In the Northern Wood

I was up last night again, all night.There were lights threading through the trees of the forest and I couldn’t help but watch them blink through the tall, strong trunks of the birch and aspen.The pine trees rattled their cones in an invisible wind and these tiny lights flashed and glowed among the fronds.It’s beautiful.It’s…

I took Skobeth out into the yard today and we laid out on a big plush blanket under the impossibly blue sky.I watched this little cat chase butterflies and trap crawling bugs and my heart filled with love at the delight and whimsy of her actions.Barbie is still missing, I can see Paul from a…

Barbie has disappeared again – I’m not sure what to do about that.I stopped in at the store to ask Bess about it, but she just rang through my groceries and gently advised me to mind my own business.I don’t mind being corrected by friends and neighbours, but I followed a giant chicken foot into…

I followed that giant chicken foot into the thick underbrush the best I could, but to be honest I just couldn’t keep up.Whatever giant bird was attached to that thing knew the woods so well that it was impossible to maintain pace and it seemed to just slide through the foliage like it didn’t even…

I walked in the woods for a long time today, leaving just before dawn so that I could watch the dawn sun creep up and filter through the leaves and glow up among the roots and moss of the forest floor.Just before noon I heard a large creature in the thicket scrabbling and digging –…

Skobath went outside today, just darted out the door between my feet when I opened the door.She made it to the end of the front step and stopped abruptly when faced with the great expanse of the yard and meadow.She’s come with me to a number of events in town, but always securely in my…

Summer seems to have arrived in The Northern Woods, with barely a hint of Spring ever happening.I looked out the big picture window this morning and saw the meadow full of honeysuckle, lupins and thistle… bees and other flying insect bumbled drowsily around and birds dove in and out of the tall grass.The day rippled…

Bess came by this morning with fresh bread and some raspberry stalks – dirt clinging to their roots with a thick loamy smell that took me right into the depths of the forest.Her two eldest immediately commandeered Skobath to the back room where the three of them spotted red birds in the woods before their…

Today was the Strawberry Festival and when I drove to town I was surprised to find the main road completely blocked off on both sides.Paul walked one end of the closure in a indistinct uniform of mossy green, a sash across his chest festooned with ribbons and large woolen strawberries – I think the man…

The full moon ritual seemed more packed than usual for June. Maybe it was the Strawberry Moon and maybe it was the advent of the upcoming festival.There seemed to be all the usual faces there to take the waters, but then there was also a group of younger folks lounging around the forest in clumps.…