Zebra tree

 

Okay, technically it's a zebra butterfly feasting on a purple blossom but there are funky vines circling the tree.  If you ever get a chance to check out the Butterfly Conservatory in Niagara Falls, do it in the winter.  The contrast between cold snow outside and humid jungle indoors is wonderful.  

Resilience

Trees will grow anywhere. This is the side of a small canal at the top of Niagara Falls

Beautiful

Ignore the fact that this tree is in the car park.  It is an incredible tree. Pure and simple

Snow in summer

Picture the ground covered in snow instead of grass, and instead of big huge petals the tree is dripping with snow.  That would be how things look today. All the snow made me think of this photo.

And this one

Stark beauty

I was thinking this weekend about the ache in my heart.  After much rumination, I realized that trees really do feed my soul. Sure they take take of the oxygen so that my brain is healthy but I'm sure I wouldn't survive long in a tree-less landscape.  They provide comfort with their beauty and steadfastness. They tether land and sky and remind me that there is so much more than we will ever understand.