Prairie Notes #157 - Pics & Proverbs 2019
Prairie Notes are monthly photo/journal observations from Tandy Hills Natural Area by Founder/Director, Don Young. They include field reports, flora and fauna sightings, and more, mixed with a scoop of dry humor and a bit of philosophy.
They are available free to all who get on the FOTHNA email list.
Pics & Proverbs 2019
Prairie Notes #157
December 27, 2019
01) Pics & Proverbs 2019
02) Your MEMBERSHIP Matters
03) New Species - December 2019
04) MM&WW HIke the HIlls is TODAY
05) Videos of the Year 2019
06) Prairie Proverb - Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson
01) Pics & Proverbs 2019
With Tandy Hills more or less at rest, January is a good time to review and reflect on the past year via 2019's Prairie Proverbs and a few of my favorite pics from each of the past 12 issues of Prairie Notes.
2019 quotations included a quirky mix naturalists, artists, scientists and environmentalists from the distant past to the recently deceased, artists, poets, musicians and philosophers. Each quote had a particular fit for the issue in which quoted. As usual, there were a few surprises. (I'm especially fond of Aldo Leopold's quote in issue #138.)
Herewith, Prairie Proverbs I - XII from 2019, with photos of the quoted authors and select pics from the same issue. Thanks for reading and for your continued support!
DY
Prairie Notes #145, (PIcs & Proverbs 2018) January 1, 2019
“The name, given to the month of ‘January’, is derived from the ancient Roman name ‘Janus’ who presided over the gate to the new year. Janus is symbolized by an image of a face that looks forwards and backwards at the same time. This symbolism is associated with the month as the start of a new year which brings new opportunities. It is the time to reflect on events of the previous year.”
Prairie Notes #146, (Prelude to the Beginning of Spring) February 1, 2019
“Instructions for living a life:
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.”
Prairie Notes #147, (The Sensuous Prairie) March 1, 2019
“Heather, this tiny purple flower from the moors, has dined upon my heart and now it grows within her….”
Prairie Notes #148, (Catching the Prairie Wind) April 1, 2019
“May there be only peaceful and cheerful Earth Days to come for our beautiful Spaceship Earth as it continues to spin and circle in frigid space with its warm and fragile cargo of animate life.”
Prairie Notes #149 (Prairie Treasure Chest) May 1, 2019
“The natural world is not just a nice place to have, it fundamentally matters to each and every one of us.”
Prairie Notes #150, (National Prairie Day), June 1, 2019
“Tandy Hills is a refuge for all of these species, even the little tiny ones just waiting for us to appreciate them!”
Prairie Notes #151 (A Menagerie of Prairie FLora???) July 1, 2019
“My wish is to stay always like this, living quietly in a corner of nature.”
Prairie Notes #152, (Damsels & Dragons) August 1, 2019
“The student who goes afield armed with opera-glass will not only add more to our knowledge than he who goes armed with a gun, but will gain for himself a fund of enthusiasm and a lasting store of pleasant memories.”
Prairie Notes #153, (Eryn-A-Go-Go) September 1, 2019
“... while I know the standard claim is that Yosemite, Niagara Falls and the Upper Yellowstone, and the like afford the greatest shows, I am not so sure but the prairies and the plains, while less stunning at first sight, last longer, fill the aesthetic sense fuller, precede all the rest, and make North America’s characteristic landscape.”
Prairie Notes #154 (All Things Small & Smaller) October 1, 2019
“You may not believe it but, everything that exists has some purpose . . . even this little pebble must serve some purpose . . . because if it’s useless then, everything is useless . . . even the stars in the sky.”
Prairie Notes #155, ('Tween Times) November 1, 2019
“My feet took a walk in heavenly grass.
All day while the sky shone clear as glass.
My feet took a walk in heavenly grass,
All night while the lonesome stars rolled past.
Then my feet come down to walk on earth,
And my mother cried when she give me birth.
Now my feet walk far and my feet walk fast,
But they still got an itch for heavenly grass.
But they still got an itch for heavenly grass.”
Prairie Notes #144, (Rear View Mirror) December 1, 2018
“Goddamnit, we’ve got to get on this environment story.”
02) Your MEMBERSHIP Matters
2019 was another productive year for Friends of Tandy Hills and 2020 looks to be a watershed year. We hope these accomplishments will inspire you to make a donation today:
> iNaturalst observations at Tandy HIlls increased by 200 new species
> Manly Men Wild Women Hike, Trout Lily Walk, PrairieSky / StarParty & Facebook page introduced hundreds of new people to Tandy Hills
> Prairie Posse brought volunteers restored key sections of Tandy Hills
> Our outdoor education program, Kids on the Prairie (KOP), notched year #9 hosting or sponsoring outdoor education field trips
> North TX Giving Day donations exceeded those of 2018
> Friends of Tandy Hills partered with Amon Carter Museum, Native Plant Society of Texas, Texas Parks & Wildlife, Forest School and Cross Timbers Master Naturalsts in 2019
For 2020 FOTHNA has specific goals for improving the trails, restoring prairie pockets in key locations and improved signage. You can show your support for these and other initiatives with a 2020 Membership donation. Go HERE to become a Friend of Tandy Hills: http://www.tandyhills.org/donate
> > > FYI - Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and protecting Tandy Hills.
03) New Species - December
There were 3 new species ID'd in December 2019. All are fungi and all by Don Young. The lack of blooming things helps oddities like these stand out.
04) MM&WW Hike the Hills is TODAY
Baby it's going to be cold outside today but don't let that keep you from participating in the 10th annual Manly Men Wild Women Hike the Hills on New Years Day. Get your details here:
http://www.tandyhills.org/events/manly-men-and-wild-women-hike-hills
05) Videos of the Year
If you prefer moving pictures, eight short videos showing the amazing diversity and wonderment of Tandy Hills were recorded throughout 2019: Click on each image below or access all of them from this page: http://www.tandyhills.org/video
06) Prairie Proverb - Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson
“There are more than 200 million insects for every human being living on the planet today. As you sit reading this sentence, between 1 quadrillion and 10 quadrillion insects are shuffling and crawling and flapping around on the planet, outnumbering the grains of sand on all the world’s beaches. Like it or not, they have you surrounded, because Earth is the planet of the insects.”
Photo by, Mattias Ahim for Sveriges Radio
Prairie Notes© is the official newsletter of Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. All content by Don Young except where otherwise noted.
