I have the incredible good fortune along with my husband to live on and care for “Little Piney,” 22 beautiful acres in the Lost Pines of Bastrop, Texas. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this area, the Lost Pines is an isolated pine forest at least 100 miles from the Piney Woods of East Texas. The Lost Pines is forested with a variety of loblolly pines found nowhere else in the world. It is hilly and green, lush and dense, reminding me of the East Texas Big Thicket where I grew up. Tragically, much of the Lost Pines area was burned in a huge forest fire in 2011, and to lesser degree, again this fall. It’s very heartening to see this resilient community rebuilding and replanting pine trees to restore this important habitat. I live in an area that was spared.
When I began writing this blog, it lacked an identity. I wrote articles on everything from restaurants to grief. I have decided 6 months later to focus on the natural world of the Lost Pines, wildlife habitat enhancement, and the healing and inspiring experience of being present in the outdoors.
In the pages of this website, you will find nature photography, art, and information relevant to living in the Lost Pines and in any home dedicated to sharing the land with the native fauna and flora. And because I have so much quiet space to think, you will also read the thoughts I would like to share.
Recently, I was wondering exactly why I put so much effort into blogging about my life at Little Piney and had a small insight. Perhaps it’s because I grew up in a world that was so deeply shared with other people, most of them family with whom I no longer have much contact. Maybe my blog is a modern day version of “coffee time,” a daily ritual in my childhood when aunts, cousins or friends showed up at 3 o’clock to share their day over coffee and cake–time that’s hard to find now, although as precious as ever. And maybe it’s a from a desire that we all have, wanting others to see what we see as we see it, if only for a moment.
So, please join me in the Lost Pines Life in Bastrop, Texas. Welcome to Little Piney.
