"The pumpkin is a uniquely American plant, widely regarded as one of the most magical plants in all the world."
— Seth Adam Smith (Rip Van Winkle and the Pumpkin Lantern)
I carved one of these white pumpkins into a skull and was quite pleased with myself. The rest were done by my very talented kids, grandson. and husband! What fun we had.
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Bitter nightshade, found winding its way through an old apple tree.
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“Even now, with the natural world in so much trouble—even now, with the patterns of my daily life changing in ways I don’t always welcome or understand—radiant things are bursting forth in the darkest places, in the smallest nooks and deepest cracks of the hidden world. I mean to keep looking every single day until I find them.”
― Margaret Renkl, The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year
"What does it mean, say the words, that the earth is so beautiful?
And what shall I do about it? What is the gift that I should bring to the world?
What is the life that I should live?"
— Mary Oliver
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We spent a few hours at the pumpkin patch a couple of days ago. He picked out four pumpkins and wandered through the fall flower garden. Suddenly everything is about Halloween, and it is so much fun!
"Each year, the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch that he thinks is the most sincere. He's gotta pick this one. He's got to. I don't see how a pumpkin patch can be more sincere than this one. You can look around and there's not a sign of hypocrisy. Nothing but sincerity as far as the eye can see."
-Linus
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“Let's be in awe
which doesn't mean
anything but the courage
to gape like fish at the surface
breaking around our mouths
as we meet the air.”
― Mark Nepo
We leave for a few days, off to see family. There is a bit of tension, along with plenty of memories, all swirling up inside of me. I worry I will step backwards, allowing myself to regress back into the past. But, I surprise myself by speaking up, by somehow finding the courage to give a different perspective to the stories. A viewpoint where I am allowed to be one of the main characters with a voice. I come home with no regrets, along with a bit of sparkle.
***