woods-ing

            The woods bring back memories of playing Wind in the Willows with my cousins, and I hold my breath to hear the silence that fills the trees. Nicole and I find mushrooms. I poke them with a stick and christen myself Mushroom Explorer. In the distance there is children's laughter, and we turn a bend to see a little boy trip as he runs down the hill after his older brother.  He flies into the air like Superman and crashes in a pile of brittle Oak leaves. He quickly brushes himself off and then he is in pursuit again. I smile at his earnestness; toddlers even stumble with zeal.

life lately

         I look up and it is September 18th and I haven't blogged since August.  Instead I've been spending time with my little sister before she makes the big move to England, and I've visited some friends in New York and once I even rode my bike all day long.  I've been cooking a lot, and eating a lot, and reading a lot.  I spoke French with a woman I met in the coffee shop, and I mailed a letter to a friend who moved to Scotland.  I watched my friends play rugby and they beat Harvard!  I celebrated with beers afterwards.  I went to the park yesterday and I lay on the grass and noticed the dip-dyed persimmon-colored leaves on the top of the elm tree.  I read Lolita and almost fell asleep but the sun dropped behind the mountains and my jacket could no longer substitute for a pillow so I pulled it on and packed up my things and rode my bike home. 

"as summer into autumn slips"

          This is me when I was about 12.  It is autumn and I am at an apple orchard with my mom, my brother and my little sister.  (The orchard has closed since then, but I remember so many happy times there.)  The air smells like fallen leaves and ripe fruit and freshly baked cider doughnuts.  The summer sun breaks through the clouds and battles with the delicately encroaching winter air.  Mom scolds me for eating more apples than I put in my bag and Dillon and I throw rotten apples at each other.
          Sometimes I think I may be the luckiest girl in the world, because people come from all over the world to experience a New England autumn, and I've been able to experience one every year of my life.  The kids are going back to school today, and I saw the football team practicing on the track earlier this week.  I almost fell off my bike on the way to work because I was distracted by how perfect the air smelled.  Soon I will find a bright red maple leaf and press it in my journal and I will remember how Mom and I used to go for long walks down the dirt road, collecting orange, golden and crimson leaves to decorate the dining room table.

scenes from new york no.1 [the high line]

On our first day in New York, Erin and I woke up early and headed over to The High Line- an elevated park built on an old freight train line running along the West Side of Manhattan.  I have heard about this park for years and have seen it from afar, but never bothered to actually visit before Wednesday.  The sun was shining and it was a glorious + peaceful morning for some snapshots along the reinvented rail trail.