A Hoosier Sunset Evokes Awe

I often grumble and wish myself miles away from my home in the Midwest--if I could just walk out my back door and stand in the shadows of a magnificent mountain range...or if I could only be lulled to sleep every night by a lazy river twisting itself through a dense, rolling forest of evergreens...if only....

Tonight's Indiana Autumn Sunset

It's in those too frequent internal (and sometimes external) griping moments when I fool myself into thinking that I could leave this state without missing the alluring beauty Indiana has surrounded me with since birth.  The truth is...I know I would miss the sights, sounds, and smells of an Indiana fall.  Her exquisite autumn sunsets still amaze me and pacify my soul.  It's moments like this when an unexpected treasure reminds me that I need to slow down, stop, and absorb more of the nows instead of the if onlys.   


In honor of my home state, here's a few more glimpses of some Indiana blessings Jake & I have come to cherish over the years. 

Another Stunning Indiana Sunset, Summer 2003

Turkey Run State Park, January 2006

Hickory Ridge Fire Tire in Hoosier National Forest, Spring 2003

Fall 2000

Southern Indiana, May 1999

McCormick's Creek State Park, January 2010

Spring Mill State Park, 1998

Hiking in Wilbur Wright State Recreational Area, Fall 2011

Hiking in a Nature Preserve Near Summit Lake State Park, 2007

McCormick's Creek State Park, Summer 2000

Summit Lake State Park, 2001

Yellowwood State Forest Hike, 2007

Southern Indiana, 1999

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Silver Fox Spotted in Noblesville, Indiana

Silver Fox Photo by Zefram, Wikimedia Commons

With the recent time change, Jake & I found ourselves heading home from one of my annual fall musical rehearsals in total blackness, making 6:30 feel more like 11:30 to our unadjusted internal clocks.  As we slithered our way through some of Hamilton County's newest round-abouts, the familiar flashes of farmland and neighborhoods with mammoth homes took turns erasing the undone To-Do's from my rigorous day at work.

Eye sheen of a small four-legged figure near the road snatched my attention on 166th Street near the Stonycreek Golf Club in Noblesville, Indiana.  My mind tried to make sense of the solo creature by the side of the road.  This dog-like animal was...definitely not a dog.  "A fox, Jake...do you see the fox?"  By the time the words left my mouth, the fox was far behind us, but not before that white triangular tipped tail seared its image in my mind.  "Wait.  What was that?  I've never seen a tail like that."  I wasn't so sure what I had seen...not until my Google search later that night.

Silver Fox photo by Paul Burwell*

According to Wikipedia, "the silver fox is a melanistic form of red fox."  Silver fox don their coats in a variety of colors, ranging from ash-colored to bluish-grey to entirely black with the exception of the white-tipped tail, and their pelts "were among the most valued furbearers."  

"Melanism is the occurrence of an increased amount of dark pigmentation of skin...or hair in an organism...and [is] the opposite of albinism."  Panthers, squirrels, and even the coral snake are examples of other animals that can display this dominant gene.

*Paul Burwell is an award-winning wildlife photographer; 

I highly suggest visiting his website Paul Burwell Photography 

to marvel at Burwell's talent with his wild subjects.

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