#310: Winter
The Gulf Stream swings by Nantucket
so we don’t get as much cold or snow as America.
We do still have winter.
David and I took a walk through
Tupancy Links Conservation Lands.
The brush is richly brown and red.
It looks warm but there’s a cold, stiff breeze
off the ocean.
White capped waves erode the dunes.
Houses huddle together for company.
Sadly, 80 percent of them are empty,
a downside of being a resort island.
Those of us still here enjoy the sunsets
and the companionship of the other 20 percent.
#304: Between
The woods near our house are home
to a large colony of turkey vultures.
They live between land and sky.
I love to watch them ride the thermals,
so effortless, so beautiful.
Yet up close…yuck, songless, baldheaded carrion eaters.
What a contrast between nearby and soaring high!
Another between, a scallop opener in our shanty,
his knife between the muscle and the shell.
There is no way to convey in a still picture how fast
a good shucker can be.
One more…
The Killens’ floating Christmas tree, which
always reminds me of Bruce Killen, who died before his time.
We live between time and eternity,
never knowing when we’ll be called home.
#299: Nantucket Scrabble Queen
It’s not me.
#293: Celestial Celebrations
When you’re on a flat island
the skyscape is inescapable.
Every sky celebrates God’s gifts:
Low dark clouds celebrate rain to come.
High clouds celebrate space and light.
The sun breaking through celebrates redemption.
And the night sky?
She celebrates the Light shining in darkness.
#288: Sermon Haiku #21: Isaiah 9:2-7
Stumbling in darkness
Suddenly, sunbursts of light
The people can see
The yoke is shattered
‘For the LORD and for Gideon’
Just like the old days
For to us a child is born
The coming King, a baby
What will He be called?
He was named Jesus
Light shining forth from shadow
Showing God’s glory
Darkness cannot stand.
#281: Photogenic Breakfast
My usual breakfast is oatmeal.
Oatmeal does not fit in with my
‘appreciation of God’s beauty’ theme.
The actual grain is lovely but not the breakfast goo.
Here’s my photogenic morning:
Gather eggs from under this russett hen.
Her nesting box used to be a speaker cabinet.
Wash and display eggs.
Beauty is food for the soul.
Use eggs to make waffles with the waffler,
being careful not to overfill lest the stove require cleaning.
There’s no beauty in a sticky stove.
#276: Hanging spoons from your face…
It might just be us, but hanging spoons
from our faces is a definite Nantucket winter activity
in this house.
First, get the spoon damp.
Apply a slight downward pressure.
Too much!
Voila!
Oh yeah, then make a funny face.
#275: Everyday Wonders
Day before yesterday we had
a full, double rainbow over the island.
I was just leaving work and there it was.
I called home to tell the kids and they
went out on the roof for the best view.
Rainbows lift you right up, don’t they?
Anyway, as I didn’t have my camera on me,
Click Here for Dr. Hinson’s picture of the rainbow.
You don’t have to wait for a rainbow
to wonder at beauty,
grass has its charms.
As do the tiniest asters,
And red sumac against the sky.
#269: A Strong Tower-with windows
Windows let you see in and out.
In ancient times they were small, and deep;
a potential weak point in a wall.
But necessary, one had to be able to see,
and breathe.
With high windows to the North, South, East and West.
There were four levels, reached by ladders, inside.
In fact, you couldn’t even get in without a ladder–
the door is 12.5 feet up from the ground.
One can imagine the monks and students
fleeing to the tower when the Vikings came rampaging.
The story of Rapunzel becomes plausible.
And this proverb:
The name of the Lord is a strong tower,
the righteous run to it and are safe.
Nantucket’s towers have 360 degree windows:
To shine into the night,
warning of treacherous shoals.
And to show the way home.
#263: Things hidden
Nearly half of Nantucket is under some sort of conservation.
As in, can’t be built on, ever.
This makes for lots of secret, wild places:
In Quidnet
And Sconset
Everywhere.
Nantucket is an explorer’s dream.
My favorite?
My favorite?
The dwarf caves
and
mermaid pools
in the maples of Squam Swamp.
nantuckettiechic 