Tuesday, June 4, 2019

Youngin' On The Range ...


“The wildlife and its habitat cannot speak, so we must and we will …”
       ~ Theodore Roosevelt
         ~ 1858-1919
       ~ Naturalist & Conservationist
     ~26th President of the United States
                    of America
            ~ 1901-1909
A sweet baby bison enjoys an early May afternoon on the range at Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, where I captured this portrait of an American Bison calf on a spring day as its mother grazed close by.

Bison live as a herd on the hillsides of the 1,100-acre preserve’s Central Range. When the late General Harry C. Trexler established the preserve in the early 1900s, he did it to save the American bison, elk and white-tailed deer from extinction and assure the species’ survival.

A conservationist along the lines of Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir, General Trexler understood the importance of nature and preserving wildlife in its natural habitat.
A successful businessman who amassed a fortune in the timber and cement industries and founded the Pennsylvania Power and Light Company, General Trexler began purchasing small farms in the low hills of Lehigh County in 1906. By 1913, he had transported eight bison and 20 Virginia white-tailed deer to the preserve. The elk followed soon after.

When General Trexler died in 1933, he bequeathed the property to the residents of Lehigh County. Today, the Trexler Nature Preserve is open to the public for passive recreation and nature watching.

The American Bison was designated the first national mammal of the United States on May 9, 2016. The majestic bison joins the bald eagle as a national symbol.

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Carolina Evening Shade ...


“Southern nights
Have you ever felt a southern night?
Free as a breeze
Not to mention the trees
Whistling tunes that you know and love so
Southern nights
Just as good even when closed your eyes
I apologize to anyone who can truly say
That he’s found a better way

Southern skies
Have you ever noticed southern skies?
Its precious beauty lies just beyond the eye 
It goes running through the soul
Like the stories told of old

Old man
He and his dog that walk that old land
Every flower touched his cold hand
As he slowly walked by
Weeping willows would cry for joy
Joy

Feels so good it’s frightening
Wish I could
Stop this world from fighting
La-da-da-da-da, da-la-da-da-da-da
Da-da-da-da-da-da, da-da-da, da-da-da

Mystery
Like this and many others
In the trees
Blow in the night
In the southern skies

Southern nights
They feel so good it’s frightening
Wish I could
Stop this world from fighting
Da-da-da-da-da…”
      ~ “Southern Nights”
     ~ written & recorded by Allen Toussaint (1938-2015) from his 1975 album “Southern Nights,” and later recorded by American country music singer Glen Campbell (1936-2017). It was the first single released from Campbell’s 1977 album “Southern Nights” and reached number one on three separate U.S. charts.
  
The lyrics of “Southern Nights” were inspired by childhood memories Allen Toussaint had of visiting relatives in the Louisiana backwoods, which often entailed storytelling under star-filled nighttime skies. When Campbell heard Toussaint’s version, he immediately identified with the lyrics which reminded him of his own youth growing up on an Arkansas farm. In October 1976, Campbell recorded the song with slightly modified lyrics.

The light of the looming autumn sunset dances on a pine tree that provides some lovely evening shade on a beautiful late October evening in the Lowcountry of Beaufort County, South Carolina.

Monday, May 20, 2019

Yesterday's News ...


“Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.”
                    ~ Dr. Seuss
                 (Theodore Seuss Geisel)
                   ~ 1904-1991
The June 6, 2018 edition of the Northern Berks Merchandiser remains tucked under a home’s mailbox at the end of that month on a beautiful summer afternoon in Hamburg, Pennsylvania in this high contrast monochrome capture.

The newspaper is published by The Windsor Press of Hamburg and has been family owned and independent since 1958.

Hamburg, Pennsylvania, officially founded in 1787, was named after Hamburg, Germany.