Another Season

Canvas off,  poles coming
down......

I have in the past few years started looking at the passing of time in different ways.  I rarely wear a watch, time is not important when being creative in the studio.  Oh yes, I still must be aware of appointments and what time my grand daughters are getting off the bus, I have my smartphone to keep track of this for me.  It will signal me well ahead of the appointed time and I am usually startled with the beeps and chirps when my phone suddenly brings me back to reality.

I also find that the calendar on the wall is often months behind.  I just took down a 2010 calendar that was stuck on May.  Again my smartphone has a calendar and I try to keep track of my life in this little mini computer I carry in my pocket. 

I know that the seasons come and go, I prefer to look outside in nature at the signs that changes are happening, not at a calendar, even with it's pretty pictures.  I know the way the spring colors change from bright green to a dark rich green that summer has arrived.  I know when plants begin to wilt from the heat, it is high summer and you can see fall creep into the world one colored leaf at a time.  We don't need calendars to follow the seasons, we need to be in touch with the little changes, it becomes as familiar as taking the next breath. 

November full moon.....

Fall has come and is nearly gone.  With this time of year I know that Tipi Season is over too.  The nights become clear and crisp, the winds pick up and a fire that was nice on a cool summer night is now necessary if you want to keep warm in late fall. 

The past two weeks, I have spent as many nights as possible in the tipi.  I have had wonderful company during a couple of those nights.  A time to have ceremony, play flutes, to drum, to hear songs, to enjoy laughter with friends and feel the heat from a warm fire.  Full moons, shooting stars, coyotes howling and owls hooting.  Coping with wind and adjusting flaps, door open or door closed, still it was good and fall was in the air.  One night it began to rain, I went out to adjust the tipi flaps and heard deer snorting not too far away.  What a gift to be so close to the earth and hear and feel it's life around you.

afternoon campfire

My tipi lodge had its' last campfire, a ceremony of gratitude was performed and the dogs and I had a short nap in the afternoon late, mid November.   My wonderful husband and son decided it was a good day to take down the tipi.  And so now the pasture is empty, the tipi is stored away in a dry place for the winter.  I await the signs of late spring, green grass, the end of spring storms and bright sunny days.  Then the tipi lodge will again be raised and will welcome awaiting friends around the fire once again.