...

the rain today has surprised me. i thought the snow would continue much longer.
but i'm sure march has many surprises left for us.
spring is on her way, but winter is reluctant.
you've been a dear friend, winter.

this is what march sounds like as it moves into my consciousness.

solstice : a lovely paradox

just wanted to wish you a happy solstice. i absolutely adore this day--the darkest day of the year.

it just amazes me that on the darkest day of the year (which is beautiful in and of itself) that there is

simultaneously hope of lighter days...from here on out, for the next six months, the sun becomes

more and more a part of our days. 

though i do love the darker days of winter, there is something quite beautiful watching the sun slowly

make its way back into longer days. 

hope you enjoy this wondrous day. i know i will.

autumn : hands-down the best time of year : what we did last autumn in california

it's so crazy to think that last year at this time we were still living in california.

i was always so anxious to escape the heat and find a bit of fall.

our weekend adventures were incredible : sierra mountains, apple orchards, redwood forests, yosemite, and the sea...i think being close to the sea is the thing i miss most.

now that we're in salt lake city fall is already upon us, and all i have to do is look out my window

to see the leaves changing in the mountains...this year's colors are going to be drop-dead bright

thanks to a very wet spring and a nice monsoon season.

i am loving that i get to put my sweater on every night, and my boots have

already come out of the closet a few times.

i am so ready for thick, chunky sweaters, leather boots, wellie boots, duck boots,

scarves, tweed blazers, tweed news-boy hats, knit hand-warmers, knit scarves,

the smell of cool air, homemade cider doughnuts, nutmeg, ginger, cloves,

am so giddy thinking of halloween and all the trick-o-treaters that will be coming to our door

all bundled up to escape the frosty elements,

am incredibly excited for that first dusting of snow...part of me wishes that a dusting

of snow is all that would come, but then i remember you can't ski on dust...

still, that first dusting of snow is eternally magical.

what are your favorites of fall?

{see last year's ode to autumn here}

this summer was a good one...

as many of you know, i usually dread summer and spend

my days counting down to the fall equinox.

fall is still my fave (yay! it's here!), but this summer was

probably the best yet...

it may have to do with the cooler spring we had,

a couple months spent in rainy england (so grateful for all that rain!),

and many weekends spent at higher elevations in the mountains.

this was truly a summer to remember.

tomorrow, an ode to autumn!

manifesto monday: metaphors

tree branches_fall leaves, originally uploaded by Ann Marie Whittaker.

celebrations for winter holidays usually have some kind of metaphor that embraces a bright moment in the "dead" of winter. for example, the winter solstice is the darkest day of the year, but each day following the solstice grows brighter.
growing up in a place where most plants hibernate and grass is covered in layers of snow, it is odd for me to be in a place where this does not happen. here, in california, winter means that everything, except for certain trees, turns an emerald green. the grasses that were scorched dry during our extreme summer heat are nourished and come to life.
this has changed my winter metaphor...or at least it has broadened it: winter brings moisture which the earth drinks up and stores for tougher times ahead. it is a time to prepare, to slow down, and to soak it all in, bringing life. this i believe.

listing gratitude {part six}

..........
am grateful that spring
brings blossoms
and pretty dresses
..........
am grateful for the
golds and blues
of the heat of summer
..........
am grateful for the coolness
of fall that brings
about harvest
..........
am grateful for winter's
snow and chill air
that slows us down
and brings us inside with family
...................................................

o hushed october morning mild, thy leaves have ripened to the fall...

did you ever pretend to be a giant worm

burried in a pile of leaves

then beg your brother to fetch grandpa

so he could fish you out?

or try to lay motionless, breathless

while your brother "convinced" your mom

to come outside to see the "harmless" pile of leaves

then he said the secret word for you to jump up

to "surprise" her?

have you ever heard the aspens quake

and shiver their leaves of gold?

have you ever walked home late at night

after studying for hours at the library,

enjoying the darkness for your enhanced smell {breathing in wet leaves and pavement} and your enhanced hearing {sloshy or crinkled leaves}?

have you ever finished reading a novel or a short poem

that moved you to go outside to notice how the earth 

lives, breathes, and beats?

have you ever wanted a season to linger...

to give you one more brisk breeze

or one last bowl of butternut squash soup.

or have you ever grown tired,

seeking change?

have you ever been so grateful

for right now?

it's just all so beautiful,

isn't it?

{photos by me. october 2009. utah}

in autumn...

in autumn:

i want to walk down streets guarded by oaks
that are nearing 100-years-old.
i want to walk inside a home that is
at least 100-years-old.
i want leaves to pile up faster than
they can be gathered.

i want a scarf to wrap my neck
and a coat to button up.
i want grotesque sqaush to greet
me at front doors and back doors.
only boots for my toes on feet.

i want spice:
ginger, nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, and fennel.
i want pies of apple and pumpkin.
i want poe, grimm, shelley.
i want wind that strips and whispers.

i want fall, fall, fall.

photo by me. salt lake city. anyone recognize this house?

goodbye summer!

i know. i should probably have more gratitude for the summer season...

afterall, that is when most people are able to grow gardens to feed themselves.

kids are out of school, free to play whenever and however they wish.

picnics are abundant and easy {if temperatures don't rise too high}.

camping in the highlands doesn't necessarily require 0-degree gear.

all of that is nice,

BUT...

i will not be sorry to miss the following about the summer season:

.sweating the moment i step out the door.

.wearing shorts. i don't care for shorts at all.

{can't wear a skirt because they're not biker-friendly}

.wearing the same 5 t-shirts over and over.

.feeling pressure, constantly, to fit well into a swimsuit.

.days so hot you cannot even use the oven.

.reassuring my cardigans and scarves that i do not choose to neglect them.

{believe me, i give them as much attention and use as i can}

.riding my bike ridiculously slow so as not to over-heat.

.sleeping with no sheets nor comfy down-blanky.

.not being able to hold hands with ceej on a walk, because the sweat from the heat is just too much for comfort!.

this weekend is, officially, the last weekend of summer.

i've mentally entered the autumn season...

though temperatures won't cool and leaves won't change color here until november.

like gardeners begin force their seeds to grow before the snow has melted,

i will force my sweaters and boots before the leaves begin to fall.

have a lovely last weekend of summer!

monday is the day i've been waiting for ALL year.

photos by me. lake powell. august 2009.

2nd spring...

i feel really lucky...

i get two springs this year...

the first: spring break, california
the second: today, utah

so happy for all 4 seasons!
photos by me: mckinley park, spring break '09

100 Degree Weather Wishlist

This weekend Sacramento will be hitting 100 degrees and beyond! Yuck! As a girl who thinks of summer as her least favorite season I am wishing for a few little things to get me through it.

This cute vintage-inspired swimmer.

This beautiful, breazy dress.Some perfume to remind me to just breathe when the heat is suffocating.
These oh so cool glasses and this lovely hat for reading
My favorite epic novel of all time.

Some frozen lemonade. Fresh.

La Primavera 02: GET OUTSIDE!

Take a Walk

Fix up your bike, and take it for a spin...maybe take along a picnic.

Nothing Better Than A Spring Storm

"I am not afraid of storms; for I am learning to sail my ship."
-Louisa May Alcott

Today we've had a wonderful, beautiful, and dramatic sky as this storm came in. There is almost nothing that compares to the sun setting in the west, the clouds brewing to the east and to the south, with the spring-green blossoms against the sky. My new favorite color combo: stormy-sky-gray and spring green. Oh, that Mother Nature knows how to fill us full of awe!

la primavera. 01.

Every spring I take pictures of the lovely blossoming trees...who doesn't? They are hard to resist. I will be posting now and then my favorite things about spring. Hope you enjoy the photos, poems, and thoughts. If you love poems, please continue reading this post.

In April
the ponds
open
like black blossoms,

the moon
swims in every one;
there's fire
everywhere: frogs shouting
their desire,
their satisfaction. What
we know: that time
chops at us all like an iron
hoe, that death
is a state of paralysis. What
we long for: joy
before death, nights
in the swale--everything else
can wait but not
this thrust
from the root
of the body. What
we know: we are more
than blood-- we are more
than our hunger and yet
we belong
to the moon and when the ponds
open, when the burning
begins the most
thoughtful among us dreams
of hurrying down
into the black petals,
into the fire,
into the night where time lies shattered,
into the body of another.

-Mary Oliver, "Blossoms"