Sunset Blazes Hopewell Lake ...

“We wanderers, ever seeking the lonelier way,

begin no day where we have ended another day,

and no sunrise finds us

where sunset has left us.”

                                ~ Khalil Gibran

                                          ~ 1883-1931

Sunset blazes across Hopewell Lake on a glorious, golden summer evening at French Creek State Park, Elverson, Pennsylvania.

The 7,526 acre park straddles northern Chester County and southern Berks County along French Creek and is located in the Hopewell Big Woods.

Set amidst the old, quaint and picturesque farmland of southeast Pennsylvania, French Creek State Park offers two lakes – Hopewell and Scotts Run – extensive forests and almost 40 miles of hiking trails. Adjacent to the park lies Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site that features a cold-blast furnace restored to its 1830s appearance.

French Creek State Park was chosen by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and its Bureau of State Parks as one of “25 Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks.”

Summertime, And The Livin' Is Easy ...

"Summertime, and the livin' is easy ..."
                     ~ "Summertime"
      ~ composed by George Gershwin in 1934
        for the 1935 opera "Porgy & Bess" 
        ~ performed by such jazz greats as 
           Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong,
            Sarah Vaughan & Billie Holiday

It's summertime, and the livin' is easy for my favorite white-tailed deer doe as she grazes in the park on a warm, lazy and lush July evening ... quintessential summer.

I've been blessed to photograph this doe and her fawns since 2012, and it's a true joy to me personally and as a photographer.

 

My Witness Is The Empty Sky ...

“My witness is the empty sky …”

            ~ Jack Kerouac

             ~ 1922-1969

The words of Jack Kerouac soar in this image of a bright hot air balloon gliding with its passengers in a cloudless, cerulean blue September sky.

I captured this sight as I stepped out my front door on a warm, waning summer evening – it’s not a scene that floats over your doorstep every day!

Sunshine On The Water ...

“Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy, sunshine in my eyes can make me cry.

Sunshine on the water looks so lovely, sunshine almost always makes me high.

If I had a day that I could give you, I’d give to you the day just like today.

If I had a song that I could sing for you, I’d sing a song to make you feel this way …

If I had a tale that I could tell you, I’d tell a tale sure to make you smile.

If I had a wish that I could wish for you, I’d make a wish for sunshine all the while …

Sunshine on the water looks so lovely, sunshine almost always makes me high.”

                 ~ “Sunshine On My Shoulders”

             ~ recorded & co-written by John Denver
                            ~ 1973

The summer was waning but its special beauty still shone through on an early September afternoon when I saw this sunflower bloom gently floating and reflecting in the creek at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Two other sunflower blooms were floating nearby, and John Denver's beautiful  “Sunshine On My Shoulders” immediately sprang to my thoughts, with its wonderful lyrics – isn’t this what we’d all want to give those we love?

Indeed, sunshine on the water looks so lovely.