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~ Henry David Thoreau

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✨Research shows that people recently exposed to

✨Research shows that people recently exposed to awe are kinder, more environmentally friendly, and better connected to others. ~ Dacher Keltner, UC Berkeley psychology professor, “Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How it Can Transform Your Life”

Yes please.

☀️Welcome to June, The Great Outdoors Month. Nature’s my go-to place for soul nourishing, resilience boosting, stress busting wonder year ‘round.

Visiting a community of cute-as-a-button Elf Orpine at peak perfection was a well-timed dose of awe this spring.

Magic carpets of Diamorpha smalli form islands in fragile soils of seasonally wet flatrock depressions. They’re endangered in Tennessee and watch-listed in North Carolina.

This sprightly succulent doesn’t lollygag – it completes its life cycle in just six months. Elf Orpine’s perfected a “drought avoidance” strategy: bloom, fruit, and vamoose before summer heat and aridity crank up. A wet winter means long stems (up to 4 inches), a dry winter means short stems (2 inches or so.)

The scarlet hue of these tiny elves comes from an abundance of anthocyanins that act as a sunscreen – sort of like melanin in our skin.

Elf Orpine enjoy mingling with various mosses and, of course, Reindeer Lichen (Cladonia.) Hairystem Spiderwort (last image) and One-flower Sandwort add purple and white accents to the party.

Swathes of their pudgy crimson leaves and snowy white flowers give bare granite outcrops a glorious otherworldly look. Naturally, I took a jillion pics. Whether I ever do anything with the photos or not, slowing down and looking closely at the little stuff is a gateway to awe.

Being “amazed at things outside the self” as She-roe Jane Goodall says, is good for body and soul.

💫Wishing you a sprinkle of awe today. 🌿XX

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✨Research shows that people recently exposed to

✨Research shows that people recently exposed to awe are kinder, more environmentally friendly, and better connected to others. ~ Dacher Keltner, UC Berkeley psychology professor, “Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How it Can Transform Your Life”

Yes please.

☀️Welcome to June, The Great Outdoors Month. Nature’s my go-to place for soul nourishing, resilience boosting, stress busting wonder year ‘round.

Visiting a community of cute-as-a-button Elf Orpine at peak perfection was a well-timed dose of awe this spring.

Magic carpets of Diamorpha smalli form islands in fragile soils of seasonally wet flatrock depressions. They’re endangered in Tennessee and watch-listed in North Carolina.

This sprightly succulent doesn’t lollygag – it completes its life cycle in just six months. Elf Orpine’s perfected a “drought avoidance” strategy: bloom, fruit, and vamoose before summer heat and aridity crank up. A wet winter means long stems (up to 4 inches), a dry winter means short stems (2 inches or so.)

The scarlet hue of these tiny elves comes from an abundance of anthocyanins that act as a sunscreen – sort of like melanin in our skin.

Elf Orpine enjoy mingling with various mosses and, of course, Reindeer Lichen (Cladonia.) Hairystem Spiderwort (last image) adds purple accents to the party.

Swathes of their pudgy crimson leaves and snowy white flowers give bare granite outcrops a glorious otherworldly look. Naturally, I took a jillion pics. Whether I ever do anything with the photos or not, slowing down and looking closely at the little stuff is a gateway to awe.

Being “amazed at things outside the self” as She-roe Jane Goodall says, is good for body and soul.

💫Wishing you a sprinkle of awe today. 🌿XX

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🍴”Feed Me, Seymour!" ~ Audrey II, Little Sh

🍴”Feed Me, Seymour!" ~ Audrey II, Little Shop of Horrors

Thankfully the appetite of this strange and beautiful carnivorous wildflower is satisfied with 🐜 bugs.

This population of tenacious Round-leaf Sundew, Drosera rotundifolia, clings to a few seepage cliffs in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Making its home at 5,500 feet, it somehow survives being frozen solid each winter.

These tiny wildflowers are enchanting but easy to miss, especially when showstoppers like azalea, rhododendron, and trillium are strutting their stuff all around. Worth a closer look!

While they do ☀️photosynthesize, Sundews’ acidic habitats don’t provide enough nutrients like nitrogen to convert carbs made during photosynthesis into proteins and other necessary compounds. Since they can’t run to the store for a bottle of vitamins, or move to a home with more amenities, these clever flowers have evolved to get their essential minerals carnivorously.

Glistening droplets of sticky 💧“dew” crown wispy tendrils that curl inwards and act like flypaper, trapping and digesting unsuspecting insects.

Last frame’s a throwback from from July showing bloom stalks and buds. Blooms open in the morning and are done by the afternoon.

Check out some Sundew video in today’s story/ Wildflower II Highlight.

Wishing you a wonderful awe-filled #FlowerFriday and rejuvenating weekend to come.

🌿C XX
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