Walking Bentsen: The Ebony Bean Pods

I spent a good part of today outside: a long bike ride, followed by a leisurely walk, followed by just sitting out on the front patio, quietly watching the day turn to dusk.  This evening I feel the kind of tired that comes after a day outside. 

And when not outside, I managed to cook a pot of beans and rice, complete two loads of laundry, and then lose all my chips in a first hand of poker (with my full-house Jack-high gracefully bowing to another’s full-house Ace-high). So be it.  It was the outside time that gave this day meaning.

I’m finding it difficult to post a blog story on the same day that I experience the story.  I spend too much time “developing” the raw images from my DSLR Canon 7D, where “developing” mostly involves reviewing and deleting a great number of photos.  And so part of today was spent “developing” my photos from yesterday’s walk around Bentsen State Park.

Yesterday’s walk reminded how much I enjoy spending winters in the RGV.  In particular, walking this wonderful hike and bike trail that connects our RV neighborhood to Bentsen State Park:

 

Stopping at the Bentsen headquarters building and gardens to get my day pass:

Walking past this canal before entering the park:

 

Each walk around Bentsen makes the new become more of the familiar; makes the park seem more and more like my very own back yard.  And one of my favorite backyard trees of this park is the Texas Ebony.  In fact, it was the protection of Ebony trees that influenced the Bentsen family (think Lloyd Bentsen) to donate this land to become a state park.  I especially love the Ebony bean pods and yesterday I stood, studied and admired this particular tree’s bounty of beans:

It was a good walk; a quiet walk.  It was much better than anyone’s three Aces and a pair to boot.