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	<img alt="" src="{filedir_5}Spring Beauties.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 167px; float: right;" />Most people who frequent the woods during the spring are familiar with the Spring Beauty, a small wildflower that blankets patches of ground with showy white and pink ultraviolet petals.&nbsp; Their abundance at times may lead us to think nothing much of the rarity of Spring Beauties, however when considered from a phenological perspective, Spring Beauties are pure gold.&nbsp; They emerge in early spring and flower for only a matter of days.&nbsp; After that they wither and forgo blue skies and sunshine reverting to a life under the soil until they emerge again in blitzkrieg the following spring.</p>
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	<img alt="" src="{filedir_5}Dutchmans Breeches.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 167px; float: left;" />Similar ephemeral events are strewn throughout the year so that in walking the woods there is always the opportunity of witnessing something extraordinary. Currently, Dutchman&rsquo;s Breeches can be found in bloom, as well as Trailing Arbutus and just the other day I spotted a Horned Grebe on Big Twin Lake; a rare migratory vagrant and a first for me in my life!</p>
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	The world is full of these momentary joys and I am convinced that if we cultivate a mindset that works to become more aware of our surroundings it is made all the more obvious that we are the recipients of endless gifts from God.&nbsp;</p>
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	As marked by the bloom of the first wildflowers and the songs of early migrant birds, spring has arrived.&nbsp; Things will happen fast from here on out.&nbsp; If you really want to take advantage of the gifts this season has to offer you need to start now!&nbsp; Try a sit spot.&nbsp; Find one place you really like (not your couch) and devote 30 minutes a day to observing nature from that location.&nbsp; Keep a journal.&nbsp; Bring binoculars and any field guides you like.&nbsp; Take a seat and get to know your surroundings over the course of the next month or two.&nbsp; Keep me posted on your progress; I&rsquo;d love to hear what you find!</p>
