Some of God’s creatures came to see the light

 As most readers will know, I am fascinated by so many aspects of God’s creation. One of the things I was actively involved in, especially in retirement, was setting out black lights and white sheets, to attract myriad night-time creatures. Of course as Marie was in steep decline, and for a couple of years after she passed, I stopped my black-lighting efforts. But in the last few months beginning in May, I have been back at it. I have had the lights set up on 6 occasions, at various places in Rondeau, which used to be my main focal point for these creatures. And it has rejuvenated my interest in moths, especially, which has always been the main target species.

 With the increasingly shorter nights until June 21, I had usually not put the lights on until about 9:30 p.m., and kept them on until after midnight. Now the nights are slowly getting longer, so there’s even more opportunity for having the lights on to attract these critters! On a couple of occasions I had them on until about 2 a.m., and might have stayed longer by having a nap for a few minutes in the vehicle when needed, but with the periodic bothersome mosquitoes, I couldn’t really nap, so packed it in by about 2. Of course by the time I packed up and got home, it was usually well after 3, and often didn’t get to sleep until about 4. Then the dawn was appearing before 6, so it made for a limited amount of sleep. The remainder of the day was considered a ‘recovery’ day, so had a few naps over the course of the day. And when I wasn’t napping, I was processing some of the numerous photos I had taken. I typically took about 150-200 photos a night, many of which were duplicates. But over the course of the year so far, I have photographed more than 120 different species of moths, plus a couple of dozen other critters that came to the lights. This photo shows what part of my set-up can look like, although on some occasions I just put the sheets over a rope tied between two trees.

Most people think of moths as those little brownish/beige creatures that smack your windshield or headlights as you are driving after dark. Certainly some of them are fairly small and brownish/beige until you get a close look at them. However so many different ones are incredibly coloured with amazing patterns. One might wonder that since moths are mostly creatures of the dark, how can they see these colours and patterns of so many other species, and what is the purpose? Undoubtedly they must have eyes that are sensitive in a much different way than our human eyes are to various wavelengths of light, so that these colours and patterns are meaningful.

I did post a blog on moths in January of this year, using moth photos of my earlier efforts, but am so intrigued by moths that now I have gotten back at it to some extent, wanted to feature them again. The third week of July was National Moth Week; maybe you have noticed some that are in your area. They do, in fact even come to outdoor house lights but in very small numbers. So keep an eye open for them…you might be surprised at what is around. This next photo is one which came to the outside of the house, not the black light.

Pale-winged Idia

 A sample of others, both moths and other creatures, that came to my black lights, either on a white sheet or a nearby wall, are as follows.

Agreeable Tiger Moth

Beautiful Wood-nymph

Black-dotted Glyph

IO Moth

Next is a Close-banded Yellowhorn, named for its obvious yellowish antennae.

Delightful Donacaula 

Flowing-line Snout

Next is a Pearly Wood-nymph, very similar to the Beautiful Wood-nymph shown above. Can you see the difference?

One of my favourites, which I don't see every year, is this next one, the Pink-striped Oakworm Moth.

A member of the Leafhopper group is this next one, the Sharp-headed Sharpshooter. Leafhoppers are quite colourful, and very small, and fun to photograph.

 Finally, is the Round-necked Sexton Beetle.

 

Just a very small handful of the incredible diversity of night-time creatures! 

So far over the years, I have photographed almost 550 species of moths at Rondeau alone, which is almost certainly fewer than half of the total number of species that are likely there. So there is motive to keep at it over the course of the entire season and in future years. Stay tuned….I might have some new species to share!

 These moths, of course, are responding to certain wavelengths of light, some of which are quite obvious to us humans. But there is a very different ‘light’ that we, as humans, can respond to. Jesus is the Light of the world, and it is through responding to His incredible free gift to all humans by asking Him to be our light through the forgiveness of our many sins, as He has paid the price for them all via his death on the cross. Then we can experience His offer for our eternity, with Him in what those who have had Near Death Experiences have described as the wonderful love and beauty of the heavenly realm. I’ve read several books that share what these NDErs experience, and have alluded to them in previous posts. It isn’t something you want to miss out on.

 I know there are at least a few people on this distribution list that have already subscribed to the Light that Jesus offers. But likely not everyone. Think about it. Deciding will be by far the most important decision you could ever make!!

 

 

 

A noteworthy day for remembering

Today, August 1, is Marie's birthday, which perhaps she is celebrating in some way, in the heavenly realm where she now resides. I only have the fond memories of such a wonderful spouse and best friend, who I continue to miss in so many ways.

Zion National Park

We enjoyed traveling to different parts of Canada and the USA. Road trips gave lots of opportunities to explore God's creation, and enjoy doing things together. Over our many times traveling we visited so many national parks and national wildlife areas. In fact in the US alone, we visited at least 70 national parks, and some of them, such as Great Sand Dunes National Park, on several occasions. Some of our favourites, in alphabetical order:

Badlands 

Banff

Great Sand Dunes

Great Sand Dunes

Jasper

Saguaro

Yosemite

 No question that I miss Marie immensely, but I have so many great memories, and not only in our travels. Just some of the things I have to remember on a mostly daily basis, are that she was kind, creative, thoughtful, practical, frugal, smart, mischievous (in a good way), loving, cute, gentle, supportive, productive, lovable, fun, patient, generous, a great mother to our kids, playful, busy, talented, etc. No, she wasn't perfect, but God knew she was perfect for me and I thank Him several times a day for her!

 

Death Valley

As stated in my previous post, my plans for the next post sometimes get altered. It’s happened again. Further to my recent post regarding mountains and valleys, along with a song by Tasha Layton Meet Me In The Valley, I dug a little deeper into why Tasha wrote this song. And I came across a short video of her venturing out to Death Valley National Park, to camp by herself for three days, so she could get closer to God. It was at some of her lowest points in life that she drew closest to her Creator, spending time just focusing on Him, and not getting distracted by the myriad things in life. Death Valley, at 282 feet below sea level, is one of the deepest spots on the planet, and certainly the lowest point in North America, surrounded by jagged mountains. In general, it looks quite bleak and devoid of life, although to a more trained eye, there is life in some sections. But it can reflect some of the most challenging times of one’s life.

 Here is the link to that video.

 Watching it was meaningful to me for a couple of reasons.

-in October of 1985 Marie and I visited Death Valley NP, and camped there, as well as explored some of the landscape. It was an incredible place. It is the lowest point in North America, being 282 feet below sea level. It was not busy at all, and except for the campground, hardly saw another person, and its huge desert and mountain landscape was very impressive. If one wanted to relate to being in a bleak valley, this is the place to go. Here are a few photos of that time a mere 9 years after we were married.

 

Zabriskie point in the middle

-I have been in many emotional valleys especially over the last couple of years since Marie passed away. I am very much alone, which is to be expected when the person you were joined together with in marriage for more than 47 years, is no longer with me. So there are many, many quiet and alone times. I certainly have known of God being with me, hurting with me, understanding and loving me and speaking to my heart and mind so as to carry on with His plans for this ongoing stage of my life’s journey. I could never have imagined what I have been through especially over the last decade, but God knew it was to happen, and prepared me for it over the years. It has not been easy, but there is assurance of His love and plans for me, one day at a time. Although I don’t know what He has in store for me in whatever future I have left, it is better if I don’t know and rely on Him moment by moment, every day. If I knew some details of my future, I would probably try and jump ahead and ultimately mess things up! It is always best if life’s plans unfold the way He intended.

I can certainly relate to why Tasha made a point of being in a remote valley out by herself. I explore God’s creation as much as possible, and most often by myself, getting to the quietest and more remote parts where I can focus on Him and His creation. It is by far the best part of my recent times, without Marie.

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