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It’s a far cry from sweet Anna’s gorgeous shots at Bear Lake (one of my favorite RMNP hikes) but it is my first indication of Fall in these little acres at the foot of the Wet Mountains. The aspen tree outside the kitchen window is as resistant to Winter as I am. But Fall, now, Fall is another story. My favorite season used to be Summer. Warm, sunny, beautiful thunderstorms, travel. Summer even in Colorado now is too hot and too dry. I’m more comfortable in North Carolina summers — perhaps the born-and-raised-there quality emerges when I’m back home — even with their extreme heat and humidity.
Spring here is temperamental (by the way, who knew that temperamental had an “a” in it? Not me, until just now.). These last few years, Spring has been full of false hope, vanished mountains, broken branches, and back-aching snow shoveling escapades. That said, I now consider it my favorite season. I love watching green emerge from stark brown and white, and the promise of newness that is always fulfilled. Fall comes in a close second. It becomes just crisp enough to leave the bedroom windows open wide and to feel comfortable snuggling under the covers in the morning. Having it be sufficiently cold for me is bliss, although my “sufficiently cold” is MKL’s “absolutely freezing”. And there’s a huge selection of apples at the market, which always remind me of apple picking in Washington State when I was 14.
As for Winter, well, that season might be getting milder. But tell that to the me that slid off the road two years ago, miraculously missing a tree and a lamppost, and then saying to my husband (in a phone call immediately after that incident where Jesus clearly took the wheel) that I was going to buy a boat and never have to put up with this crap again and his only choice was to be on board if he wanted to stay married. I had calmed down by the end of that working shift, and the boat is and will forever remain a pipe dream. Funny how a dream-come-true can be so dependent on circumstances.
So here I am, continuing to unpack and get slightly sunburned in our Indian summer (is that now a politically incorrect term?), accompanied by a full complement of late summer sun during the day and a panoply of stars at night. And one lone aspen leaf, resting on the deck.
Daily gratitudes:
Strength
Jet trails at sunset
A shower after getting really dirty
Lingerie
Discoveries
The sun came up as if someone on the other side of the earth had given it slightly square corners this morning. I wonder what they’re doing with the tail end of the sun over there? What they left for me was lovely, and while I’m far from a morning person, I do love the quiet of the early day and that sense of a fresh start.
Daily gratitudes:
The magic road
A flock of turkeys
A true partner and companion
Truck stop coffee
Giant dumpsters
You start
with my neck,
turning tendons into tangled iron bars.
You move
next
slowly
up,
slipping a shadow cap of pain
on my skull.
You creep
towards my temple,
signaling your arrival
with spot flashes of stars,
bright against the white walls.
You mock
the light I love,
driving me into a darkness
that still won’t quiet the
throb.
You linger
as an unwanted guest,
your departure date
a well-kept secret.
You will
go,
and I will be left with a
faded reflection of the ache
you so generously bestowed.
I will
not miss you when you’re gone.
Daily gratitudes:
Conversations with K
Teddy the goober dog
The menagerie
Lentil soup
Dreams with dead friends
Come over to http://www.writerinthepines.com to read, and follow.
Love,
Me
You know you want to read it….come on over and give the new site a follow!
Here’s a link to today’s post:
I’d love to see you over there.
I have been silent again. With all the upheaval in this country, I have been feeling like my pretty pictures and small gratitudes are frivolous. MKL reminded me that perhaps they are more necessary than ever. So fewer words, even though I have many thoughts.
Topsail Beach, North Carolina.
Quote of the day: “There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.”– Martin Luther King, Jr.
Daily gratitudes:
Home cooking
Snuggly cats
Writing deadlines
Introspection
My Washington children
We did not make it here for dinner or sunset, but I thought our short stop here was beautiful nonetheless. Hope you think so too. It has been so hard to come back to chill winds, long work nights, and having to scrape my truck windshield in the mornings. Memories and dreams can keep me warm for now.
Catchafire, Great Exuma, Bahamas.
Quote of the day: “Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark in the hopeless swamps of the not-quite, the not-yet, and the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserved and have never been able to reach. The world you desire can be won. It exists.. it is real.. it is possible.. it’s yours.” — Ayn Rand
Daily gratitudes:
Two Bichon Frise sightings
MKL and a lovely date night
Mr. Man’s paw on my hand
My comfy couch on a day I’m not feeling good
The movie “Gravity”
My new zebra frying pan
And on a sad note, please say a prayer for the family and friends of one of Kelsea’s friends who passed away on Friday. 17 is always too young.
I’m back and I had an awesome time, and you will all get to see and hear all about it! Here’s a taste..
Over the Bahamas.
Quote of the day: “Love is like..waves.. you ride one in to the beach, and it’s the most amazing thing you’ve ever felt. but at some point the water goes back out, it has to. and maybe you’re lucky–maybe you’re both too busy to do anything drastic. maybe you’re good as friends, so you stay. and then something happens–maybe it’s something as big as a baby, or as small as him unloading the dishwasher–and the wave comes back in again. and it does that, over and over. i just thinksometimes people forget to wait.” — Erica Bauermeister
Daily gratitudes:
That we didn’t quite miss fall
That Mr. Man missed us
Hawks
Butternut squash soup
My shower
I have books brewing in my head, three of them, and I started work again on my first novel, so I’m excited. I told Kelsea that each book would pay for one year of college. So I’d better get on with it. I had forgotten that when I am in writing mode, I lose track of everything else. I got lost walking down a city block today. Fortunately, I was holding MKL’s hand, so he kept me from getting run over or covered in paint from the workers on scaffolding.
Topsail Beach, North Carolina.
Quote of the day: “Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” — William Wordsworth
Daily gratitudes:
The man with the turquoise tennis shoes on the bench this morning
Swirls and spurts of creativity
Inspirations
Good hair days
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