artificial shore was wasted away. Eventually it was decided to let nature take its course and the sandbar willows came. They put down roots that bound the rocks together and created pockets that trapped the sand and leaves along with the driftwood deposited by the floods. The sandy mix came to life with symbiotes and became soil. Soon there was more than just the willows. There’s honeysuckle bushes and vines. In the Spring violets are found all through the park. This is where I found the Spicebush Swallowtail feeding on Cardnial flowers over the summer.

God has created a complex world with checks and balances that heal the land. Everything has cycles and patterns of succession as described in the Book of Ecclesiastes ( and Turn! Turn! Turn! by the Byrds ). When we learn to work within the systems of nature instead of against them the land flourishes and there is a bounty. But when we think that we know better and try to force nature to our will there will be failure and loss.

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

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https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

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.

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Forage Friday #29 American Beech

Color Photography, Forage Friday

American Beech Leaf Fall 2019 — Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is untitled and was taken specifically for this article. All of the photos are my original work and are available as prints by following the instructions at the bottom of the article.

When I started doing the Forage Friday posts I was concerned about finding enough plants that qualified as something one might forage. What shouldn’t have been a surprise was just how bountiful the wilderness of Appalachia is. The mountains are absolutely loaded with the American Beech. And a mature beech tree is capable of producing a huge amount of beech nuts. A few years ago when bio- diesel was a hot topic there was a lot of concern about converting crops into fuel and what that might mean for the food supply. At the time, I remembered reading in a survival book about people in the past substituting beechnut oil for lamp oil and the idea hit me that with the vast amount of beech nuts in the forest that perhaps a program to convert it into a fuel crop would be beneficial. I never really perused the idea but I never forget it either. The amount of eeffort it would take to do this even if it were only supplying energy for one household would make it impractical. But still, a little bit of beechnut oil has some interesting potential. The nuts themselves are edible but it’s not really a good idea to eat them raw in larger quantities due to a mild toxin called fagin. Fagin is found in the skin of nut itself and it’s said that roasting them makes it easier to remove the skin. ( similar to the skin found on chestnuts. ) The nuts are also a little astringent. As a kid I remember hoping that they would be like eating a raw chestnut and bit into one. I was pretty disappointed. Enough so that I gave up on them and spit it out almost immediately. But the oil is said to be quite different. The fagin is not present in the oil and neither is the tannins that make the nut astringent and slightly bitter. ( Tannins are water soluble and are removed by leeching in water. )

Last Friday I talked to you about how there’s actually a commercial market for Tiger Nuts and after posting the article I saw that the top Google results for Tiger Nuts was around $13.00 Per pound and the average yield was about 300 pounds per acre. But beech nut oil’ s top Google results was only one supplier at a whopping $75.00 for an 8 ounce bottle of cold pressed beech nut oil. I didn’t find enough hits to give me an idea of market demand for it but I did find srveral websites proclaiming health benefits of beech nut oil which makes it worthy of more research.

The unripe bur waiting for just the right moment to drop from the tree.

The nuts are born in burs and each bur contains 3 triangle shaped nuts. The shape of nut reminds me a bodkin style arrowhead. The nuts are also tiny. About the size of a large sunflower seed. The ground beneath the tree in my parent’s yard was so full of beech nuts that it was like walking in the pebbles near the edge of river. That’s even with a horde of squirrles carrying the nuts away as fast as they can. Beech nut trees don’t really bear fruit until they are about 40 years old but by the time they’re 60 years old they really make up for lost time.

From a foraging point of view beech trees also offer a few other things. The buds are also edible in early Spring although the papery shealth makes them a little awkward to consume. I have also tried the new leaves which aren’t too bad. The guide books say that the inner bark is also edible but if it’s like some of the other inner barks it requires a lot of work to process.

The wood of beech is sold as Maple and often has a beautiful grain that shows a lot of ray fleck.

As you look out of windows and see the bright yellow yellow leaves this fall some of them are going to be beech. It just might be worth a trek out to mark the spot of this very useful tree.

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https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

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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! Simply message me on Facebook oruse 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.

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤

Ordinary Miracles

Color Photography, Uncategorized

Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “Bumblebee And Blue Lobelia” and is available for purchase by following the instructions at the bottom of the article.

Tonight I just have a single thought to share.

Take time to appreciate the daily blessings of life. It’s that simple. The busy bee is busy but doing what she loves. Each flower she visits is to her a wonderful gift from God. There’s no burden in that kind of busyness.

If you would like to Follow me on Facebook the web address is

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https://lloydslensphotographyllc.com/

https://youtu.be/FDcrY6w8oY8

Have you checked out the Zazzle Store?

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! Simply message me on Facebook oruse 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.

Thank you again for your support of my page!❤