A person looks,
The blossoms look back...
I
approached the Japanese maple, walked right up to its dangling crown and ducked
past its low-hanging, star-studded canopy.
Inside
its dark amphitheater, the maple trunks were dark, simple, serious shapes
twisting into the cloud-swept sky.
I
chose a particular branch, any branch.
This
was how I could watch the wind.
I was also on the look-out for shadows.
With the sun in the right spot, with the trees just barely leafing out, this is the time of year to catch the silhouettes.
That’s
actually the pawpaw…
…and
those are the pawpaw flowers, hanging like little bells, green and purple and papery, caught at last.
This
is a game that I can only play in the spring.
Fun
with trees or catching silhouettes, whatever you want to call it. Identifying a tree by its shadow is a good
little mindbender, makes your head feel like it’s working inside out…
…that’s
a horse-chestnut.
I
wonder if this is how some birds identify trees, if they play this game.
It's a fun way to test the identification skills, a different way of seeing the ordinary, like trying to solve a Zen koan or a riddle:
It's a fun way to test the identification skills, a different way of seeing the ordinary, like trying to solve a Zen koan or a riddle:
green
buddhas on the fruit stand,
we eat the smile and spit out the
teeth.
Watermelons.
This
is also the kind of game that needs a big lawn…
…unless
you’re able to find a tree massive enough to hold its own shadow.
That’s
the way I could watch the sun.
MOST THIS
AMAZING DAY
This
was a day made for nature-lovers: cold, crisp, clear and sunny.
The
wind was outstanding. It came in
waves. I could hear the next wave
approaching in the trees further away.
And
the light? The light was tripping me
fantastic.
I’m
not one for hyperbole but this was the most beautiful, most splendid day of the
year.
And
because there would never, ever be another day as beautiful or as splendid as this
day, I had the insatiable urge to stand still.