“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.” ~ Albert Camus
“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” ~ Albert Einstein
“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.” ~ John Muir
Today is Veteran’s Day in the United States. It’s a commemoration I have never felt comfortable with since I became old enough to understand its meaning. I abhor the wars that caused so many men and women to sacrifice their lives, health and sometimes sanity. I want to honor the warriors, not the wars. I know that sometimes good comes from terrible events, I just wish we could learn to settle our differences in ways other than war. So, I’ll just say that I honor these warriors on one of the first days of appreciation that marks this season.
The other morning we had a glorious sunrise. Arizona is known for its sunrises and sunsets. Barry and I have hundreds of pictures taken from our front porch, or from the road outside our house. Each new glorious sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset, I’m filled with gratitude. I pay attention to the sunrises mostly in autumn, and winter because in summer sunrise is at 4:30 or 5:00 a.m. and I’m not coherent at that time of morning. But the summer sunsets turn the landscape into a peachy golden flow. The quality of the light is unlike anything I had ever experienced before moving here. Unfortunately, I have not as yet been able to capture the effect with my phone camera. Which is actually something I like about that magical time of day. To appreciate what I’m describing, you have to be present when the sun turns the desert luminous.
In the autumn and winter, we are greeted by the sun streaming through our southern facing windows making gorgeous patterns on the walls and furniture. It greets me as I prepare breakfast and Barry’s lunch. It’s like a lovely companion.
When we first moved here, I noticed something I had never seen while living anywhere else. As the sky is beginning to lighten, or darken, a lavender band forms at the horizon reaching out in the opposite direction. When I lived in Portland, the sky was often obscured by clouds, and when I was younger, I didn’t pay close attention to the beauty of the nature around me.
I can no longer imagine living in a large city with the noise and fumes. I’m much older now and know the value of taking a moment to allow the beauty of nature to sink into my soul.
As we enter this holiday season, I plan to take time to be grateful for all the abundant splendor around me while I can.
I hope you have a magnificent weekend.
Thanks for reading, liking and commenting. I appreciate it very much.
Lucinda Sage-Midgorden © 2017
Lucinda is the author of The Space Between Time, an award finalist in the “Fiction: Fantasy” category of the 2017 Best Book Awards. It’s a historical, time-travel, magical realism, women’s novel, and is available in all ebook formats at Smashwords, and print-on-demand at Amazon and other fine book sellers. To join her email list, click here. She will never sell the names on her list.
Sage Woman Chronicles 