I love dogs with natural ears (vs. cropped ears), especially Boxers and Great Danes.

Not every image from Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area features snow geese or tundra swans.  This image is of a little Amish or Mennonite girl who was with her family watching the birds with her hands folded neatly behind her back.  There were 5 or 6 young children with their mom.  They had no cameras, cell phones, scopes, or binoculars.  They were simply there to watch and enjoy nature’s once a year show!  Seeing their eyes light up as thousands of geese swirled in front of them made me stop and wonder if I could just enjoy the moment without feeling the need to photograph.  As photographers we often feel that we have to record the event, not because we are capturing the perfect image, but just to freeze  the experience so that it can be relived later on in time.  I am definitely guilty of that.  I’m not sure that I could go to Middle Creek and leave my camera at home, but I will definitely be trying to take in the big scene without looking at it through a viewfinder more often!

Mom loved doilies.  The lace or crocheted type … just like in this image.  If there was a special keepsake sitting on a table in our house, you can bet that there was a doily underneath to protect the furniture.  I have a few in my home today.  They are named after a 17th century London draper and most often have an openwork design to let the surface of the furniture show through.  Doily…it is an unusual name when you think about it.

The grave markers at Indiantown Gap National Cemetery are a solemn reminder of those who served our country in time of war and are now buried here.  This is the smallest of the national cemeteries and features an impressive monument (the Pennsylvania Veterans Memorial) that honors veterans from all eras from the Revolutionary War forward.  I found it very sad that only one of the markers in all of these photographed was decorated with flowers and flags.

A visit to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania is never complete without seeing a few horse and buggies riding through the countryside.  I just LOVE them!  Maybe because there is a pretty horse leading the way, or maybe it’s the clip clop sound of their hooves, or maybe it’s just the charm of this way of life that intrigues me, I’m not sure.  I love the respect shown by drivers of automobiles and trucks as they share these narrow two-lane country roads with the buggies.