“I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape — the loneliness of it — the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it — the whole story doesn’t show.” —Andrew Wyeth
The first days of autumn are here and the rain falls wet on leafy gold lined streets. The streets are dark, slick with the cold low-hung grey flannel blanket that wraps itself around my weary bones. I feel alive and wired and full of energy even as my eyelids sink deeper and deeper inside the cozy warmth of harvesting-nesting-preparing for the long cold months of winter’s sleep. These days, my kitchen is a constant smell of apples and cinnamon, pots simmering and pie baked oven as bags of apples are peeled and cored, cooked and frozen.
My thoughts and words are stretched out like an elastic band, emotions flung around red and ripe, juice dripped down and yet I find myself growing quieter and quieter afraid to give voice to the ever changing puzzle pieces. There is a shift in the air, a cold breeze that bites into the crisp tart thoughts that I have and I want to hammer them deep and dark into a thick soft piece of paper but I find myself lost and dangling like a sentence that goes on far longer than it should. I want to shout out words as I wander the gold lined streets in knee high boots and long wool sweaters but my breath breaks open and I gasp as it lingers quietly like a puff of frosty smoke.
So, instead, I will awkwardly give voice to autumn’s loud whisper of colour, her daring reveal, lifting her skirts, a dervish twirl of brightly coloured petticoats before she lays down her weary head and bares her bone beauty briefly as she snuggles into a warm soft blanket of white cotton wool.
Welcome my dear friend … let us whisper long into the night until our words run dry and we find ourselves dreaming soundly.
I would love to hear your first whispers of autumn or if like me you find yourself wordless, I would love it if you would provide a link to one of your photographs that reveals the colour of autumn in your world.
Photo Credits
“Lined with Gold” © Darlene J Kreutzer
I too love autumn, but here in California it doesn’t come on schedule like the rest of the country…but the leaves are showing a bit of color and I’m aching for them to start falling…I especially love when they fall and get stuff to the fence and I look forward to going to the pumpkin patches with the kiddos
xo
This post is a walk into nostalgia for me as I begin my first autumn in Los Angeles, where you’d never know it’s autumn.
I’m going to live vicariously through you and your seasons Darlene, and I’m going to look for the subtle changes that will occur in my neck of the woods.
The one constant for me though, is the light. The beauty of the difference in the way that light falls on the day is always my favorite part of Fall.
oh yes .. it really is all about the light i think, the light defines the seasons and the spirit of a place.
your words are like a cozy favorite cardigan that i wrap myself up in tonight…
this recent photo of my brother and his girlfriend represents autumn to me…i just love the idea of wandering out into the world and soaking up the crisp air: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lizelayne/4992351488/
crisp air wanders are the best part of autumn i think … love that!!
your words as golden those leaves cozying up the curb.
xoxo
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10751420@N07/5019195634/
such a delicate emotion to your photo ~ love!!
This is such a yummy little essay, Dar. The days still feel summery where I live, but I’m looking forward to scenes like this in the coming weeks: http://www.flickr.com/photos/thewordcellar/4468443593/in/photostream/.
jenna ~ i love that photo, it feels so pretty and light and the colours are really beautiful! thank you for sharing 🙂