Category: sunrise
Monday Morning Mist
This morning I awoke to the most beautiful sight in the valley.
After another warm day yesterday, we had an unexpected downpour of rain late last night, nothing major, but it seems the moisture combined with the heat was enough to give the valley an “other worldly” appearance this morning.
While I was outside admiring the valley mist in the early morning light, a female Pee Wee came by. I have four regular Pee Wee visitors these days – two males and two females.
Even though drizzly rain continued all morning, there was something special about the light today. I played around taking photos for a while from my front patio, and one of my favourites was of my white miniature rose. A couple of weeks ago, the plant looked a tad frazzled, but since the days have been cooler, it seems to have had a new surge in growth.
Like the miniature rose bush, the cooler and calmer summer’s days we’ve had recently have given my Tibouchina tree a new lease on life too.
This summer, I am basking in the glory of cooler-than-usual days and nights, which have allowed me to spend more time in the garden than usual this summer. If every summer could be this agreeable, I’d be a very happy all-year-round gardener. 🙂
Something Beautiful
When you do something beautiful and nobody notices, do not be sad. For the sun every morning is a beautiful spectacle, and yet most of the audience still sleeps. ~~ John Lennon
When the early morning sun put on a beautiful specticle today, someone noticed. Luckily for me, I was awake to see the gentle, muted colours caught in interesting cloud patterns across the sky over Mount Warning.
Once, rising at 6:00 am seemed horrendous, yet now I look forward to seeing the changes in the sky, clouds and light as the earth awakens.
Lately, with all the rain and blustery weather we have had, there have been several mornings when the mountain hasn’t been visible at all, so I really appreciate the fine-weather mornings. The current La Niña weather pattern has sent parts of my garden into a tizz, with all the small green mango fruit blowing off the tree before it had a chance to mature, and we hardly have any frangipani flowers left. Only those flowers hidden among the leaves on the safer, northern side of the tree have survived.
Surprisingly, our hibiscus hedge is doing very well this year. We only bought one plant back in the days when we were establishing our new garden, and from that one plant, a creamy-peach colour, we grew more from cuttings. When a neighbour pruned their pink hibiscus, they were happy for us to take a few cuttings to strike for our garden, so our colour scheme was decided upon.
Some years, the excessive humidity and lack of rain bothers the hibiscus and we see few flowers. This year, the plants seem to be flourishing with the extra rain and we have a beautiful array of flowers.
Seeing the changes in the weather, which affects everything – the sky, the view, and especially the plants in the garden is what I enjoy most about spending time outdoors. In the garden, from season to season, you just never know which flowers and plants will be the star performers. And during summer, in the early morning, while much of the world still sleeps, it is the best time of day to spend time with nature. 🙂
Getting back into routine
Today is the first day since before Christmas that life feels like it has regained a touch of normality. Husband went to work, I fed the birds and indoor pets, then sat down to eat breakfast.
The phone rang as soon as I put milk on my cereal.
Of course it did! That’s normal in my house. 😉
There was still cloudy skies and rain about this morning. I’m loving the coolness of the last few days so much! I wish every summer day felt like it has recently, comfortably warm, with little humidity. After a coolish night, there was a hint of mist across the ranges and Mount Warning, which looked very pretty.
Later in the day the sun appeared for a while and the mountain looked extremely clear. I was a bit caught up in work related matters though, so didn’t pause to take any more photos after capturing this morning’s mist and layers of clouds.
On the subject of Mount Warning, yesterday I read the sad news that the chains at the summit of the mountain, there to help hikers reach the top, have been removed. Apparently this is to discourage people from climbing the mountain, as the local indigenous people believe the mountain is a sacred site and don’t want people climbing the mountain. Needless to say, many locals are shocked by the news, as climbing the mountain has been enjoyed by people of all ethnicities for as long as anyone can remember, without a word of complaint.
Some cynics predict that in the near future, a fee will be charged for the pleasure of enjoying a hike that was once free. We will have to see what eventuates.
Summer Showers
Summer Shower
By Emily Dickinson
A drop fell on the apple tree,
Another on the roof;
A half a dozen kissed the eaves,
And made the gables laugh.
A few went out to help the brook,
That went to help the sea.
Myself conjectured, Were they pearls,
What necklaces could be!
The dust replaced in hoisted roads,
The birds jocoser sung;
The sunshine threw his hat away,
The orchards spangles hung.
The breezes brought dejected lutes,
And bathed them in the glee;
The East put out a single flag,
And signed the fete away.
In My World 