Saturday, November 4, 2017

Home and Away



I am most at home on the prairie under an endless sky. Two weeks ago, I walked among the tall grasses to enjoy the last greens of the season. While there are two or three benches on Spring Creek Prairie, I prefer to sit on the ground, eye level with the native plants. By late October the insects are mostly gone. I saw one or two sluggish grasshoppers. The wind rattled dry seed pods as it blew through the grass and over the land.


I saw a few stems of red coral berry and a little bittersweet near a draw. Just before leaving, I watched a great blue heron fish the pond. That evening I wound up a skein of sock yarn and packed my bag for the East Coast.


Since our children and their families live in Texas and Connecticut, we travel in their directions. Recently my husband fished with our son and grandson on the Texas Oklahoma border. This time the two of us flew into Hartford, CT. and drove into the Hudson River Valley before visiting family. The drive across the north central and western Connecticut into New York State was an autumn treat. We toured the FDR Library and the Roosevelt homes in Hyde Park. Although the New York Sheep and Wool Festival was the previous weekend, we had lunch in Rhinebeck, NY.  More about Hyde Park in another post.


We had a grand visit with our family. We celebrated Halloween, read books, and walked around the Point with three little boys. We walked Emmett to school and watched him in the school Halloween parade. One morning I read to Micah's preschool class. Another day my daughter took Lance and I to the beach to see the sun rise over Long Island Sound. The last morning, she put the youngest in a backpack and we went for a walk in a wooded area. The Connecticut woods were full of subtle autumn sights.


While it is hard to say "bye-soon," we are grateful for the time together and a safe trip. After all it is November on the prairie and I came home to my own tea cup.









5 comments:

  1. We too travel to see our kids. That consumes all the travel budget. WOrth every penny. I love your reading to the kids! It is cold and damp and Fireman wants to walk..again....so I will..but I dont want to. Id rather spend the ENTIRE afternoon knitting

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  2. What a lovely time you had with your ohana. I read Hartford, CT and thought Gilmore Girls! I love how you walked one grandson to school and read to another's class. So sweet.

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  3. I'm happy for you Jane! I try to visit my kids (yesterday we were in Delaware) and I enjoy when they are there. I also like how you tuck in your own adventures before or during the visit. I love your prairie sightings too!!

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  4. Beautiful visit! What a lovely place to spend time with your family! But, it is always so nice to get back home - isn't it?

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  5. What a lovely trip and thanks for sharing it and the prairie with us. Tho' I live in the east, I've never been to the New England states in the fall...on my bucket list. Thanks for the preview. And yes, it's always nice to be home.
    Cheers~

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