 Okefenokee Photography by William Wise. A nature photo journal exploration of Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp, the Land of Trembling Earth, one of the largest blackwater swamps in North America. The alligators, birds, snakes and wildlife of Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and Stephen C Foster State Park. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message  Oak Mistletoe, Phoradendron leucarpum, is a hemiparasitic plant native to the United States and Mexico that lives in the branches of trees. Mistletoe is used as a Christmas decoration. Photographed in the Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia. Mixon`s Hammock on Suwannee River. May 2020. A large clump of thick green leaves sits high in otherwise bare tree. The thick glossy leaves growing are completely unlike the normal foliage furled out by that tree in the spring. This makes Mistletoe easy to spot, especially in the winter. Its parasitic nature - stealing water and nutrients from its host – is what earned phoradendron (literally, tree thief) its scientific name. So what made a parasite become a Christmas decoration? Internet stories about, but the underlying theme is that mistletoe was hung in the house as an icon of good luck. The superstitious belief that it fosters love and friendship may have led to the tradition of kissing beneath the mistletoe. Each December, my coworker’s children collected mistletoe, tied a red ribbon around small bundles, and sold them to friends, family, coworkers and at Christmas craft fairs to have a bit of Christmas pocket cash. Since the clumps of mistletoe are often high within the trees, I had to inquire where his teenage boys learned how to climb so high. I was then schooled on how southerners in Georgia collected mistletoe: shoot it out of the tree with a shotgun!  Oak Mistletoe, Phoradendron leucarpum, is a hemiparasitic plant native to the United States and Mexico that lives in the branches of trees. Mistletoe is used as a Christmas decoration. Photographed in the Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia. Mixon`s Hammock on Suwannee River. May 2020.
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Okefenokee Photography by William Wise. A nature photo journal exploration of Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp, the Land of Trembling Earth, one of the largest blackwater swamps in North America. The alligators, birds, snakes and wildlife of Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and Stephen C Foster State Park. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message  Burned cypress tree stump in the Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia. May, 2020. Fire is an important part of swamp habitat ecology. Okefenokee wildfires are typically caused by lightning strikes and burn thousands of acres of dry peat during drought. Fire sets back hardwood succession and keep open prairies. Long, hot summers… extended periods of drought… plenty of exposed organic peat material… and a random but well-placed lightning strike; all these ingredients cook up to make large fires. South Georgia, and especially the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, face this imminent threat every year. Often, hundreds upon hundreds of square miles burn for several days at a time. But is fire bad? In reality, wildfires actually are what keep the Okefenokee Swamp a swamp. As the fires sweep the prairies of the refuge, the shrubs and young hardwoods are killed back. The large cypress and Long-leaf pines tolerate the flames and thus the characteristic open habitats of the Okefenokee remain. According to the Georgia Wildlife Federation, “Fire is a necessary part of the swamp ecosystem. When it burns the swamp, usual plant succession is interrupted, preventing swamp prairies from filling with cypresses, black gums, and bays and becoming Woodland.” Source: Georgia Wildlife: The Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia Wildlife, Volume 6, Number 1, from Georgia Wildlife Press; 1997.  William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the beauty, design and wonder of God’s creation. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message  Jack-in-the-Pulpit. A walk through my neighborhood greenspace in Clarke County, Georgia. April 25, 2002. Bored with "shelter in place", I took a walk through our neighborhood's greenspace on April 25, 2020. I want to thank Lee's Birdwatching Adventures for guest posting this blog! Lee's website is about birding from a Christian perspective and has years of articles and content from Lee and other creationists and birders.  William Wise Photography’s Creation Speaks is a Biblical teaching ministry that uses nature writing and photography to glorify our Creator and teach the truth of creation. “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?" Job 12:7-9 Self-isolation blues, financial troubles, loved ones fallen ill, fear of contracting coronavirus… these weights are burdening many. On top of that, we may be unable to congregate in our churches or visit our favorite birding spots. Although a pale substitute for both, I pray you are uplifted by this short series of Words and Birds of Encouragement. For what can be more encouraging than the birds of this world and words of the world to come! William  Snowy Egret, Egretta thula, a small white heron wading bird, walking in a salt marsh tidal flat at Mitchelville Fish Haul Beach Park on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. May, 2019. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. 2 Peter 3:10, 13 Things aren’t that bad (yet). But even if they were, and all upon this earth were destroyed, God has promised a divine habitat restoration project. Think of how our beautiful egrets and herons suffered, senselessly extirpated by plume hunters and habitat destruction. Yet human efforts restored their populations.
How much more our heavenly Creator will restore all things in the New Heaven and the New Earth… no matter how bad things become. Yes, we look forward to paradise with a new heaven and new earth, and with new bodies, but you can also have “new” here now: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). I want to thank Lee's Birdwatching Adventures for guest posting this blog! Lee's website is about birding from a Christian perspective and has years of articles and content from Lee and other creationists and birders. William Wise Photography’s Creation Speaks is a Biblical teaching ministry that uses nature writing and photography to glorify our Creator and teach the truth of creation. “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?" Job 12:7-9 Self-isolation blues, financial troubles, loved ones fallen ill, fear of contracting coronavirus… these weights are burdening many. On top of that, we may be unable to congregate in our churches or visit our favorite birding spots. Although a pale substitute for both, I pray you are uplifted by this short series of Words and Birds of Encouragement. For what can be more encouraging than the birds of this world and words of the world to come! William  Male Yellow-rumped Warbler bird, Setophaga coronata, in bright breeding plumage. Perched in Water Oak tree. Photographed in spring in Athens, Clarke County, Georgia, USA. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. Revelation 2:7 We are called to make it through the days of trial and adversity. But we aren’t supposed to just grit our teeth and endure, coming out the other side angrier than we went in, like Godzilla breaking from the rubble of a building collapsed upon him. Instead, we are to be overcomers; we are to pass through trial and adversity with our testimony intact!
And to the overcomer there is a reward: like the Yellow-rumped Warblers that eat the late winter fruits of the holly and Wax Myrtle, we will dine upon the fruit of the tree of life in the paradise of God! This virus quarantine will end in a harvest of souls into the church as the doors re-open. So keep your chin up, overcomer, greater days approach… in this world and the next! I want to thank Lee's Birdwatching Adventures for guest posting this blog! Lee's website is about birding from a Christian perspective and has years of articles and content from Lee and other creationists and birders. Creation Speaks is a Biblical teaching ministry that uses nature writing and photography to glorify our Creator and teach the truth of creation. -- “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?" Job 12:7-9 Self-isolation blues, financial troubles, loved ones fallen ill, fear of contracting coronavirus… these weights are burdening many. On top of that, we may be unable to congregate in our churches or visit our favorite birding spots. Although a pale substitute for both, I pray you are uplifted by this short series of Words and Birds of Encouragement. For what can be more encouraging than the birds of this world and words of the world to come! William  Healthy male House Finch; Clarke County, Georgia. April, 2015. ©www.williamwisephoto.com. “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse.” Revelation 22:1-3 Coronavirus is a curse. All viruses that bring sickness and death are a result of the curse. And that curse pronounced in Genesis 3 didn’t affect man alone, but “this thing all things devours: birds, beasts, trees, flowers.” I’ve seen the curse of disease first-hand as a House Finch confusedly flew through my backyard unable to find the feeder.  House Finch Eye Disease infection. But God promises a reverse of the curse and a restoration of paradise! One day, we will walk along the river among the fruiting trees. We, and all the other creatures, bird and beast alike, will be free of disease. Without a coronavirus face mask to block our view, we will adoringly look upon the Lamb seated upon the throne!
I want to thank Lee's Birdwatching Adventures for guest posting this blog! Lee's website is about birding from a Christian perspective and has years of articles and content from Lee and other creationists and birders. William Wise Photography’s Creation Speaks is a Biblical teaching ministry that uses nature writing and photography to glorify our Creator and teach the truth of creation. “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?" Job 12:7-9 Self-isolation blues, financial troubles, loved ones fallen ill, fear of contracting coronavirus… these weights are burdening many. On top of that, we may be unable to congregate in our churches or visit our favorite birding spots. Although a pale substitute for both, I pray you are uplifted by this short series of Words and Birds of Encouragement. For what can be more encouraging than the birds of this world and words of the world to come! William  Orange crowned Warbler, Leiothlypis celata, migrating songbird, Walton County, Georgia USA. The orange patch on the crown is usually not visible. “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.’” Luke 23:43 What will paradise be like? Let your imagination roll… sunsets without haze and smog; rivers and lakes without floating trash; streets filled with smiling people free of anger and worry; and clear, wide blue skies filled with the flight of birds… and no window strikes! And even better, we will walk in the cool of the garden with our Lord and Savior whose blood re-opens the door to Eden. It will be paradise for all! It may not be today (but then again, it may!). Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
 William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the beauty, design and wonder of God’s creation. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message  An angry Northern Mockingbird watches on as I try to get a glimpse of the babies in its nest. Athens, Clarke County, Georgia USA. April 28, 2020  Three blue and brown speckled bird eggs from a Northern Mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos, in a bird nest in Athens Georgia. Eggs were laid on April 15 2020. Eggs incubate two weeks. One good thing about being home for Coronavirus quarantine is watching more closely as springtime progresses in my backyard birding sanctuary. For a couple of weeks, the Northern Mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos) were building a nest in the landscape shrubbery just below my home office window. Checking on April 15, three blue speckled eggs lays in the center of the well-constructed nest of twigs lined with some fur from the neighbor’s dog. One source says the eggs will incubate for about two weeks, and during this time the parents will aggressively defend the nest. In fact, I was pleasantly amused as I watched one of the parents chase a squirrel from my yard, across the street, and only let off the chase as the squirrel darted in panic into the backyard of the house across the street! At sunrise on April 26, 2020, I checked the nest and two of the three eggs had hatched! By the afternoon all three were hatched and still doing well three days later.  Northern Mockingbird babies three days after hatching. Backyard birding photography Athens, Clarke County, Georgia USA. April 28, 2020.  Northern Mockingbird babies five days after hatching. Backyard birding photography Athens, Clarke County, Georgia USA. April 30, 2020.  Northern Mockingbird babies five days after hatching. After about 10 to 15 days of life, the offspring become independent. Backyard birding photography Athens, Clarke County, Georgia USA. April 30, 2020. I want to thank Lee's Birdwatching Adventures for guest posting this blog! Lee's website is about birding from a Christian perspective and has years of articles and content from Lee and other creationists and birders. William Wise Photography’s Creation Speaks is a Biblical teaching ministry that uses nature writing and photography to glorify our Creator and teach the truth of creation. “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?" Job 12:7-9 Self-isolation blues, financial troubles, loved ones fallen ill, fear of contracting coronavirus… these weights are burdening many. On top of that, we may be unable to congregate in our churches or visit our favorite birding spots. Although a pale substitute for both, I pray you are uplifted by this short series of Words and Birds of Encouragement. For what can be more encouraging than the birds of this world and words of the world to come! William  Painted Bunting; Pickney Island National Wildlife Refuge, South Carolina. May, 2019. ©www.williamwisephoto.com. “’What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived’—the things God has prepared for those who love Him—these are the things God has revealed to us by His Spirit.” Think of the breathtaking joy you experienced upon spotting a new, beautiful life-bird. That was me when taking my first photo of a vibrant Painted Bunting. I could barely hold the camera still and nearly fumbled for the shutter button in excitement! Now, imagine the joy as you open your eyes in the hereafter and get your first glimpse of heaven! Breathtaking amazement and vibrant color beyond compare; unending joy and delight; eternal fellowship with our Savior! True, nobody here has seen it. But God has revealed it by His Spirit… and by His creation. If a birders first spotting of a bunting can be so breathtaking, imagine heaven!
William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the beauty, design and wonder of God’s creation. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message  Male Ruby-throated Hummingbird at nectar feeder. My first sighting for 2020. Clarke County, Georgia. April 11, 2020. William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the beauty, design and wonder of God’s creation. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message  Eastern Bluebird fledgeling in backyard nest box; Athens, Georgia. April 9, 2020. Once again, the Eastern Bluebirds chose one of the nest boxes above the Koi pond on my back patio. After a dizzying couple weeks of the parents bringing food back and forth, it was finally time for the first clutch to hatch and fledge!  Female Eastern Bluebird carrying butterfly caterpillar to fledgeling in nest box. April 9. 2020. Athens, Georgia.  Eastern Bluebird fledgeling in backyard nest box; Athens, Georgia. April 9, 2020. 
No doubt this gator is watching Professor Berryhill’s series! Photographed March 9, 2020. Okefenokee Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia. ©www.williamwisephoto.com. Please don’t steal my images. Download and use legally from Dreamstime.com.
The Okefenokee Swamp Park is broadcasting Professor Don Berryhill’s video series, Okefenokeology! Go to their YouTube channel to subscribe and see all the other videos in the series. Below are a few episodes. Enjoy some Okefenokee at home!
“Are you looking for something, anything, to help supplement the online learning resources for you and/or your children’s education with school being closed? Or maybe you just love everything there is to love about the Land of the Trembling Earth? If so, we hope you will enjoy our Okefenokeology Series with Professor Don Berryhill. We will regularly upload each episode onto our YouTube channel (so be sure to subscribe) or just come to our Facebook page for updates.” William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the beauty, design and wonder of God’s creation. -- "What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at Your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations." Psalms 104 The Message Just some random birding and wildlife shots from my backyard in Clarke County, and behind my office in Walton County, Georgia.  A small American Southern Toad being held in the palm of a hand. Found in Clarke County, Georgia. April 2020. I want to thank Lee's Birdwatching Adventures for guest posting this blog! Lee's website is about birding from a Christian perspective and has years of articles and content from Lee and other creationists and birders.
William Wise Photography’s Creation Speaks is a Biblical teaching ministry that uses nature writing and photography to glorify our Creator and teach the truth of creation. “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?" Job 12:7-9
“And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where… even as the garden of the Lord” Genesis 13:10
All winter, we long for spring and the day we can get back to dressing and keeping our backyard gardens. We feel a strong inward desire to rejuvenate our backyard bird sanctuaries for the return of our beloved hummingbirds and other avian friends. But why is there such an affinity within us for gardens?
Ruby-throated Hummingbird in my backyard garden; Clarke County, Georgia. July, 2014. ©www.williamwisephoto.com.
In the Old Testament book of Genesis, the nomads Abraham and his nephew decide to split up and settle down. In making his choice of a new homeland, Lot looks towards the plains of Jordan and sees a fertile land “like the garden of the Lord” (Genesis 13:10). That same internal “garden longing” in his heart was triggered and leads Lot east.
I believe our love of gardens stems from a longing to return to Eden, that perfect state of beauty and fellowship with our Creator that man enjoyed in the beginning; where man walked with God “in the garden in the cool of the day”. When Adam’s eyes were opened, his first sight was a garden with “every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden.” Our love of gardens stems from a desire to return to Eden, to return to a place that place of paradise that was lost through sin. Even though we see disease, decay and corruption in this world today, one day we will return to paradise. As the story of this present age comes to its final chapter, a new book will be written. One where we will see a new heaven and a new earth brought forth (Isaiah 65:17, 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:1). Until then, let us enjoy our backyard gardens as a small piece of Eden; as a reminder of the blessed and perfect garden in world yet to come. As you till your soil with your hands, remember in your heart that one day, “thou shalt be with me in paradise.” “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” Revelation 2:7 I want to thank Lee's Birdwatching Adventures for guest posting this blog! Lee's website is about birding from a Christian perspective and has years of articles and content from Lee and other creationists and birders. William Wise's Creation Speaks is a Biblical teaching ministry that uses nature writing and photography to glorify our Creator and teach the truth of creation. -- “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?" Job 12:7-9 Zechariah 1:11 (The Message) They reported their findings to the Angel of God in the birch grove: “We have looked over the whole earth and all is well. Everything’s under control.”  Pink and purple cherry tree blossoms in Walton County Georgia. Photo #20200320_008_DT176301477 © William Wise - Dreamstime.com While Homo sapiens are self-isolating in coronavirus crisis mode, the rest of species on this planet are boldly moving ahead with the vernal equinox as scheduled. As I briefly, and timidly, left the confines of my sterile bunker this morning for a short walk, I was outraged to see so many critters blatantly ignoring the shelter-in-place mandates! In less than an hour I counted 26 different bird species and three turtles breaking curfew… more than 50 individuals! Even the normally reclusive Wood Ducks had the audacity to come into plain view on the open pond. But I’m sure as they flip on the social media and take in the current events, they’ll all retreat into their holes, cavities and nests as we humans have. It would almost appear that the God of creation has everything under control, although we humans feel like things are out of control. Is that even possible?  Female Wood Duck hen on a pond in Walton County, Georgia. Spring breeding season. Walton County, Georgia. USA. March 2020. Aix sponsa. Photo #20200320_005-DT176303301 © William Wise - Dreamstime.com Psalm 11:1 In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain? I hope you enjoyed this light-hearted commentary on the current events, and are comforted by the photos of God’s beautiful creation that exists right outside our back doors! Even if you can’t go far, get out and enjoy our Creator’s works right in your little plot of land.  Common Musk Turtle, Sternotherus odoratus, is a small water turtle in the eastern United States. Algae covered carapace. Photographed in Walton County, Georgia. USA. March 2020. Photo #20200320_010 © William Wise - Dreamstime.com  Common Musk Turtle, Sternotherus odoratus, is a small water turtle in the eastern United States. On its back showing small plastron. Photographed in Walton County, Georgia. USA. March 2020. Photo 176303031 © William Wise - Dreamstime.com |
 All content is ©williamwisephoto.com. Please don't steal images. My images are available at dreamstime.com. Stock sales go into the shelter photography program.
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In December 1993 I came to know the Designer and Creator of this wonderful planet and its creatures: Jesus Christ.
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