Thanksgiving Fades.......

There is a French proverb that says, "Autumn is the hush before winter...."

On the weekend, my colleagues and I enjoyed an overnight retreat in the village of Haliburton, Ontario. This country hamlet weaves itself around a few lakes and rivers and is nestled close to the southern most border of the Great Canadian Shield.

Granite rocks are evident through out the hills and vales of Haliburton. A mix of birch, maple and cedar forests compete with the cottage properties in the area for their place along the shoreline of area lakes.

I was in fact visiting at this lovely cottage on the south shore of Drag Lake just outside the boundaries of Haliburton village, belonging to my teaching buddy Susan and her husband Ry. Susan graciously extends invitations to the girls she worked with, to visit her lakeside retreat annually. The last time we visited, spring was busy warming up to summer. This time, fall was fading fast and so chilly, wet blustery days kept us indoors most of the time.

We did venture out on a shopping expedition on Saturday. The quaint shops of the village were decorated in autumnal themes.

Haliburton is a well known centre for fine art, with indoor and outdoor galleries and exhibits, a college that offers courses in all sorts of creative expressions and then there are the local residents of the recent past, who made well documented contributions to the Canadian Art scene. Ethel Curry of Curry's Art Supply for one, had ties to the Group of Seven and is known through most of southern Ontario. Many shops we visited sold works from local artisans and early Christmas shopping began in ernest. We had fun looking for sales and items not easily located in the malls and the big box stores back home in the city.

I woke up an hour earlier than the other guests Sunday morning and I used my time to explore the woods and nearby lakefront with my camera. Inspired by my blogging friend Reya, I tried to emulate her eye for interesting views and textures. I liked these shots her work inspired.

These leaves were perched high on branches and shone in the crimson and gold light of the Thanksgiving sun last weekend. Now they lie in layers..... fading fast, on the ground.

A puddle full of colorful leaves along the cottage road, reflecting the empty tree from whence the leaves fell.

A sudden splash of morning sun lights up the left side of this peeling bark, birch tree.

This quiet, mid-autumn landscape boasts few of the golden colors of the warm summer and early fall. It speaks instead of a quiet place, whose burnt russets and mixed grey tones sit sleepily waiting, ready to be tucked.... in a gentle way, by the soft, floating blanket of early winter snows.

When the wild goose called out to me, I tried to spot his location but he was too well camouflaged to snap a photo. When the pileated woodpecker knocked on a nearby tree, my camera was packed in it's case and the bird found a hiding place obscured from my lens. When the young doe bounded across the road home, just ahead of my vehicle, the camera was packed away in a tight, cranny of the car's trunk. I am confident my photography can only improve, especially if I keep the camera with me and ready to run.

For this blog I wanted to include a version of "Simple Gifts" and the best you tube had to offer in my opinion, is from Obama's Inauguration. Although it is from Copland's Appalachian Spring, it reminds me of Thanksgiving. I like to listen to the music at this time of year. Enjoy it with me.... and look at the pics once again while you listen.