She's In the Sun, the Wind, the Rain - Celebratiom of Life Crystal Michelle Fallin

 

She's in the sun, the wind,

the rain, she's in the air you

breathe with every breath

you take.  She sings a song

of hope and cheer,  there's no

more pain, no more fear.

You'll see her in the clouds

above, hear her whisper

words of love.  You'll be

together before long, until

then listen for her song.

by Cindy Martino

Loving Memory

Crystal Michelle Fallin

June 19, 1984 Newnan, Georgia

August 18, 2019 St. Martin Island

Nature is What We See

The Azaleas live from year to year with only mother nature to nurture and care for them and they continue to thrive.  The one word to describe how I feel when my yard is full of blooms is "happy."

Nature is What We See
by Emily Dickinson

"Nature" is what we see--
The Hill--the Afternoon--
Squirrel--Eclipse--the Bumble bee--
Nay--Nature is Heaven--
Nature is what we hear--
The Bobolink--the Sea--
Thunder--the Cricket--
Nay--Nature is Harmony--
Nature is what we know--
Yet have no art to say--
So important Our Wisdom is
To her Simplicity.

"Hope Is the Thing With Flower Petals"

I wanted to start off 2015 with my beautiful Hibiscus flowers that grew in my container garden last fall.  I hope to see a rebirth this spring. I don't have a green thumb so they have to survive the crazy Florida weather from hot to cold and from thunderstorms to droughts.  I enjoy these flowers in the mornings when they opened their blooms and at night when they went to sleep.  They give me hope of a new day, a new beginning and peace in the evenings.  Emily Dickinson says "Hope Is The Thing With Feathers."  I say "Hope Is The Thing With Flower Petals."

Hope Is The Thing With Feathers
By Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886)

"Hope" is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without words
And never stops - at all

And sweetest - in the Gale- is heard
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so any warm

I've heart it in the chilliest land
And on the strangest Sea
Yet - never - in Extremity,
It asked a crumb  - of me.

Morning Light at Vaill Point

 

Took a morning walk an hour after the sun had rise at Vaill Point Park.  The morning sun was shining through the trees casting a glow on the palm plants and river.  The water was still and shimmer with reflections of the clouds above. 

Evening Sky Moultrie Creek

Moultrie Creek is located  off US 1 South and flows into a smaller creek that runs behind my home. The evening sky reflecting the clouds over the creek paints a different picture every sunset.

Pellicer Creek at Faver Dykes

We took a trip to Faver Dykes during Octoberfest. The camp ground was full and people were crowding the parks.  I don't know where all the campers went but Pellicer Creek was quiet, calm and serene.

Sandy Rain Storms

Hurricane Sandy was a monstrous large force of nature covering 7 states with heavy rain, storms, 80-90 MPH winds as well as flooding.  A wet leaf from the rains of Hurricane Sandy.  Florida was very fortunate for Sandy stayed off shore and never came across land.  We got heavy winds from the outer-bands and rain but not the brutal force of a land fall.

'Moonlight Through My Window'

Moonlight Through My Window

Moonlight shining through
my window pane,
Awaken me from slumber;
Shinning my room so bright
With illuminating light,
Stretching across the bed
Touching my fingers,
Careressing my face,
With moonlight kisses,
Calling me not to linger,

Beams of delicate light
Floating from the sky,
Like a candle's burning light
Flickering shadows on the floor;
Looking out into the night
An orange-crowned moon
Gazing down from the heavens,
Brighter then all the stars,
Glowing through the night,

In darkness all was quiet,
Birds settled in their nests,
The wind softly blowing,
Tree limbs swaying
Reflecting leafly shadows;
Movements of the night
Dancing in the meadows;
All the earths dark corners
Were brought into the light.

By PL Fallin

Bizarre and Exotic Red Bromeliad

Its red bloom resembles a tasty pineapple. With its spectacular color and exotic look.  We have a dozen blooming in the front yard. Bromeliads could be somewhat compared to orchids. In fact, many people have naively called them orchids, even though they are an entirely different plant family member. Part of that comparison has to do with the fact that they live natively side-by-side in the same trees. Most people have them as house plants, our plants grow outside and thrive in the Floridian climate under large shade oak trees. 

Sonnet: 'Lift Not The Painted Veil Which Those Who Live' by Percy Bysshe Shelley

 

Lift Not The Painted Veil Which Those Who Live
by Percy Bysshe Shelley 

Lift not the painted veil which those who live
Call Life: though unreal shapes be pictured there,
And it but mimic all we would believe
With colours idly spread,—behind, lurk Fear
And Hope, twin Destinies; who ever weave
Their shadows, o'er the chasm, sightless and drear.
I knew one who had lifted it—he sought,
For his lost heart was tender, things to love,
But found them not, alas! nor was there aught
The world contains, the which he could approve.
Through the unheeding many he did move,
A splendour among shadows, a bright blot
Upon this gloomy scene, a Spirit that strove
For truth, and like the Preacher found it not.

Published by Mrs. Shelley, Posthumous Poems, 1824

'Halfway Down' by A.A. Milne

Halfway Down by A.A. Milne 

Halfway down the stairs
is a stair
where i sit.
there isn't any
other stair
quite like it.

i'm not at the bottom,
i'm not at the top;
so this is the stair
where
I always
stop.

Halfway up the stairs
Isn't up
And it isn't down.
It isn't in the nursery,
It isn't in town.
And all sorts of funny thoughts
Run round my head.
It isn't really
Anywhere!
It's somewhere else
Instead!

 A. A. (Alan Alexander) Milne (1882-1956), famous for his stories about Winnie the Pooh and Christopher Robin, Tigger, Piglet and the rest, was a soldier in the Great War from 1915 to 1919 -- including the Battle of the Somme.

Golden Wings Flew Into My Path

A walk in Vail Point Park still has a few butterflies swirling around.  This one was unusually large and I liked the way it tried to hang on to a small branch.  It looks so large on that slim branch but it held on.  The top image shows the sun rays reflecting the light against it's back. The wings are so delicate that the sun rays shined through the wings like stain glass and outlined the body of the butterfly down to the tip of it's tail.

Raining Like Ducks

 

 It has been raining like ducks today.  Normally, the saying is cats and dogs but here in Florida we have a lot of ducks and other bird so "Raining like ducks" fits better.  These ducks are enduring the rain and walking around patiently waiting for the rain to stop so they can go back into the pond.  I never paid much attention to the habits of ducks when it rains but on my drive to get a Latte, I noticed all the ducks were out of the pond so I stopped to observe and take pictures.  Of course, I got soaking wet doing it.  I felt like a "duck out of water."

Mother Turtle Took a Stroll

On a afternoon walk, I encountered another walker at the park, a very large turtle heading into the brush.  She definitely stopped traffic when she walked across the parking lot.

Storm and Sunlight at the Marsh

The Marsh at Matanzas Inlet has storm clouds brewing overhead but in the east is a blue sky and bright sunlight.  This is so typical in this sub-tropical region.  Rain and sunlight can be brother and sister playing games on us poor creatures stuck on the earth's floor.

Blue on Blue for a Rainy Day at the River

Took a walk on Shore Drive and it started raining.  The Matanzas River is beautiful in the rain. It makes up for not having trees with the brilliant color leaves of fall.  Different shades of blue you can't find in the mountains so it not so bad here.  Blue on Blue for a rainy day.  "River in the Rain, Sometimes at night you look like a long white train, winding your way away somewhere, River I love you. don't you care" (Roger Miller).

Before the Cold

The winter was harsh this year and showed no mercy.  The cold weather turned the palm ferns brown.  They were trimmed down to the core.  Stripped of its green coat, it now stands small and bare.  It will be late summer before the ferns will grow back to their original size. 

Vail Point News Copy

I converted this photo into an old newspaper print. I like the texture of the background and the outline of the trees against the horizon.

Vail Point Park, St. Augustine, Florida

I applied a dry brush technique on several of the photos. It was a very hot afternoon with thunder roaring in the distances . The shade trees and hanging moss were picturesque of old Florida. The Seminole Indians had lived in the Moultrie Creek and Vail Point area where it is still a popular site for fishing.