Christianson's Nursery, La Conner Washington

This is one of most aesthetically pleasing places to visit in the Skagit Valley. There are several boot scrapers scattered about to rid yourself of any remaining bits of heavy, caked on winter left clinging to your boots, weighing you down.

Give Winter Notice

Sometimes I just need to get outside, even in the winter - and gain a fresh perspective. 

Historic Ebey's Landing - Whidbey Island, Washington 

What Cedars See

These short, stunted cedars 

weren't lined up for 

a bonsai show. 

They face the future and 

the wind not defiantly, 

but with resilient 

resolve  - if there is 

such a thing for those 

deformed by life, minus

 limbs and broken middles. 

They live brutally 

buffeted and battered

on a bluff overlooking

the Puget Sound. But

perched there, they get to see 

the silhouette of Seattle's skyline 

nestled to the right

of Mount Ranier's pink glow -

every single night at sunset.

Historic Ebey's Landing - Whidbey Island, Washington 

High on a Bluff With God

I hate heights. 

Trusting my uneasy 

balance and bulk

to a path no wider 

than a goat path

with a drop off on 

one side, steepness

on the other, and 

no place to 

stop and rest 

terrifies me. I loved 

walking along the beach, but

the bluff above beckoned

and tempted me. 

 Honey, do you 

want to finish the loop

and get back to the 

truck before dark, asked 

my date. Yes, I do, but I'm 

paralyzed by how high I climbed -

five shaky steps at a time. I can't move.

Darling, I'm with you. I invited you. 

I wanted you to see it from here. 

Do you like it - this dazzling view? 

When I finally reached the path along the bluff, I felt faint and dizzy. I wondered if I was going to topple all the way to the bottom. Nothing there to stop me. Alone and desperate, I decided to start singing….

Oh Lord, you're beautiful. Your face is all I see. And when your eyes are on this child, your grace abounds to me. 

Tears streamed down my face as I tried to breathe calmly. A young man suddenly appeared in front of me. He looked back with the kindest eyes and said, you're going to get some great pictures. And disappeared. He wore a stocking cap. 

Historic Ebey's Landing - Whidbey Island, Washington