Summer's Elegy by Howard Nemerov

Hello friends.  Lately I've been noticing that leaves are getting crisper, the blackberries vines are heavy with fruit and the landscape is beginning to change. It's been unusually hot here in my little corner of the Pacific Northwest. I think we may have an early autumn.  Though I enjoy the summer, I must admit, these little signs of fall stir my senses. Ahhh, the glory of harvest moons, warm days and cool nights, pumpkins lying in the garden, homemade applesauce with cinnamon!Watching nature spin everything into gold is brings me such pleasure every year.

I saw this poem on the Writers Almanac on Facebook.I had not previously read anything by Howard Nemerov. His work is just beautiful...enjoy!

Summer's Elegy

by Howard Nemerov

Day after day, day after still day,
The summer has begun to pass away.
Starlings at twilight fly clustered and call,
And branches bend, and leaves begin to fall.
The meadow and the orchard grass are mown,
And the meadowlark's house is cut down.

The little lantern bugs have doused their fires,
The swallows sit in rows along the wires.
Berry and grape appear among the flowers
Tangled against the wall in secret bowers,
And cricket now begins to hum the hours
Remaining to the passion's slow procession
Down from the high place and the golden session
Wherein the sun was sacrificed for us.
A failing light, no longer numinous,
Now frames the long and solemn afternoons
Where butterflies regret their closed cocoons.
We reach the place unripe, and made to know
As with a sudden knowledge that we go
Away forever, all hope of return
Cut off, hearing the crackle of the burn-
ing blade behind us, and the terminal sound
Of apples dropping on the dry ground

 

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Jack's Lantern Company

Tomorrow is Halloween and I've been dismayed with my porch. It's been looking pretty raggedy of late, and I don't want trick-or-treaters to avoid the place because it looks ghastly! I hate spending more money on plants that will be replaced soon by Christmas decorations, and I'm soooo over those little scarecrows from Michaels. So I rummaged around the garage and dug up a fall wreath and clever sign that I bought at an estate sale years ago. I totally forgot I had them. Eureka! Now I just need to get some candy for those trick-or-treaters...

The mums and the burning bush berries saw me out on the porch taking pictures and screamed, "Hey, you! Get over here and take our pictures. We're gorgeous!"

 

I had a little fun with the 'posterize' button on Picasa.

 

Happy Halloween!

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A Sunny October Day in the Country

What a glorious October day in the country!

Just the day for a stroll around the old Hovander Farm.

The sun was warm on our backs, the air pungent with the smell of fallen leaves,

 and the sky so very blue!

 

Sunshine in October is a luxurious, lavish gift from Mother Nature here in the Pacific Northwest.

 

I hope your weekend was filled to the brim with Autumn!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

October's Bright Blue Weather

O SUNS and skies and clouds of June, And flowers of June together,

Ye cannot rival for one hour October's bright blue weather;

  When loud the bumble-bee makes haste, Belated, thriftless vagrant,

And Golden-Rod is dying fast , And lanes with grapes are fragrant;

When Gentians roll their fringes tight To save them for the morning,

  And chestnuts fall from satin burrs Without a sound of warning;

  When on the ground red apples lie In piles like jewels shining,

And redder still on old stone walls Are leaves of woodbine twining;

When all the lovely wayside things Their white-winged seeds are sowing,

  And in the fields, still green and fair, Late aftermaths are growing;

When springs run low, and on the brooks, In idle golden freighting,

  Bright leaves sink noiseless in the hush Of woods, for winter waiting;

When comrades seek sweet country haunts, By twos and twos together,

And count like misers, hour by hour, October's bright blue weather.

  O suns and skies and flowers of June, Count all your boasts together,

  Love loveth best of all the year October's bright blue weather.

Helen Hunt Jackson (1831-1885)

A Rainy Sunday at Bellewood

It's been a quiet first-day-of-Autumn Sunday here in the Rorvig household. Hubby rose early and took Baron to the woods for a run...Lazy me...I snoozed until 10. Pure luxury!

The rainy, blustery weather here was a reminder that we indeed have turned the page to fall; time for galoshes and knitted sweaters--steamy cups of herbal tea and toast slathered in jam.

When Hubby and Baron returned from the woods I suggested that we drive over to Bellewood Acres for lunch. I had a hankering for one of their turkey and Swiss sandwiches...besides, it seemed such a waste to ruin my leisurely Sunday with any kind of work!

 Bellewood is...well...it's many things. It's an apple farm, a bakery, a market,  a distillery, a place to take the kids to pick out pumpkins from the patch, and the perfect place to slip away on a drizzly day for lunch. I took my camera today because I had a hunch that the colors at Bellewood would be as scrumptious as their apple-cider sugar donuts. I was right about the donuts AND the colors...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can read more about Bellewood Acres at their website: www.bellewoodfarms.com

 

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Gratitude and Blessing

I visited my little garden today. The one in the community plot at the Methodist Church. How different she seems now as we near September than she did only a month or two ago. And yes, I do think of my garden as a woman, a beautiful woman with a very short life. In June and July she was lush. Her cheeks were rosy and full; she was all a-blossom and bearing fruit.

 But now she seems so weary and tired... a very old woman 
who has given her all. She is spent. She sits in silence, head bowed...she needs to rest.

  The spinach and lettuce have gone to seed and the heads of dill are all dried up--but even in the dryness, their pungent aroma lingers. The scarlet runner beans bulge with pretty red pods, and I have just one hill, only one precious hill of potatoes left to dig. I can't bring myself to dig it up just yet. I think I will wait for a special occasion, and maybe Kelly will come and dig them with me--after all, he helped me plant them.  Aside from the potatoes and beans, all that's really left to harvest are the kale and tomatoes, both of which I have far more than I can imagine what to do with. I pick a few half-ripened tomatoes and leave the rest to ripen on the vine.

 The tomato plants have grown so large (about four feet high I guess,) that my crudely-fashioned stick-cages have collapsed from the weight of them. (Note to self...buy the wire cages next year.) The fruit left lying on the ground is rotting on one side, so I pick it and toss it into a pile, and wonder what a poor child sifting through garbage dumps would think of this waste. Which leads me to wonder why I am standing here in this beautiful little piece of Eden while others forage in landfills. Which gives me this mixed emotion of shame and gratitude.

 But since shame is such a useless, toxic emotion, I shake it off and choose gratitude; the only appropriate response to grace... 

So I say a quiet little prayer, thanking God for my garden. For rich, fertile soil and sunshine. For rain showers and ladybugs. I thank Him for the sweet carrots and corn, and for all of the tender green lettuce. And for the fact that I am here, in this garden.
 
Then I speak a blessing over my Garden. She's worked hard for me this season, and I dearly love her for it.

How can I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me?

  I will sacrifice a thank-offering to you, and call on the name of the Lord...

 

Psalms 116: 12 and 17

 

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A Remedy for Decorating Doldrums

Good morning! I have today off, and though I planned to sleep in, there were just too many ideas buzzing through my head. You know what I mean...you get a day off and there are more things that you want to do than you can possibly accomplish.

The first order of my day was to do a bit of rearranging. I've been in the decorating doldrums for quite a while now...feeling pretty dis-satisfied with the way my home looks. That's partly because I'm in the middle of a 'style identity crisis.'  My tastes have changed but my furnishings haven't.

Sometimes though, small changes can assuage the urge to splurge. I bought this beautiful wool scarf to wear with my brown corduroy jeans and beige tee shirt; but it's been too warm to wear a heavy scarf indoors. So I put it on the coffee table. 

When I moved the cactus from the top of the refrigerator  to the coffee table, I noticed that it's about to bloom-- just in time for Thanksgiving. What a hardly little plant!  I've neglected it terribly, but bless it's heart, it's still going to bloom. (BTW, did you notice the pot it lives in? Its a garage sale find, an antique...around 100 years old!)

So am I going to bloom this Thanksgiving? Are you? Can we find things to be grateful for in spite of having been  metaphorically 'stuck on the top of the refrigerator'? I think it's time to begin meditating on all of the things I'm thankful for, instead of focusing on the things I don't have.

My Gratitude List for November 11

• health and the ability to get out and walk
• my good neighbors on all sides
• a soon approaching birthday...56 years strong!
• tea and scones
• the loss of 8 lb. which has nothing to do with tea and scones or pumpkin pie
• my loving, faithful husband
• my beautiful, beautiful children and grandchildren--all healthy and happy
• the fact that Christ is with me every day, even when I'm at my worst
• my sister
• pumpkin pie
• being debt-free in a world that's drowning in debt
• clear sinuses

AND...all of the lovely things in this world, like music and art and pretty yarn and fluffy kittens, snow-capped mountains, sparkling Christmas trees, full-moons, pine trees with owls in them, wagging-tailed dogs, embroidered tea-towels, sweet-faced children, and pumpkin pie. (I've mentioned the pie again...I'm really craving pumpkin pie!)

My list could go on forever.

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A Thank-you, A Halloween Song, and a Hopeful Heart

I've been saving this picture from the Lynden Fair to share with you this month. I know Halloween isn't for a 10 days, but the kids at school are really getting excited, and their enthusiasm is contagious! Now I'm not the biggest fan of witches and goblins, but I've gotta say; this handmade rug is pretty darn cute. It would be so darling on the porch next to the pumpkins and cornstalks! It reminds me of a song we used to sing in elementary school: 

One little, two little, three little witches,

Fly over haystacks, fly over ditches,

Slide down moon beams without any hitches,

Hey ho Hallowe'en's here!

Horned owl's hooting, it's time to go riding,

Deep in the shadows are black cats hiding,

With gay little goblins, sliding, gliding,

Hey ho Hallowe'en's here!

Stand on your head with a lopsided wiggle,

Tickle your little black cats till they giggle,

Swish through clouds with a higgedy, piggle,

Hey ho Hallowe'en's here!

Thanks to you all for your kind thoughts, prayers, and words of encouragement over the past couple of weeks. I felt your prayers, truly! We've moved from tears to sighs over our Koda, and can now laugh about her antics and the fun times we've had. My wound is healing.

I'm about halfway through knitting my 'doggin hat'; the new one I'm making - hoping and believing that I'll be wearing it with a new canine companion. Today a co-worker told me she needs to give her 9-month-old purebred black lab away. She hasn't the time to really take care of him. So we are going over on Sunday for a visit to meet him. Kind of a blind date. Maybe this is the one for us.

In the meantime, please send up some prayers for Koda. The lady who now has her can only keep her for a limited time. She's looking for a nice big farm with pastures to run in-where Koda will never again be chained, or even on a leash. It has to be that way for my girl. She won't survive in any other setting. So please join me in praying that she'll find just the right place. I think God cares about these things, don't you?

Hope you have a beautiful autumn weekend!

From Peanuts...The Great Pumpkin

Time in a Bottle...for my Kelly

 

 If I could save time in a bottle,

the first thing that I'd like to do;

Is to save every day til Eternity passes away,

Just to spend them with you.

If I could make days last forever

If words could make wishes come true,

I'd save every day like a treasure and then

again, I would spend them with you.



 But there never seems to be enough time

to do the things you want to do when you find them.

I've looked around enough to know

that you're the one

I want to go through time with...

                                   

                                     by Jim Croce

(images of our Fort Ebey trip)

              

Dreaming of an Autumn Day at Fragrance Lake

Photo is from fishwhatcom.com

     I'm just sitting here on my sofa this late evening, reflecting upon a dream I had a few years ago. In the dream, I saw a lake; I recognized the place--it was Fragrance Lake. I hiked there once with Kelly and the kids. The only way to get to Fragrance Lake is by hiking...or by dreaming. It was a tranquil autumn day in my dream;  and golden leaves were dropping from the deciduous trees along the shore and landing on the water. The lake was dappled with golden leaves. A warm afternoon sun shone on the water, and an occasional breeze caused the leaves to float lazily about without a worry for where they went.
      Nothing else happened in my dream. I was just there.
      I awoke at peace, and just lay there, pondering my dream.
     A still, small voice inside of me said, "You've entered the autumn of your life, daughter." 
     That startled me a bit, but I kept listening.
     "This is how I will make your autumn years."
 
     Just of late, I'm noticing how full life is. Golden, ripe, and sweet. My forties didn't seem that way, and my thirties, well they were just a blur of activity. But there's a richness in the fifties. And I'm learning how to float like leaves on the water, without a worry for where I am going.
     The writer of Ecclesiastes says, "He hath made everything beautiful in his time." I'm thankful for the beauty of this time in my life.
     I don't know why I'm sharing this with you tonight. It's 12:47 and I should be off to bed. But I hope that you will somehow be encouraged to enjoy this time of your life; and to know that every time of your life holds a promise of beauty, as you trust in God.
     Good-night to you...and sweet dreams!

  

Autumn; Feast for the Eyes and the Soul

It's Monday afternoon and I should be at school. Right about now I would normally be helping Mrs. Ross show her brood of kindergarteners how to count blocks and explain how a rectangle differs from a square. Complex stuff when you're only 5. But instead I am nestled in hubby's cozy recliner sipping tea from my newly-thrifted corningware ivy teapot and blogging away. Somehow I pulled a muscle in, well, there's no delicate way to say it...my groin. Ouch! It's been bothering me for several days, but like any good superhuman; I've tried walking it off, ignoring it, stretching it; basically everything but the practical, time honored remedy-rest. My early morning walk to the loo this mornin' convinced me. I realized that limping to the bathroom was one thing, but getting up and down on my knees all day so that I can look my students in the eye is quite another. And I must say, this rest thing is under-rated. I feel pretty good! Steamy hot tea, my newly painted olive green kitchen, a bunch of autumn flowers on the desk, and our backyard squirrels are all keeping me quite entertained and feeling very mellow.
And since I've got the time; I thought I'd load some new autumn-inspired photos for you to enjoy. (I took them while 'walking off' the pulled muscle!)



A view of the back yard from my newly painted kitchen


Luscious grapes at Homestead Farms


Walking through the arbor



Crimson vine maples



and crimson winter apples on the espalier (from a neighbor's home, I dream of espaliered apples in my garden one day)


Taking a break from our walk at the 2nd tee box

A view of the 8th green

Last roses of summer

Peeking at the old John Deere through the golden leaves


Shadows on our pathway.

A fall feast for the eyes and soul.

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