Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Halloween 2012 - a story

I love my garden in every season, but things take on a special aura come autumn...


There is something about the autumn that I find to be especially enchanting...



When the thick recedes, things and long forgotten treasures resurface by way of magic...
 
 
Rosebuds get to be frozen in time forever...


The butterflies would migrate south; the chrysanthemums would be in full bloom and bright orange and yellows would glow in the mellow light of late October casting their autumn spell.


Ah yes, autumn's enchanting. Is it any wonder the season of enchantment and witches is celebrated in the autumn? From Halloween right on through Thanksgiving!


Autumn is sending messages for me to discover.  Is it doing the same for you, in whatever part of the world you are?  I mean have you seen anything out of the ordinary happening in your garden lately?—a sign, a message from the natural world, a hidden note amidst fallen leaves, perhaps to be discovered?


Long ago and far away, wise woman in my lineage made predictions based on their observations of the natural world. Frogs croaking more than usual, moles digging up soil more than usual, cats not wanting to go outside, owls hooting and screeching during bad weather... every thing spoke to them in marvelous ways... swallows flying near the ground, robins coming near the house, sparrows chirping a great deal, sheep turning into the wind, oxen sniffing the air; restless horses and swine... all and everything in Nature had a meaning to them. They knew what was about to ensue just by observing the world around them. And thus, last evening, the autumnal leaves were telling me something… the colors of fall conveyed some mysterious secrets; strange happenings were about to mingle with the changing of seasons.
 

In fact, some minutes later I saw something very peculiar from my kitchen window… sparkles twinkled low in the ginger sky and… hail, thou garden of fairyland filled with beckoning apparitions!


Ah yes, there was someone strolling the gardens... But who was she? A witch? A ghost? Perhaps some apparition from the past?  Of course, I shouldn’t have been surprised. After all, anything and everything can happen on the onset of Halloween... spirits would roam the neighborhoods at night, and witches and ghosts are let loose upon the Earth…

I had this strange feeling the woman in my garden had to be someone from my past… she looked so familiar to me… could she be my great-great-great-grandmother Arabella, Countess of Aragon? Or perhaps was it the spirit of the intriguing Otilia Micaela de Luna? Oh I didn’t want to miss a single thing she would do, or was about to do.   So I hid behind the curtains of my kitchen window as best as I could... silently observing every one of her movement; the body language, listening to the silent swish of gypsy sarong skirts as she strolled the gardens...
 
 
 
She was so mysterious looking, and moved so silently...  She made me think of Miss Havisham, the character in the Charles Dickens novel, Great Expectations. Dickens describes her as looking like “the witch of the place.” And certainly the witch of “this” place—I would say.  For that’s exactly what she seen to be to me.
 

She collected autumn leaves over in the enchanted area known as Rosewood. She made wishes into the wind... she smelled the fall, the leaves, the wetness, the crabapples on the lonesome tree and whispered a prayer of thanksgivings too…
 
Was it a dream? Did I dreamt all that, or was it all real? Hard to tell if you ask me. The only thing I can say for sure is that dreams do come true sometimes… why, could you believe what I found in the garden right after the apparition vanished… like that, like a whiff of magical air? Yes, her gypsy shawl!

 
A most bewitching tune swirled through the trees. It pirouetted through the leaves, like a warm summer breeze, and when I went outside to see that really had transpired out there, then that’s when I saw it—the loveliest of things I would say… left on a tree branch. Left there by her, of course…  it’s the truth, and I have the remnants of proof from the tales to show you…
 
 
I wrapped the witch's shawl around my body and made my own wishes into the wind... I smelled the fall, the leaves, the wetness, the crabapples on the lonesome tree and whispered a prayer of thanksgivings all of my own into the autumnal wind…


What more can I say? Enchantment is all around us, if only we would open our eyes and see, really see... so, enjoy this enchanted season while it last my friend. Enjoy autumn and all it has to offer. Breathed the air and imagined that maybe the same particles had circulated through the lungs of angels. Imagine, believe, wear a leaf draped skirt and dance under the full moon. Whisper memories and wait on the edge of dreams...
 
See you soon!
 
 

Saturday, October 27, 2012

More roses...

Autumn rains are falling; refreshing the garden, while serene fall colors fills the landscape with magical hues. And in the house, apple cinnamon delights and pumpkin breads in the oven. Warm quilts and cozy comforters have been dug out of the back of closets, and my favorite "Mrs. Santa's" red footed pajama is ready for cold winter nights... but before I start writing (and whining) about my life in Snowland, I should brag a little more about my roses... why, roses are almost done for the year and I should take all the hope my spirit can muster, for soon I shall live without them for far too long a time.. so I hope you won't mind ;)



Bonica and Queen Elizabeth roses...


Love unopened blooms...



Chicago Peace roses in my favorite ever color...


Roses are never a disappointment... some of my bushes are miraculously still holding their blooms, while others are filled with late buds that will remain unopened; frozen in time... 


Fresh, wilting, fading, dried.. yet still so beautiful to me.


I'm always changing things up and decorating, 
so last week, I filled my favorite room of the house with the last of the roses... 
roses from my own garden... how lovely!




I sure going to miss my roses. There is nothing quite like 
cutting beautiful, fragrant roses from your own garden. 






My girly room.... no boys allowed! ;)



I hope you have a wonderful rest of weekend friends 
Cielo



Thursday, October 25, 2012

Some favorite quotes...

Some pretty pictures and favorite quotes...
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
You're welcome to copy any pic you want... paste, pin, use them as you wish. Enjoy!

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

The last of the roses

This joyful feeling within; the secrets lingering in the autumnal breezes, the voices of (angels?) in the silent garden... and then all the bird songs there are to be and the last of the summer roses intermingling with crimsons and orange and deep burgundy leaves falling down the trees in a manner of rainbow showers. The end of summer and beginning of Autumn—it always happen; this joyful feeling exploding from some secret source within, this yearning which impels me to dance amidst falling leaves and to raise my hands towards heavens in gratitude and thanksgivings. It’s like living inside a dream… Does autumn make you feel like this too?
   

Usually, I prefer to see my roses in their bushes and seldom cut much during the summer, but frosty nights are here to stay, and although we haven’t had our ‘real’ first frost of the season, they would not last for much longer. So I have brought the last of the roses in…




A bouquet of charming Queen Elizabeth in our Master.


Decoupage books and a long string of silvery beads found at a thrift store, put in a simple jar…


...like stars inside a jar they twinkle… so pretty.


So lovely, and rewarding, to be able to embellish my home with roses from the garden… It’s a bitter-sweet feeling; a farewell really, because I know that this is the last I’ll be seeing of my roses for way too long a while.


Roses in the kitchen… they were tight buds when I put them in water. Some minutes later they started opening… like magic before my eyes!




I also brought in the last of the Black Knight hollyhocks… put some flowers in a little bit of water for moisture.


Being such romantic at heart, I prefer the dim light of little lamps to overhead lights… better yet when you can brighten your rooms with this romantic looking flameless candle lantern!


I got my lanterns at Ross for only $7.99. They have a timer that you can set up at your convenience and, you can either use it indoor or outdoor. I bought three… one for our master, one for the kitchen and yet another one for the front porch. Love them!


Hope you liked my pictures and wish I could share my last of the roses with you..
Good night, everyone!