If you break down on the roads in Gabon, beware about leaving your vehicle as you will battle to find it on your return, the forest vegetation would have taken its hold....

So beautiful..... Open...

Would you believe this is the same butterfly?

Whilst walking past with its wings closed, who would have noticed? I didn't...

It lead me to a few thoughts...

You can never judge a person by what you see (or hear), as most of the times they are quite gorgeous....

People oftentimes "close their wings" due to past hurts and traumas. A little bit of love and listening and in time those wings will slowly open revealing such beauty...

With our "wings closed" we are often camouflaged and blend in with our surroundings. This protects us yes, but we also don't learn to soar, to take risks, to spread our wings and fly with the colours becoming more intense by reflecting the "Son".....

Okra.... So common in African markets, now I know why....

I found some okra plants growing at one of the cattle camps when we arrived on the ranch in October last year... I threw the seeds in close to the house and have to now climb on the roof to reap the pods! We struggle for fresh produce here so anything, cooked with a good sauce, is delicious .... Okra has many health benefits. Rich in fiber, Vit A, Vit C, Vit K and the B complex group. It also has important minerals such as iron, calcium, manganese and magnisium.

The beautiful flower that flowers for a day then the petals fall of and it turns into a pod.. It is from the same family as a hollyhock and hibiscus...

A bowl full of okra freshly picked ...

Those "dark clouds" make the colours of our life so much more vibrant!

I have had no internet for 10 days and being in such a remote part of the world it hasn't been easy! Life is so delicate and fragile and we are not guaranteed a tomorrow, so give today everything you have got!

What I found on my early morning walk today....

My walking companion 

Brightly coloureds red bishop, not a clear pic....

The beautiful hard wooden bridge where I stop to take a breathe! 

The Cameroonian chap riding the Cameroonian horse...

The remains of the oil palm seeds scattered on the ground under the palms, after the African Grey Parrots had had a feast! Now a gorgeous pic would have been if one of their red tail feathers were lying near bye! 

I love this area of the ranch! Arrived here after a shower of rain.... Life is lonely here but just so beautiful!

An extremely still and hot late afternoon on Nyanga Ranch, Gabon

Just as the setting golden sun transforms an otherwise drab little bush into something of great beauty, so too should He transform our lives, brightening the corner, where we are....

#the beautiful old Saint Mary’s cathedral – Notre-Dame de Neiges – Libreville, Gabon #loveoldchurches #africancathedrals

Back in Libreville, Gabon! We are trying hard to remain positive and joyful despite all..... After a long day of flights, we arrived in a very sweaty Libreville, to no water .... It's been 2 days now throughout the city! Will have to head to the ocean with a bar of soap!