Blogtober 25: Fly, leaves, fly

 

Fall, leaves, fall; die, flowers, away;

Lengthen night and shorten day;

Every leaf speaks bliss to me

Fluttering from the autumn tree.

I shall smile when wreaths of snow

Blossom where the rose should grow;

I shall sing when night's decay

Ushers in a drearier day.

Emily Bronte

A version of the above first line repeated in my head this afternoon as I walked in the bog. My version went "Fly, leaves, fly" for the wind tore leaves from the trees and scattered them in a mad dance along the path. I had to come home and look up the poem. The nights are certainly lengthening.

I always enjoyed the gym classes that involved dancing. Sports were never my thing. There was square dancing and waltzing. I loved learning the Jewish wedding dance, the hora. I am not very fond of modern dance as it seems to be a lot of wild motion to music, without much pattern to it. Tim and I took a series of ballroom dancing lessons, but stopped and we haven't picked it up again. I think he got tired of me having to count the beats since he doesn't have much of an ear for rhythm. I'll still jive or chacha a wee bit when I hear the right music. 

Funny where your mind goes as you walk. I haven't thought about dancing lessons for years. Today the trees swayed, and leaves somersaulted and twirled as they floated to the ground. At one point I thought I heard rain begin, but it turned out to be dry fir needles plinking softly as they hit the earth. 

This morning was spent mostly in the kitchen, baking gingersnaps and simmering a pot of soup - no recipe, just browned Italian sausage, sauteed onion, cubed potatoes, chopped kale, chicken broth and herbs. Clouds sailed by at a brisk clip. Ferries have been cancelled, power lines are down in areas, and there has been at least one landslide closing roads on the Island. Autumn making itself known. 

Two little girls arrived mid-afternoon for a sleepover. We read stories, they played, and after dinner it was bedtime. There are things.that.must.be.done. The discovery that they had not packed pajamas meant that Nana drove to their home (fortunately only 10 minutes away) to find night clothing. Their parents were out and I rummaged around finding what was needed. Once that hurdle was crossed, they settled well. Cora likes things in their places and she unpacked all of their toiletries - toothbrushes, toothpaste, brushes, and hair things - into a drawer in the bathroom. More stories, a few songs, cuddles, and not a peep has been heard since. 

I have a bit of time left to read before I head off to bed myself.