Thursday, September 13, 2012

Opening Up to Possibility: On the Winds of Fall


Up early today.
Sitting at the dining room table checking emails, planning the day.

DIL Jenna sweeps in, efficiently opening the sliders to our deck.
"Grammy," she states.  "Grand-pup Neela says, 'It's a beautiful fall day, Grammy. Let's open up!'"

And with that, the stale, humid stink of summer sails out the door, and the winds of Fall bring in fresh, cool and crisp airs of ... possibility.

You remember that?

Yep, those pencils sharpened, clasped at the ready. The heady aromatics of wood and graphite and old-fashioned machinery chiseling into being those hexagonal wonders*, topped off with a pungent whiff of yellow pigmented paint.**

Clean, smooth paper. Sharply lined, hints of fiber buried deep in its origin.
Just waiting, no begging to be written upon, in big, shaky blocks of letters.

Mouths held so, pursing and working at finding perfection. The effort, in the end, so rewarding yet so tiring.

Remember that Fall?

Well today, Fall brings in that same hope, that expectation, anticipation, even that niggling uneasiness that things will happen. Events will shape us. Into what? We are not sure. But the possibilities? Endless.

The island has always felt like a place where, maybe... just maybe... anything is possible.
And that's it, of course, isn't it?

The just maybes of life?
Those inner stirrings that set a soul to wonder, to act, to soar.

Sometimes high, sometimes low. Sometimes a little of both.
But it's the possibility that somehow makes it ok. Fresh and crisp and new, like the first hints of autumn.


Here on the island possibility includes the "Derby" - the Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass & Bluefish Derby. Held every year in the Fall. Five glorious weeks of possibility. The possibility of catching the "big one"... or even ANY ONE (in my case lol). Every day the Dailies Board. Every night the winnings. Every week the Leader Board. And in the end - the possibility of winning a boat or a truck, depending on whether you were the winner for onshore fishing or boat fishing.




Possibilites.

Time to gather in the wagons, begin the potluck suppers, pull on the old wool caps and peacoats to keep out the possibility of that every-winter, bone-chilling damp cold.

Ag Hall/Lynn Christoferrs











Woolens at the ready; for knitters, a cornucopia of prospects large or small.

Avocet B Cardigan

Man Hat

And Hey! We aren't the only ones to corner the market on potential. It can be had in every town and city, every berg and village.
There for the taking.
All you have to do is imagine.
Think about it.

It's breathtaking actually. Taking a first step at anything. Even everything you've ever done before has the possibility to be something new, something different, something better.

Or worse, lol.

Do me a favor, will you?
Just think about it...

I think I'll close the doors a bit. Lol.


Autumn Traffic Load :)


Have a crisp, Fall New One. :)






* An aside... the first american pencils were allegedly created right here in New England! Who knew?! Yep, Concord, MA cabinetmaker William Monroe carved out the first ones in 1812.

**Another aside... ever wonder why yellow? Early manufacturers wanted a way to show that their pencils contained the finest graphite available - from China. And in China yellow symbolizes respect and royalty, hence a "regal" product.)





2 comments:

  1. Wow..... what an awesome post, you have awakened the senses here, it may not be as nippy, but fall is in the air... thanks Julie!

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  2. Wish I had put more wool-related info in lol, but Fall Has Arrived on the Island!

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