“A longing fulfilled . . .”

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” ~Proverbs 13:12

My blog/website administrative page has a bucket for “Drafts” and occasionally I put something in there that I think I might work into a blog post later (like yesterday’s). Back in 2022 I placed the above quote from Proverbs that I picked from one of my Daily Bible Readings to comment on later and here I am, about 3 years later, commenting on it (with photos!). 🙂

Another motivator to respond to that old “draft” was the current book I’m reading, Happiness is a Choice You Make by John Leland on my Kindle about 6 people over 85 years old that he studied for a year, some of which were like me in starting a new life in old age, though none as radical as my move to Costa Rica. 🙂

After the divorce and approaching retirement, I went back to a childhood love of the outdoors and started camping out again in State Parks, backpacking on the Fiery Gizzard Trail and even a backpacking trip to St. John Island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. I tried selling nature photos (losing money) and focused on home gardens again along with some nature-related longer trips away from Tennessee. But I couldn’t afford some of the international trips I wanted, so I just moved to what had become my favorite international nature place, Costa Rica. And yes, I did consider The Gambia, West Africa, where my last job had me for 3 years, but a long list of reasons why not.

And here I am 11 years later! An old man nearly 86 years old. As happy as I’ve ever been, totally surrounded in nature, taking occasional trips within CR to special nature spots, daily photographing nature for my blog and my growing online gallery plus donating my photos to nature research and ecology through iNaturalist.com, eBird, and BAMONA and to organizations here in Costa Rica. And though I get a lot more rest now, I’m never bored and stay almost as busy as when I had a full-time job. I have chosen my own version of happiness in a place of loving people, excellent weather, no army, ecology & land protection a priority, and more species of nature than any country its size in the world! Every species makes me happy! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

“The Earth laughs in flowers.”

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

See my total Photo Gallery.

P.S.

And if you people who choose to stay in the United States don’t vote out every single Trump Republican who is up for election this November, you will be part of the reason for the rapid decline and fall of the United States. It is almost too late already – work for change now! And as long as I am physically able I will continue to add my one little Democratic vote in the disgusting Republican State of Tennessee until Trump stops us from voting from overseas or anyone by mail. The U.S. is already a fascist country I’m afraid. How could a majority of the U.S. let that happen?