A favorite memory of mine is a sight that delighted me years ago as I was walking down our lane in the countryside of NY. It was autumn, the leaves were at their peak of color change, and a little breeze came wafting along to send a cluster of the goldest leaves out of a tree a ways ahead. Just as the leaves fluttered one-by-one to the ground, they rose back up again - fluttering one by one out of their pile and back up to their tree... Or so it seemed, but indeed it was a little flock of goldfinches...
Autumn is beautiful..,even herein Portand we have so many beautiful trees now, full of color. It is a true celebration to take our children out on leaf gathering journeys...appreciating how the trees are so different in the gems they offer us. Mr. sue has had our girls, and so many of his students, spending long moments craning necks, looking up, waiting for a leaf to fall..then running here and there under it, anticipating its descent--for if you catch a leaf, it is good luck for a year...!
Our family has gathered leaves each autumn and brought them home, and then waxed them to preserve them to place around the table candle or string on thread to hang over doors or simply lay here and there on side tables and nature corners, or pin them to a straw wreath to hang on the front door. Once waxed, leaves won't wrinkle, and they keep their color for such a long time - only slowly turning brown to suit the grays of latest November...
If you would like to try waxing leaves, just put some wax, (I love beeswax, but parrafin will do), in a shallow pan, (a cake pan works well), and heat the wax over simmering water in a bigger pan. When it is melted, dip the leaves by holding their stems and laying them in the wax. Let them drip a moment over the wax, then lay them out on newspaper for a few minutes. Just a few leaves tucked here and there really transforms a home into an make your house an Autumn celebration....
Autumn is beautiful..,even herein Portand we have so many beautiful trees now, full of color. It is a true celebration to take our children out on leaf gathering journeys...appreciating how the trees are so different in the gems they offer us. Mr. sue has had our girls, and so many of his students, spending long moments craning necks, looking up, waiting for a leaf to fall..then running here and there under it, anticipating its descent--for if you catch a leaf, it is good luck for a year...!
Our family has gathered leaves each autumn and brought them home, and then waxed them to preserve them to place around the table candle or string on thread to hang over doors or simply lay here and there on side tables and nature corners, or pin them to a straw wreath to hang on the front door. Once waxed, leaves won't wrinkle, and they keep their color for such a long time - only slowly turning brown to suit the grays of latest November...
If you would like to try waxing leaves, just put some wax, (I love beeswax, but parrafin will do), in a shallow pan, (a cake pan works well), and heat the wax over simmering water in a bigger pan. When it is melted, dip the leaves by holding their stems and laying them in the wax. Let them drip a moment over the wax, then lay them out on newspaper for a few minutes. Just a few leaves tucked here and there really transforms a home into an make your house an Autumn celebration....
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