Eyes to See

If you have read the previous blog you know about the elderly couple we met at Lake San Cristobal. They were charming, and we noticed they were headed in the same direction after the stop. We have wondered if they caught sight of this moose just a few miles down the road as we encountered fallen snow passing over the Continental Divide before heading to Creede.

The interesting thing is that, living in Texas, we seldom see snow. We miss its beauty, though not so much the scooping and driving. Growing up in Nebraska, I never thought I would be taking pictures of snow on our trips just because it was a beautiful oddity! Playing in the snow or photographing the glittering crystals on trees and hillsides makes me giddy.

As we rounded the corner past Lake San Cristobal, we found ourselves in a winter wonderland. We slowed down so I could photograph the small drifts and seedlings. As we resumed the drive I thought I saw a sillouette of a moose back in the trees. I yelled, "MOOSE! GO BACK!" My husband remarked, "I thought I saw it, too!" We were able to circle around and catch this lovely cow moose in the snow. I think this was the first time I photographed a moose in snow. What a gift!

Now, I must get to the point. We have seen millions of what we thought were bears on our travels, but they only turned out to be 'stump' bears; brown short stumps that we mistook for the real deal. We have seen bush deer, limb elk, and rock moose as well. After awhile, the eye gets trained, even from a fast moving car driven by a husband that is tired of stopping. He continues speeding along because I gave the wrong wording ("That's gorgeous!" does not equal "Stop, I want to take a picture!"). My eyes, ears, AND communication skills have improved on my journeys. We have an understanding that I need to say "STOP!" if I want him to do anything but agree with my commentary.

My friend Mike, who just passed, would often pray for heightened hearing, sight, and courage in me to capture God's love, glory, and essence in my photographs; that I would bear fruit in encouragement to others with the stories and pictures of travel through His stunning planet Earth. Thank you, Mike, for praying me into all those trips. Thank you, God, for giving me eyes to see and ears to hear. What a wonderful blessing that God has put heart's desire and opportunities in front of me to do this.

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But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.
Matthew 13:14