Ok......the last picture from Starved Rock, I promise!
Inspect the scale of this picture. Notice how tiny the people are to the rocks.
Pretty awesome.
I hear the word "scale" come up a lot in my place of work. Contractors need to review blueprints to scale in order to give an accurate bid on a project. A blueprint in correct scale mathematically converts to a trained eye, the cost of materials needed to build a building. If the scale is incorrect the cost to build is incorrect and disaster in the future is inevitable.
Now, lets ponder this picture and relate to our own human scale.
In our fast paced lifestyles we seem to think we have the control to be in control. These last few weeks with the sad shootings of the customers at a retail store in Tinley Park, Il, and the Northern IL University shooting of students, and the St. Louis shooting over a court case, I wonder......why are these things happening, are we out of control?
I'm afraid the emphasis to take God out of everything, to quiet that light as to not "offend" people, has grown a generation of lost wanderers who are in the dark.
Are we missing the scale?
Look at the rocks. There is something much bigger than ourselves that created this for us, loves us, died for us, and currently wants a relationship with us.
Why do bad things happen? If there is a God, why does He allow it?
Because we are not robots but each of us possess free will. Free to do evil and free to do good. The ones who inflict such horrible pain, are truly without light, who have calculated an incorrect scale with disastrous results.
I pray for the families who have been effected by these recent tragedies and I pray that we can somehow divert future ones.
Let's Experience This Picture:You're standing on top of Starved Rock looking west. You can hear the loud roar of water from the dam which is behind you. Small patches of foam on the Illinois river catch your eye as you watch them float further down. Even though the sky is heavy with a thick gray blanket, that doesn't dampen your spirits because suddenly, you hear the bald eagles talk to each other...something you've never experienced before and to the gloomy day's demise, you smile. The smell of water and snow circle around as the chilly wind pushes you like a bully wanting you off the rock. "No," you say, "let me have these moments...let me steal a few more."
I love that picture not only because it's beautiful and I can feel all of those feelings again when I look at it, but I also love how it kicks butt as far as composition! This will definitely turn into a painting some day. Ohhh, so many paintings....so little time!
Starved Rock has tons of canyons, but unfortunately there were many steep stairs on the trail that were completely iced over. Much too dangerous. Even with my hiking boots, I was all over the place, slipping here, flapping my arms there, trying to keep my balance.
This picture shows a tiny frozen waterfall. Can you see it? It's as if winter came by and stopped time in an instant, like you see on cartoons. Well that's not how it really happens, but it's fun to imagine a character like mean old winter, using his superpowers to create havoc!
Oh Boy! The last few days I decided to get some R&R at the Starved Rock Lodge in Utica, IL. Man was it f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c! It was just what the doctor ordered too. Starved Rock is one of Illinois' seven wonders. I'm not sure what the other six are, I haven't looked that up yet.
Starved Rock is 75 miles from Chicago and has 18 canyons, several waterfalls, lookout points, 13 miles of trails, and is located along the beautiful Illinois River.
The name "Starved Rock" comes from a story about the Illiniwek Indians who were trapped on top of the big rock seeking safety from the Potawatomi Indians, waiting for them at the base. The Illiniwek Indians starved to death on top of the rock waiting for a safe time to make it down. This story was never written down nor verified, so it remains just a story....but a neat one anyway!
I am standing on top of Starved Rock when I took this picture....
This is a picture of Leopold Island #1 and where the beautiful bald eagles like to hang out. They are there right now, can't you see them? Nope. Me either.
Let's zoom in. THERE THEY ARE! 1...2...3 There they are! I've never in my life had the opportunity to see our country's bird. I was sooooo excited. On this island of the Illinois River I spotted about 6 of them at one time. Bald eagles are huge! They're wing span measures between 6-7 feet! Holy Shmoly!
Isn't this just beautiful? He's searching for fish by the surface of the river. In the hopeful event that he can spot one, he'll dive down and grab it with his talons. Unfortunately, I did not see any of them get fish while I was watching.
Another soaring eagle! It was really impressive to watch them fly, so graceful. It's hard to describe, but I like when the tips of their wing feathers flip up as they're flapping down.
This is what the eagles are all excited about, the Illinois Waterway Lock and Dam. The dam somehow agitates the water to prevent freezing and in doing so, the fish come to the top. There were many other types of seagulls, but today we only care about the bald eagle. I felt bad for the little guys because they use up so much energy seeking food and I didn't see them get anything. Hopefully they had better luck when I left!
