Sunday 21 September 2014

As sands through the hourglass . . .



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The beauty of the English countryside at all times of the year has something to do with the gentle way in which the cycle of the seasons turns . . . .

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You cannot precisely put a finger upon the exact point of transition, nor can you isolate the moment in which it all changes.   It creeps up with stealth and steals  upon you slowly . . .

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So slowly, and  so very unobtrusively as to be almost imperceptable.  There is no sudden and dramatic change of scene . . .

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Instead the tops of the trees quite slowly and silently shift from greens into golds and ambers . . .  like a sponge absorbing coloured water as the change slowly seeps and creeps until it is quite simple sodden with it . . .

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and you find yourself wondering . . . how did that happen?  Why did I not see it coming?  Why was I not prepared?  I am never prepared . . .

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As the daisies of Michaelmas give way to giant-headed sunflowers, misty mornings and dew filled nights . . .  the mauve flush of the heather and the red of the creeper cover the hillsides and byways . . . and tell of the waning of summer's delight . . .

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the season of fruitfulness . . .  golden . . .  prelude to autumn . . .  the opening phase of woodlands cloaked in a garment of glory . . . the hedgerows will have their harvest tide . . . once again with nuts and fruits in rich abundance on tangle sprays swelling in the golden sunlight of mellow days . . .

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and cooler nights   Brambles thickly matted with their red and purple load.  Scarlet hips like fairy lamps strung between the branches . . . with mauve and red and rosy globes on leafless branches borne . . . with berries on spindle bushes and haws fixed between thorns . . .

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Even though to live in England means many days of grey skies and unpredictable weather . . .  I am grateful for a country where the grass is greenest . . .  and even in periods of transition . . .

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 there is a peculiar beauty as . . . ever so gently a beneficent Mother Nature leads us from one thing into another . . . so as to take one's breath away . . .

My thoughts this morning on these last few days of summer  . . .

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Cooking in The English Kitchen this day  . . .  most delicious Amaretti Stuffed Peaches.   Quite simply wonderful . . . truly.

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May your Sabbath day be filled with abundance of things that count and colour and love.


9 comments:

  1. Enjoy your day Marie. Today we celebrated dad's 78th birthday. I am not in the country doing my study stint.

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  2. This is the last day of summer and I'm decorating for fall today. Inside and out it is beginning to look like fall. These beautiful days will be way too short and soon the trees will be bare and it will get bitter cold so I'm trying to make the most of them. I hope you have a wonderful Sunday!

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  3. Although the most colorful days are starting and the grass is so green..I find as I get older..time flies by..in some ways and drags in others.
    Would love fall to last longer and winter less.
    Apparently we are in for a doozey.

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  4. Thanks Suzan, I hope your father enjoyed his celebration! xxoo

    You are right Pam. Before you know it winter will be upon us. I wish we could get the lovely fall decorations around here. I would love to decorate for fall!xxoo

    Summer always seems to be in a hurry to leave and Winter in a rush to arrive Monique! I hope you don't have a doozy! I wouldn't mind a tiny bit of snow here, but only at Christmas! xxoo

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  5. I absolutely LOVE spring, I ENJOY summer, I LIKE Autumn, I DON'T LOVE ENJOY OR LIKE winter...in fact I dont like it one little bit !!
    We have had a lovely day today slightlt cooler then we have been having even although the sun shone brightly so must be cooling down a bit and slowly going into autumn...We had harvest service at church today followd by a lovey harvet lunch, then quite a lot of us went along to the local care home to have a short comunion/harvest service with the residents...It has been a lovely day altogether
    Hope your one has been great as well..

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  6. I love the picture of the sheep at the apple tree. Also, I love how you depict England now that Summer is over and Fall is making an entrance. I feel like I'm there experiencing it too! :-)
    xoxo

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  7. It was a gorgeous day here yesterday as well Sybil, but almost balmy. Cool mornings however and cool nights. Your harvest service/lunch and care at the residents home sounds lovely. When I first moved over here we used to visit the local care home frequently but don't seem to do it any longer. I wonder . . . xoxo

    With any luck one day you will be able to experience some of this in person Val! Wouldn't that be great! xoxo

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  8. Oh yes!!! Would love that so much! One day for sure! :-)

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  9. I am positively giddy at the thought. YOu must be feeling a lot better!! xxoo

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