Showing posts with label autumn 2011. Show all posts
Showing posts with label autumn 2011. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

The Last of the Monarchs

Dear Friends,

We are finally getting some beautiful autumn weather, and today was one of those spectacular fall days! Not too hot, and not too cold. And no rain! By mid-afternoon, the sun was shining so brightly I needed my sunglasses.

After I left the historical society for the day, I crossed the street to a lovely garden maintained by a certain lady who shall remain unnamed. For many years now, she has cultivated a "publicly private" garden in the center of the city. Located next to a humdrum parking lot, it brings joy to those who visit from March through November.

I have long dreamed of having a garden that begins its cycle with snowdrops and continues until snowfall, but a lack of yard space, time and other factors have prevented me from doing so. But, anytime I want, I can drop by Mrs. X's garden and see what's blooming.

Today, a squirrel chattered at me crossly as I walked down the sidewalk to view the huge dahlias. I tried to capture him on film and had no luck!



Who did I find, however? The last of the monarch butterflies, no doubt, before he heads to Mexico! This fella (or gal) was incredibly busy, as was...you guessed it! A bee!


This bee was one of several buzzing about, including the fat "bumble" variety, my personal favorite!


On to another dahlia...


...and back again...till he rose into the air and disappeared. Heading south, no doubt.


I'm not sure what kind of flower this is. I've never seen it anywhere else. If you know, please leave me a comment or drop me an e-mail, OK?


Could this be the last rose of summer?


And is this the last of the red hot chili peppers?

Such a beautiful day!

I wish you a beautiful day, too!

Monday, October 10, 2011

Thought for Today

Image by Mikeinwayne

Wild Geese

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.


Mary Oliver


Dear Friends:

I needed this poem today to remind me that it is OK that I am not a superstar, that I am not burning up the world with my brilliance and that it is OK that I just am.

Every day or so, I see the wild geese flying south, honking their mournful honk, and I feel a certain sadness. A friend found me weeping in a flower garden several days ago. She asked what was wrong, and I replied that the flowers were so beautiful, and I was crying because they would be dead soon. 

"But they're here now," she reminded me. 

And now is all we have. I need to remember that when I worry about what my future holds.

I wish you a wonderful now, a wonderful be and a wonderful am.