I Left My Heart in a Victoria Magazine

Oh, yes I did! I was just drifting through this old issue, reading articles (how can we call them articles? From the original Victoria, they were more like works of art!) that I'd read before and before ...

 ...When my eyes fell on this:  The Isle of Sark.

Where has this enchanted place been all my life? Waiting silently in the English Channel for me to find it? Perhaps it's just the writer's skill, but this tiny island sounds like Paradise, like Eden. I hope I'm not blaspheming when I say that. Okay, it sounds as close to a perfect existence as this feeble, fallen, female brain can manage to imagine. There.

 It's a tiny island. You can read about it here. Three miles long. 80 miles from England; 20 miles from France. No automobiles! No paved roads. Ahhh -- doesn't that sound divine? (Oops, um, "lovely.")

There's a thin, terrifyingly beautiful road along a spine of rock, leading to the southern end of the island.

 Without cars or buses (or their attendant smells) all on the island must either: 1) walk, 2) bike, or 3) take a horse-drawn carriage.

 And to get to the island -- no planes, you know! -- there's this adorable little ferry.

 How would you like to stay in this charming hotel for a few nights?

 The clean, pollution-free air creates a perfect paradise for flowers on Sark, and there are fields of bluebells.

 Enjoy a stroll through this garden:

 Or down this quiet lane.

Victoria did a much better job than I have, showing the beauties of this unique spot on the globe. Just reading a bit of the history of the place, and its politics, is fascinating. I hope you've enjoyed our little tour.

For those who love autumn color:

The Colors

I am a simple autumn leaf,

Steeped in beauty, deep in grief.

The faintness of a green remains,

But brown reveals a thousand pains

Brought on by winter’s icy dread.

And there, behold a vibrant red --

It lies when it proclaims a hue

To rival spring’s pellucid blue.

The yellow there beside it shows

Anticipation of the snows

That soon will crumble me to dirt,

Deep in slumber, done with hurt.

A day or two my colors sing,

The blowing words are sorrowing,

A bit alive, but feeling death,

This beauty is my final breath.
 

It's not much of a poem, but I felt I needed to write it quickly, before these days of mixed coloration are passed. (Like, tomorrow!)

Of leaves and girl, of knit and purl ~

Our black gum tree is slowly reddening. I took this picture on Monday. But last night, a front came through. When the rain and fog pass, and the cold settles in, I'll take another shot. Then we'll see!

Other colors in our front yard on Monday:

Part of the beauty is in the color, but much of it is in the light:

These oak leaves are half green, half brown. I find that fascinating.

Anna's fall break ended, and we returned her to Toccoa Falls. Since Adam hadn't seen the waterfall yet, we walked there. Mother/daughter shot:

The falls, and you can barely see Adam and Anna there, at the base:

Anna here is saying, "NO, Mom!" as I took her picture. But 25 years from now, we'll love having pictures of her as a college freshman!

She may well kill me for taking a picture of her messy dorm room, but I thought the same thing when I saw it:  What if she lives in this room for four years, and doesn't think to take pictures of it? She'll regret that. I didn't take pictures of my college dorm rooms; it was too common of a thing to photograph. Now I wish I had.
Notice how she has her bed tucked up under her desk. I'm trying to figure out how that makes either of them very useful.

There's a small swimming lake at Toccoa Falls College, with a lovely swing next to it.

The sock. Sigh. It's kinda hard going, but I'm enjoying it. I do like the challenge. Here is the ribbing on the back of the sock -- K3, P3.

The pattern on the front of the sock is the challenging part. I'm using baby yarn and size 2.5 needles, so it's rather little work. I dropped a stitch at one point, and when I added it back in, the additional stitch set me off one stitch, for about 4 rows, until I corrected it. Actually, I'm not sure what happened. But if you look carefully at the eyelet pattern, you can see the section where one row of holes is a little "off." Can you spot it?

It's rainy today. I'm planning to read a good chunk of Robinson Crusoe, since I think Julia has gotten ahead of me in the book. This afternoon I need to make something to take to the church supper, and I'm considering a loaf of pumpkin/cranberry bread. Yummm. Nice smells on a rainy, autumn afternoon. Adam will be sending me another chapter of his book for editing abuse :) And I hope to knit also.  What do you have planned for your day?

"Tubal-Cain," Chapter 3

Here's a link to Adam's next chapter in Tubal-Cain. I think it's getting exciting! Doesn't everybody love a great "escape" chapter? Yes!

Tubal-Cain, working at his forge

Relax

Poor Sandy.

 She's been under some stress since we moved here. We don't understand the minds of dogs. A resident dog-whisperer would come in handy at times! She had become disobedient, ignoring Adam, fixated on food. She usually sleeps in our room, but she began leaving little "stinky presents" on the floor -- I'd wake in the middle of the night to an offending odor. Adam was at his wit's end. What's wrong with the dog?

One night she would not sleep. She stood by the closed bedroom door. Finally when Adam held her, she was a "quivering mass of dog-flesh," as he described her. She was a nervous wreck! He wanted her to relax in his arms, but she refused.

Our pastor preached on Psalm 46 last night. That's the famous psalm with these words: "Be still, and know that I am God." Literally, the text says, "Relax! Let go!"  Stop being a quivering mass of human-flesh! How often does God take us in His protecting arms, and long for us to relax and trust Him, but we will not? Sandy reminds me of myself.

Then Adam came up with a great idea. He went to the basement the other day and pulled out Sandy's metal dog crate. In case you don't know, dogs love their crates. They feel protected, secure. We had no idea, but evidently Sandy was missing her crate. Adam set it up outside our bedroom door. She was so excited! When she saw it, she went in, and came out and sat in his lap, over and over, and made happy little puppy noises. She has delighted in sleeping in her crate, and much of her other bad behavior has stopped.

Psalm 46 also says, "God is our refuge and strength ... The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold."  A stronghold is a fortress, a castle, a tower of defense. Another favorite verse is Proverbs 18:10: "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe."

What is a tower? Recently I've learned about this ancient walled town in Italy, San Gimagnano. It is famous for its towers. These were fortified cities with walls around them. But when the towns were besieged (as this one was), and the walls penetrated, what did the people do?

They ran into the towers, and closed them up. When under attack, when the city falls, the tower is the last place of security.

God's name -- His character and His attributes -- are just such a refuge for us, in trouble and trial. How hard would it be to huddle inside one of San Gimagnano's dark towers, with murderous soldiers thudding at its doors, and relax? To sleep? To trust in the tower's invulnerability?

I can trust in God's justice, His love, His faithful promise of provision and care, His power. It is a tower against which no force can win. In this tower, I can relax, because I know who He is.

I'm not claiming to understand or even practice these truths. I'm only telling them to myself over and over, because I'm often weak and faithless. Relax in the tower of God's care.

The Black Gum Tree

Each year, my mother and I watch this black gum tree in the back yard. It often turns a flaming red. This weekend is the "peak" for autumn color in the NC mountains. But the black gum tree is saying, "Not yet!" Other trees have turned yellow or orange, and their leaves have been swept to the ground by wind.  The black gum is just beginning. See the dusting of red on its edges?

That first picture was taken on Thursday, I think. Not much change had happened, two days later when I took the one below. The red on the bottom seems to be more vibrant.

I'm hoping to post pics of the black gum as it goes through its transformation this fall. Let's hope for some amazing color!

Corgis, Pearls, Charmin, and Eyelet Socks

What do these things have in common? Absolutely nothing, except that's what my day contained!
This morning I started a new knitting project:  another pair of socks. Here's a link to the pattern at Garn Studios. Aren't they adorable? I got the tiniest start on the first sock, and then Anna and I headed to town.

I noted Tasha, hiding among the bushes, as we left. She's a silly dog. She's such an old lady now.

Couldn't resist a couple more shots of the foliage. In a few short weeks, it will be gone.

At one resale shop, Anna found some pearls for $3! They're not fine, and they are so yellow they are downright "golden," but the clasp is very beautiful, as you can see.
Anna has 'to-die-for' hair. As I was taking this photo, I noticed how light her hair was, down by her neck. Yep -- you guessed it -- my college girl tried a little dying back there. You can hardly notice it :) Phew! Today she wore a delicious long curl, tumbling down over her left shoulder.

I just had to show you this; I found this in a resale shop/junk store. Charmin-To-Go!!! Bwahaha! Isn't that ridiculous? Stash it in your purse? Take it on a campout? But, let me ask you, who in the world would buy their toilet paper at a resale/junk store? Hmmm.

This evening, after delicious pizza for supper, I knitted some more. Here you can see the ribbing that is at the top of the sock. This ribbing is actually on the back of the ankle.

This is the pattern on the front of the sock. You can just begin to see the eyelet pattern emerging. I'm excited! I didn't know if I'd be able to do this one, it is so hard. And yes, I did have to walk down to Hunter's house just once, for help interpreting the pattern instructions. I tell you, it is 10x harder than following a sewing pattern.