Turn, Turn, Turn

This song keeps running through my head: To everything (turn, turn, turn) there is a season (turn, turn, turn) and a time for every purpose under Heaven. My favorite season has just begun. Fall always makes me feel a bit melancholy, yet excited and happy about the changes and new beginnings that always seem to hum in the air at this time of year.

Misty Morning  21/365

The last day of summer dawned cloudy and cool, with fog veiling the mountains. By mid-morning it had burned off, leaving a clear blue sky and a sun already shifting to the south. The air is cooler but the light itself seems to have a warmer, more golden quality even at midday.

Watcher

A few flora are flourishing despite the drought:

Yellow Spiny Daisy

Mystery Aster

California Buckwheat 23/365

Fauna are frolicking in the cooler weather:

Kickin’ It Up

The Bunny Hop

Fall visitors are coming back:

Woodpeckers and Finches and Sparrows, Oh My!

I’ve seen male and female Nuttall’s Woodpeckers here before, but only one at a time. I was really excited to spot this pair in our Charlie Brown tree on the first day of fall.

Right on Cue

This little guy, the first of the season, showed up the same day, just hours after I said to my daughter, “I hope the White-Crowned Sparrows come back soon.” They winter over here but leave in spring to spend the summer elsewhere — probably somewhere cooler, if they are at all sensible. I haven’t seen one since April. I don’t know why I like them so much. They sing the same few notes over and over, but it always makes me smile to hear it.

And last but not least, the apples have been harvested. We had plenty of help:

But we did manage to salvage a few for ourselves.

Last of the Harvest  22/365

At the beginning of September I began a 365 project, my first, with a small group of online friends. It has so far truly been a gift of grace, keeping my interest in photography up even while other concerns are occupying much of my thoughts and time. I thought I might feel intimidated by the group, whose work I already knew and admired, but instead I’m loving it! I’m being inspired and uplifted every day by their photography, while learning to look wider and go deeper with my own. I can’t think of a better new beginning for this fall.

Photo-Heart Connection: April 2013

Awwww!

I know, right? So adorable. I love these little creatures.

But . . . (isn’t there always a “but”?) they are very destructive. They dig huge holes. They reproduce like…rabbits! They consume every green thing they can find, including garden plants and the bark of young trees. Sometimes I hate these little creatures.

But . . . they were here first. They are only trying to survive. They get hungry and thirsty just like I do. They are living the only way they know how, in the only place they have.

They know their place in the world. They don’t question the purpose of their lives. Sometimes I envy them that.

Besides, no one who’s read Watership Down can ever really hate rabbits.

Just look at him up there. He really is adorable. Love always wins out.

And that’s my Photo-Heart Connection for April. Click on over and check out this month’s linkup.

SHS Oct 7

Happy Sunday! I’ve enjoyed thinking about Scavenger Hunt Sunday all week, and looking for images to fulfill each prompt. This week the topics are: Shadow, Keys, Smile, Unedited, and Spice. Here we go . . .

Shadow:

Sundial

This noontime shadow of a pine tree in my garden reminded me of the symbol for a tree used on architectural drawings. I liked the crisp outline of the branches clearly showing the circular shape of the tree from the sun’s-eye view.

Keys:

Breakfast Bar

I didn’t find any interesting literal keys to photograph, so I’m going with a more metaphorical interpretation. One of the keys to successful gardening is knowing the challenges to growing things in your area. A couple of days ago I saw for myself the reason why this particular plant never seems to grow.

The other key here is not to believe everything you read on the internet. Many sites state that bunnies will only nibble as high as their noses. My mistake was in thinking that meant from the ground. Clearly my rabbits are smarter and more athletic than average.

The filter-blur effect is from an actual filter . . . my screen door.

Smile:

Hello, Handsome!

This guy has been hanging around a lot lately, making me smile every time I see him. He’s just so darned cocky. Did you know that roadrunners eat other birds, as well as lizards and snakes? And that they stalk their prey like a cat? It’s fascinating to watch him as he hunkers down flat and creeps along the ground trying to sneak up on the smaller birds in the garden.

On this day, I saw him through the window, grabbed my camera, and quietly stepped outside. He came trotting through my open gate and up the flagstone walk straight toward me while I snapped away. About four feet away, he noticed my presence and veered off. He paused on these timbers and had a casual look around (“I’m not scared of you!”) before heading on up the hill.

I think he’s so beautiful. If you click on the picture, you can see there’s a lot of green in the feathers on his back. When the sun hits them just right, they’re iridescent.

Unedited:

Owl Drug

I went into the bathroom one afternoon and my eye was caught by the late afternoon sun coming through the pebbled glass window and illuminating these bottles. I took several images and will probably play with some post-processing later, but this is my favorite SOOC (straight out of camera).

Spice:

Hot and Cold

Lunch — a homemade tamale and spicy green salsa from a vendor at the farmer’s market, with sliced cantaloupe from a local grower for a cool, sweet counterpoint.

And that’s a wrap for another Scavenger Hunt Sunday. Check out the links over at Ramblings and Photos and see what everyone’s been up to this week.

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