I am a writer, author, photographer, birder, walker, hiker, husband, father, grandfather, brother, Anabaptist, and community activist. My life is crammed with all things people and nature and wonder. My late father gave me this penchant for giving and getting the most out of life, my late mother the courtesy, kindness, and creativity to see the joy in life. They both taught me to cherish the people I am with. I try and fail and try again.
I was sorting through some photos, and found this image I took when we lived in Ohio’s Amish country. Our house was built on an Amish farm and set tight against the northwest property lines. So, we were always close to all the farming action.
This enabled me to take photos of the family farming in every season. Here, one of the farmer’s sons guided the team of workhorses pulling a new-style harrow to break up the plowed rows of soil, turning it to prepare for planting.
Out of respect to the family, I tried not to take photos of their faces. They knew I was shooting photos because I gave them copies of photos from around their farm.
An Amish teen leads a team of horses harrowing a plowed field. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
Sunsets are a favorite subject for my photo shoots. I am mesmerized by the ever-changing colors, the illumination of pinks and blues on clouds from the north, south, east, and west. As the colors transform, so do the shapes and the clouds’ hues.
Living in Virginia’s bucolic Shenandoah Valley gives me plenty of opportunities for sunset shots in all four seasons. I try to capture as many sunsets as I can.
I stopped as soon as I saw this one at the bend of a country road, not a mile from my home. The silhouetted, bare walnut tree stood on the left, its arms reaching out in pure awe and appreciation of the unfolding beauty bathing the northwest sky.
While birding in a local arboretum, I came across this group of male Mallards casually swimming in Cooks Creek. They seemed undeterred from the purpose of their outing by my uninvited appearance.
It’s been a week since I took this photo. I participated in a group bird walk, and when I came upon this serene scene, it stopped me in my tracks.
The morning sun highlighted the tall hardwood trees elevated above a bend in the North River. Their leaves were still unfolding. The combination of the green grass and the fresh and tender leaves shouted “greening up,” a term used especially in springtime when landscapes come alive with new growth.
Clearly, in this photo, green is the dominant color, especially in the reflections on the river’s calm water. This is even though this area of Virginia is listed as being in extreme drought.
Now, a week later, all those leaves are completely unfurled. Is it my imagination, or is the “greening up” unfolding more quickly than in the past? In a little more than a week, the landscape has gone from mostly bare trees to full canopies, which seems a bit short.
Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
Regardless, nature does her thing, and we reap the eye-catching rewards.
You know it’s spring when farmers make their first cutting of hay. However, making hay at the end of April is unusual, even for Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
After a recent overnight rain, the warm temperatures and days of clear weather allowed farmers across the valley to make their first cutting of hay. The windrows of mown alfalfa created the intriguing patterns in the foreground, with Massanutten Mountain looming in the distance.
Earth Day is our annual reminder of humankind’s responsibility to care for our precious planet, our earthly home.
Activities of all kinds are planned worldwide to educate and engage the public on the importance of intentional conservation. We use the Earth’s resources, but we must be mindful not to abuse our sacred soil, forests, waterways, atmosphere, and wildlife.
May we all do our best each and every day to care for our Mother Earth.
A farm field in Rockingham County, Virginia. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
A reflection can turn the world upside down. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
This photo isn’t what it appears to be, though it could serve as a visual metaphor for how the world seems today. But that is not my intent.
The photo is not upside down, and it’s not an illusion. This image is exactly as I took it during a recent bird walk with about a dozen people in a park in Bridgewater, Virginia. The reason the trees seem to be growing down instead of up is that this is simply a reflection in the classy, calm North River.
In fact, if you look closely, you can see a Turkey Vulture soaring over the tree tops in the lower right-hand portion of the photo. The reason the river appears so calm is a low-head dam a few yards downstream that backs up the water. The water below the dam is the river’s normal level.
These are the artistic photographs that I love to take. Being out in nature inspires me, and I love to capture such inspirational moments for others to enjoy as well.
The low-head dam on the North River. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
April 19 – 25 is designated as Volunteer Appreciation Week. If we take the time to notice, volunteers are all around us, helping us live our lives to the fullest by doing things that may go unnoticed.
Volunteers can be of any age. Grandparents, parents, men, women, teens, and youngsters take time to pick up trash from local creek banks in parks. Older students help younger ones during reading time at school.
Multi-generational volunteers helped knot and stitch comforters. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
Volunteers help pull weeds at the local arboretum. They lead tours at local museums. They pick up litter along state, local, and interstate highways.
Volunteers come from groups like scouting organizations, hunting clubs, or are individuals who care deeply about the environment and their community. They can serve as crossing guards and ushers at concerts.
Of course, we can’t forget volunteer firefighters and emergency medical technicians who leave their jobs, family gatherings, and other activities to help someone in need for little or no pay.
Yesterday, grandparents, friends, parents, brothers, sisters, mentors, and the students themselves helped knot and stitch comforters for five high school seniors who will soon graduate. It’s an annual tradition.
Folks from our church also volunteer weekly at a local elementary school attended by children who live near the church. The volunteers pack food into bags for food-insecure families. It’s amazing how staff members and students alike thank the volunteers as they travel throughout the school and deposit the food-filled bags outside of classrooms.
I’ve only listed a few ways people can volunteer to help others. In what ways do you volunteer?
Packing bags of food at an elementary school. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
A Northern Flicker and an American Robin at the backyard birdbath. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
The key to attracting birds to your backyard is more than providing the food the various species need. Birds also require cover for protection and water to survive.
Choosing what to feed birds is easy. Wildlife stores, hardware stores, and businesses that cater to farming and other agricultural folks sell a variety of seeds, suet, and feeders needed for our feathered friends.
Homeowners are responsible for establishing the necessary habitat for protection, perching, and nesting. Planting a variety of native trees, shrubs, plants, and grasses helps to attract a wide variety of birds.
Too often, however, setting out water is overlooked as a necessary ingredient for birds. Water completes the avian trifecta for attracting birds.
Obviously, birds need water for hydration. And just like people, birds need water to keep themselves clean. Birds bathe often to maintain their feathers, rid themselves of dust and mites, and cool down in hot weather. Most birds prefer ground-level birdbaths, but some come to elevated ones.
A ground-based basinAn elevated birdbathA basin with a pump
Adding a small water pump, fountain, or even a small waterfall increases the likelihood of attracting birds to water, especially songbirds. Birds will hear the trickling sound and take that as an invitation to drink and bathe.
Different species have particular ways of drinking. Blue Jays gulp their water by tipping back their head and chugging it down. Mourning Doves are the opposite. They only dip the end of their beaks into the water and daintily sip until satisfied. Northern Cardinals take their time, seemingly enjoying their refreshing liquid.
Birds even use water to clean their beaks of residue, such as seed shells. American Robins bring nesting material to dampen it, making the straw or dried grass more pliable. But it is critical to keep the water and the birdbath basins filled and clean.
A gang of European Starlings can quickly empty a birdbath basin.
As larger birds like Common Grackles, American Robins, and Blue Jays bathe, they splash water out of the containers with their vigorous movements. It’s important to keep the water level full so the pump won’t burn up.
Birds tend to keep their nests neat. They carry fecal sacks containing their babies’ unwanted excrement. Unfortunately, Common Grackles are known to drop those gross sacks in the birdbaths. So, ensuring the birdbaths are clean and filled with fresh water is critical for keeping birds healthy.
Fall Cape May Warbler
Blue Jay
Gray Catbird
Female Northern Cardinal
American Robin
Chipping Sparrow
Female Purple Finch
Mourning Doves
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
White-throated Sparrows
Cleaning birdbaths should be done regularly, following a few easy steps. Discard any water left in the bath. Sprinkle a powdery cleaning compound, such as Comet, around the bowl, and use a soft brush to scrub it around to remove any dirt, algae, or other residue. When finished, rinse that out, and refill the birdbath with clean water.
In addition to establishing bird feeders, providing water enhances birds’ attraction. Adding a small pump surrounded by mostly flat stones to create a gurgling sound also brings birds, both migrating and residents, to feeders and birdbaths. The stones provide perches for the smaller songbirds. If the water slows, the pump will likely need to be cleaned as well.
A Brown Thrasher cools off in the birdbath with a small waterfall. Photo by Bruce Stambaugh
It’s best to remove the pump during the winter months to avoid freezing. The water can be kept from freezing by adding a birdbath heater.
Placing both feeders and birdbaths in locations easily viewed through a window lets you see the benefits of your efforts. In the end, the birds reap the rewards.
One of the main reasons I enjoy birding is that I see so much more than birds. This curious steer is one example.
I love being outdoors with nature, absorbing all that she has to offer. I love clouds, farms, trees, mountains, valleys, landscapes, sunrises, and sunsets.
Being one with nature requires paying attention. Quite often, I am astonished at what I see, even though I may have viewed the same scene before. That doesn’t mean it’s the same as last time. Life is full of surprises and continual change.
Lastly, I love to tell about what I have seen, heard, and touched because it has touched me. Consequently, I love to share what I have discovered with all of you. Even a curious cow.
Roadkill Crossing 
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