but the child is right

“Jean Drawing” by Pierre-Auguste Renoir
“Jean Drawing” by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Children will draw pictures with everything in them … houses and trees and people and animals … and the sun AND the moon. Grown-up says, “That’s a nice picture, Honey, but you put the moon and the sun in the sky at the same time and that isn’t right.” But the child is right! The sun and moon are in the sky at the same time.
~ R. Buckminster Fuller
(Buckminster Fuller to Children of Earth)

winter appointments

"Winter Light" by Ann Brainerd Crane
“Winter Light” by Ann Brainerd Crane

I frequently tramped eight or ten miles through the deepest snow to keep an appointment with a beech tree, or a yellow birch, or an old acquaintance among the pines.
~ Henry David Thoreau
(Walden)

Oh! where do fairies hide their heads,
When snow lies on the hills?
When frost has spoiled their mossy beds,
And crystallized their rills:
Beneath the moon they cannot trip
In circles o’er the plain:
And draughts of dew they cannot sip,
Till green leaves come again.
~ Thomas Haynes Bayly
(Songs & Ballads, Grave & Gay)

water pearl palace

10.12.12 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
Water Pearl Palace created by Dylan & Ted Gaffney
10.12.12 ~ Florence Griswold Museum, Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.12.12 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut

Queen Moonstone and her sprites live in Water Pearl Palace built in the twisted roots of the giant sycamore tree. During the day they guard this mystical gateway to other worlds, but gather every evening to dance among the great boughs of the tree and along the rippling stream celebrating creativity. Within the many nooks and crannies of the subterranean palace, the sprites leave tokens found during their nightly travels. Visit on a full moon and witness their grand party when they assist all who seek their help.
~ Wee Faerie Village: Land of Picture Making

10.12.12 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut

Every leaf speaks bliss to me
Fluttering from the autumn tree.
~ Emily Brontë
(The Complete Poems of Emily Jane Brontë)

10.12.12 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut

People must believe what they can, and those who believe more must not be hard upon those who believe less. I doubt if you would have believed it all yourself if you hadn’t seen some of it.
~ George MacDonald
(The Princess & The Goblin)

10.12.12 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut

be of good cheer


If I’ve got to see you when it’s raining deep inside the forest
I got to see you at the waning of the moon  

Said oh, won’t you come on back?
Want you to be of good cheer
Come back home on the Celtic New Year

~ Van Morrison
♫ (Celtic New Year) ♫


A Cheerful Celtic New Year!

miakoda

10.29.12 ~ Groton, Connecticut

Miakoda is a Native American word for the power of the moon. The gravity from last night’s full moon added 2 to 3 feet to Hurricane Sandy’s storm surge at high tide. We are safe and sound!

You may have heard of survivor guilt. I am suffering a case of power guilt. For some reason we cannot fathom, we never lost power from the super storm, even though the lights flickered here at times and the neighborhoods surrounding ours lost theirs.

Apparently I fell soundly asleep early last night and Tim went out to take storm surge pictures at high tide without me. He says I said good-bye but I don’t remember it. Amazing I could sleep through all the excitement! The pictures of the surge didn’t come out so well, but he got some amazing shots of the full moon in the storm clouds!

The full moon sailed bright through that Ocean on high,
And the wind murmured past with a wild eerie sound.
~ Emily Brontë
(The Complete Poems of Emily Jane Brontë)

photos by Tim Rodgers

lure of life

"White House at Night" by Vincent van Gogh
“White House at Night” by Vincent van Gogh

Tonight, the moon came out, it was nearly full.
Way down here on earth, I could feel it’s pull.
The weight of gravity or just the lure of life,
Made me want to leave my only home tonight.

I’m just wondering how we know where we belong?
Is it in the arc of the moon, leaving shadows on the lawn?
In the path of fireflies and a single bird at dawn?
Singing in between here and gone?

~ Mary Chapin Carpenter
♫ (Between Here & Gone) ♫

riding out the storm

I’m not going to mince words. This is the most catastrophic event that we have faced and been able to plan for in any of our lifetimes.
~ Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy
(Emergency Operations Center, October 29, 2012)

Looking at the map above one might wonder why our governor is broadcasting such dire predictions. It’s because tropical storm force winds extend 485 miles from the hurricane’s eye. And because of the wind direction, a massive amount of water is being pushed into Long Island Sound which will likely result in an unprecedented storm surge of 4 to 8 feet here on the eastern shore of the sound, where we are, and 6 to 11 feet on the western shore and down into New York Harbor. There is a full moon today, meaning the high tides are higher than normal, even without the storm surge.

We’re about 20 feet above sea level and have not been given an evacuation order, so we’re going to ride out the storm. According to the City of Groton Government Facebook page, the roads by Eastern Point Beach are now impassable, from this morning’s high tide, and have been closed. The worst high tide is supposed to be overnight tonight.

Thank you every one for your prayers and well wishes! I’m sure we’ll lose power sooner or later, but I will have an update when possible.   City of Groton