These past few days have been Mother Nature's
crowning glory.

I do not recall a fall this vibrant...ever.
The intensity of the reds, oranges and yellows-
magnifique!
{photo one by flicker AbhishekTech; photo two by flicker Shoeless Johnny}

"A tangerine and russet cascade of kaleidoscopic leaves

creates a tapestry of autumn magic

upon the emerald carpet of fading summer."
-Judith A. Lindberg, Shades of Autumn
{google image}

Chilly, rainy forecast for the weekend.
Our plan...make caramel apples!
{flickr photo by domesticali}

The sight of a combine harvester in a nearby field as
Mr R and I returned home from working out late last night.
The delicious, fresh, piquant smell of a fall harvest
on a warm autumn evening lingered in the air as
we laid our heads upon our pillows.
A blessed gift of autumn.
Thank you, Mother Earth and farmer.
{flickr photo by tallpomlin}

"October's trees are flaming torches
lighting the way to winter."
-Nova Bair
{flickr photo}

{pumpkin calendar by flickr brookecondolora}

to my beloved...
glad that's behind you!
{post-it by Marc Johns}

Remember these?

{All 267 collected, rinsed, bleached and drip dried?}

little.lovely covered her cartons in pages from a novel

to create a haunted village!

We are thinking of pulling the plug

on our land line.

Does anyone use theirs anymore?
Do you?
Do we?
The answer to question #3: not really.

It seems a waste of $40.00 a month, $480.00 annually,
for something we rarely use.
Except, except, except... I love our old red phone.
It was my Dad's.
My Dad loved talking...to everyone.
{I know, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree--
maybe that is why the telephino is red.}
I learned compassion as my father would call
the widows and the shut-ins;
to visit with them, to let them know someone was thinking of them,
to inquire of their needs.
I learned about the stock market as he
called his broker a zillion times a day
{barely exaggerated}.
I learned a magical combination of digits from this
red phone's number and even had a
sweet, sweet child born on the same month/day
at the exact time, too, as the last four numbers originally
on the phone.
Pull the plug...
yes or no?
{photo 3 by flickr mattybusiness}

A poem to the one I love,
who does these very acts of kindnesses and giving completely
and so much more...so much more.
May I reciprocate, even a portion, is the prayer of my heart.

"Our Union"
by Hafiz

"Our union is like this:

You feel cold,
so I reach for a blanket to cover our shivering feet.
A hunger comes into your body,
so I run to my garden and start digging potatoes.
You asked for a few words of comfort and guidance,

and I quickly kneel by your side
offering you a whole book as a gift.

You ache with loneliness one night so much you weep,
and I say here is a rope, tie it around me,
I will be your companion for life."

{flickr photo by carl derrick}

"A few days ago I walked along the edge of the lake

and was treated to the crunch and rustle of leaves

with each step I made.
The acoustics of this season are different and all sounds,
no matter how hushed, are as crisp as autumn air."
- Eric Sloane
{flickr photo by jsgphoto}

I will be travelling the next few days for
a photo class...

in "The City"-- hooray!
(photo one by flickr .m for matthijs; photo two, google image}

Happy Birthday!

This post is for my girls
whom dwell in the South {and love it}
but whose hearts yearn for a season of fall--
crops of soybeans, cornfields and harvest.
I took my camera and went to see what I would see.

I came around the curve of this country road
by our new high school, about 10 miles from our home,
to see two barns and a silo peeking over the crop of corn.

I stopped at the edge of the field to glimpse the red barn,

then continued to the other side and
beheld the vines sharing their splendor of fall beauty
like a peacock strutting his feathers.

Drove a bit further down the road,
turned the corner

to discover this farmer harvesting his crops-
the first I have seen this year!

Happy fall, girls.
Love, love, love,
Mom

October!
A glorious month due to the fall season,
but the real reason for its fullness is in
celebrating Emily's birthday!
{flickr photo by pink sherbet photography}