A Wistful Wednesday Walk

Fall always makes me think a bit differently, more feelingly, more deeply. Maybe it's the erratic temperatures. Maybe it's the fall chores to get the house winter-ready. Maybe it's the surprisingly sweet smell of rot in the air. This year though I have another reason to feel wistful as I go for a Wednesday Walk, my first in a couple of months. That reason is I have been unable to, well, walk.

Four different doctors later, and I have four different diagnoses. I eschewed all treatments offered and decided, in the absence of a clear understanding of what was causing me so much pain with every step and all night long as I tried and mostly failed to sleep, to treat the dang thing myself. It's getting better. This post is not about that though, it's about the beauty of fall now that I've managed to get out there and take a few steps around my house.

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First up is a thing of such extraordinary colors that I stood there and drank them in for quite some time. There is no color on earth like the color of Fothergilla in its fall glory. I of course do not have the camera skills to capture it properly. I don't even have a camera, and take my pictures with my phone. But if I tip my computer screen a tiny bit away from me, the colors come close to those I was able to immerse myself in and marvel at how such a beauty could be. Try it. Bring out those reds!

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There is one bush that rivals Fothergilla in the fall for color, Beautyberry. Again, my pix doesn't begin to capture the luminosity of this color. I hear these can be harvested to make juice and tea. I may just do that and try my hand at Beautyberry Kombucha. We'll see. I tasted one. It had a mild fruity-floral flavor. I wonder why these persist so long into the winter, why the birds don't gobble these up first. Perhaps they know to leave them till last because their sweetness will keep them plump and juicy until well after the first snowfall, so the birds leave the beautyberries and go for the berries that will not be edible much longer instead.

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Milkweed fluff and seeds. The butterflies are done with it, and it's sending its seeds out for next year's batch. I just love this stuff and I know my garden fairies do too.

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I looked down at my coat after this walk and thought it was beautiful too, so here's a shot.

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I nearly forgot to show you what got me out of the house in the first place today! This fellow was on my deck eyeing my chickens. I don't think he or she is mature enough to carry off one of my ladies, but out I went anyway to round up the chooks and get them in the enclosure that has lots of cover to protect them from birds of prey. Again, sorry for the lousy photo! For this one I find it helpful to tip my computer screen towards me.

Thank you so much for coming along on my walk with me. It's lovely to be back.

All images are my own unless otherwise stated.

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