"God Created, Linnaeus ordered", we enjoyed!

Spring Walk in the Park

Yesterday I'd never heard of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and Bird Sanctuary. Now I know what I was missing! (Thanks to my friend Sarah and her invitation to join her and another friend for "breakfast in the park" after Mass this morning. :)

Tucked away in the heart of the metro area is a lovely 15-acre plot of land that has been lovingly cared for for 100 years. In it are both upland forest and prairie and lowland marsh and woods, so it has a broad cross-section of plant species. This early in spring, of course, it still looks a bit brown -- but, as they say, it's not dead, it's as wick as you or me! It has been so long since I have been out in nature at this time of year, I had forgotten how clearly one can recognize the budding growth amid the dead fall refuse, and how spiritual that experience of recognition can be. New life!

All in all, we spent a wonderful couple of hours enjoying the spring sun, a breakfast of fresh fruit, having madcap adventures with squirrels falling on our heads, rambling along the trails finding the tiny flowers of God's promises, and even encountering one of the greats of the botanical world, Carolus Linnaeus (who gave the scientific world binomial nomenclature)), planting a special tree in honor of the garden's 100 year anniversary!

Enjoy the day! Happy spring!