Bluebonnets on My Mind

hey y'all,

yesterday afternoon i ventured out by myself for a little P&Q (peace and quiet), in hopes of finding The Perfect Field of Bluebonnets.

not sure if i found it or not, but maybe something close:

a sea of blue!

each year around my birthday i make a special trip (usually to the gorgeous texas hill country) in search of bluebonnets. i didn't get that accomplished this year, so i sliced out a couple of hours yesterday for myself ... and used them wisely.

with chick fil-a (#5 combo meal, diet dr. pepper) in the seat next to me, i rolled onto a country backroad, toward salado. no, that's not the hill country (for those texans who know the area). i didn't have the luxury of a full day get-away. but there are plenty of fields and hills and valleys ... countryside ... where i'd likely find just what i was looking for.

without waxing too philosophical or sentimental or even maudlin, bluebonnets are very special to me. sure, you'd expect a native texas gal to say something like that.

but there's more to it. something that i've never quite been able to explain. each year i feel the need, not just the desire, to go and see the bluebonnets. maybe it's because they're blooming, in all their glory, on my birthday each year ... that i feel a connection to them.



but it goes deeper than that because i never quite feel satisfied, emotionally, until i've schlepped out into a field full of bluebonnets (and chiggers), breathed in that wonderful bonnet-scented country air as deep as i can ... and taken as many pictures as my heart desires. i guess i'm trying to capture the elusive beauties (in photos and in my soul) because i know all too well that soon, they'll be gone.

until next year, that is.

some years it's quite the production, trekking out to the hill country and making a day of it. or staying overnight in a charming town such as fredericksburg. other years, i'm lucky to spy the beautiful blue creatures along the busy highway as i traipse back and forth to doctor appointments.

so anytime i can actually take a drive, with the single purpose of bluebonnet spotting and photo-taking, i'm grateful.

grateful. but forgetful.

was cruising along the curvy backroad, almost to the scary loooong Narrow Bridge over stillhouse lake when i suddenly realized ... I ... DO ... NOT ... HAVE ... MY ... CAMERA!!!!

can you say CRAP?! i did. okay, i might've said something else. just maybe.

well, first things first. i had to navigate that damn Narrow Bridge. when i say narrow, i mean NAAAAAARRRRROOOWWW. it's a long two-laner with no shoulders and it's high above the lake. ack!! just perfect for someone like me: claustrophobic, agoraphobic, acrophobic, aquaphobic ... and i can't swim! i think that about covers it.

okay, at the last minute, i googled an image for you. this is THE actual bridge. can't believe i found a pic of it! see what i mean?!

so i white-knuckled it across the bridge (thank GOD i didn't meet anyone so i could drive right down the middle stripe, thereby protecting myself from falling off either side).

calm down, terry lee. you made it across the bridge. and you DO have your iphone camera ... i told myself.

yeah, but the iphone camera quality stinks, i retorted.

well, you're this far out here, just make the best of it, crybaby (was really getting annoyed with my smartass self by then).

so, i apologize for the quality of the photos. i may have to take another bluebonnet trip with the real camera. we'll see. but for now, here are the best ones. i'm no professional photographer, but it's almost impossible to screw up a bluebonnet. almost, i said.

enjoy!

love and hugs,
terry lee

this is one of my favorite shots. love that rough old tree trunk juxtaposed with the blue beauties.



see how it looks like solid blue grass or water back against the fence line? looooove it!!

this is the direct result of going on the hunt for bluebonnets solo.

another favorite, i think. love getting bluebonnets with old fences.

yes, i realize this is a horse, of course. but as i was driving along, i couldn't help but stop when i saw him. v. pretty, eh? there are a few bluebonnets near him, but they're difficult to see.





sweet mix of bluebonnets with white thingies. love the church as a backdrop ... sorry 'bout that ugly pole right in the center!