The golden days of Autumn have been transient and few here in the hills.
The water-logged forests are just starting to display the reds and fiery oranges,
hallmarks of this special season.
Many of the stressed trees yellowed early and gave up their leaves in weariness, soon after the torrential rains of Irene withdrew.
Now rain has come again, too soon for all still relishing the bit of Indian Summer that blessed us last week.
Days are getting shorter and this afternoon’s dim light sets the stage for the season of introspection to come.
I am indoors, happily lost in the natural beauty of smooth oval beads of metamorphic limestone.
Minerals and dendrites have imbued them with finely detailed landscapes, abstract patterns and subtle gradations of tone that rival Chinese ink paintings.
I have had the pleasure of looking at each one and arranging them into poetic strands evolving into necklaces.
Soon they will make others wonder at the patterns on their deliciously smooth surfaces…but for this moment, I hold these myriad small worlds in my hands and sigh.
Nature’s artistry sets a standard that mere mortals will rarely match…
But the inspiration is visceral, heady and sweet…
