spring unfolds

good morning, says she through clenched teeth.  typepad is giving me fits again (what else is new?! - so, for now, cut and paste from Word, and hope for the best)

When I finally made it back home towards the end of last week from Alabama, I couldn’t believe the changes that had quietly taken place while I was away.  Funny thing – I always expect things to be different after I’ve been gone for a while, and they never seem to be.  Everything is (usually) just as I left it, a toy of walter’s in the middle of the living room floor, a pair of my shoes still waiting just inside the front door to be worn again.  This time, I pulled up at dusk after a long day’s drive through springtime that had been in full bursting bloom in Alabama, then a softer version of spring in the middle of Georgia, then less and less green as I headed back into the foothills of these treasured mountains.  At home, there were still no leaves on the trees; but oh my, how lovely the magic tree looked in its bridal white lace beside the house.   this was taken the first morning i woke up here at home, from a side road just below the house.  grass still uncut, as you can see...
I missed the whole process of spring here last year; for six weeks I was away, tending to my bedridden father, trying to be there for my mother in any helpful way that I could, teaching out in Washington state in a foggy state of mind, heading straight back down to Alabama the day after I returned east.  It was a long, stretched out time of treading water, now that I look back on it:  we did the best we could with the time that we had, and searched for little pockets of joy in the shadows of looming sorrow.  So, to come home after a lovely two weeks in full-bloom Alabama and to witness first hand the unfolding of green and spring all over again here on firefly road has been a quiet time of gratitude and peace and joy for the beauty of life and all that it brings.  it's lovely, even when it's foggy, which on most mornings it has surely been, and many times at dusk.  soft, quiet, lovely.  good medicine, for this soul.   walks along the river (only a couple this week, as gasoline prices continue to soar) are providing more deep breaths of gratitude - the "preciousness" i discussed this morning on the phone with a friend - and the colors that come with early april nature are pulling strongly at my heart.  there are little star-shaped purple flowers covering the forest ground along the river path, right now - purple stars, and trillium, in pinks and whites, and yellow wildflowers, the names i do not know.    i have watched this tree heart through the barren months of winter, and was touched to see a small cluster of violets growing at its top, yesterday.  i'm listening now, for the woodthrush songs; i listen, and i quietly wait.  at home, i'm working in the memory of colors that i carry home from the river with me.  it's all i seem to want to do, right now.  colors are unfolding; nests are being built in unexpected places.  when i went to look for the camera's cord to connect it to the computer, i was dismayed to realize i had left it back in alabama.  for now, then, only phone photos are available, and they will have to do. 
 

i'm not used to working in a myriad of colors.  it's been a practice in frugality to dig through jewelry drawers hidden for 15 years to find a variety of something other than the blues and greens of turquoise or moss aquamarine and pearl that i am wont to use.

there will be more images of jewelry later this week, once the cord arrives in the post from my sweet mother.  i promise.

 

xo

 

Comments

[Tina in McLeansville]

"good morning" she says with a smile...and with a sigh.."thank you!" :) welcome back. hugs...xoxo

[Molly Vollmer]

The photos are ok. It's just a little foggy:)) Brighter colors must be reflecting the thrill of getting two Springs this year. We're hoping to get just one. It's snowing here.

[dorylyn]

i like the photos. they are perfect.

[Robyn Ayaz]

Welcome back! What a lovely treasure trove of soft colour of new life.

[herhimnbryn]

You know it's the person behind the camera who 'sees' the world and captures the images. Beautiful, restful post dear one. xo

[Sandy]

Beautiful, both the scenery and the magical creations. Happy Spring!

[Diana B]

Actually, I think the photos are terrific - very atmospheric, soft and vintage.

[Carol Weiler]

I loved the pictures. Spring is by far my favorite time of year- renewal, growth, hope.

[sandra]

cord or no cord...these pictures captured the essence of spring...that heart deep in the bark is something else...

[barbara karr]

So nice to hear from you...glad you are home safe and to the wonderful softness of spring...I think even the air feels soft!

[delila]

i wish i could take a walk with you Nina on that forest path where flowers bloom! do i notice Podophyllum leaves, those plants with a large leaves?
your magic tree looks beautiful!! it must be very inspiring to see all those beautiful plants and walk in a woods.

[rachelle]

Me too. I want to walk with you one day. In the meantime, its a blessing to just sit here and rest, and look at your amazing photos. I love that photo of your mum below. May I retain some of that zest. Its funny to read of you going into Spring as we have started Autumn here. strange because I feel cold as you talk about walking around outside, when all i want to do is hunker down somewhere cosy with the chilluns. love you nina. dear heart. x

[Mardi]

Nina your photos are nourishment for the eyes and soul. I so appreciate everything that you share. I long for the day I can once again visit the mountains of Pennsylvania and feel the magic of nature healing all the stress that life has been heaping on us all.

[cynthia regan]

Oh my my, that glorious tree! Welcome Home, dear Nina. Enjoy these sweet days and as always, thank you for sharing with us.
Cynthia

[vickie]

Absolutely heart-achingly beautiful photos. The heart tree is amazing. Where-ever there is a heart, you are sure to find it!
vickie in kc

[Alice]

Gorgeous pieces-all of them, but my favorite is the first one with the little bowl of 'eggs'.

Spring is here too, though sometimes I wonder if it will stop raining, and other times I wonder if we have moved right on to summer. Such is the weather in Kansas.

I tend to reach for the same blues and greens when I create too. I have to force myself to use other colors, and when I do I find them pleasing.

Have a wonderful Easter!

[Kathy Pennekamp]

The pictures you paint with words are every bit as beautiful as the pictures themselves Thank you!

[Mary]

How pretty. That mossy tree is too beautiful. I hope you get back there when the violets are blooming.

[Cindy Ericsson]

"every little thing she does is magic"

[Sophie]

These pictures do more than "do". They are work of art in their own right, as are your words! They allow us to share your world with you and reflect your creative take on what you see. I love that your walks provide such soul food and inspiration, and that you translate spring in unique works of art. Such beauty in your world. Thank you so much for sharing.

[Robin Nowak]

so I've watched the garden awaken here at home and at another place I garden. the native grapevine whose 'trunks' are almost as big around as my wrist have made good time of the early season. the passion vine is waking up, slim green tendrils reaching for anything to grasp.
the swallows returned very early this year with the martins several weeks behind. only this weekend i spied the scissortails pairing up in the country and today, just today, the kingbird made his presence known.
there's a mourning dove nesting in the juisach tree out back, the sparrows and starlings are nesting in the martin house, and the red shoulder hawks have paired, nested and have been eerily quiet the last few weeks.
I would love to walk through your world with you--what joys!