Looking Up – and I found a Look Out 😊

 

One thing that has been a constant source of amazement and smiles since moving to North Carolina is the variety of creatures, critters, and crawlers in the area. We’ve experience snakes, lizards, salamanders, snails, tadpoles, hundreds upon hundreds of frogs, squirrels, foxes, fish, deer, bears, possums, hawks, eagles, vultures, doves, butterflies, orb weavers, bees, yellow jackets, carpenter bees, hummingbirds… the list goes on and on.

And these are just what we’ve seen in our yards, our neighborhoods, our local walking paths… not including any ventures out and about.

Don’t get me wrong. Growing up in San Diego, living in the Central Valley of California and in the desert of Phoenix, we had plenty of wildlife in those areas as well. Just in San Diego as a kid and young adult, I saw coyotes, rabbits, skunks snakes, alligator lizards, seagulls, and a plethora of ocean life including sea urchins, starfish, octopus, abalone, dolphins, whales, sharks, and, not one I’ve experienced personally, but a good friend who liked to snorkel came fact-to-face with a moray off the La Jolla cliffs.

You’ll always be surprised at what you can notice when you just take time to Look Up. Take a lesson from my friend here in the watchtower of our home. He’s checking out the scene and making sure all’s well. And he made sure to scold me for getting too close to take his picture.