Nature in the Small

By chance, I saw the photo contest of @friendlymoose this week with the theme “Nature”. That really appealed to me again and convinced me to take the trouble to participate again. Not because I can win something, but because it was a nice excuse to write a blog again. And believe me, that may sound simple, but it is a theme that leaves so much room for interpretation that it almost becomes overwhelming. Do I go for landscapes, or do I focus on animals? Do I look for something impressive, which is an insurmountable challenge in itself, or do I stay close to home?

I chose the latter. Just: go into the garden, phone at hand, and see what moves. Yes, of course I could also do this with a camera, but oh well ... the weather is nice, I am outside a lot, and hardly have the camera with me outside. The phone, yes ...

Sometimes you don't have to look any further than your own backyard

Like many people, I think most people, I also initially thought of vast forests, rugged mountain landscapes or tropical jungles when I thought of this theme, "nature". And I admit it right away, those kinds of places are impressive. But due to the lack of a possibility to get there, and therefore also no possibility to take a picture of it. But nature doesn't always have to be grand and overwhelming. Sometimes nature is small. So small, in fact, that you almost overlook it. And that's exactly where the magic lies for me.

An encounter with the unknown

The first photo is a close-up of an insect, hidden among the greenery. I don't know exactly what it is, a grasshopper yes. That much is clear to me. But what kind? I have no idea. But what struck me was its attitude. He was just sitting there, right across from me, as if he was looking at me and wanted to say, "Hey you, I'm here too!".

And it was actually pure coincidence that I saw this creature, because as you can see for yourself, he is well camouflaged. His color fits perfectly with the surroundings. Only when I got closer did I see how he was sitting there. How fragile his legs are, and how concentrated the creature was sitting there. A beautiful piece of nature, for which I did not need a forest, park, reserve or vastness. With only the willingness to get on my knees between the grass, the meeting was sealed.

Butterflies & wonder

Later it became a bit more colorful again. Every year we sow African marigolds in the flower boxes as a natural defense against ants. And those African marigolds are also real attractants for butterflies. The photo could almost be labeled as a cliché. But believe me, at the moment I took the photo it didn't feel so normal at all and I was amazed by the beauty of nature as usual. The butterfly had some battered, damaged wings, but was far from defeated. She flew unperturbed from flower to flower, and posed willingly so that I could capture her on the sensitive plate.

The symbolism of butterflies is often referred to as change, growth and transience. That sounds very nice, but honestly, here in my own backyard, in the middle of the flowers that we planted ourselves, it felt more like a memory. A memory of Myla in particular who always wanted to sniff a butterfly very carefully. How I miss that girl on days like these! It also feels like a reminder that nature also simply lives in the everyday. Like now, just in the backyard where I walk through every day, where I am now picking weeds every day and often look over these small things. Because you are in that spot every day, you often no longer see the beautiful things. And yet, when you REALLY look again, you see that the ordinary sometimes suddenly turns out to be extraordinarily beautiful.

Nature is everywhere

The third photo was taken on the driveway. The Chinese Weigelia is slowly coming into bloom, and a bee that is getting nectar from the flower. Another small piece of nature that my eye is drawn to, and that is suddenly so beautiful.

See these three photos as my tribute to nature in miniature. Just a small reminder for everyone that we all, every day, so carelessly pass by these small details of nature. It is a reminder that you don't have to go on safari to experience nature. You don't have to fly a drone over fjords or stand on top of a mountain. To enjoy nature, it is actually enough to be still, to stand still and REALLY look. Then you will be surprised by what is happening right before you. .

Go outside, even if it's just your balcony or your backyard. Go in search of the small life. Of the crawling, fluttering, buzzing, growing and blooming world called nature.

And if you're lucky, you might catch a glimpse of something big, in small. Nature is everywhere