Driving up and down the mountain to our house, I forget what 2,000 feet of elevation really means. The way to know the land is to walk. When I look at a topographical map, I can situate myself in the larger environment. Imagine what it was like for the pioneers. They knew to follow rivers, … read more Lay of the land
Tag: nature
Azalea restored
I pull into the driveway at 9 a.m. – no dumpster filling half of it, no portaJohn on the car pad. I have a lot of cleaning yet to do before the movers arrive. Many hours ahead of directing the crew, unpacking boxes and putting things away. Before the day begins, I want to just look … read more Azalea restored
Attention to details
I’d put it off as long as I could, but today I had to face the file folders in my office. I hadn’t done a thorough sorting of office paperwork in maybe four years – not the superficial kind of sorting where you are only stuffing more paper into existing files and tossing the junk … read more Attention to details
Lost in the snow
Nothing around me is familiar. Only one house is visible, far in the distance. The street I crossed a few minutes before was unmarked. I followed an old road bed up into the woods until it stopped dead. Nothing now but snow, trees, shadows, and silence. A perfect afternoon to be lost. Though the temperature was … read more Lost in the snow
The 12 gifts of Christmas
Tom and I don’t usually buy each other presents for Christmas. But today I got at least a dozen gifts. Wahoo! What a haul! The first gift came at 7 a.m. when I woke up and got out of bed. I didn’t die 13 months ago, but even better, my brain is working again. That’s a gift … read more The 12 gifts of Christmas
Random beauty
Some days the beauty is unstoppable You just have to stop for it It began early, with the mist enfolding the newly naked trees That would have been good enough for the whole day The mist lifted, and I drove to our house, where the new roof is being put on this week… In the past, I’ve been … read more Random beauty
The color of rain
I woke up at 4 a.m. And listened. What was that sound? I wasn’t sure. I hoped. I got up. And there it was. Rain. Finally. We’ve had less than 4 inches of rain in the last four months; normally we’d have gotten 16 inches. The last real rain, of more than an inch, was … read more The color of rain
The curious woodpecker
I was quietly enjoying my research this morning when a visitor came to my second-floor office window. It was a pileated woodpecker, clinging to the window frame as he peered in. He just sat there, looking at me, and I stared back. He wasn’t pecking, he just looked and looked. At me, at my office, around … read more The curious woodpecker
What I learned when I almost died
Exactly one year ago today, to the hour, an axe hit me in the head. A brain aneurysm ruptured and flooded my head with blood. The extreme pain, dizziness and nausea cut a dividing line through my life – one second I was fine, the next I was on the verge of death. I can … read more What I learned when I almost died
A spooky hike
Yet another day of sunshine and 80+ degrees. I put aside the work I couldn’t finish, and went to do the toughest hike in the community. Fall colors relaxed my eyes as the dry leaves crackled under my feet. But something was strange… The forest was silent. Completely silent. I puzzled over it, then realized that … read more A spooky hike