Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

My word for the year was "openness" and I had no idea how much that concept would be tested when I agreed to go on a trip with my husband to Alaska.  By "openness" I meant that I wanted to be open to all that came my way...to accept both the "good" and the "bad" with a welcome heart, or at the very least, with an observant curiosity.

So last year when my husband told me he had the opportunity to go to a remote region of Alaska on a bush plane with Xavier Expeditions and I could go too,  I kept an open mind.  At first I thought I would let him go the first year and see how it went.  But then I met the other professor and he was not only a fellow bear biologist but was also interested in Native American spirituality...that was when I decided to go.

So in early August, George and I (plus 13 Xavier students and Dr. Chartrand) boarded a plane heading to Fairbanks, Alaska.  We spent one day (and two nights) preparing for our trip, buying groceries, etc. The next day we headed out on the Dalton Highway which connects Fairbanks with Deadhorse, near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska on the Arctic Ocean.  If you are planning on traveling this route and are renting a car, be aware there are only two car rental agencies that allow their cars to be driven on the Dalton because of the rough conditions. 

As you can see from the photo above not all of the Dalton Highway is paved.  I learned from Wikipedia that it "is one of the most isolated roads in the United States" and "anyone embarking on a journey on the Dalton is encouraged to bring survival gear."  It has also been featured on the "BBC's Word's Most Dangerous Roads".  The Highway was actually better than I expected, although it was definitely slippery in places where it had rained. Here is a short video clip from our truck.

One of the fun attractions along the highway was a rest stop at the Arctic Circle.  We had fun posing by the sign that states we had entered latitude 66°33′.  The Arctic Circle "marks the northernmost point at which the noon sun is just visible on the northern winter solstice and the southernmost point at which the midnight sun is just visible on the northern summer solstice.  North of the Arctic Circle, the sun is above the horizon for twenty-four continuous hours at least once per year (and therefore visible at midnight) and below the horizon for twenty-four continuous hours at least once per year (and therefore not visible at noon).  The position of the Arctic Circle is not fixed; as of 21 August 2017, it runs 66°33′46.8″ north of the Equator. Its latitude depends on the Earth's axial tilt, which fluctuates within a margin of 2° over a 40,000-year period, due to tidal forces resulting from the orbit of the Moon. Consequently, the Arctic Circle is currently drifting northwards at a speed of about 15 metres (49 feet) per year." (Wikipedia)

Our first destination was a tiny town about 6 hours north of Fairbanks, called Coldfoot (so named because early settlers got "cold feet" when they got there and turned around).  I read somewhere that the population is 35 in the summer and 10 in the winter.  The town mainly serves as a truck stop to truckers driving oil rigs to and from Prudhoe Bay.  The other main service in the town is the airport.  Below you can see "Coyote Air" which is the company we used to fly to our final destination.

When we pulled in, there were three hunters sitting around the building who informed us the pilot was backed up three days due to bad weather.  They told us he wouldn't be back until later and we best head over to the truck-stop to eat.  Needless to say we weren't very happy to hear that news.  We hung around a bit hoping the pilot would come back but eventually headed over to the truck-stop.

Next door to the truck-stop was an adorable post office.  I sent my family post cards because I thought it would be fun to get mail from the Arctic Circle.

After filling our bellies with surprisingly good food from a truck-stop in the middle of nowhere, we stopped by the airport where we were happy to hear that we might be able to fly out the next day if we drove a couple more hours north to the Chandalar shelf.  The pilot's son was going to drive up with us and that way our flights would be shorter.  We ended up camping in the Coldfoot campground that night.

The next day the drive to the Chandalar shelf was stunningly beautiful and we were happy to see our little plane fly into sight.  The plane is a de Havilland Beaver and was built in the 50s.  It has been described as "arguably the best bush plane ever built"(Wikipedia).  The seats are removable and it can seat 2-6 people.  Because our group had 16 people we had to take three trips.

Below is a video of our take-off.

And here is a video of our plane leaving us in the Brooks Range.  It is pretty amazing how quickly it can take off.

“It was beautiful, ...but it was a beauty that ripped you open and scored you clean
so that you were left helpless and exposed, if you lived at all.”

― Eowyn Ivey, The Snow Child

I took a ton of video and photos from the plane but they don't do it justice.  The plane ride was truly stunning and I enjoyed every second of it.  I also enjoyed meeting our pilot, Dirk.  He was a wiry fellow with an intriguing personality...definitely someone who you knew had a ton of fascinating stories and who had had his share of adventures.  I wish we could have talked with him more.

George and I were on the last flight to camp and when we got off the plane we were greeted by all the students wearing full-on mosquito nets.  But our tent was thankfully already set up for us and we proceeded to help set up camp. 

As you can see below there weren't many trees on the arctic tundra.  So instead of hanging our food we put our food in a "food tent" a little ways from camp.  We ended up using the area around the tent as the "peeing grounds" so as to deter anyone interested in our food (mainly bears).

In hindsight, we should have been more worried about the smaller mammals.  The only one to break into our tent was this little guy.  We not only found a couple bread bags bitten into but we were also rewarded with a little arctic ground squirrel scat in the food tent.  George took this amazing photo through the scope with my phone.

Below you can see our fire circle.  You can also see the women are sporting the pushed-back mosquito-net "do".  The mosquitos were really only bad at certain times of day when there was no breeze.

The first day was relatively relaxing.  I walked around the rocks near camp and photographed lichen.  But around 5 o'clock someone mentioned we should hike to the glacier across the way.  When I looked over at it I thought, "That is a good 8 hour hike!".  But there was only perennial light with a couple hours of twilight, so I guess it didn't really matter.  So everyone booted up and we headed down to cross the river.

But the river was not so easily crossed that evening.  It was wide and composed of about 6-8 streamlets.  We ended up taking our boots off and putting on our crocs and crossing several streams.  The water was FREEZING cold and I couldn't help but yell out expletives every single time we crossed (not surprising considering the river was fed by glacial streams).  But we finally reached a sandbar where we couldn't find a crossing.  The stream was too deep and swift and it was getting pretty late.  So that night we turned around and headed back to camp. 

The next morning I woke up not feeling so great with a terrible dry/sore throat.  George suggested it was just from sitting too near the smoky fire and not getting great sleep.  I told myself he was right and got my boots on ready for our big hike.  After breakfast we headed out again.  Below you can see all 13 students and 2 professors in the middle of crossing the Ribdon River.

After crossing many cold, cold streamlets we finally made it to the other side of the river. Relieved to be across we were greeted by a VERY steep and slanty hike next to the glacial stream coming down from the glacier.  I am not sure if it was me being terribly out of shape or if it was the cold I was starting to come down with, but I very quickly started to fall behind.  Hiking on tundra is hard work...it is like walking on sponge that sinks down under your weight...sort of like walking in mild quick-sand.  At one point I stopped to catch my breath and could feel that horrible feeling of having overdone it.  My legs were shaky and my breathing was maxed out.  I told George I was done and that they could pick me up on the way back.  He told me I had to keep going (we didn't have bear spray).  We finally caught up to the group as they were trying to find a crossing on the glacial stream. 

Everyone had crossed but George and I and I didn't like my options.  The stream was too strong and steep to wade through and the crossing required hopping from one wet rock to the next.  At times you had to ricochet off one rock and use all your strength to propel yourself onto the next tiny, slick-looking rock.  I consider myself a seasoned hiker but I have never been fond of hop-rock-river crossings.  My main concern was that my leg strength was gone...but somehow I pulled this old girl together, mustered all my strength and attention and rather un-gracefully made it across.

After crossing, we again started up another steep, angled grade.  Another student wasn't feeling well and she, George and I slowly, slowly made our ascent as the other students climbed on ahead.  There were three peaks.  A lower flat peak, and two higher peaks closer to the glacier.  There were numerous times when I didn't think I could even make it to the first peak.  George finally left us and made it to the first peak.  The other student and I rested and then rested some more but we finally met George at the first peak.  Below you can see the view back towards our camp.

While we were recovering at the first peak we could see the other students like tiny ants making their way toward the higher peaks.  Strangely we could see the other professor coming back towards us.  When he finally got down to us he said, "Well, this has never happened on a trip before...but I lost the satellite phone."  At that point I was so tired that it didn't really sink in what that meant.  But we told him we were going to start heading back to camp and we would keep an eye out for it.

As we started hiking down the mountain the other student started vomiting and it was at that point that I decided we weren't going to re-trace our steps looking for the phone, but we were going to take the most direct, easy route we could find.  After an hour or so we finally reached the big river.  Being in the river basin was the only time you couldn't see a far distance due to the thick willows.  As we made our way through we found some extremely fresh bear scat full of berries.  Being a bear biologist I am normally quite excited at the thought of bear scat...but in that moment it was not the thing one wants to find.  We were not only tired, but we didn't have any bear spray and I have to admit I felt wary and nervous.  At that point I started to feel like we were in the movie, "The Hobbit."  I felt like the journey was going on forever...we kept crossing cold stream after cold stream but there was no option but to keep going. 

Finally after eight hours we returned to camp.  That night I was expecting to sleep really well even with the midnight sun.  But as fortune would have it I barely slept because I started to have cold chills up and down my spine.  At some point I "woke" to my neck aching terribly and I couldn't get comfortable no matter what I did.  I sat up for some time and eventually nodded off slumped over.  When I woke up the next morning there was no question...I was sick.

The next day it was too hot to sleep in the tent so I drug myself to a small hill overlooking our camp and spent the whole day sketching.  All parts of me felt achy and sore but it helped to try and focus all my attention on drawing a patch of bearberry that I happened to be sitting next to. 

The following two days I didn't leave the tent.  It was an odd feeling to spend so much time in daylight in my tent.  I longed for sleep and was so happy when it came...but much of the time I was awake.  It felt like I was being forced to witness myself and this sickness whether I liked it or not.  The days seemed endless because they were.  It felt like an eternity of drifting in and out to the sound of students laughing by the fire, George bringing me food, and fits of fever.  I would be freezing cold and put George's sleeping bag on only to wake up burning hot.  But the whole time I knew there was no way around this...I had to go through it.  No pilot was going to come and rescue me from my yellow-tented prison.

There were interesting interruptions I have to mention.  One night I heard the students saying, "Look at the moon."  I pulled myself out of my feverish stupor and looked out the tent window to see a full moon which proceeded to skip sideways along the mountains before slipping below the horizon.  Another night I was abruptly awakened to a student yelling "Dr. Farnsworth, there are porcupines!".  Again, I was up quick as a flash and we were able to put the scope on two adorable porcupines.  I would have stared at them all night but that night was cold and I was happy to get back to my warm sleeping bag.

Another rather unwanted "interruption" was having to go to the bathroom (and I don't mean number 1).  I dreaded when I had to use the "poop bucket."  Even the small hike up the hill to the latrine caused my lungs to ache.  Plus the whole time you were doing your business, mosquitos and flies would swarm your bum...but you just had to sit there and finish up.  And on top of all that the bucket was rather unstable so you really had to concentrate on not falling over.  Once you finished and got your pants back up you still had to take a pile of dirt, open the bucket lid again, and throw some dirt in the hole.  On the bright side, I can't imagine I will ever have a more stunning view from the lieu.

One day I finally learned to keep taking Advil and George and I went for a walk to some beautiful rolling knolls across our the little stream where we got our water.  (I have failed to mention that one of the funnest parts of the trip for me was dipping my water bottle in the stream and drinking it straight up.  It was cold, delicious and probably the cleanest water I will every drink.)  Below you can see the 360 degree views were stunning.

On our final full day I was still feeling surprisingly bad and there was an intense wind storm that made sleeping in the tent impossible.  (In the back of my head I was also worried it was going to make landing a plane impossible too).  But I just needed to move my body so I lugged myself out to lay near a gigantic rock about a quarter mile away.  The hike was not uphill but my lungs felt like I had knives in them.  When I reached the rock I thankfully collapsed into it and was glad to get a break from the wind.  As I sat there I felt strangely happy to be exactly there in that moment.  Yes, I was sick as a dog, but that couldn't stop me from appreciating the excruciating beauty around me.  The landscape held me and I was part of it. 

“A wonderful gift may not be wrapped as you expect.”

― Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The final morning, we were hoping against hope that the pilot was on his way to pick us up.  We were supposed to call him on the sat phone to tell him what our weather was but sadly our phone was probably deep in the Ribdon River.  Everyone packed up their sleeping bags and pulled up camp in hopes that we would leave that day.  I packed up my belongings but fell asleep in the tent waiting.  I awakened to the sound of someone yelling "Dirk!".  I have never been so happy to hear the sound of plane engines in my life.

“As the glow of the cabin windows turned to flickers through the trees and then to black, her eyes adjusted and the starlight alone on the pure white snow was enough to light her way. The cold scorched her cheeks and her lungs, but she was warm in her fox hat and wool. An owl swooped through the spruce boughs, a slow-flying shadow, but she was not frightened. She felt old and strong, like the mountains and the river. She would find her way home.”

― Eowyn Ivey, The Snow Child

It was a long day flying back to the Chandalar shelf, eating real food in Coldfoot and driving the Dalton Highway back to Fairbanks.  That night my fever finally broke and I started to develop one heck of a smoker's cough, but I could tell my ordeal was over.  The next day was my birthday and even though I sounded like I could cough up a lung, we went to the Large Animal Research Station (LARS) to see musk ox and reindeer.

After LARS, George dropped me off at the Museum of the North.  I really enjoyed the art gallery there in addition to seeing the natural history displays.  If you ever get a chance to go it is worth a visit.

As I said in the beginning I think this trip was about learning to be open to what comes my way.  I didn't want to be sick, but that was what was being offered and there was no other choice on the menu.  I have learned that much of suffering comes from resisting what is.  The fact was that I was unwell in a stunningly beautiful location and there was no changing it.  No matter how badly I wanted time to move faster, it wouldn't budge.  The only choice was to surrender and I think this trip was trying to show me how to do it, if not gracefully then at least not begrudgingly.

“Always say “yes” to the present moment. What could be more futile, more insane, than to create inner resistance to what already is? What could be more insane than to oppose life itself, which is now and always now? Surrender to what is. Say “yes” to life — and see how life suddenly starts working for you rather than against you.”

― Eckhart Tolle

A big thank you to Dr. Chartrand for allowing me to go on this trip and to Dr. George Farnsworth for keeping me alive.  And a big thank you to you if you actually read this whole account!

Wisteria Basket

“She is a wild, tangled forest with temples and treasures concealed within.” ― John Mark Green

We have lived in our house fourteen years and the entire back yard has always been covered in all sorts of vines.  We were told the previous owners liked vines and purposely planted many varieties.  I was excited when we bought the house because I owned a book called, From Vines to Vessels by Beryl Omega Lumpkin, and I always fancied that one day I would make a basket from our vines. 

But after fourteen years of ignoring the farthest reaches of the back yard it had become quite a jungle.  And one vine, in particular, had not only flourished but had grown on top of the neighbor's roof!  This vine was wisteria and was quite an impressive being.  Where the original vine had been planted the base was as thick as my thigh and I liked to refer to her as "la madre."  I imagined the wisteria to be the goddess that had overtaken the back yard, creating dark places in her silent path .  She had formed ropes that literally covered everything and with every passing year her thick tendrils reached further and further into the entire yard.  I had the sense that if left unchecked she would slowly take over not only the yard, but the house and then some!  Below you can see a picture I took of it in the spring.  You can see her battle scars where someone had tried to take her out years before.

“Aphrodite just kept smiling. Because she was just doing what a goddess does-the same way that a tornado rips houses apart or a fire burns down a forest.” —L.J. Smith, Spellbinder  

Having ignored this situation for so long I was in need of some help which, by a twist of fate, magically appeared about a month ago.  We were getting an estimate from a painter and his assistant seemed very interested in the yard.  I gave him a tour and my heart skipped a beat when I showed him the "jungle" that was the far reaches of the yard and his comment was, "I clear." 

He has now spent three long days clearing the "jungle" and has made impressive headway.  One morning I walked out to the sound of an electric saw and there were piles and piles of long ropes of wisteria.  Part of me felt excited to have my yard back, but the other part felt sad to see the end of such a great being.  Normally it is my job to put the piles of yard waste into the truck to haul away, but that morning I spent hours making wisteria wreaths.  I felt the best way to honor "la madre" was to make use of every last bit of her beautiful body.
 

After making all those wreaths I needed a place to put them so I actually cleaned out the shed to make space for them (so many spiders!!!).  But yesterday I started to worry that if those wreaths were out of sight they would be out of mind...and who knows how long it would be before I returned to them.  Plus, the vine is best woven when it is fresh.  So this morning I decided to seize the day and finally make that basket.  Here is how I did it.

1. Make wreath.

2. Cut and insert ribs.

3. Secure ribs by weaving thinner wisteria over and under.

4. Secure other side of ribs.

5. Alternate weaving one side then the other.

6. Complete basket when space is filled
(you may have to double back before reaching the rim as it might get too tight).

7. Find a pot to fit the basket...

or line basket with coco-liner.

8. Fill with dirt.

9. Tie rope around edges and plant a pothos (or your favorite plant).

10. Hang basket!

One thing I like about weaving with wisteria is that you can be assured your basket will not be perfect.  Usually the basket is wonky and misshapen in some way.  Sometimes the vine splits into three thinner vines, has a nasty bump or rootlets sticking out of it...but in the end these imperfections are what truly give it character. 

Weaving with natural vines is a lesson in both perseverance and rolling with what life gives you.  The vine might break at the most inopportune time just as you were rounding the rim and you either have to cut it farther back or start a new piece.  And sometimes the weave gets messed up...but you just make the best of it and keep on going. 

The vines will also teach you about strength.  If you use a piece that is too thick and strong you won't be able to make tight turns and no amount of forcing will work.  In that case, the vine wins and you must start a thinner piece.  At other times you have to use all of your strength to force the vine through a small hole.  Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose.  Either way you find your boundaries and the limits of the vine.  It is a beautiful give and take.

Ironically, the day my dream of making a basket finally came true is the same day my yard is now devoid of vines. I have quite a few wisteria wreaths stored now in the shed but I am now lacking the fresh vines that are best for weaving. But I am not overly worried.  Although my magical gardener friend dutifully dug every vine he could find in the yard and "la madre" is now cut in half, I have a suspicion that behind that fence lies a treasure trove of fresh vine.

"It is the secret of the world that all things subsist and do not die, but retire a little from sight and afterwards return again." ― Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays: Second Series  

Succulent Basket

Last week was my friend Margot's birthday and I decided to make her a succulent basket.  I know succulents are all the rage right now but I have always loved them.  As a child my mom would take us to Knollwood Garden Center and let us each choose a tiny cactus.  I LOVED that! 

I never went for the spiky, spindly kind but was instead drawn to the plump, soft variety.  So when I went shopping for plants to put into this arrangement I was super excited to find these...especially the "red-fingers" below.  Their shape makes me want to reach out and give them a squeeze!

I am not 100% sure where this vintage wire basket came from but it has been sitting in my basement for years.  My next door neighbor had a fire a few years ago and we stored some of his belongings at our house.  I am suspicious that it originated from him (thank you John!). And when I needed something to prop the basket on I remembered that somewhere in my basement was a dragon plant stand.  I ran downstairs and was rather proud of myself for finding it in the depths of my gardening shelves.  When I put the two together I nearly squealed with delight.  

I thought I was done taking pictures but after I watered the planter I noticed the water looked like jewels and, of course, spent another half an hour photographing the water droplets.  Succulents are beauties in so many different ways.

The photo above was taken on my side porch on some limestone slabs.  I used to keep planters in this spot and through the years they created a circular patina that I love.  It reminds me of a spinning galaxy.

Making this planter for Margot made me happy on many levels.  First, just going to the plant store to buy succulents makes me happy.  Second, I love when I finally enact an idea I have had for years.  This basket cried out to have succulents sticking out the sides of it!  And finally, it makes me happy to celebrate the birthday of a friend who I think is an incredible person and I am truly blessed to know.  Happy Birthday Margot!

“A friend is someone with whom you dare to be yourself.”

― Frank Crane

Coral Tree Pod Linocut - Photos & Sketch

It is always hard for me to choose the subjects of my linocuts because there are too many good options.  But the colors of this coral tree pod I found last year in Costa Rica were so stunning I knew it had to be made into a print.

I wrote a post about all of my Costa Rica sketches last year and here is what I had to say about this pod:

"Our first destination of the trip was Bijagual Ecological Reserve.  The reserve is a beautiful rain forest teeming with biodiversity, trails, rain, and rivers. One day Christina and I took a short walk down to the Bijagual river.  As Christina sketched I spent time looking for rocks for a little project I will blog about later.  When we were about to leave, something caught my eye on a little island in the middle of the stream.  I saw a bright-colored seed pod but couldn't quite make out if it was worth the effort to cross over to retrieve it.  Luckily some of the students had left their binoculars on the shore and when I looked through the lenses I was super excited to see these crazy purple colored pods with bright red berries hanging out.  As I made my way over to the berries I could see they were from a tree that had washed down the river.  Luckily Paul Foster, the director of the preserve, showed up soon after with clippers and identified the tree as Erythrina.  He was also excited to see this plant as he had been wanting to plant some of the seeds for the preserve.

I fell in love with everything about this plant.  I don't think I have ever seen a plant before with such an amazing color pallet... I also loooooooooove the bulbous pods and how they curl around to make a bumpy, purple, red, and cream sphere about the size of a grapefruit.  Plus the red seeds were literally hanging by thin papery strips that allowed them to move in the wind.  You can't get more eye-catching than that!  As Christina put it, these seed pods look like they were from an alien planet.  You can see her sketch here. "

When I start a linocut I like to print out my reference photo to the actual size of the print.  In this case that is about 2 ft wide by 3 ft tall.  I tile the image, print it on legal size paper, and then tape it together.  Once I have it printed out I do a light trace onto my paper.  I do it lightly because I usually end up altering the shapes.  In this case the pod had wilted and shrunk a bit when I took the photo so I had to plump everything up a bit.  Plump, me up!

Below is a video of the sketch process from start to finish.  (Please turn your volume up so you can hear the music...it took me forever to get the music set just right!)

Some times when I am in the middle of the sketch I feel like the print could go any number of ways.  I really liked the sketch at the stage below.  I thought it would be cool to do the print with just the inner pools as the focus. 

But of course I can't help myself and have to continue just to see what it would look like if EVERYTHING had linework to indicate shape.

And usually by the end I am convinced the whole thing needs lots of lines!  Plus, I have done all that work and I don't want it to "go to waste."  (But just doing the inner pools is still a good idea and may some day get explored.)

Below you can see the watercolor sketch I did while in Costa Rica and that I did indeed "plump it up" in my pencil sketch.

The next step in the process is to figure out how I am going to do the colors.  I am still debating whether it will be a 4 or 5 color print.  It is helpful to have a color sketch to help me figure it out.  I know for sure the first color will be cream and will be applied underneath all the other colors.   So hopefully tomorrow I will transfer the outline to my safety-kut and get carving!  I will be posting more process images along the way so check back soon!

"It's not choosing the 'right' path that matters. It's knowing what ignites your passion. Once you've figured out what brings you joy, you don't have to worry about finding the right path. Any path — any path — will take you there." — Ron Shaich

To read more about the printing process and the final print click here.
The finished print is now available for purchase at NessyPress.com.

Madisonville House Sketch

Last week a friend of mine put her house on the market and it was also her birthday so I decided to do a sketch of her house.  (If you know of anyone looking for a house in Madisonville message me and I will send you a link to the listing.)  After I finished the drawing I realized it needed a little life in it so I added a few of her chickens walking down the driveway.  And then after I sent it to her it was also suggested I add her cat in the window.  I think it really made the drawing.  But my friend also has two dogs, three more chickens and a turtle so I had to cut it off somewhere!  I will be sad to see her go but I wish her good luck in her new adventure.  Happy Birthday Tiffany!

“One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.” ― André Gide

“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.” ― Terry Pratchett, A Hat Full of Sky

Periodic Cicadas

Although the HUGE cicada emergence isn't expected until 2021, we had a fair number of them emerge this year.  Apparently some cicadas are 4 years off the main cycle and they are the ones we are seeing this year. These cicadas are called periodic because they emerge every 17 years as opposed to the cicadas we hear every summer.

I have to admit I don't like when they land on me, but I did have lots of fun photographing them this year.  If you get up close to them they really are quite striking.  The one above appeared to be smiling at me like a kind old sage...or maybe an alien.  Either way I love the expression on his face.

I was also impressed with the color of the wings.  The delicate copper-colored veining that fades to black and the way the light reflected on the transparent wings was incredibly stunning.

And I love to look at them from the above.  Their symmetry is so cool and you can't help but notice the bulging red eyes.

Below you can see a cicada casing.  They crawl up from the ground, attach to a plant and emerge as an adult cicada.  They are only above ground a few days to mate.

Below you can see two cicadas mating.  I came across them in the middle of the road and had to move them because a car was coming.

I was quite impressed at their ability to walk and mate at the same time.

When my friend Christina saw these photos she said they looked like an Art Noveau design and I have to agree.  I may have to make a linocut design of this some day.

If you ever need proof that magic exists in this world, you just need to consider the cicada.  They live in the dark earth drinking the nectar of trees for seventeen years.  They then crawl out of the dirt as a brown nymph and must break out of their shell to emerge as the colorful creature you see below.  The transformation is mind-boggling.  And although they are only above-ground for a short while, it appears as if they have a raucous good time.

"It's hard, to come back out of the dark.  It's harder still, when you emerge, to hold onto the learning, to the gifts imparted by that deep, rich cauldron of wisdom whose potion you tasted while you were there." -Sharon Blackie, If Women Rose Rooted