a little whimsy

something a little whimsical for you today, to lighten up a bit after all the somber images i have been posting lately. i didn’t set out with this in mind, but this got me thinking about some alternative decor for the holiday tree this year. what if the ornaments stay in the box for one year, and we decorate with found nature instead? as an added bonus, the whole tree could go straight outside, and back into the woods, after the holidays. hmmm…what if?

beautiful, but…

these pampas grasses i got from my neighbors yard are beautiful. outside, in the bright sunlight, their heads are bright white. so i was pleasantly surprised when i pulled up this image on my imac, and saw all the hidden colors within. so, it is indeed a striking image. but yet, it leaves me a little wanting. outside these grasses are rarely standing straight like sentinels. they are always moving, swaying to and fro, on their 2 meter-long stems, in even the gentlest breezes.  i couldn’t really recreate the effect inside (a fan perhaps?),  nor could i get a large enough white background behind them outside. this is what i could do. striking. interesting. but not quite right somehow.

ornamental pampas grasses

approaching lock-up

it’s been snowing for five days, and temps never rose above 20 degrees today. so, while the lake is still not frozen, everything else is. when the lake freezes over, we officially enter lock-up. while this feels a little early, we had a very nice warm autumn, so i trying to remain grateful.  if you look at minnesota on a map of north america (not a u.s. map, but rather, a continental map), you will see we are very close to the middle of the continent. this means we have no large bodies of water to help mitigate extremes in weather. and, extremes we have. living here is not for the faint of heart.

winter prairie grasses

resilience

some lives follow predictable paths. most, like this tree, don’t. lives zig and zag. and, like this tree, they are more interesting as a result.

looking for the right adjective

this sumac leaf feels so expressive to me. but i am having a hard time finding the right word to define the somber mood. meloncholy. forlorn. surrender. concession. loneliness. help me out here…what do you feel when you look at this image? whatever the word, i find it hauntingly beautiful.

sumac leaves in autumn