Summer Beauty ~ Leaf & Flower

You walk on them … you live within them … you place your dinner on them … they separate your property … and they beautify the walls of your home. All the above have to do with the wonders of wood. From floors, to homes, your tables and fences … from picture frames to just lovely works of art. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of ways in which wood, lumber, and trees so enrich our lives.

On our property alone we enjoy two of the ten most abundant trees in the great Pacific Northwest. The Douglas Fir and the Norway Maple provide both beauty and tons of shade … a special blessing on those hot summer days. We also enjoy a couple Cherry trees, a Hazelnut, and a less popular, yet most goregous Golden Chain.

And though each have a beauty all their own, it’s one that you’ve likely never heard of that always holds a special place for me. As it has grown, its size has attempted to wreak havoc on our neighbors roof, as well as our driveway. Yet, with continued care, I hope to never say goodbye.

Oh, so fragrant!

It is said that there are more than 70,000 species of trees. And this particular one … are typically native to warm and subtropical climates. Yeah … not quite the description of our great Willamette Valley. How we’re blessed to have one of three that can be seen within our town … beats me.

A leaf larger than any I’ve ever beheld. And come mid-June, she provides a flower that displays both beauty and a fragrance that is wonderfully delightful. The ‘Catalpa’, or ‘Northern Catalpa’ to be precise! Thanks for adding a most incredible decoration to our South Third home.

So what’s in your yard, or your neighborhood? Slow down, and enjoy the amazing beauty in which we’ve been blessed by our Creator. You may just discover that you too have a unique species directly within view.

 

 

 Genesis 2:9 "And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every 

tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food." 

 

Thanks Brad for the video, and Brian Doerksen for the song!