Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Journaling With Lists

After being indoors most of the day, I took a woods walk at Moose Point State Park.                                                    My indoor, stuffy temper left on the gentle winds & instead some magic blew my way.

~Late afternoon sun weaving through trees & balsam scented air. 
~White beams of light, through tree trunk silhouettes, glowing from a Westerly Heaven.                                                     (Is this what one sees just before dying?)    
~A mini balsam grove near the trail. (Christmas trees for small forest folk.)
~A few apples, gone by, resting on a gold drenched bed of oak leaves & pine needles.
~Quiet blues of rocks, ocean & sky letting the maples have their last shouts of the season.
~A single crimson clover blossom in a green field. (The last one until next year?)
~Daisy-like flowers with pale lavendar blossoms. (Note: Look them up.)
~The tiniest, lightest blossoms, smaller than bluets. (I wonder what they're called.)
~Pale yellow blossomed mustard plants (I think) growing inbetween pastel grey boulders at the water's edge. 
~A distant black cormorant perched on a round rock out in the water, drying his outspread wings.

(One journaling idea that I love: Making a list of observations ...Can be done anywhere, anytime...)

17 comments:

  1. i bet those small daisylike lavender blooms are asters. :) love them.

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    1. You who know & see & identify so much in nature, Tex, your hunch is probably right...They are so delightful, especially at this time of year when so many other rainbow colored flowers are already gone...

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  2. You see/saw so much -- thanks for letting us 'see,' too. xx

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    1. And there is so so much to see, isn't there! Very grateful, I am, to have these opportunities...

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  3. I love your lyrical writing here! And the colors in your sketch are rich and beautiful. Thanks for sharing your observations with us. I enjoyed the walk!

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    1. Thanks, Beth...I know how much you enjoy walking along the coast...Sometime come & enjoy the walk in physical time & space with me!

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  4. I was going to say Asters..

    Is that what we see before dying?
    Or maybe when we are born:)
    Born appeals to me more..althought all my life I said I am not afraid of dying..
    I'm still not ..just hope I don't feel longing for the ones I love and leave..when I am gone.


    Could the smaller than Bluets be Forget Me Nots?
    I know I was shocked to see some in bloom here 2 weeks ago! They are May-June bloomers usually.

    Another lovely piece.
    Thank you..

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    1. Well, it was YOUR recent photo that "showed me the light", :o), because of your photo I was able to notice it in my part of the woods...And be in awe of it...Some say death & birth & rebirth are one & the same...Yes, who knows what we will long for or let go of at the time of death & after...But loving them in today, that's so wonderful...
      I will look up Forget Me Nots...I did take a photo of those tiny little ones...Thank you.

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  5. What a grand idea Rita. Also, do you lay your color in first and then add ink, or vice versa

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    1. This one started with an ink sketch, then some water color, then some colored pencil, then some more ink...More often though I draw with ink & then paint...Thank you for your kind comments. I hope you are having fun with your painting.

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    2. Good to know, thanks! Your watercolors make me swoon. There is something about them that speaks to me.

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  6. Cette liste est en effet une tres belle idée! En France , on appellerait cela "un inventaire à la Prévert". Dans l'un de ses poemes, Prévert énumère tout un tas de choses bizarres , dont "un raton laveur"..
    Ton inventaire à toi est plein de poésie aussi!
    Bonne journée et gros bisous!

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    1. Malyss, tu es trop gentil de trouver de la poésie dans mon écriture..
      .J'ai trouvé le poème "Inventaire" de Prévert. Je vais étudier, le vocabulaire et le sens...Oui, c'est un peu bizarre mais à première vu il me faire sourire...J'ai trouvé la définition de raton laveur, "washer rat", il est tel que le "racoon" des états unis. Selon Wiki, "Il doit son nom à son habitude, plus ou moins réelle, de tremper ses aliments dans l’eau avant de les manger." Merci toujours me m'apprendre de ta belle langue et ses trésors! PS J'adore les poèmes et les chansons de Prévert mais je n'en connais pas encore beaucoup...

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    2. Comme toujours, oops, oups, houp-là: Merci toujours de m'apprendre ta belle langue...
      Je pense que ça c'est maintenant correct...

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  7. This practice of journaling as one walks is a great idea. Not only good for watercolor artists like yourself but also for photographers. Doing so sharpens the observant eye for what is before you. It makes your mind observant for the moment -- a great way to realize that you are in the now and gives you more to paint or photograph. thanks for the idea.-- barbara

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  8. thank you, Barbara, for your comment. I actually made a mental list, just in my mind, as I walked & then wrote from memory. Do a lot of photographers make lists as they take their photos? But creating a list or "inventory" is indeed a nice framework for focus & observation. There are so many small details that I can pass by in a day...

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    1. Sketchbook Wandering -- I can't speak for other photographers but myself. I don't list the photos I take but I scribble down notes about the context of the photos. I find this helpful when I write a blog. I will be using your list idea for observational practice mostly. Training the eye to take in what I usually will miss if I am not conscience of it. Ultimately, I am hoping, it will add more photos to consider for my blog.

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