Rainless Days

We have been without significant rainfall for over a month.

Usually by mid-October, we are surrounded by brilliant orange, and red leaves on the trees, but sadly they are turning brown, and falling to the ground.

Interesting, since we had a wet spring and summer, and now a dry, brown Autumn.

The Autumn Joy Sedum however, is turning a delicious shade of crimson.

 

 

Indian Summer

Indian Summer is upon us. Balmy warm days, and mist-laden nights.
One last chance to indulge in fleeting Summer pleasures.

An early American writer described Indian Summer well when he wrote, "The air is perfectly quiescent and all is stillness, as if Nature, after her exertions during the Summer, were now at rest."

     

 ~ John Bradbury 1817

English Country Folk

A little treasure from the Royal Doulton, Beswick, English Country Folk Collection,
Mrs Rabbit Baker.
I found her on one of our many trips to the antique shops in England during my last trip home. 
She reminds me of my grandma Elizabeth Jane, who owned one of the towns local bakeries.

" No matter what time you call in at Mrs. Rabbit's homely* cottage, you're sure to find her hard at work in the cozy, wood-panelled kitchen.
Whether a traditional Sunday roast, delicious cakes, or her famous homemade scones, Mrs Rabbit's care and skill make every mouthful a special treat."


* for American readers the use of the word 'homely' in England means cozy and comfortable.

Long - Awaited

Our trusty weatherman has predicted we'll be finally experiencing some Fall-like weather this week.
No more of the ninety degree days, but temperatures much cooler, and  seasonal.
I can't wait to open the windows at night, enjoy the crisp air, and fall asleep to the sound of the screech owl calling.
*ahhh*

Mother Nature's Stained-Glass Creation

 

The Monarch butterflies have been prolific this year.

With more than 80 percent of the world’s flowering plants relying on pollinators, their importance to natural ecosystems and agriculture cannot be overstated. However, populations of pollinators, including bird, bat, butterfly, beetle and bee species, have been declining around the world.  

 Monarch butterflies complete incredible migrations of hundreds to thousands of miles each year across North America. Along their migratory paths, Monarchs rely on habitats that contain milkweed species, which is the only plant that they lay their eggs on. Monarch caterpillars feed exclusively on milkweed, which contains chemical compounds that make them poisonous to potential predators.

Soon they will be returning to their home in Mexico, where they will spend their winter hibernation clustered in small areas of the Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca (Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve), a national protected area and nature preserve that covers more than 200-square-miles.

Source: usda.gov 

September Days

 

 

"By all these lovely tokens

September days are here

With summer's best of weather

And autumn's best of cheer."

~ Helen Hunt Jackson ( 1830-1885 )

 

Hello September

" September days have the warmth of summer in their briefer hours,

But in their lengthening evenings a prophetic breath of autumn.
The cricket chirps in the noontide, making the most of what remains of his brief life.
The bumblebee is busy among the clover blossoms of the aftermath,
And their shrill and dreamy hum hold the outdoor world above the voices of the song birds,
Now silent or departed."-

~ September Days : Rowland E. Robinson, Vermont

Believe

                        "In this broken human world, small miracles still emerge before us"

Bill Brown

The Simplest Things Are Often The Most Beautiful

Passion Flower / Maypop

Time For Tea

When you are raised in a culture of hot tea-drinkers, from the time you are old enough to enjoy a  milked-down version in your baby bottle, through infancy and youth and young adulthood, continuing throughout your life into senior days, you rarely pay any attention to your daily habits until someone points them out.

The first thing that most English people do when people stop by the house, is to put the kettle on. Tea mostly, or coffee if you prefer, it's embedded in our DNA.
We were watching re-runs of Downton Abbey today, I couldn't help but smile as I watched the offer of "tea ?" being suggested at every twist and turn. 

When a visitor drops by, when good news is received, after bad news is received, when a helping hand is needed, or a little encouragement is welcomed.

 

Tea drinking in many cultures is the centuries-old tradition and universal language of civility, and social nurturing, a little more partaking these days would be a good thing.

"THE CUP FOR ME.

"Let others sing the praise of wine,

Let others deem its joys divine,

Its fleeting bliss shall ne'er be mine,

Give me a cup of tea!

The cup that soothes each aching pain,

Restores the sick to health again,

Steals not from heart, steals not from brain,

A friend when others flee.

"When sorrow frowns, what power can cheer,

Or chase away the falling tear

Without the vile effects of beer,

Like Pekoe or Bohea?

What makes the old man young and strong,

Like Hyson, Congou, or Souchong,

Which leave the burthen of his song

A welcome cup of tea.

"Then hail the grave Celestial band,

With planning mind, and planting hand,

And let us bless that golden land

So far across the sea;

Whose hills and vales give fertile birth

To that fair shrub of priceless worth,

Which yields each son of mother earth

A fragrant cup of tea."