Tag Archives: colors
A festival season
Just after the death of the flowers, And before they are buried in snow, There comes a festival season, When nature is all aglow— Aglow with a mystical splendour That rivals the brightness of spring, Aglow with a beauty more tender Than aught which fair summer could bring…. (attributed to Emeline B. Smith, about whom …
A riot to the senses
“October proved a riot a riot to the senses and climaxed those giddy last weeks before Halloween.” ― Keith Donohue Blogs are a wonderful way to connect to people all over the world, and today’s photo is one example of the fun that can result. As I write this, we aren’t yet having riots of color …
Blooming most recklessly
“Everything is blooming most recklessly; if it were voices instead of colors, there would be an unbelievable shrieking into the heart of the night.” — Rainer Maria Rilke I probably say this every year, but I can’t remember when I was more eager for spring. Because I was expecting visitors in late March and early April, …
Complicated
“Everything is complicated; if that were not so, life and poetry and everything else would be a bore.” — Wallace Stevens I’ve noticed that advertising and publishing increasingly use variations on the word “simple” to promote their content. Everyone, it seems, yearns for simplicity amid the overwhelming density of challenges our brains must deal with …
All the magic
“The Sussex lanes were very lovely in the autumn. I started going for long lone country walks among the spendthrift gold and glory of the year-end, giving myself up to the earth-scents and the sky-winds and all the magic of the countryside which is ordained for the healing of the soul.” — Monica Baldwin Saturday …
The right way
“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.” ― Frances Hodgson Burnett Recently on an early evening walk, I was basking in the new cool of September, and as I approached our Alexandria townhome I looked over the expanse behind it and felt almost as if I …
Thoughtful minds
“The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love color the most.” ― John Ruskin Well, thanks for the compliment, Mr. Ruskin! I don’t know how true it is, but I know without a doubt that I belong in the group you have described. I am mad about color, lots of color in all …
A running flame
“Autumn burned brightly, a running flame through the mountains, a torch flung to the trees.” — Faith Baldwin If you live in the northern hemisphere, I hope you are close enough to visit some area where the torch of autumn is lighting up the forests. Not all of us live near mountains, but anywhere there …
Delicious
“Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.” — George Eliot The scene pictured above is one of my favorite places in our neighborhood. There is a pond just to the left, where you can’t see it in …
Bright and demanding
“She liked anything orange: leaves; some moons; marigolds; chrysanthemums; cheese; pumpkin, both in pie and out; orange juice; marmalade. Orange is bright and demanding. You can’t ignore orange things.” — Catherynne M. Valente Though I’ve never thought of orange as one of my favorite colors, I love the way it brightens this time of year. …
We more than gain
“Autumn is the mellower season, and what we lose in flowers we more than gain in fruits.” ― Samuel Butler Happy first day of fall! I hope this season is full of delightful gifts for you. What do you most look forward to at this time of year? Feel free to share some of your …
Dressing herself
“September is dressing herself in showy dahlias and splendid marigolds and starry zinnias. October, the extravagant sister, has ordered an immense amount of the most gorgeous forest tapestry for her grand reception.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes I agree with Holmes that the beauty of October is usually more extravagant than the showy displays of September. …
Flowers that fly
“But these are flowers that fly and all but sing…” — Robert Frost Of all the symbols of summer, perhaps butterflies come the closest to capturing the season. The brevity of their time here, coupled with their freedom of movement and dazzling visual appeal, seem well matched to the warmer months when we tend to …
Part of the silence
“In order to see birds it is necessary to become part of the silence.” – Robert Lynd Today’s photos are NOT mine, as much as I’d like to take credit for them. I’m re-blogging some amazing photos by Michael of talainsphotographyblog. Michael is a talented and prolific photographer who gives us a closeup view of …
My sunset sky
“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.” ― Rabindranath Tagore There are a lot of things I really like about getting older. Based on what others have said or written, I know I’m not the only one who has experienced …
In your house
“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” ― William Morris When one of my graduate school professors asked me to do a paper on William Morris, I wasn’t thrilled about accepting, but it turned out to be one of the most fascinating studies I …
Drinking in the surroundings
“I was drinking in the surroundings: air so crisp you could snap it with your fingers and greens in every lush shade imaginable offset by autumnal flashes of red and yellow.” ― Wendy Delsol I had never heard of Wendy Delsol until I came across this quote, but she described exactly what I was doing the …
Not just a noun
“All the other colors are just colors, but purple seems to have a soul. Purple is not just a noun and an adjective but also a verb – when you look at it, it’s looking back at you.” — Uniek Swain* I’m tempted to begin with Alice Walker’s well known quote about the color purple, …
Bright and intense and beautiful
“Fall colors are funny. They’re so bright and intense and beautiful. It’s like nature is trying to fill you up with color, to saturate you so you can stockpile it before winter turns everything muted and dreary.” ― Siobhan Vivian That’s what I do on my walks; stockpile the colors and images and cool, smoke-scented …
Wild with leaves
“Listen! The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves, We have had our summer evenings, now for October eves!” ― Humbert Wolfe The photo above was taken just a few months after we moved to Virginia, having lived in northern California for the past five years. I was almost unbearably homesick for …
What the world gives you
“Use what you have, use what the world gives you. Use the first day of fall: bright flame before winter’s deadness; harvest; orange, gold, amber; cool nights and the smell of fire. Our tree-lined streets are set ablaze, our kitchens filled with the smells of nostalgia: apples bubbling into sauce, roasting squash, cinnamon, nutmeg, cider, …
A harmony in autumn
“There is a harmony in autumn, and a luster in its sky, which through the summer is not heard or seen, as if it could not be, as if it had not been!” — Percy Bysshe Shelley If I was absolutely forced to choose a favorite season, it would be autumn. Even its name is more …
In a garden
The kiss of the sun for pardon The song of the birds for mirth One is nearer God’s heart in the garden Than anywhere else on earth — Dorothy Gurney I don’t know what it is about Canada, whether it’s the climate or the eagerness for warm weather or the souls of its people, but …
A light from within
“People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.” — Elisabeth Kübler-Ross I love stained glass, from tiny sun-catchers hanging in kitchen windows, to magnificent soaring panels in cathedrals. Whenever I see …
To flowers
“I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers.” — Claude Monet It’s easy to believe that flowers inspired Monet to capture beauty on canvas, creating some of my favorite masterpieces. Add one more amazing gift to the lengthy list of the ways flowers have enhanced our lives. The flowers seem even more beautiful than usual this year. …
Defeat Despair 