Beach Path

Beach Path
Originally uploaded by linfrye

Daily Practice
Journal

As I drove northward to my home yesterday, and especially when I turned into our gravel road, I was a bit astonished to see how far toward fall everything looked. Sycamores and tulip poplars were shedding yellow leaves, sumacs were forming pink/brown fruits, and some of the summer shrubs, like my butterfly bushes, were beginning to show a thinning--all pointing toward the turn of the season. We're at least 6-8 weeks from the fall color we usually see in October and most vividly in November, but change is definitely in the air and in the landscape.

I painted this beach path last weekend - falling in love with the shadows and that changing light that indicates 'end of summer.' Though we never made it to the ocean this year, memories of all the years I raised my children on the beaches of South Carolina were with me as I painted from a photo reference. Our paths to the Atlantic didn't have as much shade as this view, but the abundance of vegetation, all seeming to thrive in nothing but sand, was always an amazing sight to me. Live oaks draped with Spanish Moss, hints of blue water, and swaying grasses were all part of the 'beach experience' for my family and me.

I must say, today especially, with the fatigue of the week in my eyes and shoulders, rain from Hurricane Bill on the way, and cooler temperatures expected .... the memories of those 'beach days' are a wonderful walk ....

Stay well.