I found Autumn falling . . .

. . . ever so gently!

"No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees, no fruits,
no flowers, no leaves, no birds - November!"

- Thomas Hood

I went for a walk, and not only was I finding fall, but apparently Mr. Thomas Hood has never been
to Texas in November . . .


. . . because I found some shade.

And not just some shine . . . but some Texas star shine.

Yes there are still butterflies . . .

My submission for Photo Art Friday - the theme this week is digital still life - and I'm very, very loosely

interpreting it this week. It's life, it's very still, and I digitally manipulated the photo by adding textures, ta da!

{ The first 3 textures I used are from Bonnie called Soft Sunset, Margin Call, Vintage Vellum and then

finished with Kim Klassen's texture Kristen }

I found the bees were still buzzing . . . I even got a little serenade from this one!

{ Foto Friday - texture}

 

And the plants are still growing fruit.

  Vines are still flowering. . .

 And not only are there still leaves, but they are turning beautiful colors against a bright blue fall sky!

And when it comes to the coast, here you will always find birds. These are our resident Quaker/Monk Parakeets and quite a chatty bird, almost always greeting me when I arrive for the sunrise.

"For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together. For nature, it is
a time of sowing, of scattering abroad."

I hope you all are enjoying a beautiful fall day where you are!

 Love, Kim
XO


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Thursday Favorite Things, A Rural Journal, Fabulous Friday, Little Things Thursday,
Favorite Foto Friday

Texture Tuesday . . . dream edition

The epitome of beauty

and of grace

in the water,

curiously they gaze back,

playfully as if to invite.

Sounds that are melodic

echo in the air,

harmonic like a symphony,

spontaneous and free.

The super surfer

a soul of the sea,

deeply spiritual

and one of the most endearing

creatures of the Earth,

your voice calls to me.

- Kim



{KKlassen deardreamer, overlay}

{KKlassen deardreamer, overlay}

{KKlassen grundgedup, overlay}

{KKlassen Oasis/Carol, overlay}

My in-laws were visiting for a long weekend and we took them on a Baywatch Dolphin Cruise off of Pier 21 in Galveston (there are no propellers as it's a jet drive boat and safe for the dolphins). It couldn't have been a more perfect day, not only weather wise, but for siting dolphins. You could hear them before you could see them, and see them we did! This is by far not only the most I have ever seen, but they were so playful, and as you can see at one point getting right next to the boat.  I don't care how many times I see this incredible creature, it always feels just as magical as the first time....and all for only $10!

I dream of one day being able to swim with this amazing animal!!

Love, Kim

XO

sharing with Texture Tuesday, Communal Global, Sweet Shot Tuesday

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

Thar she blows . . .

November has been disappearing before my eyes, but somehow I don't think I'm the only one!

And wow, just wow, I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving!

  My in-laws have been visiting, we had my son's last freshman

football game on Thursday night, Varsity Friday night (undefeated District Champs),

my daughter's All-region Choir performance Saturday night, after an afternoon of fun and

a dolphin cruise...the most dolphins I have ever seen at one time! OH MY!

Oh, and a choir performance on Sunday for Veterans Day....deep breath! And then a nap...

So I'm forgoing my prompt commentary today, in order to be efficient. ; ) And because I have a tooth ache!

{ nature }

{ vintage or retro }

{ whimsical }

{ cooking }

{ week's best }

I hope your weekend has been a good one!

Love, Kim

XO

The lines we draw . . .

The prompt this week over at Bonnie's Photo Art Friday is lines . . . obvious lines.

And I started thinking about lines . . . the obvious lines we draw in the sand so to speak,

and the ones we draw with artistic expression, and with love.

 The first one has to do with boundaries, which ironically don't necessarily just keep others out. 

Sometimes those lines we draw, restrict ourselves, like blinders. You know, like the ones they put on mules, and horses to keep out the rest of the world. But that can make for a very lonely place to be.

Or those lines were put there for exclusivity to purposely leave others out.



There are lines we will cross out of necessity and sometimes we cross them from kindness

to cruelty. Of course there are always those lines that we try to balance like a beam in the night out of indecisiveness due to fear, even vulnerability.

There are even those we cross knowing full well it may be wrong, but would rather go with the majority than
to stand up for what is right. We may even make the bad choice of crossing anyway knowing there may be danger on the other side, lured by self gratification.

And then, this week on a foggy morning walk, I came across literally hundreds of spider webs all filled with dew (and no I didn't need my spray bottle, ha). All of these lines, silk lines, carefully and masterfully spun.
Did you know that a spider has different silk that he puts in his web? One is sticky to catch his prey and the other is not and is carefully woven in so that he can walk in his own web without getting tangled in it himself.

Nature is such a miraculous thing, and I know I say this a lot, but it has so much to teach us. I find it hard

to believe that we weren't wired with the same instincts as a spider knowing what line he can walk or cross.

For a spider, it's all about survival. Walk on or cross the wrong line and . . . .it's over. For humanity, I'm not sure it's any different. The difference is we don't weave a web for just ourselves. We weave a world web and what we do to that web affects us all. When some of the lines of the web are broken or someone else

gets caught, we do have the ability to throw them another one . . .  but sometimes we look the other way?

In the long run, that affects the lines we all have to walk. . .

My thoughts have run very deep in the last few months especially as I have seen so much division in our country. And the lines that have bothered me the most are the firing lines. The ones we line others up on, aim at and shoot with hurtful words. Bullets pierce the flesh - words pierce the soul. And one is more easily healed than the other.

My wish for us all, is to see these lines drawn not so that they continue to divide or exclude, but to meet somewhere, anywhere . . . just so they meet.

And that second line, that one comes from artistic expression . . . and that one is freeing.. It frees us from

ourselves to ourselves and ultimately to others. It allows us to express the deepest parts of who we are and

can inspire others to do the same. My hope is that the lines we continue to draw will be ones that lead us to peace and love. Because a web that is built together is a stronger one.That may be a tall order, but hey, one can dream can't she?!!

 Much love, Kim

XO

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