November Beauty

 

 November is an acquired taste, an aesthetic of muted and subtle things--

A white-gray sky, brown leaves,  shattered pods of milkweeds spilling fluff and seeds. pools of yellow leaves of the ginkgo trees, each leaf slightly different, some folded like origami.

And some red berries on black branches, and after the rain, drops of water on bare branches and the few remaining leaves.  

And light through the plumes of blooming ornamental grasses, the tea  and leather colors of leaves, the gardens lovely in their decline.

Now we see the trees, the nests in the branches, the fractal branching revealing the shapes of the trees.

Already, there are some holiday lights and decorations, and the Festival of Lights on Michigan Avenue. Wreaths and evergreens adorning  apartment buildings.  Already festive colors.

It seems we cannot bear the unadorned for long. Yet there is beauty, bare as bones, wind scattering the milkweed seeds, dry leaves and buds on branches.

One day leaves, next day snow

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The full moon is a waning crescent now.  If the sky were clear,  you could see it in the morning in the western sky.

The moon continues its journey, and we continue our changing seasons.  Late autumn, November gray sky,  some bare trees, the last blue flower of the chicory blooming. Meteorological winter begins on December 1st. 

And  I'm feeling a sense of  optimism  in the cold air.   Midterms are over, and there was no red wave.  But there was a massive turnout, a  rainbow wave of young voters!  Thank you, thank you young voters, and everyone who voted, too. We may  have saved democracy.  The future is still unwritten. 

The first snow of the season arrived on Tuesday, November 15.  It was wet and heavy snow, not that much,  but still enough to shovel the sidewalk.  Most of it melted in the afternoon.  There are chances of snow every day, now.   Yes, winter is coming.

For now, there are more leaves on the ground than snow. It was beautiful on the bare branches, where you can see the buds of Spring's magnolia flowers.

Blood Moon---November 8, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

Monday November 7,  and the beautiful full moon rising over a clear night sky in Chicago. 

In the predawn hours on Tuesday November 8,  there will be a total lunar eclipse--a Blood Moon!

The name sounds ominous, a portent of bloodshed and doom.  

Eclipses and comets have been viewed as omens  throughout history. Death of kings or the birth of new things.  In these times of climate change, wars and COVID variations, PowerBall jackpots, Elon Musk taking over Twitter,  and mid-term elections, what could the Blood Moon mean? 

Here's the science. A lunar eclipse can only occur during a full moon, when the moon is directly opposite the sun in our sky. A reddish colored moon is caused by the umbral shadow of the Earth falling across the moon, and light  scattering in the Earth's atmosphere.   You can read more about the eclipse at the NASA Moon website here. 

Here is the timing for viewing the eclipse in Chicago---

• Partial eclipse begins at 3:09 AM
• Totality begins at 4:17 AM
• Peak of eclipse: 4:59 AM
• Totality ends at 5:42 AM
• Sunrise at 6:33 AM
• Moon sets at 6:41 AM

 NASA is also showing a live stream of the eclipse. You can follow along here. 

What does the eclipse mean for you and me?  I'm choosing hope over fear.  Choose light and art and beauty. Share the wonder with your friends and neighbors.  Choose freedom and possibility.  

If you haven't already, go VOTE on Tuesday! 

 

 

 

Just like years ago

No, nothing is like it was years ago.  We didn't have streaming news 24/7, mobile phones, and cars the size of busses. But we did have Dick Tracy's wrist TV, and Star Trek communicators.

Sure there were dangerous times when I was a kid, too. I remember the assassinations of JFK  and Dr.  King. There was violence and the Cuban  Missile Crisis.  

In addition to fire and tornado drills, we also practiced ducking and covering in case of atomic bombs.

Yes, we had flu, then, too--and chicken pox and measles and tetanus.  Kids died of appendicitis, and tractors crossing downed power lines. 

But these are different times, now. Kids now know much more uncertainty than we did.  What will the world be like for them in 10 or 20 years?  The climate crisis is accelerating. Will there be more outbreaks of plagues and diseases?  More gun violence? More division and fascism?

It is not hard to imagine dystopias. But it is also possible to imagine a better, more compassionate future.

How many Octobers have you seen?  I don't think I have ever seen a more colorful fall,  and the clarity of the light!   For a moment, things seem hopeful. 

People are getting flu shots and boosters. 

We don't take our rights for granted. Democracy is at stake in the midterm elections, and early voting is at an all-time high.

The Halloween ghosts and pumpkins seem especially festive this year.  And the rain of red and yellow leaves on the tree lined streets is indescribably beautiful. 

Raking leaves on the parkway, I saw the little kids across the street helping their dad with the leaves.  There was much raking and laughing.

 The kids were running and jumping in the giant piles of leaves. Yes, just like I used to do, just like years ago...

the most beautiful weekend ever

 

 

 

 

This may be one of the most beautiful Octobers, and this may be the most beautiful weekend ever.

I have never seen the maple leaves so red!   All the trees, the bushes, the leaves --the colors--reds,  and oranges, and yellows.  And the light, the clarity of the blue sky.  

Yes, there was snow or flakes of snow a few days ago, and almost freezing temperatures overnight.  But highs in the 70's  forecast for this weekend!  A wonderful weekend to be outside.  Don't put away the summer chairs. 

And the resilience of hope, in the new bivalent vaccines.  Waiting to get my booster at Walgreens, I  met a mother and daughter ahead of me, getting the booster and the flu shot, too. Two red band aids on their arms!  I feel invincible, the girl said.

 

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The Hunter's Moon

 

Which full moon is the most beautiful? They are all beautiful to me.  But the full moon through the clouds tonight as I am writing this--what a sight to see!

Look up. These words are a finger pointing at the moon--these words you are reading, on screens, on phones or tablets or laptops

This post is made possible by Ada Lovelace and Alan Turing,  who envisioned computers; and Margaret Hamilton, who wrote the code for the first Apollo mission to the moon.  Also, Steve Jobs, and Bill Gates, and many others who saw the possibilities of a connected world,  a world we live in now.

Did they too look up at the moon?

This first full moon after the Harvest moon of the September equinox is called the Hunter's moon. 

Our ancestors saw this moon.  They knew this time of year, when the dark comes early, and the birds and animals leave for warmer places.  Soon, frost and cold. Soon, the thinning of the trees, the wind and snow, the hunger.

They too, knew wonder and uncertainty. They too looked up at the Hunter's Moon. 

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October Colors

 

 Like the weather, we too change with the seasons. Cool mornings and more colors in the leaves. Now, we get out the jackets and sweaters. 

This fall, what colors appeal?  The yellow leaves, the indigo sky of early evenings,  these are timeless favorites.

And this year?  The dark green of the leaves of the squash vine in the compost bin, the yellow-orange squash flowers, the contrast of purple morning glory flowers intertwined.

And the deep magenta of pokeweed berries. The vibrant reds of the maple leaves.  The brownish yellow-green of oak leaves before they change, the color I call burnt olive, and some used to call avocado green. 

Remember harvest gold?  Sunset orange?  

This year, Pantone Color Institute fall forecast includes orange tiger and samoan sun. 

 Who comes up with the names of the fall fashion colors? 

Maybe you have some fall favorites, too.  Like that pumpkin spice color that's everywhere now.   

Nature wears them all so well!    Celebrate the season of colors and layers--and the full Hunter's Moon...

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