at night, we look at art; women with long dresses and ladders leaning on moons, curled up statues fight the
dark evening chill—fog rises from the damp leaves and seeps into our bones, into our exhaled breaths as we
contemplate unspoken questions, from unspoken conversations with dead poets and philosophers and husbands and wives
The oak tree leaves cling to their branches through the winter. They bend with the weight of the snow. Holding on tightly, they sway in the razor-cold wind. Come spring, the leaves will let go; floating silently on sweet breezes that carry them into the forest—where the deer hide and the sun sets.
January is proving to be snowy and cold with white skies and treacherous roads. I marvel at the frozen beauty falling in a horizontal slant during a squall or drifting quietly out the kitchen window. My eyes are almost blinded by bright colors inside; I focus gently on softer hues, fairy lights, dried flowers, branches covered in yarn, books on snowflake photographs and these words from Thoreau:
January 1852: “The blue in my eye sympathizes with this blue in the snow….Would not snowdrifts be a good study,—their philosophy and poetry?” from The Journal 1937–1861 by Henry David Thoreau
raccoons in midnight trees
flowers on tables
beautiful places and rambling thoughts
dark books and burning candles
morning sun rays wake the day
hot summer days with the early morning sun shining through leaves and petals — making shadows on the walls like paintings on canvas, like unconscious meditations
the hazy noon lull creeps upon us — a listless veil of drowsy breezes caresses our afternoon nap-time dreams
the evening closes late, a holiday dive-bar atmosphere of abandon — another summer day locked up tight, slips softly from the present, right into the past
spotted orchids in the morning sun
baby tears in pretty bottles
tiny fawns amid the ferns
bird houses in a forest clearing
dragons on the old table
oh my sweet and tender-hearted girl,
i feel you
i steal you
i reel you
onto my table-top orbit—
i was once new
i was once true
i was once you
cardinals coming and going—flying through the slats on the little side porch, eating at the feeder, drinking in the fountain
a single peony shimmering in the morning sun
cups of orange spice tea on cool nights
family gatherings with pineapple popsicles
glasses of deep red wine into the night
cool linen sheets for afternoon naps
I took a photo of the white tulips, a quick shot, a forgotten snap.
The next morning, I posed them on the table adding a canvas to the background, a candle in the foreground, lights on and lights off, an interesting book, some seashells.
In the end the best shot was the simple one I’d taken the day before, as I was headed for the dog leash and a late afternoon walk.
So much of life is like this, where the un-orchestrated is the most pleasing, the image that works.
Note to self: allow things to be themselves, independent, uncluttered and free— people, ideas, love, tulips.
spanishwoods 