Yes, You Can Lead A Horse To Water

ANIMAL LOVERS know that best friends aren't always human. I spent countless hours imagining my own horse as a girl. This graceful creature with soulful eyes and long swishing tail was my perfect companion and confidant, galloping us off into great adventures. Since my opportunities to ride (let alone own) a horse were limited, I could only pretend, unlike the youngsters I recently spotted at Crescent Beach. Content at their slow pace, horses and riders were mirrored in pools of water and made inky shadows on the beach floor for SHADOW SHOT SUNDAY, WEEKEND REFLECTIONS and CAMERA CRITTERS.

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle to view more BC scenes.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

Crescent Suns Over Crescent Beach

Today's much talked about Solar Eclipse was partial (at 80%) in my southwest corner of British Columbia. It reached its peak at Crescent Beach by around 10:20 this morning when we discovered even a partial sunlight of 20 percent went a long way to keep the day bright. It never got dark and the awesome effects of a crescent sun, resulting from the moon's shadow, were visible only with special glasses ... unless you were looking at the ground and benches.

Not only the bench but shadowy fingers were littered with crescent reflections.

I didn't look but pointed my camera in the sun's direction ...

risking the health of my camera taking the shot above without proper lenses.

Mostly, it was fun to walk on the tiny scatterings of moon shapes everywhere.

Sometimes a multitude of crescents, bunched up together, made the flat sandy walkway look like a bumpy trail of clouds gathering on a stormy day.

Someone brought a sunflower umbrella in honour of the occasion.

Although such grand events in the sky come along only once in a while, there's plenty of daily wonder beneath our feet to keep the young and young at heart busy and enthralled. I'm guessing the kids (below) missed the entire show because they were building their own spectacular event.

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle to view more BC scenes.

To see more sights from around the globe visit OUR WORLD at the sidebar. This post will also be linked to Weekend Reflections and Skywatch Friday.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

Smoke & Mirrors

A CHARACTER from a television series called Endeavour said: "There's no real magic in this world, only love - the rest is just smoke and mirrors."

There's probably truth in that sentiment but as someone who enjoys rummaging through the "smoke and mirrors", I'm posting a few pictures of things that I found bewitching recently.

I saw a red heart dangling on a tree branch on International Women's Day this Wednesday. I presume someone hung it there to honour the event. Their loving gesture reflected not only the global movement but the branches.

My camera unfortunately didn't catch the beautiful kaleidoscope of colours I saw mirrored in the droplets of rainwater that clung to the berries.

Twigs like sticks for witches wands barely had room for the coming leaves.

Deep shadowy worlds were reflected in the shallowest puddles after a rainfall.

It never fails to feel magical when walking down puddles of smokey clouds.

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle to view more BC scenes.

To see more sights from around the globe visit OUR WORLD at the sidebar and Weekend Reflections HERE.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

Grotesque Monsters & Glorious Worlds

THE ICE AGE saw the destruction of many monsters but it seemed as if some came back during a recent cold spell in southwest BC. A string of Icicles clung to the greenery with a firm dinosaur-like grip smothering the winter berries.

Reptilian creatures with grotesque heads devoured the fruit.

Their jagged claws with freezing sharp tips sent a chilling message.

Beware you don't get stabbed by an icy spear on your way out the gate, it said.

Ducking to get to the car in the driveway ...

I observed magical reflections within the icy formations.

Ice cages entrapped the berries and ensnared their leaves.

I could imagine ice palaces within those slithery smooth walls and strange worlds where everything glistened and warmth was feared.

The glorious architecture all the more worthy of being revered because it is normally short-lived in my rainy corner of the world.

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle to view more BC scenes.

To see more sights from around the globe visit OUR WORLD at the sidebar and Weekend Reflections HERE.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

The Secret World Of Puddles

DIPS IN THE ROAD and potholes make wonderful puddles where I wander. These random cavities filled with rainwater are usually shallow and fun to jump into if you are very young or a kid at heart.

A puddle can be touched by the sun and reflect its surroundings or be murky and unfathomable.

An inch of water or a deep well … it is sometimes difficult to tell.

The face of a puddle can ripple like a circus mirror or be as placid as a sheltered pond in the forest. Images within puddles are illusions that look similar to the outside world but are a little more fluid and enchanting.

A puddle can vanish the way a dream does upon waking ... taking cities, country lanes, skies and trees right along with it when we are not watching.

I took these photos at Crescent Beach where there are often lots of puddles and reflections to explore.

Although pockets of water are common world over after a steady downpour, it should be noted that this South Surrey community is situated where both Boundary Bay and Mud Bay flow. The ground elevation ranges from 0 to 3 meters above sea level. The area is surrounded by a dyke system should those puddles get too extreme. Most recently the high groundwater levels were addressed with a drainage pump located at Blackie Spit Park.

See more mirrored sights from around the globe at Weekend Reflections.

Visit Postcards From Penelope Puddle to view more BC scenes.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

Here's The Clouds, Here's The Steeple ...

A RHYME came to mind when I went by the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church of St. Mary in Whalley. Looking up at the sky, familiar words rang in my head: Here's the church, here's the steeple, open the doors and see all the people.

I didn’t open the church doors, however. And the only person I saw was me taking a picture of the steeple under a cloud-filled pale blue sky reflected in the car window. As if floating in some heavenly place in the clouds, cars and buildings (click photo for detail) were also reflected.

As the poem says I hope to one day find time to step through the doors of this lovely historic church and see all the people.

There are more skies to view from around the globe at Skywatch.

This post is also linked to Weekend Reflections.

Copyright by Penelope Puddlisms

Blown Away By Double Rainbows

HOW DOES ONE CAPTURE THE WIND in a photograph? Scattering leaves when the breeze whips through trees or an inverted umbrella rolling down the street provide visuals of its unseen power. Recently, my windsock captured the wind that briskly blew over Surrey. In fact, I discovered two windsocks thanks to the reflection of the original on my patio glass door. My double rainbow reminded me of the well-known video that went viral.

I wasn't quite as excited as the man in the video. But it was fun to watch my windsock being flung about in the breeze.

I stepped outside to record its many movements.

The simple windsock conveyed a mood for every motion as it swam the sky.

Sometimes it looked as if it had legs and would run away.

When it couldn't find freedom or get unstrung it got frazzled.

Mostly, however, it performed a buoyant dance with its mirror image.

My worn out windsock eventually escaped from its partner in the glass. Peering down from the roof above, it seemed to say, aha free to rest at last!

See more weekend reflections from around the world here.