Sr Liz, fcJ reflects on the Season of Creation in Australia through the eyes of her companion Charlie.
During this time of Lockdown in our regional area of Benalla, in North East Victoria we are fortunate to be still able to exercise outdoors. My “Chief Executive Officer”, Master Charlie Brown (left), thought it was the right time to lift the spirits of all our readers across the world. He suggested that since Spring has begun why not share it with others through his very own eyes. As his secretary, he has left me to do all the work. He wants me to share with you what he sees daily. Meanwhile he snores his head off with his eagle eye on me!
The beauty of creation here in Benalla is presently fully alive. The skies are a rich blue. Our walk often takes us across the Monash Bridge, over Lake Benalla. Charlie often stops not to admire the scenery but to catch the swallows who have been busy building their nests. This photo shows the craftsmanship of their nest. It has been built inside a broken lightshade on the side of the bridge. It consists of cobwebs to hold it together, autumn leaves, small pebbles and lots of mud.
They are renowned for using mud in their nest building. We found another one under the ledge of the sewerage tower. The local council workers had come along to repaint the tower and had very kindly painted around the swallows’ nest. Within twenty-four hours someone came along and destroyed the swallows’ masterpiece. Here is what was left on the ground. Undeterred they have now rebuilt a new nest made from mud, ready for their new life to be born.
Excitement grew as we saw more signs of Spring. We spotted a bottlebrush. It had already bloomed but the colour was still very much alive.
The more we looked, the more we saw. The next image shows the bud before it unwinds to form these amazingly shaped leaves. If one looks hard enough, one can see the unfurling of a long yellow leaf.
It was like capturing a unique moment in time that one would probably be missed if one hadn’t noticed. That’s the beauty of creation as it grows, blooms and displays all its beautiful colours in silence. God is the master painter and we the observers, guests on this land.
We are so blest. The present lockdown has much gloom and anxiety attached to it but life is daily presenting itself in all its glory. Yes, we wear masks but we can still get about. More people are walking. The importance of one’s eyes has become more obvious as the masks cover most of our faces. Our eyes have had to learn the art of smiling. It is amazing how our eyes can connect with others as we get better at acknowledging each other. There are some attractive masks but more importantly there are some beautiful eyes, that relay their own message. We now have time to look and connect just like we have time to connect with nature.
Wherever we walk one can see God’s handiwork. Besides the cherry blossoms which have not yet been blown off by the wind, the fruit trees are becoming alive as well.
We have so much to be grateful for in our world. Let us walk gently upon our land, acknowledging that we are visitors here for awhile, longing to leave our own foot print for future generations with nature still alive in all its glory.
