Friends who have followed this blog for many years will have noticed that there are ever fewer posts. There’s a reason for that: when we moved back to the States from Rapallo I thought, who would want to read about day-to-day life in Arizona? Rapallo? Now THAT was interesting. Gold Canyon? Not so much.

But I’ve changed my mind. There’s a woman in southwest Virginia who writes a blog every single day. Her name is Bonnie K Hunter, and her blog is primarily about quilting, a craft that has piqued my interest of late. She and her husband own a Victorian house which they have lovingly refurbished and turned into a retreat inn for quilting groups. But she talks about so many things other than quilting: her family, her cats, her neighborhood, her cats, the weather, the wild ponies, the cats. Did I mention she has cats?

This afternoon I took a lovely short walk in the wash behind our house, and I got thinking about Bonnie’s blog and how I look forward to reading it every day, less for the quilts (though they are complex and fun) than for a peek into Bonnie’s life in extremely rural Virginia. It made me think, one doesn’t have to be living in an exotic locale or to travel hither and yon to find things worth looking at and worth sharing, even if they are quotidian (lovely word, that).

That insight leads me to post today. Will I rededicate myself to my once-loved and long-neglected blog? I can’t promise that, but I do know that sharing something that has called to me gives it added value. With that as a background, here are some photos from today’s walk.

The walk through the wash gets a lot of traffic. Some thoughtful person, or perhaps the homeowners’ association, put a welcoming bench under the boughs of this ancient tree. It may be an ironwood, but I’m not sure of that identification. Birds congregate in and around the wash. The bench is an excellent spot for watching and listening. The painted rocks at the foot of the bench read “For all to enjoy.”

Spring comes early to the Sonoran Desert, and it has been especially lovely this year. The palo verde and ironwood have finished blooming, but the prickly pear cactuses are really showing off. This arc of flowers reminds me of a tiara, worn by your particularly prickly great aunt.

There are so many rabbits around here. Their population ebbs and flows depending on where the coyotes are prowling. We’ll have tons of rabbits for a while, then we’ll hear a lot of coyote song, then there are fewer rabbits: the good old circle of life. It’s no wonder they are very shy. This fellow looks more like a shadow than an animal.

Can you find the female cardinal. She’s hiding in plain sight. (It’s a poor photo, for which apologies.) I found her because she just had to sing.

Evening is the best for taking cactus photos – their spines do something magical in the long light. (It may be that early morning is equally fine, but I can’t speak to that.) This healthy hedgehog made me think of a cathedral:

Well, there it is, the first post in about a year. I’m as rusty as can be, both in writing and taking photos. Perhaps posting a little more frequently will improve the quality. Have you seen similar photos here before? You have! But nothing ever looks exactly the same twice, and it never hurts to revisit beauty. Meanwhile, I leave you with a prickly pear flower, so complex, so beautiful, so fleeting.