Your outstretched branches reach far and wide
as you bear the harsh, cold winds
and weight of frozen snow.
You wait,
and you withstand the torture.
Then,
when the breezes become gentle again
and the sun shines bright and warm,
you peek out
with little buds
that become leaves
and bear fruit and flowers.
You provide beauty and nourishment and shelter.
And when you can take no more,
you let go.
You drop your leaves,
and you welcome the chill.
And the cycle of seasons starts over again.
Some of you may recall that Charlie mentioned yesterday how we saw Forsythia blooming right now in our little corner of the world….
in Mars, PA – where we are getting ready to transition from Fall to Winter in the next few weeks.
How could this be?
Forsythia blooms in the Spring!
It is one of the first signs of Spring.
Maybe we are skipping Winter this year…..
Wouldn’t that be a hoot!
Seems Mother Nature is very confused.
I do have to admit, it was quite exhilarating to see this unique and out-of-place pop of yellow Springyness amidst the stark brown Autumn branches.
So exhilarating that I felt compelled to do a little watercolor of them.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
It’s Sunday, and that means it’s time for another Guest Designer Inspiration Card for The Paper Players Challenge.
This week’s theme challenge is “The Great Outdoors” for PP252.
When I think of outdoors, I think of trees. And when I think of trees, I adore how different they look in all four seasons (at least where we live here in Mars).
So I heat embossed an “empty” tree from the StampinUp Sheltering Tree Stamp Set with Early Espresso (Dark Brown) embossing powder onto four pieces of watercolor paper.
I then broke out the Brusho Crystal Colours again and sprinkled and spritzed different colors onto each tree to represent, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring.
I backed each tree with a piece of Early Espresso card stock and then adhered to Very Vanilla for the card base.
I stamped some fun sentiments from the Paper Smooches Sentiment Sampler to make them into basic notecards.
Doesn’t it make a fun set?
Hope you are enjoying whatever season you are in!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
I try to take a walk most every day. It’s a good thing for me, and Mikey loves it too!
Working from home allows for my walk to sometimes be first thing in the morning, sometimes during a “lunch break,” and sometimes just a random “need some fresh air and a stretch” time of the day.
My walk is usually the same 2-4 mile stretch depending on the amount of time I have.
As I was walking this beautiful Fall afternoon, I noticed how different the trees and leaves looked compared to just a day ago. I noticed how different things looked when it is cloudy compared to when it is sunny.
I am fortunate to live in a place on this beautiful earth of ours that enjoys four very distinct seasons. Western Pennsylvania’s weather ranges from as high as 90-100 degrees F in the summer to as low as 0 degrees F (and occasionally even below zero) in the winter. Springs are typically wet and lush. Fall is crisp and colorful.
So even though I typically walk the same “path,” the look and feel of it varies dramatically depending on the time of year, time of day, weather, and/or the people or things I encounter along the way.
And what I’ve learned while carrying my camera is there is something new to be discovered every time I walk.
So this section of my blog will be devoted to sharing random shots caught on my daily walks with my camera.
I hope you will enjoy and provide feedback, tips, suggestions, and help me learn to not only hone my self-taught photography skills, but also my outlook on life.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
the creative life in between 