Fuego En La Llanura

Another high plains sunset is minutes away. Clouds in the western skies take on mystical shapes reminiscent of a roadrunner--our State bird. They ushers in the evening fires over tablelands strewn with prickly pear cactus and cholla. I turn eastward and take a few moments to relish the comforting, mellow hues of night unfolding across the prairie. The Texas Panhandle border lies at the horizon.

Bury my heart in New Mexico. I love this land of enchanted vistas, our mixing bowl of cultures, our tenacious people, our vibrant art and our future of endless possibilities. In the language of the ancient Diné people, AhóÁ to the Land of Enchantment!

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Roadrunner Sunset

Fuego En La Llanura
(South of Broadview, New Mexico USA)

Delta Blues

Brume and mizzle obscure Tennessee woodlands and my descent into the Mississippi alluvial plain at Memphis. Swollen by spring snow melt and heavy rains in the watershed the mighty river strains banks. Spillover inundates fertile farmlands in the Arkansas Delta. Ribbons of water in furrows and ephemeral ponds shimmers under breaks in cloud cover. Once Little Rock is in the rear view mirror I find overnight accommodations in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. At first light I will depart Clarksville and push across the rolling plains of Oklahoma and westward into Texas and New Mexico.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Bynum General Store

Once a bustling cotton mill village along the banks of the Haw with stores, school and even a movie theater, Bynum still echoes with sounds of its heyday. The general store opened in 1936 stands silent reminder to a once vibrant community life. Now closed, the store still serves as a focal point of community events. Most notably the gospel, folk, blues, rockabilly and bluegrass Front Porch Music venue, which takes place weekends on a stage at the back of the store from May through August.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

General Store
(Bynum, North Carolina USA)

First Touch Of Spring

At daybreak overnight sprinkles linger under low cloud cover. Glistening droplets adorn first touches of spring greenery. White splashes of flowering dogwood and pink crescendos of redbud breathe new life into my winter-weary spirits. Cooper and I rove wooded trails to the joyous chorus of song birds and percussions of a woodpecker. We chance upon the Haw River. I pause and take in the quietude created by rushing water. Cooper obliges primordial urges to explore every scent and sound in the riparian underbrush.

From its perch overlooking the river a Red-shouldered Hawk takes wing to escape our breach of hunter’s code and resumes its quest for food upriver. Undeterred by the commotion a Great Blue Heron stalks prey along the rock-strewn banks of the Haw. My heart races in exuberant celebration of the wild. The natural world most certainly nurtures the primal threads that bind us to one another and define our humanity.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

First Touch Of Spring
(Haw River near Bynum, North Carolina USA)

Renascence

Songbirds chitchat in lofty backcountry

Outback wakes from wintertime repose

Unhurried creek murmurs vernal homily

Haggard heart finds joy in pensive prose.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Whispers Of Spring
(lateral channel of Haw River near Bynum, North Carolina USA)

Eternal Optimist

The setting sun briefly pierces the brume of a stormy day to assure woodland denizens and winter-weary humans of the forthcoming spring revival. In her indomitable way nature provides the palette. Light is her medium and hearts are the canvas for her poetry of light.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Eternal Optimist

Eagle Territory

A seventy-five degree late-winter day stirs spring fever and Wanderlust. Cooper and I explore the southernmost reaches of Jordan Lake. Here the tawny confluent of the Haw River merges with lake waters. We pause on a bluff overlooking the lake in a northerly direction. The striking views grandstand a small sector of the seventeen-mile-long reservoir and its pristine 180-mile shoreline.

An unfamiliar raptor screech diverts my attention to the skies. A bald eagle on six foot wingspan glides into view and disappears along the wooded shore. Relatively shallow Jordan Lake and woodlands are exceptional eagle habitat and professedly host the largest concentration of bald eagles on the East Coast.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Eagle Territory
(Jordan Lake east of Pittsboro, North Carolina)

Spring Fever
(Cooper, spring sun and a carpet of moss on a bluff overlooking Jordan Lake)

Restless Heart

I contemplate rockbound river wild
Then set adrift my restless heart
To ponder why both long for renewal
Near windswept dunes in briny deep.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Restless Heart
(Sycamore on the Haw River near Bynum, North Carolina USA)

Faded Livelihoods

For a couple of centuries small farms produced much of the tobacco crop in North Carolina. Tobacco curing sheds endure as iconic reminders of a way of life in America's rural South from Richmond, Virginia to southern Georgia. They bear witness to mid-South Americana from a time when tobacco was king. Based on centuries-old designs and traditions passed on within families, farmers built unique barns and sheds to cure the leaves.

Once common sights along highways and byways only about 50,000 tobacco curing barns still stand. Some have been re-purposed, most remain as abandoned ruins and nostalgic structures inspiring wistful trips down memory lane and quests for stories of people who made a living in their shadows.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Faded Livelihood
(Tobacco curing shed near Pittsboro, North Carolina USA)

Tobacco Road Shed

Storm On The Haw

Thunderstorms threaten as Cooper and I descend a wooded trail towards the Haw River. The path takes us downstream and across a small tributary creek. A fallen tree spans the shallow waterway. However, a foggy morning followed by periodic sprinkles coat its surface with a slippery sheen. I heed thoughts of caution until scattered boulders invite a rock-to-rock traverse. Resistance proves futile.

Cooper hesitates but follows my lead across the stepping stones. He's a master in adapting to his new woodland and water environment. We find numerous animal tracks in the muddy, riparian habitat. While Cooper explores scent trails, I take time to enjoy the serenity and capture several images of the churning river. Soon rain cuts our adventure short and we skedaddle back uphill to shelter in our vehicle.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Storm On The Haw
(Lower Haw River just above Jordan Lake, North Carolina USA)

Beware The Pridie Nones Of March

Wildlife, flora and people across the southern reaches of the Piedmont Plateau yearn for Spring. Unusually warm weather belies the approaching Ides of March. Far and wide the perennial quickening of life forces stirs encouraged by balmy seventy-degree breezes. However, in the thick of woodlands Father Winter chuckles at such foolishness and unleashes a grim reminder of his enduring dominion over the realm. With emphatic sweep of his Cimmerian robe he unleashes torrential rains and bitterly cold squalls. In the wink of an eye temperatures drop forty degrees.

Daylight finds the Haw River a tawny, raging watercourse. A major tributary of Jordan Lake, its rush of flood waters swells the shallow reservoir beyond banks and into shoreline woodlands. Where Cooper and I roamed sandy beaches a fortnight ago, turbid lake waters lap at the feet of majestic Loblolly Pines.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Pridie Nones Of March

March Flood

Life's Beaten Path

Elysian Night

Oh Elysian wintry night,

You hearten stars on high 

To abandon celestial realms

Veiled as cottony flurries

Coveting soft embraces

With silent Mother Earth.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Winter Slumber

Falling Stars

Spring Thaw

The spring equinox is twenty days away. By late afternoon sunshine gets the better of murky skies and temperatures briefly reach into the low forties. The warmth melts the weeklong snow blanket in sheltered woodland areas with unexpected ease. Small rivulets form and expose the red clay soil, which dominates the Piedmont Plateau in our area. The water erodes intricate patterns and by absorption colors the snow.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Spring Thaw

Stone Age Portal Dolmen

During a hike through Carolina woods with Cooper, I come upon an imposing stone work devised by creative landscape architects. Stark yet aesthetic lines capture my attention and imagination. The artful replica is reminiscent of single-chamber, megalithic tombs scattered all over Europe. Most date to the late-Neolithic era 4000 - 3000 BC. I take a moment and dwell on my school days in Deutschland captivated by histories of ancient cultures and civilizations. I remain an aficionado of German and Norse mythology, epic poetry and stories. My heart takes flight to days of yore, when Frost Giants roamed the Earth.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Neolithic Portal Dolmen

Epistle Of Enlightenment

Early morning snow sifts into the winter wood. Cooper and I cannot resist a jaunt down rustic trails near our home.

Snowflakes cavort under ashen skies.

Ethereal touches on cheek and brow

Encourage pursuit of their perfection,

Their epistle of enlightenment, their,

Solace for the human heart and soul.

Abide the wisdom in their whispers,

Gathered among untold stars, and,

Now consigned to an earthly existence

Among tall trees in winter slumber.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Winter Woodlands

Woodland Trail

The Winter Wood

Cooper and I venture into Carolina woods under overcast skies and temperatures near the freezing mark. Several days of brutal arctic airs, freezing rain and snow squalls deepen winter slumber. Residual snow gives prominence to woodland trails. Nearby a crow announces our trespass into its domain. While Cooper explores scent trails my thoughts take flight. Snow creaks underfoot. The delicate sounds heighten exhilaration. My pace quickens until I catch sight of a church tucked into the cathedral of trees. I pause and celebrate the divine silence.

Winter woods beckon.

Age-old memories unravel
The essence of muddy trails,
Autumn majesty underfoot
And storied tales of ancients
Whispered in tree canopies
By the playful bard—wind.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Rock Springs Church

The Sorcerer's Stone

Late-afternoon snow squalls usher in an arctic cold front. In their wake pinking skies and light dusting of snow allude to amiable intentions by Father Winter.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

The Sorcerer's Stone

Sissipahaw Reverie

The hypnotic dance of starlight on ripples of lake water stirred by whispers of wind brings to life visions of a youthful Sissipahaw hunter. He belongs to the clan of the bear. Pockets of cultivated terrain and pristine wilderness along the Haw River and its numerous tributary creeks are their ancient homelands. This afternoon he treads the dense woodlands in pursuit of turkeys and deer. A successful hunt will bring welcome change to his family's meals of fish, farmed corn and beans.

His mind wanders briefly. This evening his tribe's story teller will capture imaginations with tales of strange white men who first came generations ago in search of gold. She is the keeper of age-old stories and memories. Gathering by the flicker of camp fires serves two purposes. First, to entertain the younger generation. Secondly, to deliberate courses of action and allay unease about rumors of much more aggressive white invaders to the north and east of their village.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Sissipahaw Reverie

Unwetter Am See

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Unwetter Am See

Waterworld Horizons

Cooper's first outing to Jordan Lake State Park just east of Pittsboro, North Carolina ends with agreeable exploits. Although he spent most of his life chasing endless horizons on the arid Llano Estacado tablelands of New Mexico, this intrepid adventurer adapts quickly to the wet stuff. He takes several chest-deep plunges into the frigid waters. After umpteen charges down the beach, he pauses and contemplates unfamiliar waterworld horizons.

© Ilija Lukić 2015

Water Dog

Waterworld Horizon

Hillbilly Pawfishin'
(Cooper at Jordan Lake)