Wednesday, October 12, 2011

neither here nor there

WV Fall 2011


 Today as I was driving my old blue Dodge truck through the winding mountain roads lined with brightly painted Fall foliage. I drove with my windows down inhaling the crisp air. I got a sense that there was something calling to my soul place. I think my two dogs felt it too, as both of them had their heads completely out the window, noses to the air. eyes squinted, ears flapping.

It calls me in quiet ways, just underneath my awareness as I looked up at the mountains covered in color. It is both distant and familiar and sprinkled with a touch of melancholy. I suddenly get the urge for some fresh apple cider, and candy corn. Funny how seasons can bring you places. All at once it just creeps up, and there you are... little, in a big pile of leaves, stuffing your scarecrow.

There is something else manifesting that is not so quiet. It feels more like a roar, a howl or a bray, or some sound that calls out with great passion, right past me, right to the ancestors and back again. Something that gives me the goosebumps which touches closer to my awareness now today as a woman here in the WV mountains. Fall, is the time for me to say good-bye to the carefree warmth of Summer days, feet in the green grass and picking fruit time. Instead, I now am bringing in the last harvest, preparing for the cold.

I watch the leaves blow by me as my mind is suddenly looking ahead to the Winter.

It is the in-between time. The end of the growing cycle and the beginning of the dark times. Taking the cue from nature, it is also the place on wheel of the year when the veil between life and death is thin. When people honor loved ones who have past. When the living and and the dead meet. Some call it Halloween, All Hallows Day, Samhain, and The Day of the Dead. Although some of these celebrations may seem bizarre in American culture, It is quite normal in others. I tend to be open to others. I will set a place for my deceased grandmother and leave her a few offerings. I woulds like to think her spirit might smile, where ever it is. If you ever want to speak to a loved one who has transitioned, in the coming weeks, will be the best time of the year. Perhaps you will see a "sign" and that will allow you to say a few words, ignoring for a minute what you believe about death and the afterlife.

I can feel it coming. Hibernation, and a quieter time, conserving energy and reflecting inward seeking a heightened sense of knowing, then finding it easier to connect to the all.

In other words... it is Spooky time people! ;-)

a pretty maple tree on my property
looking up

Enjoy your Fall, or if your are reading this from Down Under, I wish you a Happy Springtime.

wild, wonderful, woman ~crow
Press the arrow to hear my very good friend singer songwriter, Casi Null part of the Clementines. I love their rendition of this song. West Virginia, Oh my home.

West Virginia Oh My Home

9 comments:

  1. That first picture is spectacular; you live in a very beautiful area. Yesterday I too was bringing back barrow-loads of Butternut Squash to be stored for winter, whilst thinking of the cooler days ahead. I tend to become slightly depressed through winter. I was born in July and I think my body expects warmth at all times.

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  2. I love your photos, as always. I love the caption on the last photo - we have shared something yet once again.
    Your post feels peaceful. Calm. Strong. Soft.
    What will you do with your hibernation time? I can't imagine you idle . .
    xo Linda.

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  3. This is such a lovely post; Fall is my favorite time of year, always, always.

    "There is something else manifesting that is not so quiet. It feels more like a roar, a howl or a bray, or some sound that calls out with great passion, right past me, right to the ancestors and back again." <-- I feel this too. It's a primal feeling, maybe a worry/fear, that the winter is coming, that we need to stay warm, fed, safe... Obviously things that in this day & age are far easier than for our ancestors. But I think the change of season still rings that bell.

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  4. PS... I just added you to my blogroll. Peace.
    -kelly

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  5. Love your pictures. I get the whole melancholia thing. I feel it too. I hope you see your signs.

    There is something very comforting and heart warming about coming home from the plot, towards a house with the orange-yellow glow of the lights shining from the windows in the half-light of chilly Autumn evenings.

    I love the fall.

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  6. I love spooky time!
    Lovely words, wild, wonderful woman and I loved the music. What beautiful voices.xxx

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  7. Thinking of you. Hope you and Nick are well.
    Xo Linda

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  8. I'm proud I made it through Meatless Monday, without the meat !
    Wishing you a wonderful week, I imagine those leaves are truly spectacular by now...
    ~Jo

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  9. Almost like endings and beginnings. Aren't the colours beautiful this time of year.

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