Variations

The subtle color variations of this tree fascinate me. And shadows flitting across it enhance the colors.
Don’t know what kind of tree this is; it’s alongside the yard of a nice house that belongs to a 30-something Republican bicyclist. During the last presidential election, he kept putting up a Bush-Cheney yard sign, and it was either stolen or desecrated each time. So he finally gave up and put a small sign in the window, safely inside his house. Lest you think Idaho is teeming with rabid Democrats, the part of town where we live is the only place where the Democrats (a rare breed here) seem to have a den.

The tree is large, sturdy, substantial. Reassuring in its solidity; something I needed today. Last night, dreamed I’d moved to a different house and was arranging the furniture, decorating the walls. Went outside, and when I looked back at it, was shocked to discover that it was not sitting on a foundation. It had been "uprooted." The whole structure was balanced on one large iron beam—and corners of the house were beginning to sag.

C gave a well-attended talk tonight about Ernest Hemingway and the beginnings of Jazz. The audience really got into the music he played (12th Street Rag, Castle House Rag, Singin’ the Blues, Doctor Jazz Stomp). Many there had danced to this kind of music when they were young. And the evening swelled into variations of history, rhythm, music, joy. Subtle colors of memories. Perhaps I’ll sleep better tonight.

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It is difficult to realize how great a part of all that is cheerful and delightful in the recollections of our own life is associated with trees.
~Wilson Flagg

A seed hidden in the heart of an apple is an orchard invisible.
~Welsh Proverb

We can learn a lot from trees: they're always grounded but never stop reaching heavenward.
~Everett Mámor