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Following up per my previous post… What I thought would be an easy, peasy blog planning process unexpectedly turned into a much deeper undertaking.
I’ve got so much content to share but what do I actually want to say? When and how do I say it? How many free hours do I actually have to go from prepping a post to publishing it every week?
These questions then led into various other trains of thought and reflection…
What is the purpose/value of this blog to me? Why do people even like reading my blog? Is it worth it to spend so much time on this space when I don’t make any money from it? Why am I stressing over the blog when it’s supposed to be fun? Is it still fun?
And then last week, while Charles and I were chilling on a beach during our social media-less time in Miami, I came to the realization that I was overthinking everything waaaaaay too much… To the point that my thoughts were paralyzing me from taking action.
Just start Setarra. Log-in to your damn website, sit down and type. Find and dedicate the time to blog first and then figure everything else later. You don’t have to have all the answers now. Just start.
And so here I am. Starting…
With a dear memory from summer; an unexpected date night that had me and Charles driving across state borders from Virginia to Maryland for golden hour with a sunflower-filled view.
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Every year, sunflowers bloom en masse for a short period of time. For the past couple of years, I’ve told myself that I’m going to see said sunflower fields in bloom… And every year, I never actually make it happen.
Until one day, while driving home from work, Charles asked, “What do you want to do this evening?”
My answer, “I don’t know. Eat?” <- My answer for everything lol.
To which Charles responded, “Wanna go to Mckee Beshers to see the sunflowers?
Me, “OMG! YESSSSSS! Wait… Like right now?”
Charles, “Yea, GPS it. Let’s ride over.” And that’s just what we did, in our work clothes, on a hot and muggy day this past summer.
Located in Poolesville, Maryland, the Mckee Beshers Wildlife Management Area is home to a 2,000-acre tract made up of woodlands, fields, wooded bottomland and green tree reservoirs.
Of the 2,000 acres, they have 30 acres of sunflower fields that bloom for about 2 weeks annually around the late July/ early August timeframe.
During those two weeks, Mckee Beshers becomes a major hubbub of activity. Photographers, instagrammers, artists, sightseers, families, and friends all flock to the fields like moths to a flame.
And with good reason… The view is everything yellow (my favorite color) and fun. In my opinion, to be surrounded by flowers is to be surrounded by joy.
Charles and I arrived at Mckee Beshers right before the sun began to set and, surprisingly, the fields weren’t as packed with people as we thought they would be. Not that we were complaining.
We spent an hour or so walking through the fields, catching up on how each other’s day at work went while snapping photos along the way. We peeked over a few artist’s shoulders to appreciate their various interpretions of Van Gogh and swatted the flies and mosquitos away without much success.
We hung out until we heard the sound of thunder which prompted us to head back to the truck. Good thing we left when we did because, right after we got inside, the sky opened up and it started pouring.
Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow. It’s what the sunflowers do. – Helen Keller
^^ Chose this quote to compliment the irony of the photo above since the sunflowers and I aren’t facing the sun. The sun is technically behind us lol.
Outside of my love for all things yellow, my second favorite color is purple. This means now that I’ve finally visited a sunflower field, it’s time to make my second “flora to-do” happen.
The second to-do being “to travel to the fragrant and expansive lavender fields in Provence, France.” One day.
Until then, I feel like there have got to be lavender fields, somewhat comparable to the ones in France, in the U.S. that I can visit?
Googles “best lavender farms in America”.
Yep. Looks like there a few lavender farms on the east coast, including one in Virginia, with the larger farms located in the Pacific Northwest.
Hmmmm. If you know me, you know the wheels are already turning in my head to plan a local lavender farm trip next Spring.
Here’s hoping fall and winter fly by.
Have you ever you traveled somewhere in search of flower fields?
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