Being a Placemaker, Baby Birds, a Giveaway, and Wonder*FULL June

**Wonder*FULL**

June 2026

A Beautiful Pause in a Fast-Paced World

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The plan began with a new trellis.

I wanted to create a bird sanctuary outside our bedroom window with a vine-covered trellis that, once established, will also serve as natural shade on the west-facing exposure from the relentless Arizona sun.

Before we could put up the trellis, I needed to paint the wall. Before I could paint the wall, I needed to trim back the existing vegetation which included bushes, trees, and cactus.

Painting one wall resulted in painting the entire house. Before the trim could be painted, the damaged wood surface had to be scraped, sanded, holes filled, sanded, and then painted—all while on an extension ladder. While fixing water damage on the beams of the backyard ramada, I noticed the rain gutters needed emptying…

All because of a new trellis.

The finished house. I am very proud of this accomplishment!

Sometimes the thing that needs the most attention is right in front of us.

I’ve been holding this phrase, this thought, from the book, The Way of the Wildflower, by Ruth Chou Simons. When faced with choices and never enough time, Ruth reminds herself to “steward what is right in front of me.”

I don’t know about you, but too often I am looking for some grand purpose “out there somewhere.” I spend too much time pounding on closed doors and find myself in danger of missing what is closer to home.

To be a placemaker has its own unique calling.

A placemaker in a family. In a community. In a sphere of influence.

“The places we inhabit matter,” writes Tim Willard in Beauty Chasers. “They not only serve as the backdrop of our memories, but they also help form our memories and contribute to the joy we experience daily.”

I am in a season of stewarding what is right in front of me, of discovering joy closer to home, as near as my own backyard.

This is the first roadrunner in our backyard in forty-one years. His appearance totally freaked out our dog. It is not a great photo, but a single, backyard sighting in more than 14,965 days deserves a spot in the newsletter.

Roadrunner feet are zygodactyl, with two toes facing forward and two toes facing back. If you happen to see their tracks in desert dust, you cannot tell if they are coming or going.

The new trellis needed a hummingbird feeder. This male dressed up for the occasion.

And inspired a haiku:

new feeder gala

Anna’s hummingbird displays

brilliant gorget bow tie

Welcome to Wonder*FULL June.

INVITATION 1

Your Soul’s Backpack

A verse for your soul’s backpack and my prayer for you:

My people

will live in peaceful dwelling places,

in secure homes,

in undisturbed places of rest.

Isaiah 32:18 NIV

INVITATION 2

Discover Beauty Where You Live

The places we call home come in many shapes and sizes. They can be located in deserts. Mountains. Prairies. Forests.

Or in tall reeds at a city park.

Photo by my friend, Barb Hoffman

The local birding community was excited last month when four fledglings were spotted at the Gilbert Riparian Preserve. The young birds were from a nest of Least Bitterns, a light brown heron, one of the smallest herons in the world.

Usually elusive and well-camouflaged, these baby birds did not seem to mind the frenzy of paparazzi who arrived with cameras and huge lenses to document this rare sighting.

Least Bitterns leave the nest early and climb nearby reeds as young as six to fifteen days old. The adults feed them—usually out of sight—in the dense vegetation.

All About Birds writes, “The furtive Least Bittern is often little more than a voice in the reeds that is frustratingly difficult to locate.”

I found this to be true. The first time I went to the park, I only heard the calls of the hungry babies. The dense reeds did not reveal their location.

A few days later I tried again. The fledging (below) posed for photos—while calling for breakfast—for more than thirty minutes.

And speaking of bird feet, check out the bittern’s feet that allow them to hang on!

God’s creation is amazing.

INVITATION 3

A Giveaway!!

Congrats to Robin, Debra, and Laurita for winning last month’s giveaway!

The latest book, A Message From Above, in the series, Too Amazing For Coincidence, is now available! The compilation includes stories from many authors, including a story I wrote about an encounter at the Mesa Community College Rose Garden. I thought a planned outing was a failure, or worse, that I was a failure. I was wrong on both counts. God met us in an amazing way.

Please click on the green button below to get on the list for your chance to win a free copy of A Message From Above. The drawing will be on June 8.

You can buy your own copy of A Message From Above on Guideposts (hardcover) and on Amazon (paperback). AUTHOR15 will get you a 15% discount on the Guideposts site.

As a reminder, you can always purchase a signed copy of my book—Under a Desert Sky—on my website. It is also available at Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Christianbook.com, and more! Also, on Audible (I am not the reader.)

You can download your own copy of the Exhale e-book here: Free Giveaway — Lynne Hartke.

EMAIL ME FOR A CHANCE TO WIN!

Thursday Haikus from Social Media

In Case You Missed Them!

I’ve added weekly haikus on my social media.

If you missed the ones from May:

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The FINAL PHOTO with suggested captions from my social media followers:

Another roadrunner, this time in a parking lot in Tucson.

So many good captions:

Me and my shadow, strolling down the avenue.
If it weren’t for my shadow, I would be invisible.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me (even when I don’t see it.)
Can you see me now?
Double vision.
Catch me if you can!
Meep! Meep!
Like the wallpaper sticks to the wall. Like the seashore clings to the sea. Like you’’ll never get rid of your shadow. - Frank Sinatra
Do I look fat in this shadow?
Shadow runner.

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Click here: Newsletter — Lynne Hartke

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All photos are from Lynne Hartke, unless otherwise noted.

Claret Cup Cactus on the Arizona Trail by Mormon Lake, AZ. Our house in Chandler, AZ. Roadrunner in Chandler, AZ. Anna’s hummingbird - Chandler, AZ. Collage of larkspur, rubber plant, golden star and claret cup cactus. Fleabane at Mormon Lake, AZ. Least bittern fledgling by Barb Hoffman at Gilbert Riparian Preserve. Reeds and second bittern by Lynne Hartke. All The Haikus—Mormon Lake photos. Roadrunner and shadow - Tucson, Arizona. Sunrise—Mormon Lake.

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