transitions

the approach of autumn is all around us. leaves are beginning to fall on the deck. the days and especially the nights are so much cooler. there is a sensation that hangs in the air, both heavy and electric, dark and starlit, moist and crisp. it is an autumnal feeling, the feeling of change, death, possibility, limitation, grounding and flying.

cool enough to curl up in a blanket and read.



cool enough for morning coffee on the deck.

after the rain

a short stroll through the woods is a creek. during the summer months it is usually bone dry, but after a recent rainfall there were some nice pools to explore. it's a pretty little stream with trees & ferns crowding its banks. we like to go there to throw rocks, collect nuts that have fallen from above and play in the water. yesterday was the perfect day for a creek visit. we carried a walking stick with a bell attached, you know, so the bear would hear us and stay away. but most importantly, our behemoth ginger striped tabby, loki, guarded us the entire time.

the other day

every once in a while, when tristan is refusing to nap, i load him into the car and take a drive. i love all the dirt roads and barns and pastures and elegant homes and small bungalows and plants and the ever changing face of the blue ridge mountains.

and every once in a while a big storm rolls in and that is wonderful too.

the other day a black bear lumbered through our yard. he walked right by me, standing on the deck, gazed up at me without a care. i am still amazed.

our little friend hudson was over the other day with his sister and mama. tristan so very badly wanted to hold him and sit next to him and breath in his special baby scent. it was bittersweet seeing my baby want to be the big guy. tashi started asking for a sibling when she was four. seven years and five miscarriages later her baby brother finally arrived. seeing tristan want to be so close to hudson made me wonder when he might start asking for a little sibling. i felt some sadness knowing that he is the last little in our family.

i've been wanting to try my hand at refashioning and/or embellishing old clothing. i was going through some old fabric scraps the other day and came across a torn but pretty scarf. i used it to add sleeves to a dark linen shirt that i never wear, and lined the collar with it. it's a little goofy. maybe a lot goofy. i should have removed the dark short sleeves from the shirt, but i was a lazy and in a hurry. i'm glad i finally gave it a try though. it opened the door to what i expect will be a long line of experimenting with fabric scraps and old clothes.

tucked in the seam

a circle of elves.

they inhabit trees and gaze at flowers.

one may tower over a hunched human, emanating -- like an angel -- a ring of light.

splash upon earth tones, the green leaf.

a feather pierces time and brings tiny ripples ashore.



strength.

containment.

finding oneself called up a mysterious passage in the midnight sky.



wondering who



to be ferried.

to truss with cotton or iron.

dropped in the shadows, glinting shard.

and away we go into august

i can't believe it's been a month since my last blog entry. apparently it was a full month. a trip to the midwest, friends visiting from afar, a visit from my mother, and a long weekend at a wonderful virginia music festival are a few of the events we squeezed into july.

we've been wanting to go to floydfest since our first summer in virginia and we finally made it happen. once we got over the initial challenge of finding camping space and setting up camp (on a day with temps in the high 90's), we had a blissful time! we ended up camping with some friends that had the sweetest set up you can imagine, tarps artfully arranged for maximum shade, a kitchen area and even a shower surrounded by a dressing room. it was not easy sleeping on a slope every night, or avoiding the poison ivy that crept all about the camping area, but the music, the parades, the creative vendors, the delicious food, the drum circles, the camaraderie and the happy memories made it all worthwhile. we think this will probably become a summer tradition.