A week in photos

New water bottle out on its first adventure.

Lots of biking again this week! This time was on the Pikes Peak Greenway north of our house.

Mountain biking in Red Rock Open Space. I'd never been there before, but I will surely be going back soon.

It looks a lot like Garden of the Gods, but it's way better. Mostly because I didn't have to wade through swarms of tourists to get to the trail I wanted.

Our learning component this week was the final step in Franzi's several-months-long idea: a recipe book made up of our favorite meals and baked goods that we've enjoyed over the course of the year. She's been collecting recipes for quite a while, and on Tuesday night, we compiled them all and decorated the covers. (Clockwise from the top left: Daniel & me, Sarah, Franzi, Anna, Anali.)

Signatures on the back.

Yesterday, I went with a friend from church to visit Glen Eyrie. It's a castle that was built by General Palmer, the founder of Colorado Springs, in 1903.

Now it's a conference/retreat center and historical site, with beautiful grounds and interesting architecture.

Our dining table bit the dust.

My little garden is doing great! I've been harvesting baby kale, spinach, and mesclun mix almost every day. I also have basil, bell pepper, and cilantro seedlings, and my chives, dill, and wildflowers are just beginning to peek their little heads up.

Wandering woodnotes

On Saturday, we had the opportunity to join a friend from church at Fountain Creek Park for the annual spring bird count. So Daniel and Sarah and I got up early and braved the cold dreariness, bringing along our borrowed binoculars and sense of adventure.

At the park's nature center, we met our fellow birdwatchers and divided into groups. My group consisted of the three of us, our church friend, and three others, and we were assigned to Area Six.

From about 7:30 a.m. to 10:30, we traversed our area (sometimes on the paths, sometimes not), stopping frequently for bird sightings. We trod softly on dirt paths. We spoke in hushed tones so as not to drown out the sounds of bird calls. Each species of bird that was identified (either by sight or by sound) was recorded on a list to be counted later.

Did I mention that it was COLD? In the Springs, the sun makes the difference between a warm day and a cold day. So we have lots of winter days that get warm enough for short sleeves, and the occasional late spring day that barely gets above 40 degrees. Still, apparently overcast days are better for seeing birds, so I guess there was a benefit to struggling through the bitter wind, the past week's blissful, sunshiney warmth only a distant memory.

I was astonished by our fellow birders' ability to identify what seemed like hundreds of different species, sometimes by song alone. Though the three of us Service Adventurers contributed little (if anything) to the spotting and recognizing of birds, we certainly learned some things. Possibly the best part was the level of excitement when all seven of us, brandishing binoculars, were fixated on one single rare or exceptionally striking bird nearby. I had to wonder what the birds thought.

My favorite birds that we spotted: Western Tanager, Bullock's Oriole, Yellow-breasted Chat (apparently a very rare one to see!), Wilson's Warbler, and four Great Blue Herons. Look them up - they're gorgeous!

April showers (and blizzards), May sunshine?

A short poem:

April's air stirs in
willow-leaves . . .
a butterfly
Floats and balances

-Basho

This was not the case in Colorado Springs this April. I felt like the month of April was the Springs's way of making us pay for the literally perfect weather we experience the rest of the year. It snowed three or four times, and it rained most of the rest of the days. I had forgotten what dreary cold gross rainy days felt like, because I am ninety percent sure that before April, it hadn't rained here since October. And when it wasn't raining or snowing or cold, we were taunted with a few days of 70 degree sunny weather, just so that the cold snowy days felt that much worse.

This first week of May, though, has been another story entirely. Sixties and seventies all week with lots of sunshine. And luckily, I've been able to spend a lot of time outside, mostly biking and gardening.

Mountain biking selfie.

 

Garden of the Gods.

Exploring a new part of a familiar bike path.

I'm well aware that this may not last; I'm told that Colorado doesn't have much of a spring season. Apparently May can still be rather cold and quite windy.

But at least my little seedlings are finally getting some much-needed sunshine! And it's true that we needed that rain. Everything is so much greener now.

On giving and receiving

We went to church this morning like any other Sunday, and came home with not one, but four unexpected gifts.

First, from Lauren: "I remembered you said shoofly pie was your favorite...so I made you one."

Then, from someone who heard we're going to Yellowstone National Park for our end-of-year trip, some magazines about Yellowstone to help us plan for the trip in just six weeks.

Then, a beautiful hand-made centerpiece that was used at last weekend's RAWtools fundraising dinner, as a thank-you for helping to serve the food.

And finally, two dozen eggs from another family's backyard chickens.

The people of Beth-El Mennonite Church have given us so much more than this, but these gifts are the best physical representation I have of the intangible things we've been given -- love, a genuine welcome, and servant-heartedness. This year, being part of a volunteer program, I've had to learn a lot about how to accept generosity. Often times it means wanting to give something in return, but knowing that we probably won't be able to. And it's also important to realize that although my instinct is to reciprocate a gift with another gift, it's usually not necessary to the person who's doing the giving. Instead, I am simply full of gratitude, and may this be an inspiration in the future for myself and others to give with arms wide open -- giving for the sake of giving, and expecting nothing in return.