CONSIDER THE JUNE BEETLE
by Julie Lavender

The month of June brings sightings of June beetles on my walk with God, and this morning’s walk didn’t disappoint.

I love the iridescent and thick, green bodies of the beetles. They look almost like a jeweled-pendant my grandmother might have worn on the lapel of her coat when she dressed exquisitely to go to church … which meant every time she went to church.

CONSIDER THE SLIMY SALAMANDER
by Julie Lavender

       

With the warm weather we’ve had lately here in south-Georgia – no, let’s face it – HOT weather – it just really shouldn’t be in the 80s in February – I encountered the first slimy salamander of the season.

They always frighten me initially because of the way they slither. They look so much like a tiny snake scooting across the road ahead of me.

        

CONSIDER THE CANADA GOOSE
by Julie Lavender

The first time I saw a Canada goose, I was way way above the Mason Dixon Line. One of the first times my range had extended that far.

Canada geese – adaptable, majestic-looking with their black head sitting atop a long black neck contrasted by a stark white chinstrap band – are now found in every contiguous state in the United States and Canada province at one season of the year or another.

However, that wasn’t the case several decades ago, before they began migrating as far as my little corner of the world, south-Georgia. When I was a little girl, I’d only seen Canada geese in books or on television.

Of course, there was much I’d only seen on television.

CONSIDER THE BEAUTYBERRY BUSH

by Julie Lavender

Iridescent, dark violet berries hang in clusters beneath chartreuse leaves, attracting the attention of hungry birds and nibbling mammals. The American beautyberry shrub, aptly named, certainly catches my attention on a winter walk.

The long, arching branches droop with the weight of its fruit from early fall to late winter. Some of the berries become snacks for raccoons and squirrels and armadillos and opossums. Quail, cardinals, mockingbirds and a variety of songbirds partake in the delicacies, too. And the deer forage on them heavily, too.

Yet, many of the berries cling to the bush throughout the bleak months of early winter, lending color to an otherwise drab landscape. The berries, though beautiful, are somewhat bitter in taste, so they’ll do in a pinch for a hungry critter, but might not be the preferred morsel. At least, not when other tasty treats are available.

I think God did that on purpose….in fact, I know He did.