Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Collected Blessings 81621” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.
As I look up from my desk I see that hummingbirds are gathered around the feeder in the rain. It’s not really a storm but the rain is heavy and steady at times. It doesn’t really surprise me because today is August the 16th. My birthday. I could be misremembering but I cannot recall a birthday that didn’t involve at least a mild sprinkle. The first birthday party in my memory was age 3 and I remember it was at the shelter of Hawks Nest State Park and everyone was gathered under the shelter away from the rain. But the rain has never really ruined my plans. If anything it’s come at just the right time to cool things off a little. It’s a welcome change after the dog days are over. I love the smell of the forest after a good rain and when I younger I would even run out sometimes and just allow the rain to give me a good soaking. I’ve come to think of the August 16th rain as a special gift from God. In some years it’s actually the first rainfall after a drought. Which is a true blessing for an agriculture based lifestyle. In the old days before greenhouses and interstate highways the mid August rain was something that we prayed for. I can remember at least one summer when there was no waterline to the farm and the wells were dry. So when I get my “Birthday Rain” I’m very thankful indeed. Even today I went out for just a few minutes let that wonderful rain wash over me.
Good night friends and be blessed throughout your days.
Announcement 2.0
For those who have been following me on Facebook and know of the struggle content providers have to get circulation from big tech I’ve been recommending for people to adopt MeWe as a social media platform. One of the problems I’ve run into on MeWe is that people don’t know how to navigate the platform. So to help with that I’ve created a permanent page on my website as a basic Basic Beginner’s Guide To MeWe I’ve tried to anticipate all basic questions there and You can bookmark the page to have as a reference and if you have any questions or suggestions don’t hesitate to contact me. I do still have a day job and I help admin several pages on both platforms so replies might be a little slow but I will answer you.
We also have the Lloyd’s Lens Photography Discussion Group on MeWe that is set up as a fully functional community. There you’ll not only be able to see and connect with me but you can also make your own posts and interact with each other.
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’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.
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! Simplyuse 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.
Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251Lastly, 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 photographerThank you again for your support of my page!♥️
Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Raindrops On Yellow Poplar 71921” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page
Nature’s wrath lasts only a matter minutes and yet she delivers a blinding deluge that sweeps through my mountains. The big blue truck knows the road well but still we ease our way to the shelter of our carport. Thunder slowly rumbles as if the storm is searching. The lone traveler who suddenly escape from the downpour. The rain intensified and the roar on the metal roof is deafening for a moment but then softens to drizzle as suddenly as it was loosed into the landscape. I step out to edge of the shelter just in time to watch the dark mass dissappear over the ridge. A small yellow poplar that grows on the banks of my creek catches my attention with beads of water that glistens like diamonds a bed of emerald. Each one seems to contain its own little world with tiny mountains and dramatic cloudscapes. Before my eyes blue skies pour into each one as the fading thunder echoes its last outburst at having lost it’s prize of drenched wanderer hidden within his forest home. And I thank God for the blessing of shelter.
Good night friends and be blessed throughout your days.
Announcement 2.0
For those who have been following me on Facebook and know of the struggle content providers have to get circulation from big tech I’ve been recommending for people to adopt MeWe as a social media platform. One of the problems I’ve run into on MeWe is that people don’t know how to navigate the platform. So to help with that I’ve created a permanent page on my website as a basic Basic Beginner’s Guide To MeWe I’ve tried to anticipate all basic questions there and You can bookmark the page to have as a reference and if you have any questions or suggestions don’t hesitate to contact me. I do still have a day job and I help admin several pages on both platforms so replies might be a little slow but I will answer you.
We also have the Lloyd’s Lens Photography Discussion Group on MeWe that is set up as a fully functional community. There you’ll not only be able to see and connect with me but you can also make your own posts and interact with each other.
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’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.
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! Simplyuse 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.
Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251Lastly, 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 photographerThank you again for your support of my page!♥️
Hello Friends! Tonight’s Feature Image is titled “Good Morning World 41021” and is available for purchase by clicking the thumbnail and reaching out to me on the contact page.
Please remember that Forage Friday is presented as trivia and not to be mistaken for medical advice.
The glow of an oil lamp illuminated the canvas tent as the surgeon entered inside. He casts a concerned look around the room. So many of his soldiers were suffering with the Remitting Fever. As a surgeon it didn’t matter to him if his patients were wearing a blue or gray coat. All that mattered was that these souls were in need of medicine. And a medicine that he did not have. He did the best he could to make them comfortable until the fever passed and went back outside to sit by the fire and pray for help. The thunder of hooves on the trail broke the constant drone of insects and frogs and soon a rider emerged from the bushes with a few amber bottles. The liquid inside was brown and bitter with the consistency of thin syrup. The surgeon administered the liquid as instructed by the accompanying letter and by morning his prayer had been answered.
During the Civil War malaria was known as the Remitting Fever and was a huge problem for both the Union and the Confederate troops in the South. The prescription for malaria was Quinine made from the bark of cinchona trees but it was expensive and in short supply. I’m not sure how it came to be but I strongly suspect that it was a suggestion from the Cherokee who had allied with the South. Traditionally, the Cherokee had used the bark of the Yellow Poplar to treat fever and according to the history it had been quite successful. Now to be honest I took some creative liberty in the little fiction story above but sometime between the Civil War and the 1800s a method of creating a viable alternative to the expensive Quinine. The complex process involved compounding the powdered inner bark of Black Willow, Dogwood and Yellow Poplar in an alcoholic extract. Further processing involved charcoal filters and a few other substances until the brown syrup like liquid was obtained. The Quinine substitute called for fifty pounds of the combined tree barks and if I read it correctly sixteen gallons of “proof wiskey”.
I doubt that the Cherokee used that level of complexity in their Yellow Poplar preparation. They most likely collected the inner bark from Yellow Poplar roots in the Spring when it peels easily and dried it in strips to use in a tea. In addition to using it for fever it cleared the body of parasites.
The inner bark and fresh leaves were applied as a poultice for Rheumatism and boils. And a salve made from the flower bulbs was used to treat burns and most likely other minor skin injuries.
Of course this is a Forage Friday post and as such I need to address the food value of Yellow Poplar. As I researched for the article the only mention in the way of food was something called “Cherokee Honey”. Prior to the 1800s there was no honeybees in North America. Everything was pollinated by the solitary bees like sweat bees along with other insects and hummingbirds. Without honeybees you don’t have honey. But that’s not to say that there’s no way to sweeten food. The other name for Yellow Poplar is Tulip Tree because of Tulip shaped flowers and as a kid I would either pick the flowers from low hanging limbs or climb a tree to reach them. In the very base of the flowers there’s a nectar that’s as sweet as the bark is bitter. The closest thing to it in the store is Agave nectar. And since we know that Native Americans made maple syrup it’s reasonable to presume that they applied that same skill to evaporate the nectar of the Yellow Poplar until they had syrup that was similar to honey. I don’t know for a fact that it had medicinal values like honey but the tree does produce antimicrobial compounds and the high sugar content would have helped to keep it for a little while. Sucking the raw nectar from a Yellow Poplar flower is like finding wild candy to begin with! I imagine that they may have even mixed it with either Native Honeysuckle or wild berries to get different flavors as well.
Native Americans also called Yellow Poplar the Canoe tree. The wood itself very buoyant and its really easy to carve. The innovation of plywood made Yellow Poplar a valuable resource for West Virginia. By peeling the wood in long sheets and crisscrossing the grain we’ve created a very strong building material. And it replenishes itself pretty fast too making Yellow Poplar a renewable resource.
That’s about all I have for tonight friends. Good night and be blessed throughout your days.
Announcement 2.0
For those who have been following me on Facebook and know of the struggle content providers have to get circulation from big tech I’ve been recommending for people to adopt MeWe as a social media platform. One of the problems I’ve run into on MeWe is that people don’t know how to navigate the platform. So to help with that I’ve created a permanent page on my website as a basic Basic Beginner’s Guide To MeWe I’ve tried to anticipate all basic questions there and You can bookmark the page to have as a reference and if you have any questions or suggestions don’t hesitate to contact me. I do still have a day job and I help admin several pages on both platforms so replies might be a little slow but I will answer you.
We also have the Lloyd’s Lens Photography Discussion Group on MeWe that is set up as a fully functional community. There you’ll not only be able to see and connect with me but you can also make your own posts and interact with each other.
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’re enjoying my blog and don’t want to miss a post then you can sign up for email alerts on my website.
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! Simplyuse 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.
Clicking on the photo takes you tohttps://www.zazzle.com/lloydslensphotos?rf=238248269630914251Lastly, 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 photographerThank you again for your support of my page!♥️
Hello friends! Tonight’s feature image is titled “The Turning 2019” and is available for purchase by following the instructions at the bottom of the article. The title refers to the fact that these are the first true Fall leaves of 2019.
Don’t let the warm days fool you and take the calendar date with a grain of salt. Summer is over. The Almighty has commissioned a change in the season. I have seen it with my own eyes. I’m speaking of my natural calendar. For me Fall is when the leaves change color. The Yellow Poplar is among the first to change. Even with the long dry spell that we’ve had the leaves turn from a rich green to a cheerful yellow. A lot of people think that the color comes from cool weather but it’s actually in response to the wavelength of the light coming from the sun. Plants are vreally very efficient. The green chlorophyll is only able to use certain wavelengths of light and when those wavelengths are no longer available the chlorophyll dyes and the green goes away. The other colors were always there but they were covered by the green. The yellow color comes from Xanthophyll and the reds from Rodophyll. The tree is still processing sunlight into sugar and will continue to do so until the leaves drop. But the green is no longer needed so there’s no sense in maintaining those cells. Different types of trees have different llevels of the yellow and green pigments and so we get the beautiful mice of colors in the Appalachian Mountains.
At the first sign of changing leaves I start to crave the taste of homemade beef stew that’s been simmering on a woodstove all day. I have already been looking for my favorite oversized flannel shirt and have my boots ready for long walks through open forests. During the summer months the underbrush is likely to be hiding a venomous snake in my area so I get the most use of the trails in cool weather.
The big question this year is will we get to enjoy the Fall colors or will the dry weather drive the forest into an early dormancy. If the tree can’t get enough water to make sugar then it doesn’t need the leaves and shuts down until Spring.
The pop of yellow in this clump of trees does give me hope that we’ll see a beautiful and colorful Fall if it rains soon.
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
The bright sunshine beckons me to step outside and steal a few minutes of fresh air. The light filters down through the canopy and illuminates the tiny green specks that seem to float in the air. I have been watching the color of the mountains as they slowly shed the dull gray scale of winter and transform through the browns and reds into the light green. Small purple flowers carpet my yard as I make my way through the native ground cover. Today is the day of emergence. The swollen buds that I’ve been observing since mid February have finally opened. Tiny perfectly formed leaves unfurl to greet the Sun. From this point forward I live in a green world. Along with the new leaves on the yellow poplar trees a bright yellow Swallowtail butterfly has been playing in my honeysuckle bush. My world has returned to me and I welcome it with open arms.
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 FollowLloyds 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 onFacebookor use thecontact form
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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.
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 