When Thomas
Gale and Cornelius Gilmore came to Steuben County in the 1830’s, they wrote
about the forests, prairies, and crystal-clear water resources. It was a place
of beauty, and they both knew they had found home. We are the recipients of
their journey as we still have, almost 200 years later, one of the most
naturally beautiful locations in Indiana. Pokagon State Park is one of our
treasures and this spring was home to hundreds of blooming redbud trees. It was
a magnificent site. We value our lakes and streams and strive to keep them
clean along with our farm fields. Beauty lives all around us.
Within the
next couple of weeks another source of great beauty is ours for simply a quiet
walk, a click of the camera and the solitude of peace. I am speaking of the
blooming of the field of lupines, known as Badger Woods, out by Anne Lake. Some
of you have traveled there and know of which I speak. I first heard of Badger
Woods a few years ago from Aimee and Nate Simons. It was the brainchild of Blue
Heron Ministries as they took a dry, barren 13 acres in 2008 and decided it was
suited for the planting of lupines. It is a not a secret, yet to many it is
still unknown.
Lupines are
thought to go back 2,000 to the Egyptians. They are typically known as legumes.
They grow in well-drained soil and are deer-resistant and great pollinators!
Their mythological purposes are said to bring imagination, creativity and
renewal into play.
My
bookshelf houses two wonderful books about these lupines. Most of these books
are on the public library bookshelves, and maybe your own library! Tomie
DePaola wrote, “The Legend of the Bluebonnet,” in 1983. This legend tells of
the draught in Texas and the chief of the Comanche tribe telling the folks that
they need to give up something they love for the gods to smile down upon them
and bring the rain. They built a bonfire for these sacrifices. One of the
children took her favorite cornhusk doll with blue ribbons to the bonfire to
sacrifice for her village. That night the rains came and then came the
bluebonnets, bold and blue in the Texas sunshine. It is a lovely children’s
book about love and sacrifice. The bluebonnets hold a special place in the
heart of all Texans…partly due to the legend and the beauty of the bluebonnets.
Traveling to Texas during the spring brings all this beauty to the traveler.
In 1982
another book was published about the beauty of the lupines. This book, “Miss
Rumphius,” was written and illustrated by Barbara Cooney. The story is taken
from a true story and the life of Hilda Edwards Hamlin who planted lupines
along the coast of Maine. In the story a young girl is challenged by her
grandfather to “do something in your life to make the world a more beautiful
place.” This book is charming in words and in art and is one of my favorite
books to share with my grandchildren. They ask for this story over and over. I
have owned several copies of this book as I often given them away…right off my
shelf.
Sometimes
beauty is difficult to express in words. It can only be experienced. We are so
fortunate to have this beauty right out our front doors or just a few miles
away. Our streets are tree-lined with the blooms of spring, our parks bring
tourists from everywhere, yet here we are. Each stage of spring brings new
beauty. My own backyard moves quickly over the spring weeks from the hundreds
of daffodils in my garden to my beautiful crabapple trees out front. My pink
dogwood is full of blossoms this year and tulips are still opening during the
morning light.
Badger
Barrens will become a place of amazing beauty within the next few weeks with
special thanks to Blue Heron Ministries and their vision for providing this for
all of us. When you go there, go quietly. Take one of the books mentioned or a
poem…or a prayer. Take your walking stick to navigate the path. Take your kids
or grandkids or friends. Tell them stories. Sit on one of the Aldo Leopold benches
and appreciate the beauty of this world. Leave nothing but footprints and take
nothing but memories. Remember to add to your own life, “do something in this
world to make it a more beautiful place.”