This week’s tree come to us from rq who says that she took the pictures while waiting for a light to change. It’s a wonderful talent to be able to see the beauty in an ordinary, everyday moment and then to use that moment to create art. I think the photos are serene and contemplative and I wonder if that reflects rq’s state of mind. Perhaps the artist will tell us in the comments below. Thanks for sharing, rq.
©rq, all rights reserved
©rq, all rights reserved
Dreary November Day, ©voyager, all rights reserved
Drizzling. Dreary. Drab. In other words, the weather hasn’t changed. Jack and I decided to go to the forest hoping the canopy would help keep us dry, but too many leaves are down and there was really no protection at all. I’m normally a fairly easy-going person, but this constant damp has me feeling irritable and out of sorts. At least Jack doesn’t seem to mind and his wagging tail and happy smile sure help to make being outside passably tolerable. Still, it’s good to be home and I might just hide out here for the rest of the day.
It’s a beautiful sunny day here at last and what better thing to do with Jack than take the boy swimming. He won’t be able to swim for a few weeks because he’s having a big fatty lump removed from his right armpit tomorrow. The water level at the lake is quite low now. This is a lake created when a dam was built in the 60’s and the water level varies depending on the season. In late spring and summer the lake is full, but come autumn they let a lot of water out which creates this sandy beach. It’s lovely to walk on, but Jack doesn’t care about the beach. He just wants to swim. I’ve included a few photos of Happyjack© loving life (sometimes the bad photos are the best ones) and just for good measure I’ve added some pretty leaves in the sun. After all, it’s Tuesday and that’s the day we celebrate trees around here.
Happyjack, ©voyager, all rights reserved
Our tree this week is a pear tree in full fall flame from kestrel who says,
We have no idea how old this pear tree is but it’s pretty old. It does still bear fruit, but this is not a great climate for it, as there are often late frosts that kill the blossoms. Even when it does bear fruit the pears frequently drop off before they can ripen. I suppose we ought to cut it down but it’s quite lovely in the fall when the leaves change color; just recently it fired up and looks wonderful for such a very old tree.
Old trees have a stateliness and grace and this old pear tree is putting on quite the show this year. All of the photos are bright and beautiful, but the last one of just the leaves in sunlight is gorgeous. Thanks so much for sharing, kestrel.
©kestrel, all rights reserved
It has been raining here for days and even Jack is getting fed up. He doesn’t like the drops hitting his snout and he stops often to wipe his face on my pants. How special. The water does make some things look pretty, though. So here are some leaves on a pond.
©voyager, all rights reserved
©voyager, all rights reserved
Kestrel has sent us some beautiful shots of autumn leaves in the rain. She says it has been rainy and foggy so of course she needed to get out for photographs. I hope the taking of them helped boost your spirit, kestrel. Water is so magically photogenic. Thanks so much for sharing.
©kestrel, all rights reserved
This way beckons, ©voyager, all rights reserved
It’s been a bit of a tough week for me. Partly it’s the weather. It’s been full of cold damp all week and that makes it harder for me to get out, but partly it’s because I had too much fun last weekend. It was my birthday and I was kept busy with visits to my mother and to friends and dinner out and to see the play Menopause The Musical! which was a 2 hour drive in each direction. It was all wonderful, but it was exhausting and once I get into that state it can take days to recover. It was worth it, though. Sometimes I do things knowing that I’ll pay a price. It’s like borrowing spoons from tomorrow. Many disabled people do because we still have interests and our minds and souls still need feeding. I love live theatre and I’m prepared to have a few down days if that means I can still participate. I don’t like to talk too much about my fibromyalgia. I learned that early on that no one really wants to hear you complain. It isn’t that people don’t care, it’s that there’s nothing anyone can do. A bit later on I also learned that it’s better to focus on what’s good in my life (a lot!) instead of what wrong. I don’t want to be defined by things I can’t do and I don’t want anyone’s pity. This voyager intends to have a full life and last weekend was certainly that. By tomorrow I should have a normal number of spoons again or as it feels for me, gravity will return to normal. I hope everyone has a good weekend. I intend to.
Help me, I’m melting ©voyager, all rights reserved
It’s an overcast and dreary day and cold enough that I wore my winter coat this morning. I’ve been struggling a bit in the colder weather so today I took Jack to the forest. It isn’t any warmer there, but the leaf swooshing makes me happy and so does watching Jack romp off-leash. He loves to chase the chipmunks and squirrels and because he’s slow I never worry about him actually catching something. Wait, he did catch something once. A rabbit, but Jack was laying down on his own front lawn just looking in wonder at the baby bunny when the poor thing bolted and ran straight into Jack’s mouth. Jack spat it out and the two of them sat there for a moment looking at each other before I shooed the bunny away. I swear that’s a true story.
©voyager, all rights reserved
This is a little pond that Jack and I found in the springtime. Then, it was covered in lily pads as far as the eye could see. I took a bunch of photos, but there were so many mosquitoes that I made a pretty quick get-away. It was also the middle of the day and the light was harsh so when I got home I filed the photos away under ‘go back and try again.’ I did try once a few weeks later and, if anything, there were even more mosquitoes. Then we went to the east coast and I forgot all about the place until today. The pond looks totally different at this time of year. There are only a few tattered remnants of lily pads left and the center of the pond is mostly open water which was reflecting the pretty autumn trees across the way. The sun came out long enough to light up the view and make the water blue and there was not a single mosquito to be seen or felt. I call that a successful field trip.
©voyager, all rights reserved
The sunshine has returned and it’s a lovely autumn day. Jack and I decided that it was a perfect kind of day to go for a walk in the woods and instead of our usual little forest path, Trillium Woods, we went to a place called Vansittart Woods. It’s just out of town to the west and it belongs to our local school board who use it to educate kids about nature and camping. There’s an easy trail that winds through mixed hardwood and fir trees and eventually it connects to another trail that goes through open meadowland. Doing both trails is a bit much for Bubba (Jack’s nickname) and me so we stick to the short manageable forest path. Today the ground was covered with a blanket of newly fallen leaves and I found myself swishing my feet and kicking them up to make the leaves dance and to hear that wonderful crinkling, crackling, whooshing sound.
It’s damp and drizzly again and while I might not like the weather there are certainly things that thrive when it’s moist outside. Fungus for example. Jack and I haven’t been to the forest in a few days and I was surprised to see this big bright piece of flaming fungus grown so large in 3 days. I swear it wasn’t there on Friday. It fits right in with the October colours all around it, but I didn’t expect to see fungus in a frilly orange party dress.
Flaming Fungus, ©voyager, all rights reserved
Pretty orange frills, ©voyager, all rights reserved
Last year we didn’t really have too much of an autumn show of colour. Instead, most trees just went from green to brown to leafless. This year, though, autumn is glorious and all the trees are wearing their best, bright party dresses. Jack and I invite you to join us as we stroll around our neighbourhood and look at all the pretty October colour.
Just starting to colour up
©voyager, all rights reserved
I love the way fallen leaves collect on the ground and flutter with every passing car. They softly whoosh and dance and sometimes my heart swells just at the sight and the sound of them. I can often be found kicking my feet in the gutters and setting them in motion. Jack politely stays on the sidewalk, often giving me a look that says ‘mommy, we’re not allowed to walk on the road,’ but even his good manners can’t stop me. Come dancing leaves, my feet are restless and my ears hear the waltz in your sighs.