the shape you deserve

if we all end up with the face and the body we deserve based on the life we’ve lived, then this cattail stem must have lived an exeptionally elegant and exemplary existence since last may.

cattail leaf blade

rice creek, shoreview, minnesota

fall

the word for fall used to just be “harvest.” but then in the 1600s people started moving to cities, and the most visible sign of autumn was not the harvest anymore, but the “fall of the leaf.” which means we have been losing touch with natural rhythms since before newton named the force that pulled those leaves to the ground.

rice creek regional trail, saint paul, minnesota

inspired

this is partly inspired by japanese wabi sabi, and partly inspired by my online friend margie’s  crocheted rocks (resurrection fern). and i guess partly, i thought, what would my eleven year old self have wanted to do with this rock, and these strands of grass. the answer: sit still for a while, and see how tightly i could wrap the grass around the round rock.

grass wrapped beach rock

lake superior, grand marais, minnesota

after the party

i picked some prairie tall grass today to photograph. the heavy seed heads and the elegant arc of the stems caught my eye. but when i got home and studied them, i was struck by how much the curled up leaves and abundant seeds looked just like confetti and streamers. i knew once i stripped the seeds and stems there would be no going back, but it had been a good day, and i was in a celebratory mood . . .

prairie tall grass seed and leaves

shoreview, minnesota

happy chance

i took this crownvetch home with me hoping to photograph its beautiful leaf pattern. but it started wilting in the car, and instead i had the happy obligation of photographing the leaves’ even more beautiful undersides. you take what you’re given.

crownvetch leaves

shoreview, minnesota