The Art of Nature and the Nature of Art
  • Musings on Life and Work in Progress
  • Find my gallery
  • Contact Me Directly

Down On Your Knees!  No. 1

3/9/2018

0 Comments

 
The front lawn got away from me this summer.  I had faithfully hand-weeded it over the past decade but the combination of drought and heat tricked me into forgetting that weeds (aka anything growing where it wasn’t invited)  thrive on such neglect.  But I’m on it now.  Literally.  The rains  (oh, such rains) have softened the earth and turned the lawn into a soft green carpet;  birds of all feathers come and go from the feeders and the air is filled with song.  Cicadas serenade from every corner of our mixed woods, joined by cricket and katydid at dusk.

I should explain that our over-thirty years without air-conditioning  and the resultant necessity of  open windows had accustomed us to the deafening roar of six-legged suiters trying to drown one another out from dusk to dawn.  What defines orthoptera - this insect family - is its musical ability, cleverly produced by turning one's legs into string instruments.  And what choir competitions result!

When air-conditioning “splits” became available and we could cool specific rooms without ripping the walls out to add ductwork, we closed the windows of course and the nights suddenly went silent.  You would think the absence of ear-splitting duelling violins a good thing if you didn’t know the difference.  We realized that we had loved it, for it had connected us to that other invisible web of life outside the footprint of the house, while simultaneously proving an effective white noise to cancel any unwelcome human noises.   Insect concerts, like tree frog trilling in spring,  celebrate life at its lustiest yet charge no admission.

Weeding sometimes reminds me how much I have missed this tapestry of sound. On my hands and knees, I not only listen but look, enjoying a closeup of the grass and its denizens  — a juicy red wiggler accidentally unearthed (Did you know that earthworms are not native to North America?), a tiny veronica with blue blossoms, a fresh walnut just buried by a squirrel, a wee black and white feather no doubt dropped by a downy woodpecker.  I may be delusional, but weeding is always something of an adventure.

This photo is of a Deptford pink I found one day, its scale suggested by the clover leaves beside it. Only an inch or two in height, these exquisite miniatures are nonetheless carnations, as you can see from their paired leaves and five petals with “pinked” edges;  gloriously beautiful, they manage to survive everything, included power-mowing, that life throws at them.  

Don't worry, by the way -- even if you feel a slight urge to hand-weed your lawn, it will pass.   It always does for me. 


Picture
At the Road Edge (Deptford Pink)
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Archive

    July 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    October 2021
    July 2021
    March 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014

    Categories

    All
    ALLA PRIMA PAINTING
    ANIMALS
    ART SHOWS
    BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
    CHRISTMAS
    COLOUR THEORY
    COMPOSITION
    GARDENING
    GLAZE OIL PAINTING
    HOW SHAPE MATTERS
    INSPIRATION
    OUTDOOR LIFE
    PALETTE
    PHOTOGRAPIC REFS
    PORTRAITS OF CHILDREN
    PORTRAITURE
    SEASONS
    STILL LIFE
    SUBJECT MATTER
    THE FUNCTION OF TITLES
    THE HUMAN COMEDY
    THE ISSUE OF SIZE
    THIS OLD HOUSE
    TREES
    UNDERPAINTING
    YouTubes

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.