A somber trip to the botanical garden

James and I have been faced with some very difficult things lately.  I will write a little next week about what is going on, but I'm not ready to say much about here yet.  I'm thankful that if we had to go through this, it came at a time when our marriage is stronger than ever.  We've been able to comfort each other.  We are thankful for the support we have gotten from the body of Christ, believers who we have been able to cry with, pray with, and express our heartbreak too.

Since I had to work Saturday and Sunday, I have today and tomorrow off.  Last night I decided that I was going to take my camera to the botanical garden and shoot for a few hours.  That is therapeutic for me.  I asked James if he wanted to join me, and he was able to.  He works near the garden, and he was able to leave work for a little while. 

We've been to the garden several times, but this was the first time for us to go in the Fall.  We missed the peak of the season, but it was still pretty.

A sycamore tree.  I love their white bark.  I wonder if we could keep one of these alive in our backyard?

I was standing underneath a large Ginko tree when I tool this.  I had no idea these trees could get this large.  I had always thought of Ginkos as small ornamental trees.

The orchids in the greenhouse were stunning.  I had never seen them with such magnificent blooms before.

 We spent awhile in the rose garden.  Our previous visits to the botanical garden had been in the middle of summer.  I think it gets too hot here in the summer for roses to bloom well.  They seemed quite happy today though with the cooler temperatures.

 We looked around the gift shop for a little while before we left.  We bought a few postcards to send to our compassion child.  I need to get those in the mail to him soon.  He chastised us a little in his last letter for not writing to him as much as he would like.  We try to write to him at least once a month, but mail travels slowly from here to Africa.