October's Bright Blue Weather
O SUNS and skies and clouds of June,
And flowers of June together,
Ye cannot rival for one hour
October's bright blue weather;
When loud the bumble-bee makes haste,
Belated, thriftless vagrant,
And Golden-Rod is dying fast,
And lanes with grapes are fragrant;
When Gentians roll their fringes tight
To save them for the morning,
And chestnuts fall from satin burrs
Without a sound of warning;
When on the ground red apples lie
In piles like jewels shining,
And redder still on old stone walls
Are leaves of woodbine twining;
When all the lovely wayside things
Their white-winged seeds are sowing,
And in the fields, still green and fair,
Late aftermaths are growing;
When springs run low, and on the brooks,
In idle golden freighting,
Bright leaves sink noiseless in the hush
Of woods, for winter waiting;
When comrades seek sweet country haunts,
By twos and twos together,
And count like misers, hour by hour,
October's bright blue weather.
O suns and skies and flowers of June,
Count all your boasts together,
Love loveth best of all the year
October's bright blue weather.
Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885)
I'm 'cheating' and mostly posting poetry today. I love October, although it is much 'brighter blue' in other parts of the country that I've lived in. In the Pacific Northwest, it mostly means the start of the chilly, grey, rainy season. It is still about my favorite time of year however, and soon I will post some of my all-time favorite seasonal/Halloween children's books that seem to capture the feeling of October. (If you have fall favorites, please share!)My folks are still here - and having to largely entertain themselves since the rest of us have insanely busy schedules right now. We are seeing a bit of intermittent sun amidst the rain. The apples are wonderful currently. The leaves are turning riots of crimson and gold. Lots of cups of hot tea and biscotti. Lots of time spent in the studio. Dreaming about autumn...
[Ed. note later: Yes Eric - Rackam prints in the background. He holds a prominent visual place in my decor - especially this time of year.]
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7 comments:
Thank you for this beautiful October poem! It is new to me.
I stole several morning hours on Friday, to walk the city and enjoy the blue October sky (the two previous days had been marred by high fog and clouds). Time well spent. :-)
May your October skies turn out to be as blue and cloud- and fogless as you dream about!
I found you through Merisi.
Great poem and great blog.
Autumn's always been my favourite season, too. Of course, on my side of the world, October is Spring...and now, in the tropics, I have to enjoy my autumns vicariously, through posts like yours. Thanks!
Oh Darn! I thought you wrote that until the end and I read the authors name. Thanks for sharing this and the photos. Is that a Rackham print in the top photo? Are you guys getting changing leaves yet? I'm a further north and we had a perfect autumn day, long walk by the lake.
As far as Halloween favorites, this is the time of year I like to re-read Shirley Jackson's books.
i love warm apple cider...pumpkin soup in tiny pumpkins...and candy corn pumpkins...blessings, rebecca
Oh I love Fall colors and your sideboard looks like an impressive and cozy display of them. My season's favorites are homemade pumpkin soup, a generous and nurturing dish of roasted vegetables including either pumpkin or butternut squash and topped with grilled halloumi cheese; French-style apple tart and pomegranates. This is also the time of the year when my carnelian and/or garnet-based jewelry sees a lot of daylight :-)
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