Rosy pink plumeria
Terri Webster Schrandt

Sunday Stills: Lets Get #Small

Anything small or tiny is the theme for Sunday Stills this week. Small and tiny things, whether photographed in macro or normal-sized are welcomed and encouraged. Some other adjectives for small include minuscule, petite, wee, teeny, etc. Have some fun!

This Universe is Small

“The universe is not made up of atoms; it’s made up of tiny stories.” ― Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Looking closely we can sometimes see a tiny universe under our nose. This “forest” is really moss growing on a tree.

Macro Moss Forest
Tiny Moss Forest
tiny ice crystals
Tiny ice crystals form a forest of ice

Rock On

Planets are large celestial bodies. The equatorial circumference of Earth is about 24,901 miles (40,075 km). Compared to the universe, Planet Earth is a small pinprick in the scheme of things. Schoolkids created this solar system in the local park with “small” rocks using the ratio from the sun.

Earth Rock
Large Rocks represent Earth on a small scale

The Kindness Rock Project was started by Megan Murphy in 2015. She wrote “You’ve got this” on a rock and left it on a beach on Cape Cod with the intent to spread positive energy and thoughts. Someone picked it up and created another. The trend continues via social media and school projects.

More rocks from the Kindness Rock Project
Kindness Rocks on display
mysterious trail rock
I noticed this on a suburban trail in Portland, OR

“Take one when you need one, share on with a friend who needs some inspiration or leave one for another.” Motto of the Kindness Rocks Project

Over the millennia, rocks are crushed to sand through a variety of geological events. According to Wikipedia, the famous black sand beaches of Hawaii such as Punaluʻu Beach and Kehena Beach were created virtually instantaneously by the violent interaction between hot lava and seawater.

Hawaii's Black Sand Beach

The black sand, found on beaches near a volcano, consists of tiny fragments of basalt.

Black Sand Beach
Punaluʻu Beach, Big Island, Hawaii

“Put three grains of sand inside a vast cathedral, and the cathedral will be more closely packed with sand than space is with stars.” ~ James Jeans

Creatures Great and Small

“All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small…” ~ Cecil Frances Alexander

Bee on yellow sunflower

We’re focusing on those tiny small creatures, some we love, others we love to hate. This bee may loom large here but he is just a bit bigger than the tiny blossoms that make up the sunflower’s center.

Do Butterflies Flutter By?

Dotted Blue Butterflies
Dotted Blue Butterflies
tiny skipjack butterfly
tiny skipjack butterfly
The dotted blue butterflies love their pictures taken. They are the size of my thumbnail.
Admiral Butterfly
Admiral Butterfly in his glory

As butterflies flit from flower to flower, this white moth preferred to cling to the frame of our back door. I’ve never seen these before–quite striking and about 2 inches long.

White Salt Marsh Moth
Salt Marsh Moth

Little Birds Say, “Let’s Get Wet!”

Lucky for the insects, the birds were too busy bathing to notice them. 😉

“May my heart always be open to little birds who are the secrets of living.”
~ EE Cummings

Two days ago, our little bird friends took their morning showers and baths early to beat the heat. I set the sprinkler out early and the birds came swooping in!

Hummingbird in tomato garden
Hummer taking a shower among the tomatoes

“There is no easy way to bathe a hummingbird.” – Kehlog Albran

Hummingbird in sprinkler shower
Raindrops are falling on my head
Hummingbird flits in tomato garden
Tiny hummer dwarfed by garden tomatoes

Mrs. Western Bluebird isn’t happy about sharing the bath with Mrs. Purple Finch.

two birds taking a bath
Um…excuse me?

“Stay faithful in things large and taking on the world, but stay faithful in those things small – because remember it’s the small things, the size of a mustard seed, that ultimately moves mountains.” ~ Cory Booker

flower border

Inspiring Photo Challenges This Week

Each week I find inspiration from my fellow bloggers’ photo challenges. I enjoy incorporating these into my Sunday Stills weekly themes.

Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders

The Sunday Stills weekly-themed photo challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post.

  • Remember to title your blog post a little differently than mine.
  • Please create a new post for the theme or link a recent one.
  • Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
  • Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
  • Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
  • I also recommend adding your post’s URL to the comments.

This Week’s Featured Bloggers

Sunday Stills is a wonderful community of bloggers, poets, and photographers who desire to connect with one another. Below are this week’s links from bloggers who shared their photos of small things. I add these all week as new links are posted.

I’m looking forward to seeing your small things this week! Join me next week for the theme “seeing double.”

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111 comments

  4. I love it when someone has an idea like the Kindness Rock Project and it takes off, with people adding to it. We can use all the positivity available these days. I also love your take on the tiny universes that are around us.
    The Salt Marsh Moth is amazing! And the little birds 💚
    Have a great week ahead!

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  13. I enjoyed your playful post on small things. I love seeing your hummingbird photos. We haven’t gotten a new feeder for them so we don’t see them much this year. That’s very interesting about the black sand. Hawaii must be a fascinating place to visit. I’ve never seen a Salt Marsh Moth – great shot of one! This week we’ve been visited by Hummingbird Moths. They are delightful to watch and very hard to catch sitting still long enough for photos. I did catch a little Instagram video when we had two of them on our Catchfly plants. Thanks for the fun prompt for the week!! I hope you have a great one and that you get some rain to cool the temps down!

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    • Thank you so much, Kirstin! I think my own favorite is the white moth only because I’d never seen anything like it before, and suddenly one day there were three! When I shoot the birdbath pics, I strive for good clarity–the two females seemed to have attitude at the bath 🙂

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  16. Terri,
    I always see something new on your Sunday Stills, and this time is no different. I’ve been around a lot of Salt Marsh and have never heard of nor seen a Salt Marsh Moth. Very interesting creature! We’re talking small, so I have a cute example for ya’. This week a lady in our exercise class brought her Micro Maltese. This little bundle of joy weighs only 1 pound and is the sweetest thing ever. Thanks for the great pictures, and have a wonderful week. Joe

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    • I hope I have new items on the blog, Joe. I’ve been known to put a few on repeat rotation, when needed, but the birds and butterflies are new as well as the second black sand image.
      I love your pic of the micro Maltese! So tiny. I need a dog that can I can at least take walk with me. 🙂

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  19. Great images Terri and a reminder of Winter’s beauty (keep it away for a while though), but for now the beauty that fills our Summer days. The hummingbird looks happy in the shower as do the birds delighting in the water. I love the close-up of the bee too.

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    • Thank you, Debbie! I had a lot more insects to share as examples but they have been seen before. If you can believe I had a very blurry pic of a hummingbird sipping from a sunflower but it was too fast for my camera! Loved your post!

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  40. That moth is so cool. I’ve never seen anything like it before. It could be called a ghost moth, although I think it’s also beautiful. It would make a great subject for a horror movie.

    The ice crystals are also amazing, Terri. They’re certainly something not many of us would even notice. Again, they are so beautiful. Mother Nature at her best.

    I’m not so keen on the black sand. I guess because I’ve never seen or experienced it for real. I do not like getting sand stuck to my skin, especially between my toes, so I’d have to cover up for a good look.

    I’ve gone for something we all need for this week’s prompt. These may be tiny, but close up, they hold life for all of us.

    Enjoy the rest of the week.

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    • Thank you, Hugh! That moth (and two others on different days) we happily clinging to our slider door frame. I had to google what kind they were. I think they are also called Tiger moth as under their wings is orange and black. I love the tiny droplets you added! Great abstract shot!

      I found that the black sand doesn’t really stick to your skin. Because it’s volcanic in origin, the grains are a little bigger than typical fine-grained beach sand. It brushed right off. Enjoy your week, as well!

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  44. I agree with so many of your commenters. The Salt Marsh Moth takes the prize this week. However, I love the ice crystals, too, and your many beautiful butterflies. The bee on the sunflower is a great photo, too. It’s just a delicious post! 🙂

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  50. I love macro photography. You have some stunning photos here, Terri. I especially liked the ice crystals and the white moth. And what a wonderful shout-out to the Kindness Rock Project. I love finding those. I need to make a few now to leave around town. 🙂

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  54. All those close-ups of tiny things are beautifully captured! I especially liked the birds. I participated in a kindness rocks group in memory of a friend’s son for quite a few years – such a great project that brings joy and smiles to so many.

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