Every Rose Has Its Thorn…

I’m starting this blog where the other left off…a rose of sorts.  I figure that the beauty of nature speaks to me about as much as anything because it needs to be tough to survive.  Looking out on the endless grassy plains and mountaintops in the summer makes it easy to forget that it had to endure a tough winter to provide the scenery now.  Seeing snow not far from this point brought it all home to me…there’s a real struggle to live here but it’s managed to not only barely make it but thrive!  The numerous lakes have picked up names of the abundant life here.  Our cabin is named for one of the unusual creatures in the area…something akin to a Mud Puppy.  Distant peaks rise to a height where you can see nothing on them but rocks and a bitt of snow…I love when clouds kiss the top like this.  We first saw a moose along the road as we approached the cabin but I couldn’t get a picture of it…later on as Dad and I walked a road beyond the cabin I saw it in the distance once again.  This “rose” certainly has its thorn however this bumblebee doesn’t seem to mind one bit.  A cup of coffee and this view greeted us every morning.  I loved reading my Bible and letting the sun warm me from this spot!  Chipmunks abounded here and watching their antics was a very entertaining prospect at any time of the day.  I can never get enough of the pine and the mountains!  One lake that we walked to had some dead trees on a little knoll…there’s something about trees like this that I find artistic.  There was a beaver slapping his tail on the water some distance away on this lake but I couldn’t get a picture of him…still I liked the scenery from where I sat.  I could actually have been tempted to swim in this little lake…it was a wonderful day!  The view on the other side of the lake really was amazing too.  Notice the snow on this distant peak.  The sun breaking through the clouds left patchwork patterns on the plains below.  Every rose has its thorn and every pinecone here had its pitch!  I’m glad that it wasn’t too dry here because I can imagine pitch covered pine trees burning pretty easily.  The new pine was making a great start on its struggle to survive…I think there’s a lesson here.  Anything worth living for is worth fighting for.  Life with all its challenges is worth living.