Happy Squirrel Appreciation Day!

January 21 is Squirrel Appreciation Day. Just in case the squirrels at your feeder haven't proved themselves to be devilishly clever enough, have a look at these fuzzy thieves:

Send Us Your Nature-Inspired Writing

At Earth Sun Moon we've built a fun little business by combining a love for nature with our love for laughter, but often the best part of enjoying nature is seeing it through someone else's eyes.

So, we invite you to write an essay or short story about your experience in, or love of, nature. There's no minimum length, but try not to get too far over 3,000 words. Poetry is welcome.

This is a contest of sorts - we'll be posting all the best entries we get. Make sure that anything you submit is entirely your own work, and we'll respect your ownership of all rights to the material. (This assumes, of course, that you are giving us the right to publish it once on this blog.)

Submit your writing by viewing my full profile and sending it to the e-mail contact provided. Rich-text or MS Word attachments are fine; otherwise please put your writing into the body of the e-mail.

Don't feel like writing today? Scroll down to read what's already posted.

Bear feeding season

One of our employees had a big visitor to his house last night. A black bear tore down and emptied all of his bird feeders, and tore apart his compost pile. It's a good reminder for anyone who lives in bear country (which covers most of the continental US) that, despite our best efforts, we share the land with widlife on their terms, not ours.

Late fall and early spring are times when bears need lots of extra calories, and it's worth thinking about whether we're inviting them into our lives, or how closely. New York's Department of Environmental Conservation has a nice concise article on Bears & Bird Feeders, and I've linked below a short video of a young bear eating from a birdfeeder.

Notice that the feeder is on the edge of the woods - more likely, on one hand, to attract bears but also safer as it's further from the house.

New T-shirt design - Advice from a Campfire

A great shirt for the autumn bonfire season!



Spark new ideas - Bring people together - Kindle strong friendships - Radiate warmth - No smoking - Be a good storyteller - Don't burn out!

Photo Journal

By Melody Witmer

There were many green, yellow and brown leaves, but this one stood out.

Who doesn't like a long walk in the middle of the woods?

Reminds me of Ezekiel 17:24

Nature Calls - Western Blue Jay

Rifle Falls

Colorado valley

Colorado's majestic mountains

Nature's places

Before the storm

Puppy Love

Say Cheese!

I Hear the Bells of Nature's Church

Chris Highland, August 2009. San Rafael

I hear the bells of Nature's church,
So, on my cap, and off to search
A lightened pack of curiosity, joy
Not felt so strong since yet a boy
I bend to grasp my walkingstick
And saunter deep to forest thick
One eye a telescope to scan the distant ways
One eye a microscope the ants, beetles afoot amaze

And now a choir draws my ear
Just passed the peaceful grazing deer
Anthem familiar, hymn pure and sweet
I quicken steps with lighter feet
The wood-en door swings wide to show
A stream and falls in full-singing flow
I sit to listen on a boulder pew
With a smile of knowing I'm of the chosen few

A voice beyond the cascade rises
Calls to higher altars-spiritual surprises
I leap the stones with expectation
Senses alive to wild exhortation
The woods grew darker, the way unclear
Though feeling lost, I lost all fear
When near, above me the sermon came
Upon a pulpit a tongue untame

The wisdom spoken, the courage pronounced
A truth unbroken, good news announced
With words unhuman, no words indeed
The sound sufficient, a heart to lead
The preacher ascended in feathery robe
And left me stunned with meaning to probe
For the owl herself had only said
What I already knew, What I'd already read

The scriptures and sermons, the choirs and prayer
Are all open to everyone anytime there
There in the wild inspiring places
The congregants greet you with furry, feathery faces
Your fellow parishioners shuffle, scurry, slither and fly
Teach like the trees, the mountains, the sky
And if you are listening and open each day
You might hear the bells, as they gladly, out there, call away.

Special Squirrel Consultant

Our offices are on the edge of a residential section in little Grove City, PA, with lots of old maple trees and a handful of oaks. It's not uncommon to see squirrels running here or there overhead. It IS uncommon for a squirrel to stake out the front door as though waiting to speak with someone.




Rumor has it he (she?) was hoping for a modeling contract, but he gave up and moved on before our legal team could draw anything up.