Lovin' November

I don't know when these spectacular November days are going to end, but I do know they're good for the soul and especially good for completing outdoor pre-winter projects.

Yesterday I could finally see a significant light at the end of the tunnel on my annual leaf pickup.  

Most of the tight spots around borders and tree roots, where blowing leaves come to a halt and pile up, got a thorough raking.

It was satisfaction plus because, as I look upward at our deciduous trees, most of their leaves have fallen from the limbs.  

So, that meant my raking job yesterday would not be much in vain.

Granted the poplars and oak trees aren't gonna ever make it easy on a leaf raker.  

They'll let go of their annual produce incrementally---just enough to keep a worker busy but holding back just enough to ensure that leaf raking and pick-up lasts over a longer period of time. 

Knowing that most of the other leaves have fallen and gone to their resting places, I can almost thumb my nose at the poplars and their oak friend. 

Speaking of thumbs, while raking yesterday near the bird feeders, I could almost put my thumb on little birds flitting from above my head and making quick landings to grab a sunflower seed.

They didn't seem to mind that I was standing quietly and still just a foot away from their landing pad. 

So, of course, I took their pictures, which they didn't seem to mind either. 

I love moments like those when the level of trust and respect between living beings come together. 

Seems like a lesson there that more of us humans could follow----demonstrate respect and others will trust you. 

Eventually as the afternoon wore on and sensing the possibilities that, if I left for an hour, I could still finish the leaf project before chore time, I left the cart, picker and rake, put the dogs in the house and took off with my camera.

It was a welcome hour after having been on my feet most of the day. Once in the car, I could just sit back, relax, enjoy the views and stop occasionally to capture them.

Yesterday's quick trip took me around the Sunnyside Loop from west to east.  Folks were out walking their dogs.  Others were engaged in their own leaf pickup operations.

As I proceeded around the loop, I realized that a couple in a car ahead of me were on a mission similar to mine.  

See a gorgeous view of the lake, stop, get out take a photo or two and move on. 

It was definitely one of those "get-out-and-enjoy" kind of days.  I also saw a man and two boys along the shoreline, equipped with their fishing poles and a bucket.  

While rounding the curve at Hawkins Point, I looked up and saw a mare and foal trotting the fence line at a home above the road. 

I knew this Arabian mare and foal.  

Last time I saw the pair, they were over at my neighbor Billie Jean's Forest Siding home.  The baby was just a day old. 

She has certainly grown into a plump and cute filly. 

After enjoying her little running exhibitions along the hillside, I moved on and spent some time watching a large blend of swans, the ducks, geese and the herons sharing the slightly watery mud flats.

It was hard to tell whether groups thought of themselves as exclusive species or if they had been excluded from the group.  

Interesting site.

With my hour away from the yard, the rake and the leaves quickly winding down, I moved on around the loop where I was  amazed with the large timber sale turned development in an area that had once been filled with thick groves of trees with lovely seemingly landscaped meadows. 

I wondered as I drove on how many houses would dot those hillsides in the next few years. 

I'm sure people out here in Selle have wondered the same thing over the years as the valley what were once wide-open hay fields or pastures have turned into little farmettes.

So far so good in our little Heaven, but, I've learned over the years that change does happen. 

Anyway, my little spot with the big yard here in Selle is looking better and better each day as we approach the winter months. 

And, I really appreciate the opportunity Mother Nature has afforded me to get the jobs done. 

Happy Friday.  Looking like another lovely November day.