Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us, or we find it not. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, philosopher, poet
It’s
A nice
Surprise when
You’re shoveling
Snow outside, look up,
And see a tree outlined
With frosting on its branches.
Only Mother Nature can make
Such a beautiful, decorated
Work of art from a leafless maple tree.
Note: Poetry form is Etheree. Snow was from December (it’s in the 50s this week!)
Life without hope is a year without spring. ~William Arthur Ward, American motivational writer
I Monkey here.
Y’all aren’t going to believe what nearly happened!
The Jealous are Troublesome to others, but a Torment to themselves. ~William Penn, English writer and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania
When
Silence
Is the mode
For us to “talk,”
You must realize
That problems won’t be solved,
Feelings will be swept under rugs,
And a satisfying, peaceful
Relationship will never happen.
I guess this is the way you want it though.
The only way to thaw out a cold war
Is for the parties to meet midway.
Somebody has to make a move,
And the other one does, too.
Relationships never
Survive jealousy.
Isn’t it time
You met me
Halfway
Now?
Note: This poetry form is called Double Etheree.
Best doctor in the world is the Veterinarian. He can’t ask his patients what’s the matter. He’s just got to know. ~Will Rogers, American humorist, author, and actor
I Monkey here, with a continuation of yesterday’s tale.
(What, you haven’t read it? Leave right now and do so or this part won’t make sense. We’ll wait.)
Since Mama wasn’t getting any medical help from my dogtur, she promptly called another vet but was told I’d have to wait two weeks before they could see me.
Holidays, you know.
In the meantime, they told Mama to keep me quiet so my paw can heal.
Don’t they know how impossible it is to keep a herding dog quiet??
Best doctor in the world is the Veterinarian. He can’t ask his patients what’s the matter. He’s just got to know. ~Will Rogers, American humorist, author, and actor
I Monkey here.
Mama’s cleaning the house, or decorating, or some such nonsense, so I’m commandeering her laptop because I have something BIG to complain about.
And her blog is just the place to do it.
Leaves do miraculous things. ~Hal Borland, American writer, journalist, and naturalist
This is the Red Oak that my son Domer helped me plant last year:
Red Oak, September 2024
I did the best I could with its care — watering it, talking to it, and trying to keep the bugs off it.
One of my neighbors (a Master Gardener, no less) advised me to buy that green bag zipped around its trunk so I wouldn’t have to guess how much water to give it. She said a slow, steady drip would provide a proper foundation.
Still, the nasty Japanese Beetles chomped on it with glee. Notice the ragged limbs on its right side:
Red Oak, November 2024
Notice also how miniscule it looks, particularly in the number of leaves and that skinny trunk.
Red Oak is supposed to be a fast-grower, but I started to fear I’d never have shade.
What a difference a year makes:
Red Oak, November 2025
I hose-watered it this year — deeply and on a regular basis throughout the growing season. I sprayed it with something called Neem Oil and banished the bugs. And my oak grew taller and fuller, with a much bigger trunk and leaves that were almost as big as my hands!
And notice that delightful red-orange color!
I guess I did something right after all. Or perhaps, the tree is thriving in spite of me.
Anyway, Happy Fall, y’all! And Happy Thanksgiving feasting! I’m taking a bit of time off but will catch up with you in December!
Around and around the house the leaves fall thick—but never fast, for they come circling down with a dead lightness that is sombre and slow. Let the gardener sweep and sweep the turf as he will, and press the leaves into full barrows, and wheel them off, still they lie ankle-deep. ~Charles Dickens, English novelist, journalist, and social critic, from Bleak House
Summer ends, and Autumn comes, and he who would have it otherwise would have high tide always and a full moon every night; and thus he would never know the rhythms that are at the heart of life. ~Hal Borland, American writer, journalist, and naturalist
Do
You know
What a joy
It is to see
Autumn exploding
In brilliant shades of bronze,
Scarlet, lemon, and orange
When nobody thought the leaves would
Do anything but turn brown and drop
Before winter’s chill could make the trees bare?
Note: Poetry form is Etheree.
October sunshine bathed the park with such a melting light that it had the dimmed impressive look of a landscape by an old master. Leaves, one, two at a time, sidled down through the windless air. ~Elizabeth Enright, American writer, illustrator, literary critic, and teacher
I Monkey here.
After I upchucked my lunch, Mama decided we should go on my Walktober (something about her being okay with vomit outdoors but NOT okay with it inside on her carpet — huh).
Don’t feel sorry for me, though. After everything was up, I felt just fine and was raring to GO. Tag along while I show you some of our Fall color (such as it is).
Let’s go, Mama — gee, you’d think she was the one vomiting!!
Nowhere can I think so happily as in a train. — A.A. Milne, English writer best known for creating Winnie-the-Pooh bear
Once again, it’s time for Walktober!
(You can read the details about it — dates, etc. — at Dawn’s blog. Join us if you can — the more, the merrier!)
This year, I decided to change things up a bit. The walk I took last year was breath-taking but having talked to others who live in that area and learning how desolate (and potentially dangerous) such a solitary walk could be, I opted to surround myself with living, breathing humans!
Musings by an ND Domer's Mom 