Sunday, November 14, 2010

Fading Glory

The Burning Bush is still aflame 
Against the ash-gray  trees.
An oak flings its gold against the sky. . .
A young beech clings to yellow leaves . . .
But across the river, on wooded slopes,
The colors fade and die.


In elegant French, thanks to Miss Yves

Gloire pâlissante

Le Buisson ardent est encore en feu
Contre les arbres gris -cendré

Un chêne jette son or aux cieux
Un jeune hêtre s'accroche aux feuilles

Mais de l'autre côté de la rivière sur les pentes boisées
Les couleurs se fanent et meurent
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22 comments:

Suz said...

the burning bush...mother nature's last hoorah I think...but what a hoorah....simply beautiful.. these last fling days of autumn
actually took my breath away.. a few trees in the sunlight

Victoria said...

Beautiful photos, and the words convey perfectly the particular melancholy that comes with Autumn.

Marilyn & Jeff said...

Your burning bush is glorious, your photos and words really show me your autumn.

Martin said...

Yes, the burning bush really does stand out in against the grey backdrop. We've woken up to heavy mists this morning. Looking forward to the mellow fruitfulness!

Miss_Yves said...

Beautiful colours!
I'll come back to translate your poems!
Rouen is the town where Joan of Arc was burnt.

Pat in east TN said...

It seems like our leaves/fall colors disappeared quickly, yet the burning bush (I have three) lingers on with it's beauty, shedding its leaves ever so slowly.

BB said...

That's the part of autumn that I always hated to see. The bleakness meant cold and snow was here to stay for awhile. Boo hoo.

Brian Miller said...

thanks for the view vicki...still got quite a bit of the color up here...but soon enough....

Kathryn Magendie said...

Read your great review in ACT! Your book sounds intriguing, Vicki. Also, you and I were on similar paths with our books - though they are quite differnt, there are things that are "familiar' too - I think that's so cool when writers have almost a "collective conscious" - even if in different genres or subjects and characters, etc...

wishing you great luck and success with your new book venture! Can't wait to read it.

gayle said...

Fall seems to be gone in a blink of the eye. I use to have a beautiful drive to work in the fall. Trees lined both sides of the highway and were so pretty. Now all that's left are shopping centers. So sad!
Love your pictures!

jennyfreckles said...

Gale force winds have stripped most of our trees this week. Your photos are lovely (as usual) - those red leaves against the grey look stunning.

Vicki Lane said...

The few bright leaves that remain are all the more beautiful for being surrounded by the gray-brown of the trees that have already shed their leaves.

We're having the mellow fruitfulness right now, Martin, but rain's in the forecast for next week.

And congratulations, Kat, on your latest book! I look forward to reading SWEETIE!

Pame Recetas said...

Beautiful, nature needs to rest.

Gwen in Hampton said...

Beautiful picture of the burning bush and highly appropriate for a Sunday. Here on the coast of Virginia, we are having our peak right now. This year I've noticed a preponderance of deep maroons, reds and oranges but not so many intense yellows.(Very Virginia Tech!) Is it me, or do some seasons tend to highlight certain colors more than others?

Friko said...

a lovely poem you have written here.

Bernie said...

And a "new normal" begins.....Hugs

Unknown said...

Such gorgeous colours of late autumn and here it is all greens. Love the burning bush.

Merisi said...

Gorgeous images,
even this time of the year!

It's the same here, trees grow barer by the hour while the grass looks greener than before, thanks to a spell of late Indian Summer. This morning, though, fog shrouded the trees, stayed til noon and then returned to keep us company through the night.

I had my first glimpse of ..... *psssssst*

Inger said...

Here in my California canyon, nature does not put on such a display. But I'm having fun looking at blog photos of all the gorgeous colors around the country.

Vicki Lane said...

Pamela -- I expect the rest is good for our eyes too so that Spring's beauty will be all the more spectacular after the muted tones of Winter.

Gwen, I expect that there's some scientific explanation for it. We didn't have as many brilliant reds as in other years.

Isn't travel by blog great, Canyon Girl? I enjoyed checking out your part of the world!

NCmountainwoman said...

Ah, but not all glory is fading. That Vicki Lane is still rising. Nice article in the Citizen/Times about Small Things.

Miss_Yves said...

Gloire pâlissante

Le Buisson ardent est encore en feu
Contre les arbres gris -cendré

Un chêne jette son or aux cieux
Un jeune hêtre s'accroche aux feuilles

Mais de l'autre côté de la rivière sur les pentes boisées
Les couleurs se fanent et meurent