Fall is upon us: cool evenings, changing leaf colors...the fragrance of spent leaves waft up from our path touching our soul. To acknowledge this autumnal threshold and to fend off crisp nights, we light a fire, some big, others small and gather round. Encircling a fire is a favorite practice of fall. The other evening … Continue reading Putting Fires to Bed
The holiday weekend plan was full of guests, food, and events with anticipation of high step numbers on the fitness tracker. Then everything cancelled. Everything. Guests from the south stayed on the sandy shores of their home, sandbagging in defense of Hurricane Dorian. Here in the North, we went from a packed schedule to four … Continue reading Summer Rains and Hurricanes…
Minnesota's glorious North Shore. A gift known by those of us who are blessed to live in this area, and often a hidden gem to those who live elsewhere. Mother Superior is powerful, nurturing and beautiful. And, surprising. She can go from calm to powerful, seemingly peaceful to fitful in a relatively short amount of … Continue reading I Met a Crayfish Along the Way
The fireflies were dancing in the garden last night. This morning the chipmunks stuff their cheeks with seed, the hummer fills his belly with bee balm and hosta nectar, baby birds ravish the berry bushes in search of sweets and worms. The new sun warms the back of my neck; the humidity sits in the … Continue reading Love and Fear
Sometimes the most amazing things happen in the middle of the darkness. Early one morning, stumbling my way to the sliding glass door to let the cat out, I saw the moving shadows in the yard. They moved with grace, beauty and gentleness. Serenity, peace and watchfulness guarded them. Animals in natural environments react to … Continue reading The Realm of the Dark
Earlier this spring, during one of the many storms that passed over our home, a tree came down. It was mature; for me the worse ones to fall. It was actually part of a triad that sat on the bank of our creek, and when my daughter was small it was lovingly named "The Pooh … Continue reading A Bridge of Brokenness
(3 min read) In our house, there are a couple of predictable alarms that sound around 4 a.m: even on the weekends. Dog bladders and cat bellies declare their need with door scratching and urgent whining. This steamy summer Saturday morning (at 4:04 am), I padded my way down the dark hall, two dogs leading … Continue reading Ode to Awe
