we took the dock out yesterday. those of you fortunate to live in more temperate climates probably don’t have to take the dock out every year, but here where lakes are covered with a foot or two of ice for most of the winter, docks must be taken out of the lake each fall. otherwise the shifting sheet of ice can grab the legs of the dock, wrench them from their moorings, and cripple them permanently. on the way back up to the house from the lake, i walked under an enormous weeping willow tree that is about half way through molting. the carpet of leaves caught my eye, so i reached down and scooped up one extra-large handful of fallen leaves–waders in one hand and pile of leaves in the other. then i sat on my kitchen floor for an hour and made pattern after pattern with that one handful of leaves. a perfect sunday afternoon.

handful of weeping willow leaves in november

on the shore of turtle lake, saint paul, minnesota