i was right... the path was still there.

but this time, instead of being covered

with the shadows of long, lean tree trunks,

it was covered in lacy shadows of a million leaves...

leaves made with the abundant rain we have been given this spring.

sometimes the path led me through dense groups of trees

and other times out into wide open spaces.

and as i walked along its twists and turns,

dirt in some places and mulch-covered in others,

i saw many a wild flower...

so many interesting things to see...

from the lifeless trunk of this large, old tree,

to one of the tiniest of living creatures.

but my favorite part of the entire walk was coming across

this small group of fern leaves

that were somehow left in the path just as you see them here.

it did not seem that they were there naturally,

rather that someone had picked them and then placed them down...

i have no idea why.

but i loved the way the bright green leaves

looked against the dark brown mulch,

and i was not about to pass up an opportunity to photograph them.

maybe this was what i was meant to freeze in time...

before the foot of a passer-by should disturb them.

so i did.

after capturing them as i had found them,

i gathered them up and laid them out in a line...

almost the way you might see them in a botanical drawing.

but then i felt the need to create a word.

LIVE felt most appropriate,

and was not too long a word

for the amount of leaves i had to work with.

so LIVE it was.

just a few steps further along the path,

i realized where the leaves came from...

a very large patch of wildly growing ferns.

it was rather lovely... almost jungle-esque and very magical.

i do love ferns.

i tried to grow them at our last house on a hill,

hoping they would take over a shaded area of our yard.

they make me think of southern, warmer climates.

i guess that is what i love about them.

well, maybe it is their detail and pattern, too.

anyway, please don't report me to the forest preserve police.

i swear i did not pick these...

but seeing as they were already detached,

i decided to bring them home and make some cards with them.

i thought of leaving my LIVE there for someone else to see.

but then i realized that this little happenstance was just between me and the path.

and so i kept them.

in my hand.

in my heart.

in my mind.

and in my camera... that i might share them with you, too.

our little secret.

and there you have it... my sunday {photo } walk.

have a happy week.

and LIVE!

{i was not all that happy with how most of my photos turned out,

but this one was definitely my favorite of the bunch.}