Sandra Heska King

daring to open doors

  • Home
  • About
  • DISCLOSURES
    • Amazon Affiliate
    • Book Reviews
  • Published
  • Contact
  • Blog
    • Commit Poetry
    • Dared

I Almost Missed It

April 16, 2010 By Sandra Heska King

I almost missed it.

Nose in Bible. Pen in journal.

But I looked up. Out into the field.

And watched a male turkey try to gain the attention of several females.

Who paid him no mind.

He fluffed. He fanned. He followed.

Back and forth. The caboose on the train. The shovel in the parade.

At one point a second male approached the front of the line. But the females just veered to the right leaving both males stranded. I thought there’d be a fight. But no. Both males just looked kind of resigned, and male #2 eventually went his own way while male #1 continued the dance.

In gentleman fashion.

While the females pecked at the ground.

Ignoring him.


I almost missed it.

Just like I often miss the majesty and splendor God parades before me and around me. Or simply ignore it. While I aimlessly peck head down through my day. Or rattle and crash through it like a runaway grocery cart in a parking lot.

While I pay Him no mind.


I almost missed this.

And this.

And this.


And these.

I almost missed the opportunity to marvel at the marvelous.

To wonder at the wonderful.

I need to slow down more. I need to look up more.

I don’t want to miss it.

I don’t want to miss Him.

Where have you seen God today?

“What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all with wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations.” Psalm 104:24 (Message)

Copyright © 2010 by Sandra Heska King

Share this:

  • Email
  • Print
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Comments

  1. Chantel says

    April 16, 2010 at 11:11 am

    awww. to behold the beauty of the Lord- the pictures are ravishingly beautiful. they are breathtaking- God's personally signned art, in our backyards, for free.

  2. S. Etole says

    April 16, 2010 at 1:46 pm

    I see Him when I come here …

  3. Jeff Jordan says

    April 16, 2010 at 4:17 pm

    Love the tulips…don't want to miss Him either…nice reminder.
    Jeff

  4. Sandra Heska King says

    April 16, 2010 at 6:32 pm

    @Chantel: "Personally signed art." I love that!

    @Susan: Awww. That's my prayer.

    @Jeff: Thanks. Tulips seem to be the flower of the day.

  5. caryjo says

    April 16, 2010 at 9:11 pm

    And, yet, today I operated in the basic of basics, hiding in my office most of the day… reading, thinking. So… TOMORROW it will be different. I promise!

  6. Sandra Heska King says

    April 16, 2010 at 10:04 pm

    He's in the reading and the thinking, too, caryjo. Breathe Him in!

  7. Tim Moss says

    April 17, 2010 at 4:48 am

    Sandy, I so much enjoy reading your posts! This past week, I was working in the back yard, clearing debris from the storm damage 2 years ago. I cut the vines that were trying to choke the fig bushes ( I got a nice case of poison ivy on my arms….but it will be worth it when I am able to enjoy the fresh figs and fig preserves) and seeing the flowers and blooms popping out as spring arrives. Last year I was unable to work in the yard, so all the "weeds" that are normally cut were allowed to live. The blooms and greenery that grew was so beautiful, prettier than any store-bought plants. And this past Wednesday as I took a break from working, I sat motionless in the Adirondack chair in the yard….a dozen birds flew around me looking for bugs and seeds to eat. God's gifts to us are amazing, if we just take the time to watch for them. Sandy, thank you for your gift to us.

  8. Sandra Heska King says

    April 17, 2010 at 8:06 am

    Tim, this is awesome. A perfect picture of fruit and beauty that can follow life storms and things that try to choke life.

    And what you would have missed had you not rested.

    A real WOW!

    Plus you made me cry. Thanks so much for commenting.

  9. Warren Baldwin says

    April 17, 2010 at 9:43 am

    God provides amazing images all around us every day, just like you describe here. We just don't want to miss them!

  10. Glynn says

    April 17, 2010 at 9:44 am

    I have to ask this.

    What happened to the turkeys?

  11. Sandra Heska King says

    April 17, 2010 at 10:17 am

    @Warren: Thanks for dropping by!

    @Glynn: Well, I finally had to go in, so maybe everyone got tired and went home. One can only imagine. I saw one lone female out there yesterday.

  12. Billy Coffey says

    April 19, 2010 at 9:32 am

    How I loved this reminder, Sandra. Your pictures, too. It always feels like spring when I come here.

  13. Sandra Heska King says

    April 19, 2010 at 12:35 pm

    Awww. Thanks, Billy.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Meet Sandra

I’m Sandra, a camera-toting, recovering doer who’s learning to be. still. Read more…

Get updates from the stillness by email

Your personal information is safe and will never be shared.

Archives

Categories

Instagram Inspiration

sandraheskaking

Happy first day of fall from my backyard to yours. Happy first day of fall from my backyard to yours.
Just another backyard photo… Just another backyard photo…
From my backyard tonight. From my backyard tonight.
Just another sunset. Just another sunset.
“I would like people to remember of me, how inex “I would like people to remember of me, how inexhaustible was her mindfulness.” ~ Mary Oliver in “ A Little Ado About This and That.”
Current situation. Current situation.
“This spark of life that wavest wings of gold” “This spark of life that wavest wings of gold” ~ Thomas Wentworth Higginson in “Ode to a Butterfly”
🦋
We pulled all the milkweed because it just could not support all the caterpillars. They were eating it bare and most of them died because they ran out of food. This one butterfly found this one lone volunteer.
"I would feel more optimistic about a bright futur "I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority." ~ E.B. White (as quoted on today's page in my Franklin Planner)
"May you experience each day as a sacred gift wove "May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven around the heart of wonder." ~ John O'Donohue in "For Presence" from To Bless the Space Between Us
🌴
Tri-colored heron stalking breakfast in my backyard.
“. . neighbor’s tree hangs heavy with mangoes “. .  neighbor’s tree hangs heavy with mangoes. They are moving in a week. They say a family from Belarus bought the house. I hope they don’t care much for mangoes.”
**
“Beautiful Sweet Things” at https://sandraheskaking.substack.com/
"People do not grow old. When they cease to grow t "People do not grow old. When they cease to grow they become old.” ~ Emerson

It's been a while since I've written anything on my blog. Like 3 years. But I just wrote my first post on Substack. Come see?

https://sandraheskaking.substack.com/p/ten-years-ten-things
Spent a couple hours this morning with friends fro Spent a couple hours this morning with friends from @spanishriverchurch picking up beach trash. Little bits of colored and clear plastic, big bits of plastic, bottle caps, broken glass, strings, ropes, straws, socks, fast food containers, paper, cigarette holders and filters—and a couple unmentionables. Took extra care around the turtle nests. Last count was about 70 pounds, but there were also some bigger things like an abandoned chair and a plastic tent. And a big piece of burlap or something with a fishing lure and giant hook attached. D found a Macy’s gift card that he almost tossed in his bucket. But we brought it home to check the balance—$24.60! We should be able to turn that into something useful for someone. 😊
H Already dead, I am living my afterlife here in t H
Already dead, I am
living my afterlife
here
in the form of a human.
~ Xueyan from Time Peels All to Original White

Thanks to @tspoetry for introducing me to this beautiful collection via an Every Day Poems selection.
The cats attacked the window all night. The dog wo The cats attacked the window all night. The dog woofed all night. This morning we discovered the would-be burglar imprisoned between the screen and the glass on our bedroom slider. 

When I stepped out to release it (no bail), I was surprised by this brief bit of backyard beauty.
For most of us, knowledge of our world comes large For most of us, knowledge of our world comes largely through sight, yet we look about with such unseeing eyes that we are partially blind. One way to open your eyes to unnoticed beauty is to ask yourself, "What if I had never seen this before? What if I knew I would never see it again?" ~ Rachel Carson in The Sense of Wonder
#prayformsu #spartanstrong #spartannurse #michigan #prayformsu #spartanstrong #spartannurse #michiganstateuniversity
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faith Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. ~ Psalm 136:1
A tale of two iguanas... I did not see the iguana A tale of two iguanas... I did not see the iguana in the background until I downloaded the photos. That, I believe, is the one that got caught in one of the openings in the neighbor's chain link fence. We tried in several (safe) ways to dislodge it without luck and could think of no other option but to leave it. Somehow it apparently dislodged itself. We also believe this is the pair that was getting into another neighbor's garden. We haven't seen either one since the last cold snap, so we are wondering if they survived. 
🌱
Thinking some may have tumbled from their perches last night. Pretty sure it will be raining iguanas tonight since we are under a frost advisory. It's cold. And windy.
Just sing... sing a song... Singing our way into Just sing... sing a song... 

Singing our way into the weekend.
"We don't just see. We learn to see." ~ Russ Ramse "We don't just see. We learn to see." ~ Russ Ramsey in Rembrandt is in the Wind
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Get the Mug

Embrace the life you have t s poetry mug

Privacy Policy

Full privacy policy is available HERE.

I Read Light

TSP-Red button

bibledude-net



Sponsor a Child

Join the Compassion Blogger Network

[footer_backtotop]

Copyright © 2023 Sandra Heska King · Site by The Willingham Enterprise, LLC on the Genesis Framework by StudioPress · Log in