un beau mélange ..

There are subtle colors in the deep grays and browns of late autumn - and love them all. Beyond the nuance is the way they enhance the more vibrant hues of this season. Just look at the way my worn-out pumpkins pop against the weary wood and leaves of our raised bed garden.

I am rather taken, too with the various browns and grays embracing one another in this old scrap wood fence I built about a month ago. I needed a natural barrier to both mask a mess of leaves and delineate the end of the garden and the start of the wetlands. After a few false starts, I came upon this simple way to recycle tree limbs and create my barrier. What I had not expected, however, was the rich melange of autumn colors.

And I would be remiss not to include this menagerie of wizened golden rod gracing the field behind our house. Who knew how many varieties existed let alone lived in such close company to their cousins?

Just for kicks, we built an inukshuk in the front yard earlier this week with the garden stones that had become extraneous. In my reading for the Celtic Advent pilgrimage I learned that the ancient Celtic monks often built stone "threshold markers" to highlight sacred places. By the grace of God, we've done this, too. What's more, while walking back towards the house this afternoon, I noticed my missing saw on the roof where I had made repairs to rotted out molding this spring.

Now it is time to Zoom with the kids and grandchildren. Life is good - even in solitude.