The Moon Shines Bright

Hello Friends

The sky is clear and cloudless on a crisply cold Winter's evening. Birds are singing cheerfully, chirruping a clarion call of hope, a promise that tells us Spring will soon be here as surely as the dawn will rise again. Sweet voices in the silence of the coming night, there's something in that sound, as it echoes across this quiet twilight corner of the Shire that stirs my spirit at it's very heart. The Snow Moon looks down and smiles, and moonbeams dance so bright and full of hope . . .

What do you see when you look up at our one and precious beautiful moon? Do you see the Man in the Moon? Did you know there are two men in the moon? Or, do you see the Hare or Rabbit in the Moon? For years I only saw the Man in the Moon, then one day I found the other one, and then I found the Rabbit! Our moon, with her many moods, is full of magic and secrets waiting to be found.

Until next time

Stay safe, stay well

Debbie xx

The Colours of Days

Hello Friends!

November sits, suspended midway between the glory days of Autumn and  the bone chilling cold of Winter; a no man's land of dull November grey when all the vibrant leaves of orange, yellow and red have fallen from the trees and branches brown hang down, empty, dull and bare, against a leaden sky where December snow has yet to form.

Light is scarce in the sky, a dull grey gloom wraps itself around the horizon and wild clouds scud across the sky.  Cracks in the clouds let slivers of silver light push through, a reminder of what once was, and a promise of what is yet to come.  Houses, curtains tightly drawn across windows, glow with light, beacons that guide us home.

We have time to stand and stare.  Our harvests are gathered home. We are ready for the winter hibernation that will come.  Let the season of hygge commence!

 

Wrapped up warmly against the chill and bitter wind, wearing our mittens and scarves, woolly hats and chunky Fair Isle socks, we take brisk, invigorating walks out into the Welsh countryside.  

Berry picking time is over. There is nothing left to harvest now other than a scant handful of late fruits that we leave for the wildlife, for the birds, for the squirrels, for the mice.  

If we are lucky, there are piles of leaves dry and crunchy through which we stomp and kick. But in this November gloom the rain has fallen hard. The spent leaves are a squishy squashy mess of muddy brown. Are they not in decay? No!  They are making the food for next year's plants.  The Circle of Life rolls on 

Soon , much sooner than we realise it will be December. The snows will come and all will look different again, dusted in powdery white.

And so the seasons turn.  The days that not so long ago were warm with summer sun, now cold and chill us to the bone with withering winds.  The time has come to withdraw inside. Let us sit by the fire cosy and warm with books and hot chocolate for our companions.  

My friends I have been doing more art. Here is my latest effort by an online course offered twice a year by the renowned Danish artist Ida Anderson Lang, called Wish Upon A Star. 

Until next time

Stay safe. Stay well.

Debbie xx

No Man's Land

Hello Friends!

It's a no man's land between the seasons now; days are mostly void of colour and subtle shades of graphite wash over the fields and the valleys and the hills; the flowers of Summer and the leaves of Autumn have blown away, gone for another year, and only seed heads and skeletons remain, starkly standing against the sky, to remind us of the long gone days of Summer. Autumn days shift, and drift around us in swirling mists and Winter starts to nip at your nose and your toes.

Rain falls, often in great curtains of water, sheets of rain that fall from the cloud laden sky and often all is backlit by a pale shaft of sunlight that reminds us of that which is hidden from view

The gales of late Autumn batter us with increasing regularity and thoughts turn more and more to being indoors.  Hallowe'en decorations are down, but the seasonal pumpkins and leaves still decorate my home and will do until Thanksgiving brings this time of year to its conclusion.  Although I no longer bake a special meal, for it seems a bit odd to carry on a tradition observed from a different chapter of my life, and as a Welshwoman living in Wales I have now returned to celebrating Harvest Thanksgiving in early October, as is the way here.

Of course, a plus of all the cloudy weather means that occasionally we still see some lovely sunsets out to the west of the cottage and all the bare branched trees provide a perfect foil.

Occasionally, we have an unexpected break in the grey, late Autumn weather and we are blessed with that most precious of things, a blue skied, brightly sunny day.  Although cold, I wrapped up warm and did a few hours clearing in the garden.  These are the views to the west and north, respectively, from my future vegetable plot.

Sadly the fortnightly garden waste collection finishes this coming week, so I will have to make a corner in which to place the pernicious weeds if I am to continue clearing the garden without the bin collection.

It's Thanksgiving in America, and although we don't celebrate in Wales, I still think it's time to bring out the turkey patterned plates I found earlier this year.  Even though I am a vegetarian, they are so beautiful it is a shame not to trot them out again.  As the traditional meat for Christmas Dinner in Wales is turkey, I will keep them out through December.  

They are by Johnson Bros and are, I think, called stoneware, and look as if they are hand coloured on a transfer.

Barnyard King is the first, and the second is Wild Turkey

Soon, thoughts will turn to Christmas decorating, and I wonder how these holidays will be marked this year.  Will we be able to gather responsibly with limited numbers of close family, or will we have to stay put and celebrate responsibly and in a very different way, according to the guidelines dictated in our various regions.   However you celebrate, have as wonderful a day as you can manage while keeping everyone safe.

Some birds of a different sort now, a couple of garden birds happily foraging some forgotten apples.

Finally, despite the cooling, sunless days overall, I had quite a surprise to find these in the strawberry pots this morning.  The seasons sure are as out of kilter as the year has been.

Until next time

Stay safe and well

Deborah xoxo

Autumn Miscellany

Hello Friends!

Autumn weather with all it's many changeable moods and unreliability is well and truly upon us.  If you don't like it, wait a few minutes and it will surely change!  One day it is raining and blowing, the next it is calm, the sun shines in a blue sky and those are the days when housework can wait!  If the weather is good I will abandon the cleaning and get myself wrapped up and outside, camera in hand, and off I go.  I can only manage shorter walks of a couple of miles, and not too many hills, for this virus lingers and has knocked me sideways; after two months I have to do what I can to regain my stamina for longer walks with hills.

Steel grey stems with silvery spider webs strewn across a skeletal seed head sitting, shimmering in the afternoon sunshine

Happily I wander, following my feet, one step after another is all it takes, as I meander along the old and ancient pilgrim path that follows a twisting river valley floor.  Autumn sun shines from a clear, pale blue sky and gimmers through the shady trees so tall

Meanwhile, in my cottage garden rose hips and Cotoneaster berries, richly ripe and ruby red, provide a forage feast for birds, as they bring a last firework burst of colour to the borders.

Tread lightly, go carefully, for around our feet lie the homes of fairy folk!

A muted morning Autumn light, a quality that softens the landscape all around

High in the tree tops by a babbling brook the pinecones hang and droop. Tempting morsels for the squirrels to feast upon as they nimbly climb and scurry to the topmost branches.

Along a mossy topped wall hide tiny leaves of penny wort

In the high street, delightful Autumn pumpkins sit outside the local vegetable shop.  Who will buy?

Until next time
Deborah xo

Tea and This n That

Hello Friends!

I could scarce believe, when I looked this morning, that it is a month since I last wrote here.  I have been unwell since the last week of August, and cannot fathom how the last six weeks have flown by.  I am thankful to say I am now, as my doctor puts it, convalescing, and feeling much more myself.  Enough said!

In the middle of being poorly, my gas boiler bit the bullet and needed to be replaced, and I don't want to discuss the mess, the upheaval, and especially the expense of that evolution, not to mention that they have already had to visit to repair a brand new boiler!! Again, enough said, and moving on!

I am grateful that, despite having lost weeks off work, I am now able to get out and about for walks.  We have had some quite nasty weather, so right now I am making the most of the few and far between gentle Autumn days before the gales and late Autumn weather come upon us for the duration.

As you know, I love to write short passages of descriptive narrative, so while I sit and sip on my new favourite tea, Orange Gingerbread from Whittards of Chelsea, I shall draw upon some of the words I have written on my Twitter account in the past month, with the accompanying photos.  Due to not having the Twitter constraints of 280 characters, the words may be a little reworked from there.

This sweet card accompanied my recent purchase.

In an effort to help minimise plastic waste, I have just purchased boxes of loose leaf tea and a new, sweet little individual infuser.  So much bad publicity surrounding even premium tea bags, I feel I must stop using them.

Weave cobwebs fine when the moon is full and strew them with the silvery midnight dew, then will they shimmer; then will they shine, and by the coming light of dawn a gossamer fine fairy shawl of sparkling crystal raiment drapes; beware! within such beauty hides the thorny stems of roses fair, and somewhere waits to pounce a spider from this fairest lair. 

An Autumn morning rises silently over the sleepy village nesting on a hill, slowly wakened by a pale and mellow sun. A soft light, an early morning mist, a world painted with the subtle hues of Autumn, and a feeling in the air that words cannot describe, but it touches your heart and you know it is there.  The wind and rain have gone, leaving everything sparkling and fresh; the sky is blue; the sun shines. It's a beautiful, perfect Autumn day in the Shire, my friends.

A wild wind whistles across Whitesands Beach, watching the wide horizon while white ocean waves from the cold, deep grey sea crash upon the sandy, rock strewn shore. Cotton puff clouds scud and billow quickly in a soft blue sky and a lone swimmer braves the surf. It's an Autumn day in wutheringly wonderful west Wales, so wrap up warmly.

These were taken on the tail end of Hurricane Lorenzo, which was thankfully downgraded substantially by the time it arrived on the western shores of Great Britain.

The bounty of blackberries, shiny jewels of the hedgerows continued to give of their best for weeks and weeks, swollen by the plentiful rain, and ripened to sweet perfection by the gentle Autumn sunshine 

Beautiful Kaffir Lilies, also called Hesperantha, arrived unexpectedly in my garden in an abandoned pot, a gift from a passing bird, no doubt.

As I started to feel better, I managed to put up a few small Autumn themed decorations on my mantel

and I love how it looks in the evening, all by candle light aglow

and a final photo from my porch 

Until next time
Deborah xo