Category: green

DSC_6941 copy

My wife, Susan, and I often fall into opposite sites of  corners when it comes to our favor of seasons. I fall ( no pun) into a general dislike of  things falling and fading. She is quick to remind me of my like of fall colors and of change in general, the flavor of turkey and pumpkin. The damp smells and subtle earthy color. She makes me see how it is is not so much  dying and dormancy. Rather a time of rest and hibernation. A time of rest and rebirth. Fading turns to endless warm tones of gold, brown and red.

Much like fall, change slowly overtakes me and peace filters up through the soles of my shoes and into my heart.

And so I pause. Move slowly. Take time to see, smell and feel the change. The rust tones fill me and i long for a slice of warm pumpkin pie with a dollop of whipped cream. I also receive the addied bonus of finding that hearts  that have grown close to us come to understand the inside of us better than we see.   monos en theos……jas L

Shades of Gray from Grayson Co, TX #907 – The Peace of Wild Things

120602Work©7699

The Peace of Wild Things

BY WENDELL BERRY

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
It is always a draw to me as to where we find peace in our story. May you find some today!
 
monos en theos † jas L

Shades of Gray from Grayson Co, TX #906 – r-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r

DSC_7040 copy

r-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r

E. E. Cummings, 1894 – 1962

                                     r-p-o-p-h-e-s-s-a-g-r
                           who
  a)s w(e loo)k
  upnowgath
                       PPEGORHRASS
                                                       eringint(o-
  aThe):l
               eA
                    !p:
S                                                                        a
                                      (r
  rIvInG                              .gRrEaPsPhOs)
                                                                         to
  rea(be)rran(com)gi(e)ngly
  ,grasshopper;


Edward Estlin Cummings is known for his radical experimentation with form, punctuation, spelling, and syntax; he abandoned traditional techniques and structures to create a new, highly idiosyncratic means of poetic expression.

I just saw a pretty creature amongst the johnson grass. E.E.Cummings saw much more than me. Oh how we are never too old to learn.

monos en theos  †† jas L

Shades of Gray from Grayson Co, TX #898 – Beauty and Da Beast

DSC_6713©

On my return to the house from our morning walk I stopped to pause at our Rose of Sharon bush. It has a number of mostly identical blooms. Outstanding in color and form but one does get bored with the same view. One bloom stood out with this praying mantis eating his breakfast of a little Skipper butterfly. Of course my macro kit was sitting inside the house and not even all together. So a mad scramble to make my return and see the last tastee’ morsel disappear.

It is all about timing and being ready. Your ship always arrives while you are waiting at the bus station!  monos en theos ††† jas L

Shades of Gray from Grayson Co, TX #897 – Aqua-eyed Dragonfly

DSC_6588©

It has been kind of slim pickin’s around the grounds. Between the heat, a stomach bug and a few rounds with the black dog, I have not found much at which to aim my Nikon. I did have this young (I say young because of it’s size and the dare me attitude of a teenager) dragonfly to sit and pose for a few frames. Beats working for a living. ††† monos en theos…jas L

Shades of Gray from Grayson Co, TX #889 – Trying to find ways to work in the Heat

DSC_6341#3©

The East Texas heat has been, well it has been oppressive to say the least. Nonetheless, it can drive one to feeling a lesser man when I pass road construction crews on the way to starbucks for an iced coffee, and I try not to complain of the repetious hammering of roofing crews disrupting the beat in my earphones. So I really busted my arse to do some photo work with some fresh flowers (in a vase, in the air conditioned house) to produce (play) with an image in photoshop. It was fun but my pleather recliner did make me sweat a tad, but at least I found a way to work in the heat. Maybe I should wear a tool belt for all my photoshop tools, they are so hard to find and carry about. Can a hard hat be far behind. One needs to be cautious of those stray falling petals. Life can be so hard…….monos en theos †† james

Shades of Gray from Grayson Co, TX #888 – Young Katydid in the green

DSC_6310© copy

Oh brother is it HOT. Dog days of summer and all that. Did get out and walk the dogs early this morning it was a nice 72 degrees. Now my mercury sets at 105 in the shade, and I don’t even want to know what the humidity is. This desert boy is dying in this damp heat. In West Texas, we always got to say it was a dry heat. It was true, you could go for the shade and it was very comfortable even in the high 90’s.

In addition to the damp heat,  the difference of East Texas culture gets to me. In dry heat, men wore long sleeves and pants. Not so here. I have almost bolted and run at the number of middle age, out of shape men that think nothing of strolling the aisles of the grocery store without a shirt on.

And I thought the heat and humidity was bad, but that is enough to make you run for the air conditioned comfort of home and draw the shades.

I digress, I did manage to find this young katydid out in the heat amongst the honeysuckle. He was shirtless, but looked good none the less……monos en theos †††james

Shades of Gray from Grayson Co, TX #885 – The Heart is on the Vine !

S0184539 ©

I am stuck on a leaf kick. But hey you work with what falls on your heart.

“The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart.”    Helen Keller

Wear your heart where it grows! Monos en theos †† james