Shared by Monica Hoel, as Guest Blogger.

One of my goddaughters has a gift for seeing things I overlook. She finds earthstar mushrooms and spots voles hiding in the grass, and on her first trip to the beach she found the most colorful shells that were about as big as a pinky fingernail.

I marvel at what she finds, and she has taught me about the beauty of small sights.

Don't miss the beauty in the small details

It’s probably pretty easy for a kid to resist an invitation to go to “The Park” right now to do anything but swim or fish now that it’s warm. “The plants are all weeds and the trees are all green, mom. Whatever.”

But a recent kayak tour around Hungry Mother Lake showed me what happens when I zoom in for the small sights.

I slowed my row, hugged the water’s edge, and found intricate blooms and vibrant colors springing out of all that green. Red Fire Pinks, yellow Ragwort, and bright white Wood Anemone were all there for the viewing.

             
Something new is in bloom each time you visit the park

Mountain Laurel and Rhododendron were blooming but without a close observation, you might not see the difference.

Pinecones are growing both male and female and really, did you ever see anything as cute as a baby pinecone? But you may not notice them from far away.

And while we learned in school that there are four seasons, I would argue that spring and summer have many mini seasons. I was at Hungry Mother State Park on a May Monday and came back the following June Sunday, and not only were there new things blooming but some of the plants I saw Monday were radically changed. Rhododendron blooms were altogether gone and Solomon’s Seal blooms had withered.

How many different wildflowers can you find?

Remember: We want to Leave No Trace of our visits to the flora of Southwest Virginia; so never pick the flowers you find. Look for these beauties, even take along a jeweler’s loupe to get a really close look, take a photo if you’d like, but then leave them for the next marvel-hunter.

And never accept an eye-roll from the kids about visiting all that green summer vegetation; dare them not to find something that will amaze them.