Green, Green

by Terri

"Green, green, it's green they say

On the far side of the hill.

Green, green, I'm goin' away
To where the grass is greener still.”

~The New Christy Minstrels

The color we're focusing on this week is green. Green is everywhere! It’s the most common color in the natural world, and it’s second only to blue as the most common favorite color.   It’s the color we associate with money, the environment, and aliens, and it’s the color of revitalization and rebirth. 

 

And lest you think there is no green in the desert, this beautiful Queen Victoria Agave is thriving right here in Arizona. It is my very favorite agave with its lush green and white markings.

Post your green images in the FOL Flickr gallery this week and let us see the green you find in your world!

Focusing On You - Green

With our theme being green for the month of March I thought this was a perfect example of this in-between season....Winter on the outside with the snow-covered ground and Spring on the inside with the pretty little green bottles and a sprig of what's to come.
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This lovely image is by Life Unscripted...you can find more of her flickr work here  Thank you so much for participating in our monthly theme.  We still have one week left, so bring on the green. 

The Green In Arizona

by Deanna

When our friends, Rich & Joyce moved to Arizona 25 years ago we couldn't believe they would want to live in a desert environment.  Nothing but rocks and cactus, how boring is that?  And the heat?? Oh I know, it's dry heat, but sometimes (I must admit) it's better than that awful humidity we get in Chicago. Anyhoo I had absolutely no appreciation for the beauty of the desert.  Over the last few visits I now acknowledge and realize that there is quite a bit of green in this dry, arid part of our country and today, my last day here, I want to share the "green" I found during my recent visit.

There are many, many, many different kinds of cactus and many of them bloom profusely during March and April.  There are buds on many, but unfortunately I will not witness the many blooms this year.  This little one has just begun to pop a few blooms, but all that white that looks like grains of salt, will eventually turn into blooms.

 Look at the texture in these large leaves....

And these beauties with the combination of yellows, greens & golds...

Or this one with touches of red...

Sitting out on the patio and watching the hummingbirds enjoying the nectar that Rich provides is pure entertainment.

Notice the green feathers.  And then I was just darn lucky to capture this one in mid air flitting from flower to flower at the Desert Botanical Garden.

Along with visiting my friends, Rich & Joyce, I also have the opportunity to see my photo buddies, Terri Porter (you know her, she's one of our FOL ladies, and Barbara Carroll who I am sure you know from her beautiful photography on flickr.  What fun we have catching up and photographing together.  

One day Terri and I went to the Butterfly Wonderland and then on to the Desert Botanical Garden where I amassed an amazing number of images, but these two below fit right in with my theme of green.

They even have green houses here....

And they decorate their green walls with lovely ornaments...

While at the zoo this Coot (which are very prolific in these parts) wandered up to the shore of the lake and glancing down I saw his legs and feet....eye popping green.

It rained here on Monday, something it rarely does, but it sure provided the opportunity to capture raindrops on rose leaves.  

And this one that is a bud on a lemon tree...

And then the morning after the rain....FOG, another even more rare occurrence here in the desert.

And how about the green bokeh in this one (can't have an entire post on Arizona without at least one flower)

So don't let anyone tell you that there is no green in Arizona (ever!) 

It's not that easy

by Kim

. . . being green. 

- Kermit

"Kermit"

My inspiration for today . . . Sesame Street, and my dear friend Kermit the frog.

Kermit says it's not that easy being green. That it's not easy having to spend everyday the color of the leaves. He thinks it would be nicer being red, or yellow or gold, or something much more colorful like that.

He feels like it's not easy being green because you blend in with so many other ordinary things and that people pass you by when you don't stand out like sparkly diamonds dancing on water.

But he doesn't know how cool he is . . . being green and all.

Because green IS the color of Spring, and hope and of things to come.

And one of my very favorite things about spring is the new green growth, the renewal, and re-birth of all things that have laid dormant over the winter months.

Green is the color of balance and harmony, and is all about vitality and restoration of our senses.

There is something very tender and spiritual for me about spending time in nature, where there is truth to be found, a vulnerability to be experienced.

Living in and among nature is what gives me the strength to cope with the adversities of this life and it's what has gotten me through some really difficult times. And there are so many lessons about life to observe and learn when we take the time. Nature has so much to teach us, but we must be willing to look beneath the surface. To pay attention, to engage.

"Love Abounds in All things Green"

What I want Kermit to know, is that green is anything but ordinary. It's the color of cucumbers, apples and broccoli. The color of leaping lizards and lily pads, and of the beautiful monarch chrysalis. The color of ferns and evergreen trees, of cactus, parrots, and praying mantis.

Green is the color of sustainability and of our future. It is the color of nurturing and of life. It's the color of chlorophyll, the pigment rich in enzymes and antioxidants and critical in photosynthesis. Green IS energy.

Green is the foundation of the forest, and it IS the color of nature. All we need to do is open our front door.

Green IS, extraordinary!

"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves

of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something

infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature - the assurance

that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter."

-  Rachel Carson

Wishing you all a green kind of day,

Love, Kim