hay rows and sycamores

post #312
        After posting last week's blog, it occurred to me how much I love that sycamore tree, almost as much as I love watching hay rows take shape on their way to being bales or rounds.  So this week I am going to pull more photos of these "themes" in my work, and see what shape I can give them by doing so.

our field, in progress

a nearby field, finished

 Then here are four different perspectives from the field I showed last week:

curving rows and road

Sycamore, more or less by the season:

        Maybe more another time, but this is a busy week - still processing the election, looking forward to Thanksgiving this year with my son-in-law as super chef, and appreciating all the help I am getting while I continue to move in  --- while giving away as much stuff as possible, including books.  Today I will say just one thing about Donald Trump -- there is one lie he was making that I hope he didn't believe at all. He proclaimed that he would win, but in the meantime he made no effort whatsoever to be prepared when he did win!  If he really did think he would win, and this is the amount of preparation he made, we are in for a lot of trouble just on organization alone. Instead there's not much forethought, and certainly no creative use of America's talent in the choosing of cabinet members. I for one don't see any worth in having a cabinet of only angry white men. All those egos will be fighting for dominance, and not for us citizens. I'd shudder even if I were just a fly on the wall. 
         Sycamores and hay rows bring me a feeling of some kind of harmony in the world. I hope everyone has such delights in the world he or she notices each day.

last of the autumn photos from Mauk Ridge

post #311
      It sounds like winter chill might arrive later this week.  I do have some photos of fall left -- the ones on my iPhone (6s) -- and sharing them seems as good a way as any to close out the season in the spirit of the political upheaval we've had from Tuesday's election. Big changes ahead, and big coming to grips with reality.

       So here goes! The first photo shows my friend Melva who came to help me get ready for the move.  We took a hike break since she had never before been to the big waterfall. The creek on the way there was dry, and still is, actually.  All of eastern Kentucky needs rain even more than I needed Melva's help -- which was a lot!

Asters and leaves:

        There were not many signs up along our road, so I decided to get one for Hillary -- I had to do it while in Lexington.  The sign stayed there until the night before the election.  For the first time in 144 years, my county didn't vote for the Democratic presidential candidate.  But they did vote Democratic for the US Senate race, one of 7 counties in Kentucky to do so.

Two photos made at the pond:

Looking west from our drive way:

 
        I am going to end with three photos of the season that I have not yet been able to share on this blog. As I have written earlier, we have not the usual spectacular fall display, but there is beauty none the less. And the Hallowe'en tradition by Eddie and Darlene:

this year's showy sycamore

         This last photo is a favorite view of the season: hilly rows of hay curing.  I appreciate it this year as something that happens annually, saying something about how much we depend on this farming and caring for the land. It literally grounds me. I just can't help thinking that this election's turmoil will somehow take its place in the flow of things. However, as someone who despaired at the enormous number of lies Trump threw around so irresponsibly, I do think many Americans are going to be pretty disappointed by some of the realities ahead, no matter what was promised. I know in the same way I will be severely disappointed if we choose to look backward for greatness instead of looking ahead. 
         I hope we will start by listening to each other as much as we can. I know I will have more to say because we all have to pay attention to what is really happening around us, but this is enough for now as we all get ready to welcome winter in the weeks to come.