Plain Pine Tree

 

If a tree falls in a forest, and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? What if there are 80,000,000 trees? On the morning of June 30, 1908, near the Tunguska River in Russia, there was a 12-megaton explosion. Roughly 80 million trees were flattened by what is assumed to be an exploding meteoroid. It’s classified as an impact event, although no impact crater was ever found. The meteoroid (or whatever it was) is thought to have disintegrated high above the earth’s surface. The area where all this happened is very remote, so there were no confirmed casualties. But Russians going about their day hundreds of miles away reported a bright flash of light, a blast of heat, and a sound like cannon fire. People were knocked to the ground and windows were shattered for miles. I suspect the Tunguska incident is why June 30 is called “Meteor Watch Day.” Because there are meteor showers in nearly every month EXCEPT June.  

Four Large Sawtooth Stars

 

“I like people who begin by blurting out something overly personal. I like people who aren’t afraid to walk around with a stain on their shirt. I like people who ugly laugh at their own jokes. I like people who give compliments to strangers in the grocery store and make friends when they’re washing their hands in the bathroom. I like people who get passionate about ideas and excited about others’ success stories. I like people who live a little outside of the box, who march to the beat of their own drum, and who make it a mission to help those around them.” – Amy Weatherly, author of I'll Be There, But I'll Be Wearing Sweatpants

Windblown

 

No one really knows for sure, but a lot of people suspect the legend of Paul Bunyan came from the north woods; from lumber camps in Canada and the northeastern states. Unlike Johnny Appleseed, he was probably never a real person. Instead, Paul Bunyan was most likely just a collection of tall tales told around a fireside at the end of a hard day. My first memories of Paul and Babe, the big blue ox involve a musical animated Disney short that first aired in 1958. It featured The Mellomen and the voice of Thurl Ravenscroft. Then there was a picture book in 1984, written and illustrated by Steven Kellogg. My kids and I read it so many times the spine broke and the pages fell apart. June 28 is Paul Bunyan Day. I’m not sure how one celebrates Paul Bunyan Day. Maybe with a tall stack of flapjacks and maple syrup? 

Large Star

 

“My brothers and sisters, when we truly are in awe of Jesus Christ and His gospel, we are happier, we have more enthusiasm for God’s work, and we recognize the Lord’s hand in all things. Additionally, our study of God’s words is more meaningful; our prayers, more intentional; our worship, more reverent; our service in God’s kingdom, more diligent. All these actions contribute to the Holy Spirit’s influence being more frequent in our lives. Thus, our testimony of the Savior and His gospel will be strengthened, we will keep Christ alive in us, and we will live our lives rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, … abounding therein with thanksgiving. When we live in this way, we become more spiritually resilient and protected against falling into the trap of spiritual apathy.” – Elder Ulisses Soares

Ninety Arkansas Crossroads

 

We had a lot of strawberries to use up Father’s Day weekend, but not much sour cream. So, rather than run to the store (again), we made this sour cream-free ice recipe. It was still a big hit.

 

Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream

 

1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled

3/4 cup whole milk

2/3 cup granulated sugar

Pinch salt

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract (Please don’t use imitation)

 

Put the strawberries into the bowl of a food processor or blender; pulse strawberries until coarsely chopped. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, sugar and salt until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla. Stir in strawberries. 3. Cover and refrigerate an hour or two. Pour mixture into ice cream freezer bowl and process until thickened, about 20 minutes. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze about 2 hours. Frozen strawberries may be substituted if fresh aren’t available.

Sixteen Medium Stars

 

It’s summertime, and your car’s been parked in full sun. Even if it’s only 90 degrees outside, it can quickly get well over 130 inside the car, especially if you forgot to crack a window or use solar shades. Once you start your car, open all the windows to flush out that super-heated air. After a few minutes, roll them back up again and engage the “recirculate air” mode. (That’s little button on your dash with an outline of a car around a bent-backwards arrow.) If your car’s recirculating air, it won’t be pulling hot air from outside to mix with the cooler air your car’s AC is pumping. The car will cool down faster, and there will be less wear and tear on the AC system. Also, if you’re stuck in traffic or waiting at a stop light, you won’t be breathing exhaust fumes from the cars around you. 

Butterfly

 

“In the light of the moon, a little egg lay on a leaf. One Sunday morning the sun came up and – pop! – out of the egg came a tiny and very hungry caterpillar.” My favorite children’s book begins this way. It tells how the caterpillar eats (and eats and eats), molts into a chrysalis, and then emerges as a butterfly. It’s a lovely metaphor for growth and change, and it’s a miracle. It’s also pretty gruesome. The caterpillar actually DIES. Using enzymes triggered by hormones, it digests itself into a protein-rich goo. Once all the rest of the caterpillar has disintegrated, sleeper cells in the imaginal discs build the goo into a new creature with wings, legs, eyes and antennae. The other day, my three-year-old granddaughter was running from a butterfly, yelling, “Don’t let it BITE me!” I told her butterflies don’t have teeth, and explained the proboscis. Now she runs from butterflies saying, “Don’t let it SUCK me!”